Bonfim shutouts Muhammad, Moloney finally wins a world title

A 50-45 shutout across all three judges. A first-time world champion on his fifth attempt after turning down a $250,000 side-payment to step aside. A WBA title fight where the winner reportedly apologized to the loser's corner after the decision was read out. And next Sunday, the UFC fights at the White House. Here's everything from the past seven days and what's on for next week.

Gabriel Bonfim (20-1, UFC 7-1) shut out former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad (24-6) by unanimous decision — 50-45, 50-45, 50-45 — in the main event of UFC Fight Night 278 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. 1 2

Not a single round went Muhammad's way. Bonfim dictated pace from the opening bell with his jab and persistent low kicks, and in Round 3 landed a right hand that sent Muhammad's mouthpiece flying — referee Herb Dean paused the action — then immediately dropped him with a follow-up shot. Muhammad dug in for a brief comeback in Round 4, but Bonfim reclaimed control within a minute and cruised through Round 5 behind clean counter-punching as Muhammad threw everything he had in the final minute. 2 3

Bonfim immediately called out Jack Della Maddalena (former welterweight champion, 18-4) from the cage: "JDM, stay ready." In his post-fight remarks, he said the division at 170 pounds is wide open and he wants JDM as his next opponent. "He is my next opponent because the division is kind of muddy waters up there. Things are kind of scrambled up top." 4 JDM has not publicly responded as of Monday; he is currently without a scheduled fight after back-to-back losses to Islam Makhachev and Carlos Prates. According to the Fightomic independent ranking, Bonfim moved from #11 to #6 at welterweight. Muhammad dropped from #5 to #10. 5

Co-main: Brendan Allen (27-7) beat Edmen Shahbazyan (16-6) by unanimous decision — 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 — in a stand-up war that earned both fighters the Fight of the Night bonus ($100,000 each). Allen, who entered on a two-fight losing streak before his current three-fight run, abandoned his wrestling and went strike-for-strike with Shahbazyan. A short elbow opened a cut near Shahbazyan's left eye that bled through the final rounds. Allen said post-fight he wants a rematch with Sean Strickland (former middleweight champion). 6

$25,000 finish bonuses: Bryce Mitchell (arm triangle, R3 4:52 — with 8 seconds left — over Santiago Luna), Ketlen Souza (KO, R1 1:34 over Ariane Carnelossi via head kick — avenging a 7-year-old loss), Alessandro Costa (TKO R1 over Matt Schnell), Chelsea Chandler (armbar R1 over Priscila Cachoeira), Joanderson Brito (ninja choke R1 over Jordan Leavitt). 6 7

Other main card: Bryce Mitchell's drop to bantamweight worked out — he submitted the previously unbeaten Santiago Luna with an arm triangle from a scramble with 8 seconds left in the fight, then said the lower weight class felt natural. Tom Nolan (lightweight, now 5-0 in the UFC) beat ranked veteran Fares Ziam (#14) by unanimous decision to move from #47 to #17 in Fightomic's independent rankings. 5 8

Full main card results: Bonfim def. Muhammad UD (50-45 × 3) · Allen def. Shahbazyan UD (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) · Baraniewski def. Tafa TKO1 (1:25) · Mitchell def. Luna Sub3 (arm triangle, 4:52) · Nolan def. Ziam UD (29-28 × 3). 1

Albert Ramirez (23-0, 19 KOs) retained the WBA interim light heavyweight title by split decision over Lerrone Richards (19-2, 4 KOs) at a Montreal casino. Two judges scored it 115-113 for Ramirez; the third had it 116-112 for Richards. 9

The unofficial scoring from Bad Left Hook editor Scott Christ had it 116-112 for Richards — widely covered as one of the worst decisions of the year. Richards was direct about it: "Honestly the last few days have just felt like a blur. It's been three days and been a blur. I'm waking up every morning and it's almost like I'm thinking 'did this actually happen?' It was a robbery, simple as that." 10 According to The Ring, Ramirez reportedly approached Richards' trainer Dave Coldwell in the aftermath and apologized, acknowledging Richards had won the fight. 10

Richards' management team (S-Jam) is filing a formal appeal with the WBA, expected to be submitted before June 10. Richards returned to London over the weekend and met with his team Monday morning to finalize the complaint. He wants the result either overturned or changed to a no-contest, and at minimum an immediate rematch ordered. "I need justice in this because he did not win the fight." 10 The Ring has already updated its 175-pound rankings, moving Richards — who was unranked entering the fight — to #8, and dropping Ramirez from #3 to #9.

