Hamzah Sheeraz | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Muhammad Hamzah Sheeraz 25 May 1999 |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Light-middleweight Middleweight |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
| Reach | 75 in (191 cm) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record [1] | |
| Total fights | 21 |
| Wins | 21 |
| Wins by KO | 17 |
Muhammad Hamzah Sheeraz (born 25 May 1999) is a British-Pakistani professional boxer. He has held the Commonwealth middleweight title since 2022.
Sheeraz was born on 25 May 1999 in Ilford in London, England into a British Pakistani family of athletes from his father's side. [2] [3] Sheeraz’s paternal family originates from the village of Matore, in the Kahuta Tehsil, located in Rawalpindi District of Punjab, Pakistan, and his father was a cricketer who played for Gloucestershire. [4] His paternal grandfather and uncle were both boxers, the latter winning ten national amateur titles for the Slough and Pinewood Star clubs. [5] His mother is Indian and Sheeraz considers himself to be a Muslim. [6]
I never set sights of being an Olympian, going to world amateur championships, this-that-and the other, it’s difficult to explain but I just didn’t have that much interest in it. The professional game and winning pro titles is just so much more appealing to me.
—Sheeraz discussing his motivations for turning pro early [7]
Sheeraz was first directed to a gym by his uncle at the age of eight and had his first bout at 12. [8] He went on to become a three-time finalist at the national junior championships. [3] However, he became disillusioned with the sport after being overlooked for the Commonwealth Youth championships and took a year off to focus on an electrician's apprenticeship. [5] A meeting with his then-trainer Lenny Butcher led him to come back and try his hand as a professional. [3]
Sheeraz turned professional in 2017, signing a deal with Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions on his eighteenth birthday. [9] He made his pro debut on 16 September 2017 on the undercard of the Billy Joe Saunders–Willie Monroe Jr. world title fight at the Copper Box Arena in London. He defeated 35-year-old journeyman Duane Green via technical knockout (TKO) in the second round for his first victory. [10] [11] By the beginning of 2019 he was sporting a 6–0 record. He dropped Rod Douglas Jr. three times en route to a first-round TKO in March before stopping Ladislav Nemeth in the second round of their April bout at Wembley Arena. [12] He registered his third-straight TKO victory on 13 July, beating Scott James in under two minutes on the undercard of the Daniel Dubois–Nathan Gorman British heavyweight title fight at The O2 Arena in London. [13]
On 30 November 2019, Sheeraz defeated "Ruthless" Ryan Kelly (14–2, 7 KO) by sixth-round TKO for the vacant WBO European junior-middleweight title. Late in the sixth round of their fight at Arena Birmingham, he dropped his opponent with a straight right hand. Kelly got up but was forced back onto the ropes as Sheeraz threw a barrage of punches that he was not able to overcome. The referee stopped the fight with two seconds left in the round, giving Sheeraz his first title belt as a professional. [4] [14] The win also moved him into the top 15 in the WBO rankings. [15]
He retained his title with stoppage wins over Paul Kean on 10 July 2020, [16] Guido Nicolas Pitto on 28 November 2020. [17] and Ezequiel Gurria on 24 July 2021 [18]
Sheeraz defended his title for a fourth and final time against Bradley Skeete at the Copper Box Arena in London on 4 December 2021 winning the fight by stoppage in the ninth-round of a controversial contest which saw him docked a point in round eight for punching Skeete while he was on the canvas after being knocked down. [19] [20]
The UK Boxing Writers' Club voted Sheeraz as their 2021 Young Boxer of the Year. [21]
Following the Skeete fight, Sheeraz vacated his title and moved up weight divisions for his next contest which saw him defeat Jez Smith by stoppage in the second round at Wembley Arena in London on 19 March 2022 to claim the vacant WBC International Silver middleweight title. [22]
On 16 July 2022, he stopped Argentina's Francisco Emanuel Torres in the fifth-round at the Copper Box Arena to win the vacant WBC Silver middleweight title. [23]
Sheeraz then closed out his 2022 campaign by defending his title and adding the vacant Commonwealth middleweight belt to his growing collection of championships thanks to a second-round stoppage success over River Wilson-Bent at The O2 Arena on 26 November. [24] [25]
Previously unbeaten Dmytro Mytrofanov was next to fall victim to Sheeraz's punching power as he was knocked out in round two of their bout in Poland on 26 August 2023. [26]
He made even shorter work of opponent Liam Williams in his next contest knocking out the Welshman in round one at the Copper Box Arena on 10 February 2024. [27]
