April's 5 best boxing fights: No, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury aren't No. 1
There are no April Fools’ Day pranks around here.
Sure, we could have filled a list of hilarious phoney fights including Frank Bruno vs. Jake Paul and Eddie Hall vs. Tommy Fury for engagement. But when it comes to boxing, fact is often stranger than fiction.
Wait … Hall vs. Fury is a goer?
I give up.
Let’s take a closer look at the best of the action in April.
5. Tyson Fury vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov, heavyweight, April 11
A Tyson Fury return to boxing is always going to be worth a watch, but after his — checks notes — fifth about-face back into the ring, this Netflix clash against Arslanbek Makhmudov only scrapes in the list at No. 5.
“The Gypsy King” hasn’t fought in the United Kingdom since besting his mate Derek Chisora in 2022. Since then, a disputed win over former UFC champion Francis Ngannou and two losses to Oleksandr Usyk have raised serious question marks over Fury’s standing in the heavyweight division.
There are still some paydays left for Fury, 37, if he navigates this period of his career sensibly, most notably against career-long rival Anthony Joshua. And on-paper Arslanbek Makhmudov looks like a sensible choice to get him back on the horse and in the headlines for the right reasons.
Makhmudov has become a familiar face in the United Kingdom after beating cult-hero David Allen last October, and his sizable frame and grizzly features will allow Netflix to tell a compelling story to the casual fan.
4. Andres Cortes vs. Eridson Garcia, lightweight, April 5
Zuffa Boxing has served up a pretty interesting main event at lightweight on its fifth official show.
Andres Cortes vs. Eridson Garcia may not have the bells, whistles and trinkets attached to it to make it simply “unmissable,” but when fights are evenly matched in this sport, then it’s hard to argue against them.
Cortes, 29, has been floating in and around the world title scene for a few years now without reeling in any weighty names to challenge. He has an unbeaten record of 24 wins and risks blowing this run up in smoke against an in-form challenger.
Garcia, 31, is on a six-fight winning streak after being blitzed and left staring at the ceiling by Jordan White in 2023, and has gathered good momentum in some wins over fringe contenders at 130 pounds.
But Zuffa being Zuffa means we are jumping up to lightweight here — a weight north of where both men compete at — throwing another variable into this hard to call contest.
3. Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora, heavyweight, April 4
Guys like Derek Chisora and Deontay Wilder aren’t going to be told what to do with their careers, so at this point, it’s a case of taking your seat and letting them get on with it.
The fact that Chisora comes into this heavyweight clash as a betting favorite despite owning 13 career losses on his record speaks more about Wilder than it does the eccentric Briton, with “The Bronze Bomber” now looking a shadow of the man who held the WBC title for 1,859 days from 2015-19.
Chisora is a war horse of the sport. He’s taken massive blows from a who’s who of this generation of heavyweights, but is adamant on marching forward into more lucrative pay days.
He’s claiming that this fight — both his and Wilder’s 50th — will be his last, but will Chisora actually manage to walk away if he lodges one of his best on-paper wins inside London’s O2 Arena on April 4?
We’ll have to wait and see. Five years ago this fight would have been an abomination, but now it makes sense for both heavyweights as they continue to cling onto life as a pugilist.
2. Tenshin Nasukawa vs. Juan Francisco Estrada, bantamweight, April 11
The jury is out on Tenshin Nasukawa.
The kickboxing legend is eight fights into his pro boxing career, and is looking to bounce back from a shocking loss to Takuma Inoue this past November in a failed bid to grab the vacant WBC world title at bantamweight.
The 27-year-old former unbeaten kickboxer is still learning, and now has been pitted against one of the toughest teachers in the sport in Juan Francisco Estrada.
Estrada, 35, is a legend of the lower weight classes and out to prove to himself that he has plenty more to give the sport after 49 fights, yet his two outings — going 1-1 — since his historic win over Roman Gonzalez in 2022 raises question marks over “Gallo’s” conditioning.
Either way, the narrative of this fight just pulls you in. It’s a crossroads fight dialed up to 11 between a bona fide superstar and an aging legend.
1. Callum Smith vs. David Morrell, for Smith's WBO interim light heavyweight title, April 18
It’s hard to argue against this light heavyweight contest topping the charts on April’s slate.
A genuine 50/50 contest between two guys sitting comfortably inside the top 10 at 175 pounds, both eyeing a second chance at a world title fight following combined losses to the devilish duo of Artur Beterbiev and David Benavidez.
Two big punchers at the weight who are running out of wiggle room for defeats almost guarantees fireworks on April 18. They were both involved in Fight of the Year contenders in 2025 — Smith beating Joshua Buatsi and Morrell’s loss to Benavidez — and the fact this fight lands in the fighting city of Liverpool adds an extra kick of electricity in the air.
The light heavyweight division is top-heavy with some genuine pound-for-pound stars, and this fight offers the victor the chance to join them at that esteemed table.
