GENEROUSLY dubbed as the United Kingdom’s answer to Tommy Hearns, Hamzah Sheeraz has been awash with plaudits over the last 12 months, with many British fight fans backing the middleweight to breakout as a superstar in the near future.
Having impressed on two ‘Riyadh Season’ cards during 2024, Sheeraz now faces a true acid test at the peak of the 160lb division, as he gears up for a tough title challenge against WBC champion Carlos Adames for the coveted green and gold middleweight strap.
A towering frame, savage power and a willingness to exchange, it’s easy to see why comparisons between Sheeraz and Hearns were drawn last year, as a trifecta of wins saw the 25-year-old extend his eye-catching knockout streak to 15 straight wins inside the distance.
First, Sheeraz disposed of former world title challenger Liam Williams within the opening-round of their February meeting, before stopping Ammo Williams on the ‘Matchroom vs. Queensberry; 5vs5’ card in June, putting an end to the American’s 16-fight unbeaten record.
In September, the Slough boxer fought on the biggest stage of all, taking on in-form European champion Tyler Denny in the co-main event at Wembley Stadium. Once again Sheeraz took his chance to impress, requiring just two rounds to put an end to Denny’s momentum and title reign.
Since then, Sheeraz, 21-0 (17 KOs), has been calling for a shot at unified WBO & IBF champion Janibek Alimkhanuly, 16-0 (11 KOs), but instead he has opted for the WBC route, hoping to tee up a mammoth title unification or possible undisputed title clash later in the year. However, the man in his way is no easy prey.
Carlos Adames, 24-1 (18 KOs), has also been demanding a clash with Janibek in recent years, after being widely considered as the second-best fighter at the weight by many fans in what had been considered as a relatively uncrowded division, until Sheeraz brought new life to the scene.
The Dominican halted Mexican knockout artist Juan Macias Montiel in a battle for the WBC interim title in 2022 and defended the belt against former unified super-welterweight champion Julian Williams the following year, patiently awaiting the return of then full WBC title-holder Jermall Charlo, who had not defended his marble since 2021.
In May 2024, Charlo was finally stripped of the belt and Adames was upgraded to full-fledged world champion and would go on to win his first world title fight the month after, outpointing Terrell Gausha in a scrappy affair.
Worth proven as a champion, Adames now has the chance to stamp his authority on the division and emerge as a serious threat to Alimkhanuly by putting an end to Sheeraz’s run and the hype that surrounds the Brit at present.
Putting the hard-to-watch fight with Gausha aside, Adames can be expected to dare to exchange with Sheeraz and may well meet his taller rival in the centre of the ring, willing to fight in the pocket rather than deal with the challenger’s long levers at range.
More calculated with his aggression than any of Sheeraz’s prior opponents, Adames comfortably represents the most difficult contest in his career to date and is more than capable of pulling off what would have to be considered as an upset, despite stepping through the ropes as the champion.
Yet, if Sheeraz is the fighter that many believe him to be, or even half of what Tommy Hearns was, another statement knockout may be around the corner and Britain could soon boast a new world champion.
