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Nick Parkinson
After fighting himself out of a £800,000 debt, Hamzah Sheeraz is now targeting bigger riches in world middleweight title fights.
The in-form English middleweight challenges for his first world title against WBC champion Carlos Adames, from the Dominican Republic, at Kingdom Arena on a Riyadh Season event in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
Adames vs. Sheeraz is part of the latest stacked card to be staged in Saudi Arabia and bankrolled by the deep pockets of Riyadh Season and Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority who is the matchmaker for big events in Riyadh. The undisputed world light heavyweight title fight between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol is top of the bill.
Sheeraz (21-0, 17 KOs) has risen to the elite level of the middleweight division while stopping his last 15 opponents. In his last fight, Sheeraz destroyed Tyler Denny in two rounds for the European crown on a Riyadh Season event held at Wembley Stadium, London, England, in September.
The earnings from Sheeraz’s last fight enabled him to pay off the £800,000 debut he owed his family for backing his boxing career.
“I can’t thank His Excellency [Alalshikh] enough because he has changed the landscape of boxing and it has helped me get out of the debt I was in,” Sheeraz told ESPN.
“If it wasn’t for that I would be in debt for another two or three years. I cleared it after my last fight. It was about £800,000 to my family, for training and travelling expenses. It was a big hit but if you believe in your vision and your journey there’s no reason why you can’t achieve your aims.”
Six-foot-three Sheeraz, 25, who is from Ilford in east London, needed the money to pay for his travelling, accommodation and training fees after deciding to be based with trainer Ricky Funez at the Tengoose Boxing Gym in Los Angeles.
“I’ve been with Ricky for four or five years and this is our tenth training camp together,” Sheeraz told ESPN.
“I teamed up with Ricky after he came over to the UK and we were introduced through a mutual friend. I did a training session which really went well, I learned a lot from that two-hour session and I decided to make the move to California to be trained by him full time.
“It’s not easy being away from home for so much but I have become accustomed to it. My friends and family understand the task at hand and when it comes to being from birthday parties and religious festivals, it’s just something I’ve got to do for the next few years, they understand.
“Some great fighters have trained there in the past and Joe Goosen is always there. It’s nice to have someone like him for reassurance and advice too.”
Sheeraz, whose dad Kamran played cricket for Gloucestershire, has been a lot more active than Adames (24-1, 18 KOs), 30, who failed to shine in a first defence versus 37-year-old Terrell Gausha in June, his only outing in 2024. Sheeraz stopped Liam Williams, Austin Williams and Tyler Denny last year, which he believes was perfect preparation for his big opportunity.
“Adames has not been very active but he’s a champion for a reason and he can bang so it’s not an easy fight, but I would rather have it this way than get an easy fight and people say you were gifted the title,” Sheeraz told ESPN.
“Frank Warren specialises in developing young fighters like myself and I didn’t turn professional after the best amateur career either. But he has shown belief in me and got the fights at the right time of my career, just like this one is.”
One fight that could be on the agenda in the next year is against English rival Chris Eubank Jr., who faces Conor Benn on April 26. Eubank Jr. is ranked highly: one place below Sheeraz in the WBC rankings.
“If he [Eubank] wins his next fight and I win my next fight, it makes for a big summer fight,” Sheeraz told ESPN. “Let us see what happens, he’s a character and gets a lot of attention but I think Conor is going to win.”
Sheeraz arrived in Saudi Arabia after spending two weeks training in Dubai, following his California training camp. He has been promoted since his professional debut in September 2017 by Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions. Warren believes Sheeraz is challenging for his first world title after proving he was ready with a masterful 11th-round stoppage win over “Ammo” Williams in June. Sheeraz laned 134 punches to Williams’ 73, and dropped the American with a right hook in Round 10 before forcing the stoppage a round later.
“A couple of fights ago I thought he was ready [for a world title fight] but I wanted him to get a bit more experience,” Warren said.
“In the 5 vs. 5 [vs. Williams], he got caught with a couple of good shots and he got through that. He can fight and he can fight on the inside. This is his moment and he has to go and show what he is all about.
“He’s had some really good performances and I feel he can come through this but he’s in with a quality fighter.”
Growing up, Sheeraz’s favourite boxers were Ricky Hatton and Naseem Hamed. Both British boxers had big fan bases for their exciting knockout style. Sheeraz has the potential to do the same.