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Buatsi v Hutchinson 2 - all you need to know
Joshua Buatsi holds up his thumb and is holding the WBA International light-heavyweight title. Willy Hutchinson is holding up his fists and wearing a bucket hat
Joshua Buatsi (left) has picked up 13 of his 20 wins by knockout

British rivals Joshua Buatsi and Willy Hutchinson meet in a rematch for the vacant WBC light-heavyweight title at AO Arena in Manchester on Saturday.

Buatsi, 33, beat Hutchinson by split-decision in a highly entertaining encounter when the pair fought at Wembley Stadium in September 2024.

Will Buatsi earn a repeat result to claim the WBC strap? Or will Hutchinson earn revenge?

Meanwhile, former cruiserweight world champion Chris Billam-Smith headlines against fellow Briton Cheavon Clarke on a card at London's Copper Box Arena.

All you need to know about the two cards is here.

How to follow Buatsi v Hutchinson 2 on the BBC

You can also follow the action through fight week on BBC Sport via the 5 Live Boxing podcast.

What time are the ringwalks for Buatsi v Hutchinson 2 & Billam-Smith v Clarke?

All timings are estimated and subject to change.

Buatsi v Hutchinson undercard & running order

  • Brad Rea v Ezra Taylor (light-heavyweight)

  • Zak Miller v Gully Powar (featherweight)

  • Jack Turner v Andres Gregorio (super-flyweight)

  • John Joe Carrigan v TBC (super-middleweight)

  • Stephen Clarke v TBC (super-middleweight)

Billam-Smith v Clarke undercard & running order

  • Denzel Bentley v Shane Mosley Jr (middleweight)

  • Damazion Vanhouter v Ivan Balaz (heavyweight)

  • Sam Hickey v Troy Coleman (middleweight)

  • Kayla Allen v Julia Igel (light-welterweight)

  • Lucas Roehrig v Connal McDonald (cruiserweight)

Buatsi v Hutchinson 2 fight week schedule

(all times GMT)

Billam-Smith v Clarke fight week schedule

How do Buatsi and Hutchinson's records compare?

Buatsi and Hutchinson made their professional debuts just three months apart in 2017 and have amassed strikingly similar records.

After catching the eye by winning bronze for Team GB at the 2016 Olympics, Buatsi won his first 19 fights in the professional ranks, collecting 13 victories by knockout.

He won the WBO interim light-heavyweight title with a split-decision win over Hutchinson before suffering his one and only defeat against Smith in February 2025.

A majority-decision victory over Parker in November 2025 improved Buatsi's record to 20-1 and put him back on track to challenge for a world title.

Hutchinson enjoyed a 13-fight win streak to begin his professional career but fell to a first defeat when facing Lennox Clarke for the vacant British and Commonwealth super-middleweight titles in 2021.

He rebuilt with five successive victories before losing to Buatsi on the undercard of Daniel Dubois v Anthony Joshua at Wembley.

Following victories over Mark Jeffers and Ezra Taylor, Hutchinson holds a record of 20 wins and two defeats, earning 14 of those by stoppage.

What belts are on the line in Buatsi v Hutchinson 2?

Buatsi and Hutchinson fight for the WBC light-heavyweight belt after American David Benavidez moved up to cruiserweight and vacated.

Russia's Dmitry Bivol is the WBA, WBO and IBF light-heavyweight champion and puts those three belts on the line against Briton Callum Smith in Yekaterinburg on 12 December.

What happened in the first fight?

The first fight took place on the undercard of Dubois' stunning stoppage win over Joshua to retain his IBF heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium in September 2025.

Buatsi and Hutchinson set the tone for a fine night of boxing at the national stadium - meeting in the middle and refusing to take a step back.

Hutchinson started strongly but suffered a cut to the side of his right eye following a clash of heads in the fifth round.

Buatsi scored his first of two knockdowns in round six, landing a clean right, before Hutchinson was deducted a point in the seventh for use of the head.

Trailing on the scorecards, Hutchinson threw caution to the wind but went down again in the ninth following a body shot.

Hutchinson beat the count and made it to the final bell with one judge scoring it 113-112 in his favour, but the other two judges' cards read 117–108 and 115–110 for Buatsi.

Buatsi landed 264 of the 600 punches he threw, with 191 of 380 power punches finding their target.

Hutchinson had a slightly lower output with 209 of 566 punches landing and 157 of his attempted 385 power punches connecting.

How do Billam-Smith and Clarke compare?

Billam-Smith and Clarke first met as amateurs in 2016 with the latter coming out on top in the ABA Championships final.

Jamaican-born Briton Clarke went on to enjoy further success as an amateur, winning a silver medal at the 2017 European Championships and claiming bronze at the Commonwealth Games in 2018.

Clarke, 35, also represented Team GB at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 but did not take home a medal and turned professional in 2022.

He won his first 10 professional contests, stopping seven opponents along the way, and earning the British cruiserweight title, but fell to his first loss against Leonardo Mosquea in 2024.

Clarke lost the British title in his next bout when he ended up on the wrong side of a decision against Viddal Riley.

Back-to-back victories have breathed new life into Clarke's career since, taking his record to 12 wins and two defeats, but Billam-Smith looks set to pose a stern test.

Billam-Smith also has two losses on his professional record - winning 22 of his 24 contests - but has competed at a higher level.

The 36-year-old reigned as European and Commonwealth champion before beating Lawrence Okolie to become WBO cruiserweight world champion in 2023.

He made two successful defences, including victory over Richard Riakporhe - who he had lost to in 2019 - but lost the title to Gilberto Ramirez when attempting to unify in 2024.

Billam-Smith, who has ambitions to return to world level, has won his last two fights.

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