‘Lights Out’ – Joshua Buatsi vs Zach Parker headline bumper bill
Frank Warren showcases his talent at 175lbs
A light-heavyweight triple-header takes centre stage at the magnificent Co-op Live in Manchester on Saturday, 1 November, live worldwide on DAZN, on an occasion that will mark the Queensberry debut of Joshua Buatsi.
New signing Buatsi (19-1, 13 KOs) takes on another mighty domestic showdown against another Queensberry man in Zach Parker (26-1, 18 KOs), with both men looking to force their way closer towards world title contention.
Buatsi, 32, comes into the fight off the back of a strong fight of the year contender against Callum Smith in February over in Riyadh, where he was outpointed in a thriller, while Parker, 31, has put together four straight wins since injury forced him to retire in a WBO Interim world title fight against John Ryder at super middleweight at the end of 2022.
The European light-heavyweight title will be defended by Brad Rea – another Queensberry new signing – when he goes up against former world title challenger Lyndon Arthur in an all-Manchester showdown.
Rea (21-1, 10 KOs) won his Euro-honour last time out against Shakan Pitters, with Arthur (24-3, 16 KOs), who challenged Dmitrii Bivol in late 2023 for the WBA world title, lost out to forthcoming world title challenger Anthony Yarde in April.
Daniel Lapin, the WBO International and WBA Continental champion, will face another Brit in Manchester after successfully defending his titles against British champion Lewis Edmondson at Wembley Stadium in July.
Ukrainian southpaw Lapin (12-0, 4 KOs) will defend his belts against Troy Jones (12-1, 6 KOs) from Birmingham. The only defeat suffered by Jones came when himself and Ezra Taylor put their unbeaten records on the line in Nottingham back in May, with Taylor winning by decision.
“This will be a tremendous card and an amazing showcase for the light heavyweight division,” said promoter Frank Warren. “Our 175lbs contingent is so strong now that it made perfect sense to put a number of them on a major platform at the biggest and best Arena in Europe.
“Joshua Buatsi is probably only a fight or two away from challenging for a world title so it is important that he is tested, and he will be against Zach Parker, who is looking to make it big himself at light heavyweight and will see this as his opportunity to plant himself high in the rankings.
“The Manchester public are in for a treat with the Brad Rea vs Lyndon Arthur match-up, with them both being local boys wanting to put on a show. Brad is now with us here at Queensberry and going up against a former world title challenger gives him the opportunity to make a perfect statement of intent.
“I was very impressed with what I saw from Troy Jones last time out when he took on Ezra Taylor, so I am delighted to give him another showcase against the undefeated Daniel Lapin, who holds two international titles and is closing in on world title contention.”
There will be a full championship undercard full of up-and-coming fighters in the Queensberry stable to be announced over the next few weeks.
Tickets for ‘Lights Out’ go on sale at 11am on Wednesday, 20 August available from ticketmaster.co.uk.