Hutchinson Avenges Loss, Beats Buatsi For WBC Title

Willy Hutchinson captured the vacant WBC light heavyweight title in Manchester on Saturday, defeating Joshua Buatsi by unanimous decision to reverse a controversial 2024 loss and claim the first world belt of his career.

The scorecards read 115-113, 115-113, and 117-112 for Hutchinson, per Bad Left Hook's live coverage. Hutchinson built an early advantage through the middle rounds and held off a late surge from Buatsi to secure the win. While the finish lacked fireworks, Hutchinson avoided enough contact in the championship rounds to keep Buatsi from landing anything damaging, even as the Englishman rallied on the cards.

What Hutchinson's Win Means For Yarde

Hutchinson now stands 21-2 with 14 knockouts, while Buatsi drops to 20-2 with 13 stoppages. The victory avenges a split decision defeat from September 2024 in London, a bout that drew heavy criticism for its tight scoring. Anthony Yarde reportedly will pursue a title shot against Hutchinson in 2027, looking to finally break through after failed attempts against Sergey Kovalev, Artur Beterbiev, and David Benavidez in previous years.

On the undercard, Jack Rafferty moved to 28-0-1 by taking a unanimous decision over Hovhannes Martirosyan for the IBO welterweight strap. Brad Rea stopped Ezra Taylor in the second round of their light heavyweight bout, landing a brutal left hook before finishing with a follow-up combination. Gully Powar claimed the vacant British featherweight title when the ringside doctor halted his fight with Zak Miller due to severe swelling from an accidental headbutt.

Original reporting:

• badlefthook.com — Buatsi vs Hutchinson 2 live blog and results | Bad Left Hook