STEVEN Ward gets an unexpected title shot this Friday evening when he takes on Juergen Uldedaj in Dubai for the vacant IBF International cruiserweight strap. While the belt might be a little trinket-like, it does offer the winner a route closer to world-class.
If Ward, 14-2 (4 KOs), wins then that is quite the career turnaround for the Belfast man, considering he was ready to pack it in for good last year.
At the close of 2023, Ward had not been in the ring since December 2021 and many thought that the ‘Quiet Man’ had slipped into a silent retirement.
His last foray into the big time was enough to force anyone to consider their options. Boxing Kazakhstan puncher Kamshybek Kunkabayev in his backyard was tough enough for Steven, who suffered a horror slice above his eye and the bout was terminated. Going to the cards after seven rounds, all three judges had Kunkabayev ahead 70-62.
That effort for the vacant WBA Gold cruiserweight crown sent Ward into the treatment room and a two-year ring wilderness, where he kept sparring and training for a call that never came.
Eventually returning in the Ulster Hall on a late March Conlan Boxing show, Ward shut out Perry Howe over six rounds but looked understandably rusty and lacking timing.
That six rounds could be invaluable now that he has grabbed the comparatively short-notice fight in the impressively-titled Motospace Dubai Investment Park on July 19.
Opponent Uldedaj, a German-based Albanian, is 17-1 with only six knockouts. The 26-year-old’s sole loss came in the middle of a three-fight streak in England as he conceded an eight-round points decision on Howard Foster’s card to the unremarkable Benoit Hubner.
Ward will no doubt have taken note of that performance. Some would even go so far as to suggest that Ward is a bigger threat to Uldedaj (given the Newtownabbey man’s amateur and pro experience) than the original foe.
In April, Italy’s Claudio Squeo won the same fringe IBF title that Ward and Uldedaj now contest in Dubai. All set to defend it, the Puglia pugilist suffered an injury and Ward stepped in as a replacement at just two weeks’ notice to save the main event slot.
