“Where it was a close fight you’ve maybe answered them sort of questions,” Sam Noakes reflects on his WBO lightweight title fight with the revered Abdullah Mason. “‘Have you got a tough fight in you? Can you go down the stretch against a good opponent?’
“[But] you can’t really learn at that sort of pace – them world-title fights are a lot on instinct. The good thing is it shows that you can mix it with the good fighters, ‘cause it was a close fight, but [laughs] I just remember being so sore the next day, mate. But it was a good experience on the big stage, and if anything it’s made me that little bit more hungry to get back to it, and tick that world title off.”
It is on Sunday, at London’s York Hall against the little-known Mexican Benito Sanchez Garcia, that the 28-year-old Noakes will make his return from his first defeat – that which perhaps did more to enhance his reputation than any of the 17 victories and 15 knockouts that preceded it.
The contest between Noakes and Mason, 22 years old and long recognised as one of the world’s most promising young fighters, proved the most entertaining of the promotion in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in November that was shared by David Benavidez-Anthony Yarde, Brian Norman Jnr-Devin Haney, Jesse Rodriguez-Fernando Martinez and more. It is also little secret that Noakes, until then largely treated as an opponent for Mason, particularly caught the eye of none other than the influential Turki Alalshikh.
“It’s not even so much about being in pain, it’s just shit, innit?” Noakes continued, to BoxingScene. “‘Cause we had such a good week – and losing’s part of it, and someone’s gotta lose, but travelling home all deflated – it’s just not the ending we wanted. I was sore. My face – it’s definitely the most marked up I’ve been. You’re just sort of a bit downhearted about it, but we go again on the 3rd May and build back.
“It’s not a nice feeling when your best ain’t good enough, and we’ve gotta come back to the drawing board. Maybe, without the cut [caused by an accidental clash of heads in the third round], who knows? But credit to Abdullah Mason – [laughs] the kid can fight. He can fight, mate. We’ll dust ourselves off and go again. We come straight back in the gym; I’m not dwelling on it. I’m looking forward to getting back in there and blowing away the cobwebs and getting back to winning ways, really.
“I was a bit gutted. I did [cry] in the changing room. That’s part and parcel – it’s the long walk back, innit? You’re walking back – my old man [John] looked at me… oh, mate. We’ve been working towards it the last six, seven years, and to be that close n’all. But someone’s gotta lose, ain’t they?
“The thing is, I probably had it most my own way for my pro career. When you’re fighting as an amateur you’re having tough fight after tough fight. Them questions that are getting asked are always getting answered. You sort of get in contact with that dog, if you like. There’s times in that fight [against Mason] I was thinking ‘Cor, it was sore’, innit? We got through it and I don’t think I’m gonna come up against another Abdullah Mason for a little while, so that’s a nice thing.
“They pulled me over to talk to [Alalshikh], but listen, I wanted to – I was done, mate. ‘I’m going back to the changing room.’ I’d had enough. He just said ‘We’ll have you back again’. In an ideal world I’d go get another world title and then fight Abdullah Mason again for a unification, innit? I don’t think anyone’s going say they wouldn’t wanna see that fight again. But it’s a load of ifs and buts. I gotta go do what I gotta do first.”
How likely Queensberry Promotions-promoted fighters are to be rewarded by Alalshikh, following reports that Frank Warren is suing Alalshikh, remains unclear – “Regardless of relationships between promoters, money talks, innit? That’s the common denominator with that,” according to Noakes – but it is consistent with a career being guided by Warren that the return after the first defeat is lower key.
Noakes, alongside his gym-mate, the also Queensberry-promoted Henry Turner, is the highest-profile fighter involved in the Top Tier Boxing date that is less than a week before Queensberry oversee Fabio Wardley-Daniel Dubois, but it doesn’t trouble Noakes, nor his trainer Alan Smith, that he is not involved in Manchester the following weekend. The Englishman, instead, is content simply to be returning ahead of his second pursuit of a lightweight world title later in 2026.
“That’s up in Manchester – at least I’m down here [in London],” he said. “It means I can go and watch that one – I ain’t gotta worry about being on it. It’s only an eight-rounder [against the 25-year-old Garcia]. The plan of attack is get this one out the way, come through it looking good, and then go into a big fight in the summer, innit?
“How it was put to me was it was either this or don’t fight ’til the summer, and obviously it’d be nice to get a run out. Johnny puts a good show on the Top Tier; it’s just another fight at the end of the day. York Hall’s the same, so it don’t really bother me too much.
“I know I lost but it was a close fight. I ain’t got my arse absolutely handed to me and ended up being in a bad way. I was sore the next day but I didn’t get stopped or nothing like that. Sometimes, unfortunately, in life you lose, and the thing is someone’s got to. I ain’t dwelling on it. I’d have fought sooner if it’d come up. But straight into this one, straight into camp for the next one, and then hopefully have a good end to the year.
“Nothing’s confirmed but it’d be nice to [next] get a final eliminator for a world title. That’s what’s in mine and Al’s head – that’s what we wanna go for. Frank’s gonna be pushing it as well, innit? Depending on what everybody’s doing and who wins what; who’s got what at the time. There’s a lot of other things. But it’ll be a big fight whatever.
“I don’t feel no different to be honest with you, mate. It might have been [different] if I’d have won, but listen, I ain’t changed – I’m still doing the same thing I was doing before. Money was good, but I earned it, mate, do you know what I’m saying? Fingers crossed we can get a few more pay days like it.”
