This past Saturday, unbeaten super featherweight Joe Cordina retweeted a report from NoSmokeBoxing claiming that he’d challenge IBF champion Kenichi Ogawa “in early June” at Cardiff’s Motorsport Arena.
Cordina (14-0, 8 KO), who went 1-1 at the 2016 Olympic Games, sits at #3 in the rankings behind Shavkatzhdon Rakhimov and Zelfa Barrett. He enjoyed a solid string of wins from 2018-2019 that saw him win and defend the British title, including a decision over then-unbeaten Gavin Gwynne, but wound up missing all of 2020 before returning to form with a 3-0 2021.
Ogawa (26-1-1, 18 KO) represents a considerable step up in class. He’s undefeated since 2013, and though his later-overturned title victory over Tevin Farmer was more than a little questionable, he proved his championship bona fides last time out with a very strong performance against Azinga Fuzile.
If Cordina emerges victorious, a clash with Barrett could be one of the biggest all-UK fights of the year. Easier said than done, of course.