Boxxer

Boxxer, styled as BOXXER, is a British professional boxing promotional company founded by Ben Shalom. The business began in 2018 under the name Ultimate Boxxer, with a format built around compact, same-night elimination tournaments. Its early events generally brought together eight professional boxers in a single weight class, with quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final staged over short three-minute rounds. The concept was designed to create a clear competitive narrative, provide emerging fighters with concentrated exposure and present boxing in a format suited to digital and television distribution. The first Ultimate Boxxer tournament was held in April 2018 in the welterweight division at Manchester Arena. The tournament series subsequently expanded across several divisions, including light-heavyweight, middleweight, cruiserweight, light-middleweight and heavyweight. Six tournaments were staged under the Ultimate Boxxer name between 2018 and 2019. Winners included Drew Brown, Shakan Pitters, Derrick Osaze, Mikael Lawal, Steven Donnelly and Nick Webb. The competitions varied in prize structure and commercial opportunity; the second tournament, for example, offered a larger cash prize and a route toward a British-title eliminator. In August 2020, Ultimate Boxxer was rebranded as Boxxer. The renamed company signed Derrick Osaze, winner of the third Ultimate Boxxer tournament, and introduced a revised four-man tournament format. The first event under the Boxxer name, staged in November 2020, featured super-middleweights and was won by Zak Chelli. The change reflected a broader move from a single tournament property toward a more conventional promotional platform capable of developing fighters, arranging individual bouts and packaging larger cards for broadcasters. A major turning point came in June 2021, when Boxxer announced a four-year agreement with Sky Sports. The partnership gave the promoter a significant UK television platform and helped it build a roster that included Hughie Fury, Savannah Marshall and Caroline Dubois. Boxxer also entered co-promotional arrangements involving Claressa Shields and Chris Eubank Jr., while working with Top Rank on the world-title contest between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall. Its first Sky Sports event was a co-promotion with Wasserman Boxing featuring Eubank Jr. on 2 October 2021. Boxxer’s most prominent event in the supplied historical record was the February 2022 domestic contest between Amir Khan and Kell Brook. The bout represented a move beyond the company’s original tournament identity toward high-profile, headline-level professional boxing. In addition to promoting events, Boxxer’s activities include fighter representation and development, co-promotion, event production and the sale or licensing of broadcast rights. The company’s distribution strategy continued to evolve through broadcast agreements. A BBC Sport deal was announced in August 2025. The supplied reference material also reports a DAZN multi-fight agreement announced in June 2026, with the BBC relationship continuing and an intended first event under the DAZN arrangement being a Callum Simpson–Troy Williamson rematch scheduled for August 2026. These later arrangements, if completed as described, would position Boxxer across free-to-air television and international streaming distribution. Boxxer’s overall positioning combines British boxing promotion, emerging-talent development, tournament competition and commercially packaged live events.

Boxxer originated as Ultimate Boxxer, a tournament-focused boxing venture established by Ben Shalom in 2018. The initial proposition was a one-night, eight-man elimination competition in which professional fighters from the same weight category competed through three-minute rounds. The short-format structure reduced the time between bouts and created a clear progression from quarter-final to final, making the events suitable for live audiences and digital or television presentation. The inaugural tournament took place at Manchester Arena on 27 April 2018 in the welterweight division. Its early stages were distributed digitally through UNILAD’s Facebook presence, while the later rounds were broadcast on 5Spike. Drew Brown won the competition after defeating Tom Young in the final. The second edition, held at the indigo at The O2 on 2 November 2018, moved to light-heavyweight. Its prize fund increased to £50,000, and the winner received an opportunity connected to a British-title eliminator. Shakan Pitters won by beating Dec Spelman in the final. The third tournament was staged at the indigo at The O2 on 2 May 2019 in the middleweight division. Derrick Osaze defeated Grant Dennis in the final. The fourth event followed on 19 July 2019 at Planet Ice Arena in Altrincham, where Mikael Lawal won the cruiserweight competition against Damian Chambers. The fifth tournament took place on 20 September 2019 at the indigo at The O2 in the light-middleweight division and was broadcast live on BT Sport; Steven Donnelly defeated Lenny Fuller. The sixth and final event under the Ultimate Boxxer name was held at Planet Ice Arena in Manchester on 13 December 2019 in the heavyweight division, with Nick Webb defeating Mark Bennett. In August 2020, the company adopted the Boxxer name. The rebrand broadened the identity beyond the original tournament property. Boxxer signed Derrick Osaze, the winner of Ultimate Boxxer III, and announced a seventh tournament using a four-man rather than eight-man format. Boxxer Series 7 was held at BT Sport Studios in London on 10 November 2020 in the super-middleweight division. Zak Chelli won the final against Mike McGoldrick. Vladimir Georgiev entered as a late replacement after Ben Ridings tested positive for COVID-19. Boxxer subsequently developed into a wider professional boxing promoter. In June 2021, it announced a four-year agreement with Sky Sports. Later that year it presented a roster including Hughie Fury, Savannah Marshall and Caroline Dubois, and disclosed co-promotional relationships involving Claressa Shields and Chris Eubank Jr. It also worked with Top Rank on the world-title fight between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall. The first Boxxer event shown on Sky Sports was a co-promotion with Wasserman Boxing featuring Chris Eubank Jr. on 2 October 2021. The company’s association with Khan versus Brook on 19 February 2022 marked one of its most visible headline events and demonstrated the scale of its ambitions beyond tournament boxing. Boxxer’s business model consequently came to include fighter signings, event promotion, co-promotion, tournament production and the development of television and streaming partnerships. The supplied reference further records a BBC Sport deal announced in August 2025 and a DAZN agreement announced in June 2026. The latter was described as a multi-fight arrangement for larger internationally distributed cards, with the BBC relationship continuing and a Callum Simpson versus Troy Williamson rematch identified as an initial planned event.

