On Friday, in Manchester, thousands lined the streets to say goodbye to Ricky Hatton, the former two-weight world champion whose death at the age of 46 shocked the boxing world to its core last month. Just as they had followed him into battle throughout his career, Hatton’s loyal and heartbroken fans were also with him at the end, each of them desperate for him to know that his legacy would forever endure through their own memories of him.
The following day, 9,000 fans filled the Sheffield Arena to watch Dave Allen, a Doncaster heavyweight with a 24-7-2 record, fight a large Russian called Arslanbek Makhmudov. Though not a world-title fight, the bout between Allen and Makhmudov drew a significant crowd and a great deal of interest, and Allen, for one night, enjoyed a small sample of what the likes of Hatton got to experience time and time again.
He was offered this privilege not because Hatton’s funeral took place the day before but instead because he, Allen, shares something in common with the beloved “Hitman”. He, like Hatton, is a man of the people and a local hero. He, like Hatton, sells a refreshing and unusual amount of tickets. He, like Hatton, is popular.
Not to be confused with famous, popular – in 2025 – means something quite different.
There are, of course, plenty more famous fighters than Dave Allen in British boxing today, but few are either as popular or as loved. That’s why Allen can sell nine thousand tickets for a non-title heavyweight fight against a Russian whose name only a handful of fans in attendance could pronounce. That’s why some are suggesting Allen will soon return to the Sheffield Arena for another headline fight, despite losing against Makhmudov on Saturday.
Another thing popular at a time of simple pleasures and short attention spans is the old-fashioned top-10 list. There are, in a top-10 list, not just words but numbers, which makes for easy reading, and by design any half-decent list will provoke debate and disagreement, something essential for securing engagement and clicks.
So, with that in mind, here’s yet another one. This time, in a loose tribute to Ricky Hatton, we try to rank the 10 most popular fighters in Great Britain today.
10) Dave Allen, 24-8-2 (19 KOs)
Although Allen wasn’t able to conquer Arslanbek Makhmudov on Saturday night in Sheffield, the event itself turned out to be a rousing success for both Allen and its promoter. After all, in addition to playing his part in a mildly entertaining heavyweight scrap, Allen managed to draw 9,000 fans to the Sheffield Arena for what was, on paper, a fight between two heavyweights lagging well behind the chasing pack. In doing so Allen demonstrated once again the power of his personality and indeed his popularity. Afterwards he said “This isn’t the end – I’ll be back”, and it’s plain to see why he would be motivated to return, despite having lost for the eighth time as a pro.
9) Callum Simpson, 18-0 (13 KOs)
Callum Simpson has not yet boxed for a world title, yet has already amassed quite a following and reputation in his local habitat. For Simpson, that means Barnsley, where he often fights and where he finds no shortage of interest whenever he books an arena and an opponent. It was in Barnsley – at Barnsley Football Club’s Oakwell Stadium, no less – that Simpson won the British and Commonwealth super-middleweight titles against Zak Chelli in 2024, and he then returned to Oakwell to add the European title to his collection in the summer of 2025. Now imagine the kind of crowd he could attract if fighting at home, or close to home, with a world title at stake.
8) Johnny Fisher, 13-1 (11 KOs)
As with his friend, Dave Allen, one suspects a defeat for Johnny Fisher – which, ironically, he suffered against his friend back in May – will do little to dent his popularity, nor the fervour with which his fans follow him. In fact, there is a sense that Fisher needs his army of support more than ever if he is to rebound from that first pro loss to Allen and get his career back on track in 2026. With the help of their support and his father “Big John”, whose love of Chinese takeaways and the word “Bosh” has gained him a sizeable social media presence, Fisher has everything in place to still be the thing Matchroom, his promoter, claim he is: a throwback to a bygone era of ticket sellers and local heroes.
7) Leigh Wood, 28-4 (17 KOs)
Taking over from Carl Froch as Nottingham’s favourite son, Leigh Wood has had plenty of success at the Nottingham Arena – most notably in his 2022 “fight of the year” against Michael Conlan. There, he enjoys the same kind of noisy backing as Froch did during the latter part of his career and the Nottingham fans have been known to also travel with Wood to Manchester, where he avenged his loss against Mauricio Lara, and Sheffield, where he stopped Josh Warrington in seven rounds. More than just a local hero, and a Nottingham Forest fan, Wood happens to be one of the most consistently entertaining fighters in the country – which helps.
