5 BEST Men’s Boxing Fights in 2026 SO FAR

We’re only a few months into 2026, but we’ve already bore witness to some truly scintillating fights in the world of boxing. Late comebacks, surprise wins, white-knuckle brawls – so far, 2026 has seen it all.

We’re probably being a little pre-emptive with this one, but with so many great fights to pick from, why not? We’ll only be looking at men’s fights in this list – we’ll do a separate list for women’s boxing shortly down the line.

As a quick disclaimer, we won’t be including William Crolla vs Glenn Byrne in this list. It was a fantastic fight, but we feel it would be in bad taste given the health issues Byrne experienced as a result of the knockout. He has since been forced to retire – we don’t want to celebrate something like that.

Brad Pauls vs Shakiel Thompson

Going into this one, Brad Pauls was seen as little more than a stepping stone for Shakiel Thompson. Having a record of 21-2, however, perhaps audiences shoudn’t have been so quick to write off the ‘Newquay Bomb’.

An intriguing, tactical contest, Pauls was effectively closing the distance using clever footwork and feints. Thompson was generally controlling the action, though – when working from long range, he was landing some spiteful looping shots that forced Pauls to shell up.

Behind on the scorecards in the ninth round, Pauls caught Thompson with a massive left hand that sent him crashing to the canvas. Thompson could not recover from this – Pauls followed up with tenacious aggression, dropping the Sheffield man once again to force a stoppage.

David Spilmont vs Jordan Thompson

An all-action Heavyweight scrap, Jordan Thompson was expected to blow David Splimont away in the pre-fight festivities, but the aging Frenchman had other ideas. Thompson landed heavy shots throughout the contest, slowly draining his own gas tank – Spilmont, for all the punishment he absorbed, was much fresher going into the later rounds.

Spilmont unleashed a fearful onslaught upon Thompson in the sixth round – the Englishman survived the round, but only just. Continuing his relentless assault into the seventh round, Splimont was caught by Thompson, who forced him to take a knee – it looked to be over, but Spilmont was simply leading him into a false sense of security.

Spilmont uncorked a brutal combination on an exhausted Thompson’s head whilst he was against the ropes. Thompson’s corner desperately cried ‘HOLD HIM!’ but it was too late – he collapsed on the canvas in a heap, giving Spilmont the upset win.

Leli Buttigieg vs Jake Goodwin

One of the most brutal fights in recent memory, Leli Buttigieg had to find a shot from the heavens to rescue victory from the jaws of defeat against Jake Goodwin.

This was an ugly brawl, but it was endlessly entertaining. The punch stats were off the charts, as both fighters remained incredibly busy throughout the fight. Buttigieg’s mouthpiece appeared to be improperly fitted, leading to two points deductions – as a result, he was behind on the cards going into the penultimate round.

Out of nowhere, Buttigieg detonated an almighty right hand on Goodwin’s chin that left him in a heap on the mat. Goodwin had a wry smile on his face as he failed to make the count – he knew he was beaten, but likely also knew that he’d been involved in a war that no-one in attendance would ever forget.

Dalton Smith vs Subriel Matias

Few results in recent memory were as sweet as this. Prior to Dalton Smith and Subriel Matias’ clash, Matias had tested positive for a banned substance. This did not deter Smith – instead, he looked to punish the Puerto Rican in a no-quarter performance for the ages.

A natural boxer-puncher, Smith abandoned all reason and took Matias on in a head-down, all-action barn-burner. In theory, this would have suited Matias – especially when his ingestion of Ostarine (a supplement to increase muscle mass) is taken into consideration.

Smith had to absorb some heavy shots, but ultimately outgunned his opponent. After five grueling rounds, Smith dropped Matias, prompting the referee to stop the contest. In doing so, Smith won the first – but likely not the last – world title in his professional career.

Brandon Figueroa vs Nick Ball

Without a shadow of a doubt, Brandon Figueroa vs Nick Ball was the most dramatic contest in boxing in the year of 2026 thus far. The ‘Heartbreaker’ lived up to his name – he broke the heart of every Liverpudlian in attendance that night.

In a razor-thin contest where both men landed damaging blows, the fight was on a knife edge going into the final round. All of a sudden, Figueroa caught ball with an counter left hand that left Ball face-first on the floor. Somehow, Ball beat the count, but the fight was over by this point.

Following up with a fearful barrage of shots, Figueroa knocked Ball out of the ring to secure a dramatic win. There was drama after the bell, as Ball’s corner took issue with Figueroa’s team’s exuberant celebrations – but after a win like that, who can blame them?