The WBA had not issued a public statement as of Monday morning.

Chris Billam-Smith (22-2, 14 KOs) stopped Ryan Rozicki (21-2-1, 20 KOs) via corner retirement after Round 7 in the main event of Zuffa Boxing's first card on UK soil. At the time of stoppage, all three judges had Billam-Smith ahead: 68-64, 68-64, 69-63. This was the first time Rozicki had been stopped in his professional career. 11 12

Rozicki had a point deducted in Round 2 after a second head-butt warning, which proved costly on two of the three cards. Both fighters were taken to hospital directly after the bout; Billam-Smith did not attend the post-fight press event. Trainer Shane McGuigan described Rozicki's power: "I've never seen a puncher like that. The power that guy possesses is something else." On his fighter: "Chris is resilience in abundance. He's a determined man, a family man and everything you would want in a role model." 12 Both fighters' hospital status had not been updated publicly as of Monday.

Billam-Smith's next target is Jai Opetaia (current Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight champion). The two have exchanged words in the media before, when both held separate major titles, but the Rozicki bout's physical toll makes a quick turnaround unlikely.

A note on the UK legality: BBC Sport reported that Boxxer Promotions is claiming Billam-Smith, Jack Massey, and Sam Hickey competed on the Zuffa card without its consent or authorization. Zuffa holds a UK broadcast deal with Sky Sports. The dispute had not been resolved as of Monday. 12

Co-main: Chev Clarke (12-2, 9 KOs) stopped Jack Massey (23-4) in Round 7 after being knocked down twice in Round 4. Clarke, 35, had been in serious trouble — his corner nearly threw in the towel in the fourth — but recovered, found his timing, and finished with heavy punches. A comeback win that Bad Left Hook's Scott Christ called "basically pulling his career from the fire." 13

Other results from Bournemouth: Lee Cutler TKO3 Aaron Sutton (Sutton suffered a visible shoulder dislocation; the stoppage was correct) · Stevie McKenna TKO1 Casey James Streeter · Sam Hickey TKO2 Todd Tompkins · Ivan Dychko SD10 Harvey Dykes (a 10-rounder that Bad Left Hook described as difficult to watch — Dykes was knocked down in Round 1 and the pace never recovered). 13

Andrew Moloney (29-4, 18 KOs) won the IBF super flyweight (115 lbs) title by majority decision over champion Willibaldo Garcia (now 23-7-2) — scores 115-113, 115-113, 114-114. 14 15

Moloney, 35, had challenged for a world title four times previously, losing twice to Joshua Franco and once to Junto Nakatani, without getting his hand raised. He dominated the early rounds — winning five of the first six — before Garcia rallied in the second half and opened a cut above Moloney's eye in Round 7. The final round was essential: all three judges scored it 10-9 for Moloney, which sealed the fight on two of the three cards. "It's been a long, hard road to get this world title, but we finally got it done. This means everything to me. My whole life has been dedicated to being a world champion." 14

The road to this fight had an extra complication: Matchroom's Eddie Hearn offered Moloney approximately $250,000 (AU$350,000) to step aside so Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez could face Garcia and then an available mandatory challenger. Moloney refused, accepted the lower fight purse (around $47,000), and won. Hearn, to his credit, acknowledged after the fight that Moloney had made the right call. Moloney's post-fight target is the undisputed fight at 115 pounds — Rodriguez holds the WBO, WBA, and WBC titles. "I'd love the undisputed fight against Bam. That's the biggest prize in boxing, undisputed, with all of the belts on the line." 14 The IBF's mandatory challenger at super flyweight is Sikho Nqothole (who beat Charlie Edwards on May 29), making him the likely first defense rather than a straight shot at Rodriguez.

