Caoimhin Agyarko suffered the first defeat of his professional career after losing a unanimous decision to IBF light-middleweight champion Josh Kelly in Saudi Arabia. The Belfast fighter admitted afterwards that he "didn't do enough" to become the first black Irish world champion, despite feeling he had done enough to win in the closing stages. The result matters as it denies Agyarko a historic title win and hands Kelly his ninth consecutive victory since his only career loss in 2021.

Kelly, from Sunderland, started fast and built an early lead over the first six rounds, but was docked a point in the sixth for repeated punches to the back of Agyarko's head. Agyarko rallied in the second half, landing heavy hooks and inflicting a cut nose and eye damage on the champion, but two judges still scored it 115-112 and the third 114-113 in Kelly's favour. The win takes Kelly's record to 19 wins, one draw and one loss, while Agyarko drops to 18-1; Kelly praised his opponent afterwards and urged him to treat the loss as a learning experience.