Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke had their highly anticipated rematch last Saturday. The pairs first fight was an absolute barn burner being an action packed affair. Both men had a fair amount of success in the fight with Clarke being highly effective with his jab and uppercut. However, Wardley refused to passively accept being outboxed putting the pressure on Clarke throwing haymakers. Wardley hurt Clarke several times but was unable to get him out of there due to tiring himself out earlier. Ultimately the fight was ruled a draw which was a result no-one could really grumble at.
Given the indecisive result and the competitive nature of the first fight a rematch was inevitable. Then it was announced that the rematch would take place in Saudi on the Beterbiev vs Bivol card. This is likely due to Wardley impressing the last time he was on a Saudi show on the Fury vs Ngannou undercard. On that card he had an impressive showing against another British prospect David Adeleye getting a 7th round tko.
For the rematch Wardley weighed in at 241.5lbs and Clarke 271.25lbs.
Wardley vs Clarke 2
This fight was short and sweet with round one being the first and final round. Clarke started well looking to establish his jab which gave him a lot of success in the 1st fight. Clarke was doing a decent job of keeping Wardley away until towards the final minute. Wardley landed a massive right hand wobbling Clarke causing him to go towards the ropes.
Wardley chased him down landing hooks to the body. Clarke attempted to clinch and move from the cornerlanding an uppercut of his own. But, again Wardley landed his own massive shots. Wardley landed a left hand followed by two rights to put Clarke down. The first right hand making a visible dent on the side of Clarkes head.
Clarke landed on his knee with his jaw seemingly out of place. He attempted to get up but the referee waved it off. And Fabio Wardley wins the rematch with a devastating round 1 KO.
The Aftermath
This win for Wardley is the biggest of his career and continues the upwards trajectory of his career. Every test Wardley has faced he has passed with flying colours looking better with each step up in competition. And now with his win Wardley will be able to break onto the world stage.
Wardley is definitely ready for the bottom of the top 10-15 and there are many match ups to be made. Names such as Filip Hrgovic, Justis Huni, Otto Wallin, Jared Anderson, and Efe Ajagba make sense. Any of those names would be a good test to see if Wardley can hang at the world stage. And if he succeeds there he can work his way up the rankings.
For Frazer Clarke this is a big setback. Clarke will need time out after a knockout like that and has undergone surgery to repair his cheekbone and jaw. With the loss he is back to British level however there are fights that can be made. Clarke could face Joe Joyce, Moses Itauma, Johnny Fisher, or Derrick Chisora.
We shall see what lays in store for Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke in the future.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images