On June 1, 2024 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Sheeraz dominated Austin Williams in an 11th-round TKO to win the WBC middleweight title eliminator as the captain of Queensberry promotions in the 5vs5 event. [28] [29] [30]
On September 21, 2024 in London, England, Sheeraz defeated Tyler Denny by TKO in the second round to win European, Commonwealth and WBC "Silver" middleweight titles. [31] [32]
In November 2024, Sheeraz vacated his European title ahead of a planned world title fight. [33] [34]
| 21 fights | 21 wins | 0 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 17 | 0 |
| By decision | 4 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Tyler Denny | TKO | 2 (12), 2:05 | 21 Sep 2024 | Wembley Stadium, London, England | Retained WBC Silver and Commonwealth middleweight titles; Won European middleweight title |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Austin Williams | TKO | 11 (12), 0:45 | 1 Jun 2024 | Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Retained WBC Silver middleweight title |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Liam Williams | TKO | 1 (12), 2:36 | 10 Feb 2024 | Copper Box Arena, London, England | Retained WBC Silver and Commonwealth middleweight titles |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Dmytro Mytrofanov | TKO | 2 (12), 0:35 | 26 Aug 2023 | Stadion Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland | Retained WBC Silver middleweight title |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | River Wilson-Bent | TKO | 2 (12), 2:55 | 26 Nov 2022 | The O2 Arena, London, England | Retained WBC Silver middleweight title; Won vacant Commonwealth middleweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Francisco Emanuel Torres | TKO | 5 (12), 1:56 | 16 Jul 2022 | Copper Box Arena, London, England | Won vacant WBC Silver middleweight title |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Jez Smith | TKO | 2 (10), 0:38 | 19 Mar 2022 | Wembley Arena, London, England | Won vacant WBC International Silver middleweight title |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Bradley Skeete | TKO | 9 (10), 0:58 | 4 Dec 2021 | Copper Box Arena, London, England | Retained WBO European light-middleweight title |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Ezequiel Gurria | TKO | 5 (10), 2:23 | 24 Jul 2021 | Wembley Arena, London, England | Retained WBO European light-middleweight title |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Guido Nicolás Pitto | TKO | 10 (10), 1:11 | 28 Nov 2020 | Church House, London, England | Retained WBO European light-middleweight title |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Paul Kean | RTD | 6 (10), 3:00 | 10 Jul 2020 | BT Sport Studio, London, England | Retained WBO European light-middleweight title |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Ryan Kelly | TKO | 6 (10), 2:58 | 30 Nov 2019 | Arena Birmingham, Birmingham, England | Won vacant WBO European light-middleweight title |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Scott James | TKO | 1 (8), 1:32 | 13 Jul 2019 | The O2 Arena, London, England | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Ladislav Nemeth | TKO | 2 (6), 1:05 | 27 Apr 2019 | Wembley Arena, London, England | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Rod Douglas Jr. | TKO | 1 (6), 1:10 | 8 Mar 2019 | Royal Albert Hall, London, England | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Jordan Grannum | PTS | 6 | 15 Dec 2018 | Brentwood Centre, Brentwood, England | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Zygimantas Butkevicius | PTS | 4 | 20 Oct 2018 | Brentwood Centre, Brentwood, England | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Miguel Aguilar | PTS | 4 | 13 Jul 2018 | York Hall, London, England | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Chris Jenkinson | KO | 1 (4), 1:57 | 6 Apr 2018 | Thistle Hotel, London, England | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Christian Hoskin-Gomez | PTS | 4 | 24 Feb 2018 | York Hall, London, England | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Duane Green | TKO | 2 (4), 1:28 | 16 Sep 2017 | Copper Box Arena, London, England |
Paul Williams is an American former professional boxer who competed from 2000 to 2012. He held the WBO welterweight title twice between 2007 and 2008, the WBO interim junior middleweight title in 2008, and challenged once for the unified middleweight title in 2010. Nicknamed "The Punisher", and standing at a height of 6 feet 2 inches, Williams was unusually tall for the three divisions in which he competed. His career was cut short in 2012 after a motorcycle accident left him paralyzed from the waist down.
Sakio Bika is a Cameroonian-born Australian professional boxer. He held the WBC super-middleweight title from 2013 to 2014, and previously the IBO super-middleweight title from 2008 to 2010. In 2015 he challenged once for the unified light-heavyweight world title, and in 2007 won the third season of The Contender reality TV series.
