February's 5 best boxing fights, ranked: Ryan Garcia returns and an alluring all-action title unification
With January’s boxing slate ending in stacked, swashbuckling style, surely we’re all champing at the bit to get back to the action in February?
Well, lucky you — look no further as we’ve pieced together the best five fights scheduled for this upcoming month!
Let’s take a closer look at the best of the action.
5. Efe Ajagba vs. Charles Martin, 10 rounds, heavyweight, Feb. 15
Roses are red, violets are blue, Efe Ajagba vs. Charles Martin is coming to a television screen near you!
OK, this pretty random matchup wouldn’t have headed up too many must-see lists at the start of the year, but it’s Zuffa Boxing’s "03rd" show and once again the knives will be out on how Dana White and his team execute a boxing event on Paramount+.
Charles Martin has become a bit of a meme since his IBF heavyweight title loss to Anthony Joshua a decade ago, taking further Ls to the likes of Adam Kownacki, Luis Ortiz and Jared Anderson. He might be a pretty limited heavyweight, and 31-year-old Ajagba will be heavily favored as the first bell tolls, but hey, it’s the heavyweight division and upsets happen.
Admittedly, if this fight wasn’t attached to the Zuffa Boxing project then it would probably fly under the radar in February. Ajagba impressed — to a degree — in dragging Martin Bakole to a majority draw in May, but it might take some ferocious lobbying to successfully argue his case as one of the top names at heavyweight.
But that’s box-biz, baby.
4. Nick Ball vs. Brandon Figueroa, 12 rounds, for Ball's WBA featherweight title, Feb. 7
It wasn’t too long ago that Nick Ball held British boxing on his own featherweight shoulders.
Until recently, the 28-year-old Liverpudlian was Britain’s only world champion, but he’s now been joined by Fabio Wardley, Jazza Dickens, Lewis Crocker, Dalton Smith and Josh Kelly — what’s that saying about London buses again?
Ball defends his WBA crown against mandatory challenger Brandon Figueroa on Feb. 7 in front of his home Merseyside faithful, looking to edge that one step closer to big unification title fights in 2026.
Figueroa is somehow only 29, but has the fighting experience of a man twice his age. "The Heartbreaker" had his own heart split in two by losses to Stephen Fulton (twice), but has navigated some pretty handy career wins against the likes of Luis Nery, Jessie Magdaleno, Mark Magsayo and Joet Gonzalez.
Don’t listen to the oddsmakers here. Ball will arrive in Liverpool as a big favorite, but might need "A Little Help From His Friends" after early cries of "Help!"
3. Josh Warrington vs. Leigh Wood, 12 rounds, super featherweight, Feb. 21
Less “Collision Course” more “Ah, We Might As Well Do This One Again Before We Retire” — but that’s pretty hard to squeeze onto a fight poster plastered around the streets of Nottingham.
Warrington vs. Wood is a cracking matchup, simply because both men have faded at similar rates, and now will attempt to end their respective careers on a high with a domestic win over a rival.
Warrington, 35, lost to Wood, 37, via seventh-round TKO in a lively fight back in 2023 as the Nottingham fighter successfully defended his WBA title at super featherweight despite being down on the judges’ scorecards.
Now with four losses each on their records, they’re both desperate to avoid a fifth inside the Nottingham Arena. There’s enough bad blood here to make it one of February’s must-see fights — and it might not take long to realize that it’ll be more heart than head that will get the winner over the line.
2. Mario Barrios vs. Ryan Garcia, 12 rounds, for Barrios' WBC welterweight title, Feb. 21
If boxing was a serious sport then there is no chance Ryan Garcia — who has as many wins in his past four fights as he does positive performance-enhancing drugs tests (1) — would be granted a world title opportunity in February of 2026.
But boxing has proven time and time again not to be a serious sport, so here we are faced with the fact that Garcia will throw it down with WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios inside Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on Feb. 21.
Barrios is viewed as the sitting duck in the land of the 147-pounders after limping to draws and title defenses in his past two fights against Abel Ramos and 47-year-old Manny Pacquiao, so it’s no surprise the WBC are looking to nail their green and gold belt on someone as marketable and, let’s face it, watchable as Garcia.
This fight headlines the Saudi-backed Ring card with Richardson Hitchins vs. Oscar Duarte on the undercard for the IBF title at super lightweight.
1. Emanuel Navarrete vs. Eduardo Nuñez, 12 rounds, for Navarrete's WBO super featherweight title and Nuñez's IBF super featherweight title, Feb. 28
¡Aqui vamos!
I am sure some of you Spanish speakers will be able to tell me whether that successfully translates from “here we go!” but I can’t say I am going to care about any semantics once Emanuel Navarrete and Eduardo “Sugar” Nuñez touch gloves on Feb. 28.
The IBF and WBO titleholders at super featherweight meet inside the Desert Diamond Arena, Glendale, Arizona, and it’s probably not much of a push to short-list this one as a Fight of the Year contender even before the first bell has rung.
These Mexican sluggers have made careers out of entertaining fight fans, like two men who would forget their keys but remember instinctively how to throw 100-plus punches a round.
Blink and you’ll miss it, buckle up, you’ll only need the edge of your seat … etc. — roll out any cliche you desire as February closes with an all-Mexican war.
