After presenting our 2025 awards for world boxing yesterday, today we do the same focusing exclusively on Italian boxing. In doing so, we also extend the scope to boxers of foreign origin who are currently affiliated with the Italian Boxing Federation, as well as to boxers of Italian origin who live and fight abroad. Here are our picks!
Round of the Year: Callum Simpson vs Ivan Zucco (round 1)
There wasn’t even time to get comfortable and taste the popcorn: the thrilling emotions of the European super middleweight title fight exploded immediately, with our own Zucco flooring hometown idol Simpson after just a few seconds. The Englishman managed to get back on his feet and responded with frenzied attacks that reignited the crowd at Oakwell Football Ground in Barnsley. Unforgettable was Ivan’s wild-eyed stare as he urged his rival to come forward in the middle of a truly electrifying round!
Honorable mentions: Geram Eloyan vs Francesco De Rosa (round 6) and Akrem Aouina vs Tom Hill (round 4).
Fighter of the Year: Muhamet Qamili
Having fought as many as five bouts, advancing from the round of 32 all the way to the final of the WBC-organized Boxing Grand Prix tournament, Qamili was one of Italy’s most active representatives in 2025. Moreover, this activity came against highly regarded international prospects, granting him a truly significant boost in experience. Given the enormous prestige of his runner-up finish in the tournament and the qualities he displayed, we believe the Italian Boxer of the Year award rightly belongs to him.
Honorable mentions: Michael Magnesi and Cristian Zara.
KO of the Year: Jonathan Kogasso vs Morike Oulare
After flooring his opponent the first time by catching him on the temple and punishing his overly reckless approach, Kogasso took aim and finished matters with a genuine hypersonic missile that landed with incredible precision on the unfortunate Oulare’s chin. A devastating impact and an inevitable conclusion to the fight; it’s hard to imagine many boxers capable of absorbing such a crushing blow.
Honorable mentions: Francesco Paparo vs Nicola Henchiri 2 and Mohamed Elmaghraby vs Davide De Lellis.
Upset of the Year: Andrea Aroni vs Riccardo Valentino
Aroni was the clear pre-fight favorite, both because the bout took place in his native Sardinia and because he entered the match unbeaten and as the reigning Italian champion. Indeed, for a good number of rounds everything pointed toward a confirmation of the predictions. Valentino, however, was not affected by the hostile environment nor by an unfavorable situation on the scorecards, and he kept hunting for the KO with great determination, eventually finding it in the ninth and penultimate round!
Honorable mentions: Cristian Zara vs Vincenzo Picardi and Muhamet Qamili vs Troy Nash.
Prospect of the Year: Ghaith Weslati
In other eras, 25 years of age would have been too old to be labeled a “prospect.” But nowadays Italian boxers tend to turn professional relatively late, and our top athletes are almost all closer to 30 than to 20, which is why we believe it is perfectly fair to name Weslati our Prospect of the Year. The Tunisian-born boxer put together a banner 2025, capturing the Italian title with a splendid TKO victory over Nicolò Setaro. Now everyone understands why Ghaith struggles to find opponents…
Honorable mentions: Fiorenzo Priolo and Yoel Angeloni.
Fight of the Year: Geram Eloyan vs Francesco De Rosa
Eloyan and De Rosa took us on a roller coaster of emotions that only boxing can provide. The match appeared firmly in the hands of the hard-hitting fighter from Salerno before he found himself just a step away from the abyss in the sixth round, where he suffered two consecutive knockdowns. His stoic resistance allowed the fight to continue all the way to an incredible and thrilling final turnaround, with De Rosa managing to secure a TKO victory, preserve his unbeaten record, and claim the EBU Silver belt.
Honorable mentions: Callum Simpson vs Ivan Zucco and Paolo Bologna vs Damiano Falcinelli.