Written by Badou Jack is a world champion again at 39 years old.
The former 168-pound titleholder and 175-pound contender knocked out an overmatched Ilunga Makabu in the 12th and final round to take Makabu’s WBC 200-pound belt on the Jake Paul-Tommy Fury card Sunday in Saudi Arabia.
Jack (28-3-3, 17 KOs) dominated Makabu (29-3, 25 KOs) from the outset, outboxing him, breaking him down, putting him down twice (in Rounds 4 and 11) and ultimately stopping him.
The end came when Jack hurt a fading Makabu with a right hand and then followed with a flurry of shots that prompted the referee to stop the fight 54 seconds into the last round.
Makabu fought aggressively and threw his share of punches. However, the quicker, more polished Jack clearly landed the cleaner shots and was almost always a step ahead of his 35-year-old opponent.
Jack held a 168-pound title in the mid-2010s. He also held the WBA’s “regular” 175-pound title, which Boxing Junkie doesn’t recognize.