Unbeaten Briton Fabio Wardley (18-0-1, 17 KOs) will realise his dream of a homecoming fight when he faces American Jarrell Miller (26-1-2, 22 KOs) at Portman Road, the home of his beloved Ipswich Town FC, with the added bonus of the WBA Interim World Heavyweight Championship on the line, live on DAZN.
Signed to Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, 30-year-old Wardley heads into the fight with the Brooklyn ‘Big Baby’ fresh off his career-best win against British rival Frazer Clarke in October, when the Olympian was blasted out inside a round and left with a broken jaw in Riyadh.
The quick KO was the sequel to a thrilling draw in March 2024, which was recently voted ‘Fight of the Year’ at the BBBofC 2024 awards ceremony.
The Ipswich native became British champion in November 2022 after defeating Nathan Gorman in three rounds, then he made a successful defence against then-unbeaten David Adeleye in October 2023, also picking up the vacant Commonwealth and WBO European titles, to add to the WBA Continental belt already in his possession.
The 6’5″ highly-rated heavyweight is ranked in the top 10 with all five governing bodies WBA #1, WBO #3, IBO #5, WBC #8, IBF #8, plus Ring Magazine #9.
It’s a remarkable feat considering the lifelong Ipswich FC fan begun boxing late, bypassed an amateur career and had just four white-collar bouts before turning pro.
He started out in the small hall scene, performing in front of 800 spectators in Norwich, then won an English title in just his ninth fight. From those humble beginning to selling out a stadium as the WBA #1 is an inspiring success story.
His 20th opponent, Jarrell Miller, known as ‘Big Baby’, propelled himself back onto the heavyweight frontline in 2023 with a victory over Lucas Browne, which resulted in a Riyadh Season call-up to take on Daniel Dubois at the end of the year.
The 36-year-old started strongly and applied huge pressure on the now IBF world champion, before his stamina faded and the Brit took full advantage to come on strong to secure a 10th round stoppage, with just eight seconds to go in the fight.
His performance against Dubois earned him a Riyadh Season recall for the Los Angeles edition where he drew with former unified world champion Andy Ruiz at the BMO Stadium last August.
Frank Warren was overjoyed with delivering Wardley his dream opportunity, “On a personal note, it is a huge pleasure for me to deliver Fabio his dream of fighting at Portman Road,” the Hall of Fame promoter enthused.
“It is what he has spoken about from day one of our alliance and I know how much Ipswich Town means to him. I believe this is the perfect fight for Fabio to take his next step because Miller is no easy pickings for anyone, especially given his size and front foot style. Fabio really is ‘Running Towards Adversity'”
Fabio Wardley added, “As a proud Tractor Boy, born and bred in Ipswich, this is a dream come true for me. Fighting for a world title at Portman Road means everything to me. I’ve got a tough opponent in front of me, but that’s what I live for. I’m ready to dig deep, go to battle, and leave it all in the ring. Even more so than usual! It’s going to be a war, and I can’t wait to give my hometown crowd a spectacle they’ll never forget.”
Tickets for ‘Running Towards Adversity’ go on presale to Ipswich Town FC season ticket holders at 1pm on Monday, 7 April and general sale at 1pm on Wednesday, 9 April available from itfc.co.uk.
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