As had been rumored for some time, WBC super featherweight world champion O’Shaquie Foster will defend his title against the No. 2 contender Raymond Ford. The fight will take place on May 30 in Houston, Texas—Foster’s hometown—where he will be able to count on strong crowd support. For the winner, a future clash with the upcoming WBC interim champion could be on the horizon, with that title to be decided on June 20 in the bout between Michael Magnesi and Ryan Garner.
Foster became world champion in February 2023, when he clearly defeated Mexico’s Rey Vargas by unanimous decision, claiming the vacant WBC belt. After two successful title defenses, he lost the crown due to a decision widely considered controversial by most neutral observers against Robson Conceição, only to set things right by winning the rematch.
In his most recent fight, the American handed a decisive defeat to compatriot Stephen Fulton, who was attempting yet another move up in weight but came in too heavy at the weigh-in. In a rather baffling move, the WBC had turned the bout at the last minute into a contest for the interim lightweight title, but after winning, Foster made it clear that he intends to remain, at least for now, in the super featherweight division.
Raymond Ford was the WBA featherweight world champion before moving up to super featherweight after losing his belt. He won that title in a spectacular fight, scoring a last-round TKO against Uzbekistan’s Otabek Kholmatov while trailing on the scorecards.
The American later lost his belt to Britain’s Nick Ball, who edged him by a narrow points decision at the end of a very close fight in Riyadh—a result that divided expert opinion. The judges themselves were split, as Ball was awarded the victory by split decision.
Since then, Ford has collected three consecutive wins at super featherweight, climbing the WBC rankings to the No. 2 spot and earning his shot at the reigning champion.
Both Foster and Ford are counterpunchers who typically allow their opponents to take the initiative, looking to catch them coming in or punish them on the counter. For this reason, it will be interesting on May 30 to see which of the two wins the battle of timing, and who will be forced to take on the role of aggressor to avoid falling behind on the scorecards.
Twenty days later, in the United Kingdom, Italy’s Michael Magnesi will attempt to capture the interim title when he faces hometown favorite Ryan Garner. It remains to be seen whether the two winners will eventually meet, but it is certainly a possible—and, in our view, highly desirable—scenario.