Kingsley Ibeh believes God has saved Fabio Wardley twice.
Ibeh fights this Saturday against Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The bout will support the WBO junior welterweight title fight between current belt holder Teofimo Lopez Jnr and WBC lightweight titleholder Shakur Stevenson.
Ibeh, 16-2-1 (14 KOs), is hoping to reemerge on a major stage when he faces Miller. He is hopeful a victory at boxing’s mecca will lead to a big 2026, one that includes sharing a ring with WBA heavyweight titleholder Fabio Wardley.
“Fabio Wardley, I believe, has been saved by God twice,” Ibeh told BoxingScene. “We have almost crossed paths twice.
“I want to show you more than I can tell you. After we get Miller out of the way, hopefully [Wardley] doesn’t keep getting saved. He is definitely one I want to fight.”
The origin story of Ibeh’s boxing career couldn’t have been scripted. A life insurance salesman, Ibeh went to a gym to try to sell policies. A coach expected him to earn his time there, so he arranged for Ibeh to spar with a fighter. Wearing dress pants, Ibeh knocked him out. Most fighters start young, work through the amateur system and put in years of toil to carve out even a small space in professional boxing. Ibeh came by his career purely by accident.
A native of Nigeria now living in Phoenix, Ibeh took one amateur fight, beat a former national champion, then went pro. Within his first year of boxing, he fought 2016 Olympian Guido Vianello to a draw. In 2021, he was knocked out by another “Big Baby,” Jared Anderson. Since that loss, Ibeh has won 11 fights. Those close to him compare Ibeh to famed heavyweight puncher Earnie Shavers and claim that opponents are avoiding him. Now 32, Ibeh is a veteran hoping to live up to that lofty talk when he faces the 37-year-old Miller.
“I expect him to be [Oleksandr] Usyk, I expect him to be the best fighter,” Ibeh said. “I am going to go out there and dominate.”
Before boxing, Ibeh played soccer, then went on to play college football, which led him to the practice squad for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. Ibeh views a win against Miller as not just a path to Wardley but also as a way to give back.
“Our main goal is to provide more water, wells and libraries in Nigeria,” Ibeh said. “We have been wanting platforms like this, to be able to make a statement.”
Miller, 26-1-2 (22 KOs), hasn’t fought since an August 2024 draw with former unified titleholder Andy Ruiz. That came on the heels of a knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in 2023. But Miller’s career is overshadowed more by what hasn’t happened than what has. In 2019, he was set to face Anthony Joshua when an adverse drug test finding made him ineligible for the fight. Instead, Ruiz stepped in and knocked out Joshua to become a cultural icon, while Miller, of Brooklyn, New York, is still looking for his big moment.
The Ibeh-Miller battle will see two of the biggest heavyweight contenders collide. Miller has weighed in above 300lbs since 2018, and Ibeh has weighed in around the 288lbs mark in each of his past two fights.
“It is about the fight in the dog,” Ibeh said. “I don’t care if he is 600lbs, I will put him down.”
Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.
