Fabio Wardley: I Have Another Level But Frazer Clarke Has No ‘New Tricks’
British heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley insists he has another level but doesn’t believe rival Frazer Clarke will show any improvements in their rematch next month.
Wardley (17-0-1 16 KO) and Clarke (8-0-1 6 KO) meet for an immediate rematch on October 12 on the undercard of the undisputed light-heavyweight between unified champion Artur Beterbiev and WBA title holder Dimitrii Bivol in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The rematch comes immediately after their first bout seven months ago in London when Wardley and Clarke contested one of the most thrilling heavyweight bouts in British boxing history.
In a full demonstration of clashing styles, the raw and powerful Wardley looked strong during the first half of the fight and sent Clarke to the canvas in the fifth round. However, the more skillful Clarke came on in the second half and outboxed the champion to earn a deserved draw.
While Wardley is the more experienced professional, Clarke is the far more experienced boxer following a stellar amateur career that culminated with a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Wardley, four years younger than Clarke at 29, took a very different path to the paid ranks, contesting just a handful of white-collar bouts before going pro.
As such, the Ipswich fighter believes he still has plenty of room for improvement while he is convinced Clarke has reached his ceiling.
Telling Sky Sports that he rated his performance as “probably a six, seven out of 10”, Wardley then said of Clarke: “I took Frazer to the absolute depths and the absolute best you could find of him. So do I think he’s got much more left in the tank? I don’t think he’s going to pull out too many more new tricks.
“I don’t think he’s got too many more of those in his locker. That pushed him to the brink, that fight pushed him to the edge. Me, I’m still young and fresh and I’m still learning in every fight. There’s a lot I took from that fight and there’s a lot I can carry into the next one.”
Every now and then, a draw in boxing can be immensely satisfying – a result that justifies an even contest and generates demand for a rematch. Clarke v Wardley checked all the boxes of a satisfying draw, but Wardley insists the second bout will not be going to the scorecards.
“We’ve watched the fight back, me and the team, over many times and there are a lot of little adjustments that need to be made. Nothing too heavy. I fought a pretty good fight. It wasn’t the best you’ve seen of me but I fought pretty well,” he said.
“But there’s some small adjustments we can make along the way. Overall I was relatively happy with my performance. I almost got him out of there a number of times and got him down. In certain moments I rushed it. So taking my time when I had him going and picking my shots a bit better. There’s some tweaks that need to be made but I think we’ll get the job done this time.”
