KSI vs Joe Fournier
Date | 13 May 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Venue | Wembley Arena, London, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Title(s) on the line | MF cruiserweight championship | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
KSI defeated Fournier via round 2 KO.[3] |
MF & DAZN: X Series 007 featured KSI vs Joe Fournier, was an exhibition crossover boxing match contested between British YouTuber KSI and British businessman and professional boxer Joe Fournier for the MF cruiserweight title. The bout took place at Wembley Arena, in London, England on 13 May, 2023.[4]
Background
On 4 October 2022, Joe Fournier posted a video onto his Instagram page calling out Jake Paul, Logan Paul and KSI for not fighting 'real boxers'.[‡ 1] KSI opted with choosing MMA fighter Dillon Danis as his opponent for MF & DAZN: X Series 004.[5] Fournier however, was scheduled to face Tony Christodoulou on the undercard with Fournier acting as the replacement fighter in the case that Danis were to withdraw.[6] Unfortunately, Christodoulou failed an MRI scan thus canceling Fournier's bout on 14 January. On 4 January, Danis withdrew from the bout and was replaced by YouTuber FaZe Temperrr instead of Fournier due to Temperrr being a southpaw.[7] After KSI defeated Temperrrr, he and Fournier shared a stare down after the pair verbally agreeing to face each other in May.[8]
On 22 March, it was announced that KSI would face Fournier on 13 May at Wembley Arena in London, England.[4] KSI defeated Fournier via KO in the 2nd round.[3]
Card
The card was headlined by KSI vs Joe Fournier with Deji Olatunji vs Swarmz as the co-feature. The undercard consisted of Salt Papi vs Anthony Taylor, Tennessee Thresh vs Paigey Cakey, ViruZz vs DK Money and Little Bellsy vs Lil Kymchii.
The preliminary card was ran by Keemstar's Happy Punch Promotions which featured WingsOfRedemption vs Boogie2988, Luis Nestor vs Callum King, Corn vs Unbaer, and Zuckles vs a mystery opponent, who later revealed to be Halal Ham.
KSI–Fournier elbow knockout controversy
During the second round, KSI threw a right hook that missed, causing his elbow to strike Fournier, knocking him unconscious.[3] After the bout concluded, Fournier stated that he will appeal the decision.[9] On 15 May, the Professional Boxing Association called for both fighters to make their cases and will be conducting a review with a decision to be made by 19 May at the latest.[10]
Fight card
Weight class | vs | Method | Round | Time | Notes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Main Card (PPV) | |||||||
Cruiserweight | KSI | def. | Joe Fournier | KO | 2/6 | 1:26 | Note 1 |
Light heavyweight | Deji Olatunji | def. | Swarmz | UD | 4 | ||
Cruiserweight | Anthony Taylor | def. | Salt Papi | UD | 3 | ||
Super bantamweight | Paigey Cakey | def. | Tennessee Thresh | UD | 3 | ||
Cruiserweight | ViruZz | def. | DK Money | KO | 2/4 | 2:59 | |
Super bantamweight | Little Bellsy | def. | Lil Kymchii | UD | 4 | ||
Happy Punch Preliminary Card | |||||||
Heavyweight | WingsOfRedemption | def. | Boogie2988 | TKO | 2/3 | 0:29 | Note 2 |
Welterweight | Unbaer | def. | Corn | SD | 3 | ||
Heavyweight | Luis Nestor | def. | Callum King | UD | 3 | ||
Light heavyweight | Halal Ham | def. | Zuckles | UD | 3 | Note 3 |
^Note 1 For MF cruiserweight title
^Note 2 Each round was 1 minute.
^Note 3 Ham's identity was revealed on the night and was marketed as a mystery opponent
Broadcasting
Country/Region | Broadcasters | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Free | Cable TV | PPV | Stream | |
United Kingdom (Host) | YouTube (Preliminary Card) |
— | DAZN PPV | |
United States | — | |||
Canada | — | |||
Ireland | — | |||
Australia | — | |||
New Zealand | — | |||
Netherlands | — | |||
Mexico | — | |||
Brazil | — | |||
France | — | |||
Sweden | — | |||
Norway | — | |||
Finland | — | |||
Denmark | — | |||
Worldwide | — | — | DAZN |
Notes
References
- ^ "BoxRec: Olajide William Olatunji". BoxRec. Archived from the original on 31 May 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
- ^ "BoxRec: Joe Fournier". BoxRec. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c "Controversy erupts as YouTube star KSI knocks out professional boxer Joe Fournier with illegal elbow". Fox Sports. 13 May 2023.
- ^ a b DAZN (22 March 2023). "KSI vs. Joe Fournier headlines MF & DAZN: X Series 007 in May". DAZN.
- ^ "KSI vs. Dillon Danis boxing match to take place Jan. 14 in London". MMA Junkie. 2022-11-20. Retrieved 2022-11-20.
- ^ Robson, Shay (17 December 2022). "Joe Fournier ready to fight KSI if Danis pulls out of 2023 bout". Dexerto.
- ^ Corby, Donagh (13 January 2023). "EXCLUSIVE: KSI explains why he chose FaZe Temperrr to replace Dillon Danis". Mirror Fighting.
- ^ Sky Sports (15 January 2023). "KSI reiterated his desire to fight Jake Paul after a knock-out victory over FaZe Temperrr at Wembley Arena, although looks set to take on Joe Fournier ahead of any potential clash". Sky Sports.
- ^ "Joe Fournier blasts KSI, Misfits Boxing, plans to appeal 'disgusting' knockout call". MMA Fighting. 13 May 2023.
- ^ Benson, Michael (15 May 2023). "Joe Fournier officially appeals KSI elbow knockout as PBA commission confirm they will conduct review". TalkSport.
Primary sources
In the text these references are preceded by a double dagger (‡):
- ^ Fournier, Joe (4 October 2022). "I've been sitting down watching all this nonsense with this YOUTUBE boxing". Instagram.
- ^ King, Archie (4 October 2022). "Fight isn't happening on Satuday". Twitter.