There was perhaps no one more confident in Noakes’ hopes of success against Mason than the respected Smith, once asked to train Moses Itauma, widely considered the most exciting young talent of them all.
The attitude of Smith, as balanced as he has perspective – he and Noakes have some traits in common – would have helped Noakes to recover from the disappointment of defeat and, in the event of victory and him becoming the iBox Gym in Kent’s sole reigning world champion, similarly ensured that his feet remain characteristically on the ground.
He recognises that Noakes endured a fight from which he will have learned and improved as well as left something of himself behind, and for all of his patience sees little need for Noakes not to challenge for another title again soon – as long as it is not that of the IBF, whose check weigh-in procedures would undermine one of a huge lightweight’s biggest strengths.
“It was an incredible fight, and incredible experience,” Smith told BoxingScene. “Abdullah Mason proved what level he’s at. I knew he was as good as that but I didn’t think he’d get to the end as good as that. But it also proved that Sam belongs there – he had to fight extremely hard. If you run into a champion you had to run into a kid on the way up as good as that. It was probably a 60-40 fight going into the fight, but I also knew that Sam had what it took – that he’s not just gonna roll over. Although losing isn’t great, how you lose matters the most.
“You can’t win in everything in life and losing’s where you learn, not winning. If he’d have won it’d have been fantastic for the gym and also for himself, but he done himself proud. When you put that much effort in, losing’s a little bit more digestible.
“That fight would have took something out of both of them. But it shows what you gotta do at the next level up. He’s ruled Britain; he’s ruled the Commonwealth; he’s ruled Europe [each as champion], and at world level he’s realised he’s gotta be that little bit better. There’s plenty of room for us to improve; for him. It’s just a real good test of where we will need to be.
“We’ve got a big fight lined up after this one. We can’t look past an eight-rounder, ‘cause they’re always tough; no one’s gonna give him an easy fight being ranked in the top five in the world by most governing bodies. We’ve got a big [fight] lined up hopefully at the end of July – hopefully a final eliminator for a world title, against a real good operator we can’t name at the moment. That puts him back in the mix again.
“He needs a run out. We need to someone tough; someone durable, whether he stops him or not, and it’s about getting him back to winning ways, for him mentally walking to the ring, and also, we need to get paid. Just waiting for them big paydays – you still need them middle ones in between to make sure that you’re able to sustain your lifestyle, and also your training camps.
“You have to be able to get back in there, and when you’re slightly older – he’s 28, Sam – you have to be as busy as you can. He needs to move on to another world title. It’s changing quickly – the geographic of the lightweight division has changed a little bit, and you’ve still got some great kids in there, but a slot will open up for him.
“Sam’s not got no ego. He realises that it’s a DAZN show – it’s still televised – and he’ll get back to winning ways without everyone looking at him. He’s a true professional; he’s not a prima donna.”
Skye Nicolson, who also fights out of Smith’s gym under the tutelage of Eddie Lam, defeated her fellow Australian Mariah Turner five days before Noakes’ return. Should the 25-year-old Henry Turner, rebuilding at welterweight following his defeat at junior welterweight by Jack Rafferty in 2024, defeat the Estonian Mark Andrejev, Turner, too, will walk into a big fight.
“Henry’s got a kid who’s quite tough; who’s quite a good amateur,” Smith explained. “He struggled at the end of the Jack Rafferty fight – very tight at the weight; no excuses, ‘cause I thought he was okay at the weight – but he died at round 10. I pulled him out and he’s now moved to welterweight. Since then he’s had all stoppages. Henry’s got a big fight again in July, one that I definitely think he wins – that’s a great fight. But he’s also gotta come through this one as well. Henry’s stayed a little bit busier. This will be a good warm-up to the big one, and then once he reaches there he can just move through the rankings. It will be a title fight.
“If you were to pick on ability in the gym, I’d stick him out before anyone. Ability wise; his amateur record; won everything, and he’s been here since he’s 18. He drives two-and-a-half hours to the gym; two-and-a-half hours home.
“It’d be good to get them both out, have a tiny bit of rest and move on to the next stage. Getting them out together; they’ve been running together; training together; pushing each other.”
It is therefore perhaps fitting that Turner and Noakes fight on the same evening instead of Noakes – who took a month out and spent Christmas in Thailand with his family before returning to the gym – being involved in Manchester, where Rafferty fights Ekow Essuman, also at 147lbs.
“I took a lot from it, maturity-wise,” the heavy-handed Turner told BoxingScene. “A lot of experience just from that fight alone. If I didn’t have that loss I probably wouldn’t be the fighter I am today. I’ve grown and learned so much since that fight; I’m 10 times better than what I was. It’s not nice to lose, but it’s done me good in the long run.
“I was up seven, eight rounds against someone who was 26-0. When the tide changed I done the best I could and it didn’t pay off. His maturity paid off and his experience, which I didn’t have.
“I’ll go wherever the best opportunity is now – my team will know what to do. Hopefully get them [the British and Commonwealth] titles; get the British and European, and then go on to world level. To get a run out before a big fight is what I need.
“When I fought Rafferty I was probably a little too big at the weight – but then so was he, so there’s no excuses weight-wise. But since moving up I’ve felt 10 times better; a lot stronger; a lot more energised in camp. Coming down that weight you get to the last couple of weeks and it was tiring. Now, I feel great.”