• 2026

  DAZN agreement reported

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The supplied reference reports a multi-fight DAZN deal intended to expand international distribution while retaining the BBC relationship.

• 2025

  BBC Sport agreement announced

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  Boxxer entered a reported broadcast relationship with BBC Sport.

• 2022

  Khan–Brook event becomes a major Boxxer-associated card

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The promoter was associated with the widely anticipated domestic contest between Amir Khan and Kell Brook.

• 2021

  Four-year Sky Sports agreement announced

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The agreement established Sky Sports as a major broadcast partner and supported Boxxer’s expansion into larger professional boxing events.

• 2020

  Ultimate Boxxer rebrands as Boxxer

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The company adopted the Boxxer identity, signed Derrick Osaze and shifted to a four-man format for its next tournament.

• 2019

  Sixth Ultimate Boxxer tournament completes the original series

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The sixth tournament, a heavyweight event in Manchester, concluded the original six-event Ultimate Boxxer run.

• 2018

  Ultimate Boxxer is founded and launches its first tournament

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  Ben Shalom founded the venture that became Boxxer, and the inaugural eight-man welterweight tournament was held at Manchester Arena in April.

• 2018

  Ultimate Boxxer II introduces a larger prize and title pathway

  [1]Boxxeren.wikipedia.org

  The second tournament was held in the light-heavyweight division and offered a £50,000 prize together with an opportunity connected to a British-title eliminator.

A British boxing promoter positioned between talent development and major-event promotion, using tournament formats, fighter partnerships and broadcast alliances to build commercially attractive boxing cards.

• Boxing tournament series · 2018

  Ultimate Boxxer

  The original Boxxer competition property, launched in 2018, used one-night eight-man elimination tournaments within individual weight divisions. Fighters progressed through quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final, usually over three three-minute rounds. Six editions were staged across welterweight, light-heavyweight, middleweight, cruiserweight, light-middleweight and heavyweight categories.

• Boxing tournament series · 2020

  Boxxer Series

  The successor tournament format introduced after the 2020 rebrand. The seventh tournament reduced the field to four fighters and was held in the super-middleweight division. The format retained the direct-elimination character of the original property while operating under the Boxxer name.

• Professional boxing promotion · 2020

  Boxxer promotional events

  Boxxer’s broader event business covers the promotion and co-promotion of professional boxing cards, including fighter-led events and high-profile domestic contests. The company’s activities have included work with Sky Sports, Wasserman Boxing, Top Rank and individual fighters.

• 2021

  Enter a long-term Sky Sports broadcast partnershipStrategy

  Background

  Boxxer needed a substantial distribution platform to scale its events and fighter roster in the UK.

  Action taken

  The company announced a four-year deal with Sky Sports and launched its first Sky-associated event in October 2021.

  Aftermath

  The agreement gave Boxxer a prominent television outlet and supported its transition toward larger professional boxing cards.

  Source

• 2020

  Rebrand from Ultimate Boxxer to BoxxerStrategy

  Background

  The company had established recognition through six tournament events but sought a broader identity for activities beyond the original eight-man competition.

  Action taken

  It adopted the Boxxer name, signed Derrick Osaze and introduced a four-man tournament format.

  Aftermath

  The rebrand marked the development of Boxxer as a wider boxing promoter rather than solely a tournament organizer.

  Source

1. 1Boxxeren.wikipedia.org
2. 2Boxxer official websiteboxxer.com