May’s five best fights.
As we enter into the final days of April, we will naturally be looking at what the month of May has in store for us. And as far as boxing is concerned, we are set to be absolutely spoilt.
The fifth month of the year is scheduled to be the most stacked of the 2026 boxing calendar so far, and it has an argument for being the most stacked month of boxing for quite some time.
From all-out action fights to world-level showdowns and long-awaited matchups at the very pinnacle of the sport, the month of May is absolutely bursting at the seams with brilliant action.
Because of this, it is difficult to single it all down to just five entries, but that’s precisely what we’ll be doing here today.
A few years from now, we may well be looking back on the month coming up as one of the best we ever experienced as fight fans. Let us tell you all exactly why that is.
Here are the five best fights coming up in the month of May.
5. O’Shaquie Foster vs. Raymond Ford: The 30th of May.
Starting off at the very end of the month, this super-featherweight pairing sees an all-American affair between O’Shaquie ‘Ice Water’ Foster (24-3, 12 KOs) and Raymond ‘Savage’ Ford (18-1-1, 8 KOs).
In this fight, Foster will be looking to make the first successful defence in his second reign as WBC champion, the first having ended after a very controversial (and avenged) loss to Robson Conceicao.
Last time out, Foster shone up at lightweight, totally outboxing two-division champion Stephen Fulton to win the WBC interim title.
Ford, on the other hand, is the former WBA featherweight champion who moved up following a decision loss to Nick Ball. Since then, he has put together three wins at his new poundage, with each performance outdoing the other.
Both men have taken part in entertaining affairs, and both have also come from behind on the cards to stop their opponent in the very final round. Against each other, they may well be competing for the title of the best fighter at 130 pounds.
4. Conah Walker vs. Sam Eggington: The 2nd of May.
This is the only fight on this list that won’t be contested for a major world title, but it could end up being the absolute best in terms of pure action.
Conah ‘The Wolf’ Walker (17-3-1, 8 KOs) squares off against Sam ‘The Savage’ Eggington (36-9, 20 KOs) in a tear-up between two of the best action fighters in all of Britain.
Both Walker and Eggington promise nothing but absolute war when they enter the ring, and between them, it is very likely they could produce something akin to nuclear fallout.
It could possibly prove to make for some very gruelling viewing, but that’s exactly the type of fight both men thrive in. Here, however, one must fall.
Promoter Sam Jones even stated on social media that in the near-decade he has been putting fights together, Walker vs. Eggington is up there with one of the best he’s ever made.
It may not have much international appeal, but this bout can only mean violence.
3. David Benavidez vs. Gilberto Ramírez: The 2nd of May.
This Cinco de Mayo sizzler sees a cruiserweight contest between two men who have fought as low as super-middleweight.
Two-division champion David ‘The Mexican Monster’ Benavidez (31-0, 25 KOs) looks to hold a title in a third weight class as he goes up against Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramírez (48-1, 30 KOs) for the latter’s WBA and WBO belts.
Both are former titleholders at 168 pounds who also had forays in the light-heavyweight class. While Ramírez lost to the best in his title tilt against Dmitry Bivol, Benavidez held and defended the WBC title after Bivol vacated it.
Each standing over 6 feet tall, cruiserweight is the far more fitting division for the respective operators, and their styles are expected to make this encounter an absolute scorcher.
Showdowns between Mexicans and Mexican-Americans almost never disappoint, especially around Mexican holidays. This should be no exception.
2. Fabio Wardley vs. Daniel Dubois: The 9th of May.
When this fight was made, the entire boxing world knew exactly what type of brutality it promised, and everybody couldn’t help but smile and laugh nervously.
Fabio Wardley (20-0-1, 19 KOs) will be making the first defence of his WBO heavyweight strap against Daniel ‘Dynamite’ Dubois (22-3, 21 KOs).
All-British heavyweight fights have proven to be special in the past. All-British heavyweight title fights are a rare commodity, and this one might just be the best of them all.
Both Wardley and Dubois are big men with one-punch power, and if you are even a little bit familiar with either of them, you will also be struggling to imagine a scenario where they don’t collide to produce a colossal explosion.
Dubois has held a heavyweight title before and successfully defended it, but Wardley possesses the type of toughness and tenacity that one can only be born with.
In terms of pure spectacle, pure carnage, pure viciousness, Wardley vs. Dubois could have the most lasting impression of any fight of the year, let alone of the month.
1. Naoya Inoue vs. Junto Nakatani: The 2nd of May.
If you can catch all three fights that take place on the 2nd of May, you could be in for the best single day of boxing in years. But if you want to witness history over guaranteed action, this is the one you most certainly do not want to miss.
In the biggest all-Japanese fight in history, Naoya ‘The Monster’ Inoue (32-0, 27 KOs) will be making the 7th consecutive defence of his undisputed super-bantamweight championship against Junto Nakatani (32-0, 24 KOs).
Every single 122-pound marble will be on the line, and it sees a four-division champion (Inoue) against a three-division champion (Nakatani), with both occupying spaces in the top ten of the pound-for-pound list.
There isn’t much more to be said about such a monumentally huge clash. Both combatants are murderous punchers with astounding technical skill, and they are the two best active fighters from all of Japan.
This is the type of elite viewing that only comes around once every few generations, and everybody will want to be able to say that they were there to see it as it happened.
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