6) Chris Billam-Smith, 21-2 (13 KOs)
Like Ricky Hatton before him, much of Chris Billam-Smith’s popularity is a by-product of his association with his local football team: AFC Bournemouth. No casual, or fair-weather fan, Billam-Smith has supported his local team since childhood and even used to own a season ticket for a seat in the very stadium in which he won the WBO cruiserweight title from Lawrence Okolie in 2023. That night at Dean Court, or the Vitality Stadium, Billam-Smith would not be denied. He turned a seaside town hardly synonymous with boxing into a hub of big-fight energy. He has since then defended his title back in Bournemouth – against Mateusz Masternak – and also dragged some of his fans to Saudi Arabia, where he unfortunately lost his belt in a fight against Gilberto Ramirez in 2024.
5) Michael Conlan, 20-3 (10 KOs)
Since attracting thousands of Irish fans to Madison Square Garden, New York for his pro debut in 2017, Conlan has been loyally backed by a voracious fanbase wherever he goes. Whether it’s Brisbane or Belfast, or Manchester or Nottingham, Conlan has always been roared to the ring and is always able to rely on the support of his fans when times get tough. Last time out, against Jack Bateson, Conlan boxed in Dublin for the first time as a pro and his walk to the ring that night proved one of the most memorable of the year so far.
4) Josh Warrington, 32-4-1 (8 KOs)
If a fighter wants popularity in the UK, it often serves them well to be aligned with their local football team. In the case of Josh Warrington, that means Leeds United, a club whose fans are famously loud, loyal and likely to follow their team through thick and thin. Of Warrington, the team’s designated fighter, this is also true, with thousands packing out the First Direct Arena whenever he boxes in Leeds and even more filling Elland Road the night Warrington won the IBF featherweight title against Lee Selby in 2018.
3) Lewis Crocker, 22-0 (11 KOs)
IBF welterweight champion Crocker has fought at home in Belfast 16 times during his professional career, yet the true mark of his growth, both as a fighter and in terms of his popularity, has been evident this year. This year he has gone from fighting Paddy Donovan at the SSE Arena, an 8,000-capacity venue, in March to fighting Donovan, in the rematch, at Windsor Park, where the capacity is over 20,000. Both times Crocker had his hand raised, though the nature of the second win, in September, was far more satisfying than seeing Donovan disqualified seven months ago. Better yet, the second win over Donovan landed Crocker the IBF title, which Matchroom, his promoter, will be hoping he can defend in Belfast on a regular basis.
2) Derek Chisora, 36-13 (23 KOs)
Once considered the aggressive and truculent bad boy of the heavyweight division, Chisora has in recent years mellowed in his old age and found a new wave of popularity as a result. Despite having lost 16 of 49 pro fights, Chisora remains in demand/in contention on account of his always reliable fighting style – seek and destroy; relentless – and the all-round volatility which has made him a must-watch TV attraction. Even now, at the age of 41, Chisora has shown an ability to sell lots of tickets in British arenas and is, as he approaches his last-last dance, very much a cult hero of British boxing.
1) Anthony Joshua, 28-4 (25 KOs)
In a recent conversation with Matchroom Boxing chief executive Frank Smith, I was informed that Anthony Joshua is, in the context of British boxing stars, essentially a freak; an anomaly; the exception and not the rule. In other words, Joshua was destined to become a star from day one, whereas others, those not blessed with the same capacity to charm, or indeed an Olympic gold medal, are not quite so lucky. Joshua, too, has more than fulfilled his superstar potential, selling out venues like Wembley Stadium, the Principality Stadium, and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as well as numerous smaller arenas around the country. He might not have the same connection with fans as someone like Hatton, or be anywhere near as relatable and loved, but make no mistake: Anthony Joshua shifts tickets. In fact, there is still no bigger event in British boxing than an AJ fight.
Honourable mentions: Nick Ball, Dalton Smith, Pat Brown, Lauren Price, Natasha Jonas.
Elliot Worsell is a boxing writer whose byline first appeared in Boxing News magazine at the age of 17. He has, in the 20 years since, written for various publications, worked as press officer for two world heavyweight champions and won four first-place BWAA (Boxing Writers Association of America) awards. In addition to his boxing writing, Worsell has written about mixed martial arts for Fighters Only magazine and UFC.com, as well as worked as a publicist for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He has also written two non-fiction books, one of which, “Dog Rounds,” was shortlisted at the British Sports Book Awards in 2018.