Artur Asilbekovich Beterbiev is a Russian and Canadian professional boxer. He has held the undisputed championship in the light-heavyweight division since October 2024, as well as the Ring magazine and International Boxing Organization (IBO) titles.
Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán, commonly known as Canelo or Saúl Álvarez, is a Mexican professional boxer. He has held multiple world championships in four weight classes from light middleweight to light heavyweight, including unified titles in three of those weight classes and lineal titles in two. In 2021, Álvarez became the first and only boxer in history to become the undisputed champion at super middleweight, holding this distinction until July 2024. He has also held the Ring magazine super middleweight title since 2020.
Gilberto Ramírez Sánchez is a Mexican professional boxer who is a two division world champion. He has held the World Boxing Association (WBA) cruiserweight title since March 2024. He previously held the WBO super middleweight title from 2016 to 2019, and is the first boxer from Mexico to win a major world title in those weight classes. As of April 2024, Ramírez is ranked as the world's best active cruiserweight by BoxRec, sixth by The Ring magazine, and seventh by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board.
Jermell DeAvante Charlo is an American professional boxer. He held the undisputed light middleweight championship from 2022 to 2023 and The Ring light middleweight title from 2020 to 2024.
Liam Mark Smith is a British professional boxer. He held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) light-middleweight title from 2015 to 2016. At regional level, he has held multiple light-middleweight championships, including the British and Commonwealth titles between 2012 and 2015.
Liam Williams is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 2011 to 2024. He has challenged once for the WBO interim light-middleweight title in 2017, and once for the WBO middleweight title in 2021. At regional level, he has held multiple championships, including the Commonwealth light-middleweight title from 2014 to 2015; the British light-middleweight title from 2015 to 2016; and the British middleweight title from 2018 to 2020.
John Ryder is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2010 to 2024. He held an interim super-middleweight world title twice, and challenged twice for full world titles in that weight class, including the undisputed championship. At regional level, he challenged twice for the British middleweight title and once for the British super-middleweight title.
Bradley Skeete is a British professional boxer. He held the British welterweight title from 2016 to 2017 and the Commonwealth welterweight title in 2016.
Lawrence Okolie is a British professional boxer. He has held world championships in two weight classes, including the World Boxing Council (WBC) bridgerweight title from May 2024 to October 2024, and the World Boxing Organization (WBO) cruiserweight title from 2021 to 2023. At regional level, he held the Commonwealth title twice between 2018 and 2019; the British title from 2018 to 2019; and the European title in 2019.
Anthony Yarde is a British professional boxer. He challenged for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) light-heavyweight title in 2019, and for the unified World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and WBO titles in 2023. At regional level, he held the Commonwealth light-heavyweight title between 2021 and 2022.
Anthony David Benavidez is an American professional boxer. He has held the World Boxing Council (WBC) interim light heavyweight title since June 2024, having previously held the WBC super middleweight title twice between 2017 and 2020. Claiming his first title at 20 years, eight months, three weeks and one day old, Benavidez holds the record as the youngest super middleweight title holder in history. He is ranked second by The Ring magazine, second by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and fourth by BoxRec.
Timofei Konstantinovich Tszyu is an Australian professional boxer who held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior-middleweight title from 2023 to 2024. He is the son of former light-welterweight world champion of boxing, Kostya Tszyu and older brother of Nikita Tszyu.
Jaime Aarón Munguía Escobedo is a Mexican professional boxer. He held the WBO junior middleweight title from 2018 to 2019.
Junto Nakatani is a Japanese professional boxer. He has held world championships in three weight classes, including the World Boxing Organization (WBO) flyweight title from 2020 to 2022, the World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior-bantamweight title in 2023, and the World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight title since February 2024.
Sebastian Alexander Fundora is an American professional boxer and unified light middleweight champion who has held the World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) titles since March 2024. As of July 2024, he is ranked as the best active light middleweight by The Ring magazine.
Boxing in the 2020s is a list of notable fights and events in boxing during the decade from the year 2020 to 2029.
Sam Noakes is an English professional boxer who holds the British, Commonwealth and European lightweight titles.
River Omari Wilson-Bent is a middleweight boxer who made his professional debut in 2018 and is known as "the Coventry Crusader".
Sheeraz's dad is of Pakistani heritage and his mum of Indian background. "So you can call me the peacemaker," he jokes.