Zuffa Boxing 11 start time -- Johnny Fisher vs. Michael Pirotton: Fight card, predictions for event in London
The rising heavyweight prospect makes his Zuffa Boxing debut in front of his countrymen and women on Saturday
• 4 min read
One of the more fun signings for Zuffa Boxing in its first year as a promotion will headline Saturday's return as "The Romford Bull" Johnny Fisher takes on Michael Pirotton inside London's Copper Box Arena.
The 10-round heavyweight bout will serve as the Zuffa Boxing 11 main event as the 27-year-old Fisher (14-1, 12 KOs) brings his exciting style and rabid following to the ring against Pirotton (12-2, 6 KOs), a 6-foot-5 native of Belgium, who is coming off back-to-back stoppage wins.
The event marks Zuffa's second visit to the United Kingdom just nine months after the upstart promotion made its debut with Zuffa Boxing 01 in late January in Las Vegas. In June, Zuffa Boxing 07 emanated from the coastal British town of Bournemouth when cruiserweights Chris Billam-Smith and Ryan Rozicki put on a rousing slugfest.
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Fisher, a London native, rebounded from his lone career defeat, a fifth-round TKO loss to David Allen in their rematch, by stopping unbeaten Ivan Balaz last December in Monte Carlo. And thanks to his colorful personality and the large amounts of attention he has garnered through his father "Big" John Fisher, a popular social media personality who is known as "The Boshfather," the younger Fisher has become somewhat of a star.
After focusing his teenage years on rugby, Fisher returned to boxing in college and, despite a short amateur career, cut his teeth as a key sparring partner for British heavyweights Joe Joyce, Hughie Fury and Allen. For whatever Fisher lacks in terms of technique or agility, he makes up for with aggression, power and a willingness to trade punches on the inside.
"I'm known for my aggressive style, and my best performances have been when I'm aggressive and going for the knockout," Fisher told UFC.com. "I might not be an Oleksandr Usyk or Agit Kabayel, or a top-level heavyweight right now. But one thing you're guaranteed when you come to watch me fight is entertainment, and it's a privilege and an honor to reach out to this new market of American supporters and American fans."
Fisher, who will end a career-long layoff of nine months this weekend, first fought Allen in 2024 when he rose from the canvas to score an upset split-decision win over 10 rounds. But the rematch saw Fisher get dropped twice in Round 5 before his corner threw in the towel.
Pirotton, who turned pro in 2019, has described boxing as "violent therapy" for everything he has had to overcome in his life. Part of the reason for his two career setbacks, which came in back-to-back decision defeats against unbeaten opponents in 2025, came because Pirotton was juggling multiple jobs in order to make ends meet and accepted fights for the money when he wasn't fully trained.
Now that he's starting to come into his own a bit with increased focus and dedication in the gym, Pirotton believes he will be overlooked no longer after defeating Fisher.
"[Fisher] has never been through what I have been through," Pirotton said. "The way to beat Johnny is to outsmart this guy. People don't rate my boxing IQ because, honestly, I never show it properly except in sparring. I've never been on such a big stage but I know that's my quality. I'm ready to be embracing the moment and just be me."
The Zuffa Boxing 11 co-feature is also expected to produce fireworks between former title challengers as Craig Richards (20-4-1), who has shared the ring with the likes of Dmitry Bivol and Joshua Buatsi, takes on Radivoje "Hot Rod" Kalajdzic (30-3), who is fresh off an upset knockout of former champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk at Zuffa Boxing 02 in February.
Zuffa Boxing 11 fight card, odds
- Johnny Fisher -1200 vs. Michael Pirotton +650, heavyweights
- Radivojc Kalajdzic -130 vs. Craig Richards +105, light heavyweights
- Lee Cutler -160 vs. Louis Greene +125, middleweights
- Kayla Allen -10000 vs. Edina Kiss +1800, super lightweights
- Alex MacMillan -3500 vs. Guillaume Azagier +1100, 152 pounds
Where to watch Zuffa Boxing 11
Date: Sept. 26 | Location: Copper Box Arena -- London
Prelims begin at 12:15 p.m. ET
Main card begins at 2 p.m. ET
Watch live: Paramount+ (subscribe now for as little as $8.99 per month)
Prediction
Fisher simply doesn't mess around in fights, which means we are going to find out right away whether Pirotton is on his level and has both the chin and punching power to compete with him because of how willing Fisher is to exchange right from the jump.
The experience factor, however, simply can't be overlooked for Fisher, who is a monster betting favorite to get the job done and shine in his home city as a new signee of Zuffa Boxing. Expect him to do just that in yet another exciting slugfest for as long as it lasts. Pick: Fisher via TKO5
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