Reinventing the World Series of Boxing phenomenon: A review of the star-studded showcase
July 29th, 2024 / IBA
The World Series of Boxing (WSB) was launched in 2010, boasting 12 teams representing cities from around the globe.
Now, it will return in 2025, bigger and brighter than ever.
This epic relaunch of the new version and re-branding of the World Series of Boxing promises to bring the best amateur and professional boxers together in competition through teamwork and National Federation collaboration, the brand-new program aims to rise higher than ever before.
In previous editions of the WSB, team names were creative – none better than the great play on words of Istanbulls – with four different victors over eight years. In the latter years, the Cuba Domadores and Astana Arlans dominated, winning three titles each. A regional group stage was followed by a knockout tournament between teams as well as individual bouts between the top-ranked boxers with prize money and Olympic qualification spots on the line.
The initial run of the series ended in 2018, but the legacy of the World Series of Boxing can be found in its athletes. Future stars were born humbly in these tournaments, soon to become heroes of the sport.
Among the inaugural season boxers were France’s Tony Yoka, a fresh-faced 18-year-old who claimed victory on his debut a full six years before taking home the gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Ukrainian Sergiy Derevyanchenko was also an early star, winning 23 of his 24 World Series of Boxing bouts and only losing to Brian Castaño. Both would go on to have great professional careers. American Rau’shee Warren would go undefeated in the first season too, prior to his rise to the WBA and IBO bantamweight titles.
Above all, the 2012-13 season acted as a springboard for the incredible career of Oleksandr Usyk, the still-undefeated heavyweight professional boxer, regarded as one of the sport’s greats of the 21st century. Usyk, at time of writing, recently handed Tyson Fury his first professional defeat to win the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO, IBO and The Ring heavyweight titles.
Much like his professional career, Usyk was undefeated during the season for the Ukraine Otamans team, winning all six fights including by unanimous decision against Joe Joyce of the British Lionhearts, another renowned professional heavyweight and fellow Olympic medallist.
Joyce was part of a contingent of British and Irish boxers who competed for several teams, with the mostly homegrown British Lionhearts. Some of these boxers included Joe Cordina, the former IBF super-featherweight champion and 2015 European gold medallist, Josh Taylor, the former light-welterweight champion across several promotions: Tokyo 2020 gold medallist and undefeated professional Galal Yafai, WBC bridgerweight champion Lawrence Okolie and 2015 world champion Michael Conlan.
Prior to a change made by the country in 2022, the World Series of Boxing was the closest thing to professional boxing for Cuban boxers. It became a pathway for many of the nation’s brightest athletes including five-time world and two-time Olympic gold medallist Julio Cesar de la Cruz, who remains undefeated professionally to date. Robeisy Ramirez, also a two-time Olympic champion, has had a successful turn as the WBO featherweight champion during 2023. Roniel Iglesias, another double champion in London and Tokyo, was also part of the Cuba Domadores squad along with Arlen Lopez and Andy Cruz, the latter being a three-time world champion.
Established Americans Stephen Fulton – who recently held super bantamweight world titles, and former IBF super middleweight title holder Caleb Plant were part of the series, as was Denys Berinchyk from Ukraine, who holds the WBO lightweight title.
Olympic and world champions such as Robson Conceicao from Brazil and Janibek Alimkhanuly from Kazakhstan participated, as did Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk, Kazakhstan’s Aslanbek Shymbergenov, Uzbekistan’s duo Shakhobidin Zoirov and Hasanboy Dusmatov who all have success professional careers so far. Some still simultaneously compete under the IBA banner, such as France’s Sofiane Ouimha. He and Russia’s Pavel Sosulin now act as the bridge between the previous World Series of Boxing and the flourishing IBA Champions’ Night, with both boxers being part of IBA’s past and future.
Just when we thought we had to bid farewell to the World Series of Boxing, it returns with the same message at its heart: opportunity for boxers. The stars of tomorrow continue to excel professionally today; and the same path will exist for the future legends of our sport, ready to compete in 2025.
The new naming convention and branding will be released very soon.
