Sam Noakes vs Denys Berinchyk

This is a good crossroads fight, not a confidence-builder. Sam Noakes meets former WBO champion Denys Berinchyk at London’s O2 Arena on August 29, and both are rebuilding after losing world-title fights. Noakes went 12 hard rounds with Abdullah Mason, losing on points. Berinchyk has not boxed since Keyshawn Davis folded him with body shots in February 2025.

Noakes is the younger, taller and heavier-handed man. He has stopped 16 of his 18 victims and applies clever pressure. Berinchyk has only nine stoppages in 19 wins, but do not confuse that with weakness. He is an awkward, educated operator who defeated Emanuel Navarrete for the vacant WBO title by changing rhythm, staying busy and making a two-weight world champion uncomfortable.

Noakes must jab his way in rather than marching forward square. Against Mason, he showed a great engine and plenty of intestinal fortitude, but he was caught too cleanly entering range. Berinchyk will use little shifts, feints and changes of angle to make him reach. The Ukrainian’s problem is downstairs. Davis exposed that badly, and at 38, after 18 months out, taking repeated hooks around the elbows from a strong pressure fighter is no picnic.

Berinchyk can nick early rounds and make Noakes look clumsy, but I cannot see him maintaining that movement once the Maidstone man starts leaning on him and banging the body. Noakes must remain patient, keep his feet underneath him and resist turning it into a brawl before the work has taken effect.

I’m taking Sam Noakes by stoppage in the second half of the fight. Berinchyk’s craft will keep him competitive, but Noakes’s youth, engine and body attack will eventually leave the former champion with nothing in the tank.