Jack Catterall will be joined by a pair of former titlists also in search of a return to the win column.
Matchroom has confirmed the additions of Joe Cordina and Skye Nicolson to its July 5 show from AO Arena in Manchester, England. Cordina and Nicolson will both appear for the first time since the end of their respective title reigns.
Cordina, 17-1 (9 KOs), will face Mexico’ Jaret Gonzalez, 17-1 (13 KOs), in his return to the lightweight division.
The 33-year-old Welshman has not fought since an eighth-round stoppage by Anthony Cacace in May 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He suffered his lone career defeat, and also the end of his second reign as IBF junior-lightweight titlist.
His near 14-month ring absence was hardly by design. Cordina was previously due to challenge for Shakur Stevenson’s WBC lightweight title in October in Riyadh. The fight was scrapped when Stevenson suffered an injury that required surgery.
That development overlapped with the end of a previous promotional contract between Cordina and Matchroom. As previously reported by BoxingScene, the two sides are back on the same page and expected to enter a two-fight deal.
While Cordina’s return comes with a move up in weight, Australia’s Nicolson, 12-1 (1 KO), will head in the opposite direction.
The 2020 Olympic quarter-finalist and former WBC featherweight titlist will campaign at junior featherweight, at least for the time being. She will ease into her new division, because her placement on the July 5 show will come in an eight-rounder at a contracted limit of 124lbs.
An opponent was not yet named for the 29-year-old southpaw, who aims to quickly rebound from her only pro defeat. Nicolson conceded her WBC 126lbs title to Tiara Brown via split decision in March in Sydney.
That setback ended her near year-long stay as a titlist – a reign that included decisive wins over the former titlist Sarah Mahfoud and the previously unbeaten Raven Chapman.
Nicolson declared almost immediately after her loss to Brown that she will seek a new start at junior featherweight. A win on July 5 is expected to lead to a shot at a second divisional title.
The above-mentioned promotion is topped by a 12-round domestic clash between Chorley’s Catterall, 30-2 (13 KOs), and Brighton’s Harlem Eubank, 21-0 (9 KOs). Catterall – a former title challenger – moves up in weight after his previous run as a top junior-welterweight contender ended with a narrow points loss to Arnold Barboza Jnr on February 15 at the nearby Co-op Live Arena.
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on X and Instagram.