Main event: Masamichi Yabuki (20-4, 18 KOs) retained his IBF flyweight title over Rene Calixto (now 24-2-1) by wide unanimous decision — 118-108, 118-108, 116-110. It was Yabuki's second IBF flyweight defense; he won the belt in December 2025 with a 12th-round KO of Felix Alvarado. 15 16

Also on the card: John Riel Casimero (36-5-1, 25 KOs) stopped Luis Nery (now 37-3) in Round 4 — Nery had missed weight by 3.2 pounds before the fight, passing a hydration clause to let the bout proceed. All three judges had Casimero winning every round before the stoppage. 15

The first UFC event held at the White House. No preliminary card — seven main card fights only, all broadcast on CBS (free) and Paramount+ ($8.99/month). Main card starts 8:00 PM ET; first title walkouts expected around 11:30 PM ET. 17 18

Topuria, 29, holds the UFC lightweight championship. His last three fights have all been KO wins over former champions: Alexander Volkanovski (featherweight), Max Holloway (featherweight), and Charles Oliveira (lightweight). Gaethje, 37, holds the interim lightweight title, which he won by KO over Holloway. He absorbs a significant number of clean strikes per fight — 7.05 significant shots per outing per Covers.com's fight analytics — which is the one data point that makes Topuria's KO-heavy style a clear structural advantage. 19 Current betting line: Topuria -600 to -750 (implied win probability 85-88%), Gaethje +400 to +460. 20

Pereira (current record not listed for this bout but confirmed as multi-division champion) is chasing a third UFC title. He is already a two-division champion — he held the middleweight and light heavyweight belts. A win over Gane (#1 heavyweight, France, 13-2) makes him the first three-division champion in UFC history. Pereira returned from his only recent loss — at UFC 313 — with a first-round TKO revenge win over Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 320. Eleven of his 13 wins have come by KO. The market is a virtual pick'em: Pereira -115, Gane -115 at BET99. 19 20

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Sean O'Malley (USA) is a heavy -475 favorite over Aiemann Zahabi (Canada, #6 bantamweight) but has not landed a notable KO finish in roughly three years, with CBS Sports' Josh Nagel projecting a decision win. Kyle Daukaus (+275, has gone 6-0 since returning to the UFC with consecutive finishes) is the one underdog CBS Sports' analysts flagged as having genuine upset potential against Bo Nickal. Mauricio Ruffy (Brazil, -800) is a massive favorite over Michael Chandler (USA, 37 years old). 20

Fight week: Press conference at the Lincoln Memorial on Friday, June 12 (open to public, 8:00 PM ET). Ceremonial weigh-ins on The Ellipse, Saturday June 13 (open to public, 8:00 PM ET). Fan Fest on The Ellipse Saturday–Sunday (free, reservation required). 18

Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs, San Antonio TX) moves up from super flyweight (115 lbs) to bantamweight (118 lbs) to challenge WBA bantamweight champion Antonio Vargas (19-1-1, 11 KOs, Kissimmee FL) in a 12-round title fight at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Broadcast on DAZN globally; main event starts around 10:00 PM ET. 21

Rodriguez, 23, enters having unified the WBO, WBA, and WBC super flyweight titles before vacating to move up. ESPN lists him at #3 on its pound-for-pound rankings. Vargas is making his first title defense. His corner described his preparation: "This has honestly been the best camp I've ever had." 22 Promoter Amaury Piedra (Boxlab Promotions) called it straightforwardly: "Without question, this is the most important fight of Antonio Vargas' career." 22

No Rodriguez-Vargas betting lines were publicly available as of Monday; books typically open closer to fight week.

Also on the June 13 Glendale card (DAZN): Elif Nur Turhan (13-0, 8 KOs, Turkey) defends her IBF women's lightweight title vs. Gabriela Tellez (7-0) — 10 rounds; Arturo Cardenas (17-0-2) defends his WBC Continental Americas super bantamweight title vs. Jordan Martinez (16-0-1, 15 KOs — a 93.8% finish rate). 21

Women's boxing — June 13, Orlando (ESPN+): Four title fights on a single card: Oshae Jones vs. Elia Carranza (IBF women's super welterweight), Tiara Brown vs. Hannah Rapp (WBC women's featherweight), Evelyn Bermudez vs. Estefany Alegria (WBO/IBF/WBA women's light flyweight unification), Jasmine Artiga vs. Nataly Delgado (WBA women's super bantamweight). 23

Also this week: Wilkens Mathieu vs. Esquiva Falcao at 168 pounds in Quebec City on June 11, broadcast on DAZN (Eye of the Tiger Management). 23