Josh Kelly vs Caoimhin Agyarko Preview July 25th, 2026
IBF Junior Middleweight Champion Josh Kelly of Sunderland, England defends his belt for the first time when he takes on unbeaten Caoimhin Agyarko of London, England this Saturday, July 25th. The 12-rounder from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia can be seen live on DAZN pay-per-view on the undercard of the Kristian Prenga vs Anthony Joshua event. Kelly was last in action in January when he upset Bakhram Murtazaliev via a majority decision to win the title. Murtazaliev was down in the fourth round while Kelly hit the deck in the ninth. Agyarko’s last fight resulted in a 12-round split decision over Ismael Davis in September despite being floored in the final round.
Kelly vs Agyarko Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Caoimhin Agyarko +266
- Josh Kelly -370
My Pick
The 31-year-old Kelly carries around an impressive mark of 18-1-1 with 9 Ko’s and has boxed 139 rounds since making his pro debut in 2017. He measures 5-feet-10-inches tall with a 72-inch reach which sees him enter the ring with a one-inch height advantage on Agyarko. He basically has average power as 50 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage and has gone the distance in four of his past six fights. Kelly’s lone pro defeat was a sixth-round stoppage at the hands of David Avenesyan in February, 2021 in a shot at the European Welterweight Title while his draw was a 10-round majority affair with Ray Robinson in June, 2019.
Kelly won the vacant WBA International Welterweight Title in 2018 with a 10-round unanimous decision over Carlos Molina and defended it against Kris George, Przemyslaw Runowski and Robinson. He stopped George after seven rounds when George suffered a broken jaw and broken hands. That bout was also for the Commonwealth Welterweight Belt. Kelly has also beaten Ishmael Davis, Jose Luis Zuniga, Troy Williamson and Walter Castillo and has won the WBO International and British Super Welterweight Belts.
Kelly enjoyed a fine amateur career as he won a bronze medal at the 2012 AIBA Youth World Championships, won gold at the 2014 Heidelberg Round Robin Tournament, took bronze at the 2014 Golden Belt Tournament, the 2015 Bocskai Memorial Tournament and the 2015 European Games. He was also a quarter-finalist at the 2015 AIBA World Championships and participated at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where he went 1-1.
Caoimhin ‘Black Thunder’ Agyarko, who fights out of Belfast, Northern, Ireland, is 29 years old and makes the ring walk with a perfect mark of 18-0 with 7 Ko’s. He’s got 133 rounds of pro experience under his belt since making his debut in 2018 following his extensive amateur career. As an amateur he reportedly won half a dozen national titles in the junior, youth, and elite senior divisions. He boxed at the World Amateur and European Championships as well as several other high-profile tournaments and the World Series of Boxing.
Agyarko measures 5-feet-9-inches tall and unfortunately has an unlisted wingspan. He doesn’t possess much in the way of power as just 38.9 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage and he’s gone the distance in his last eight contests. Agyarko’s most notable victories have been over Troy Williamson, Juan Carlos Rubio, Ishmael Davis and Ryan Kelly. Agyarko suffered a near-fatal knife attack in Belfast in 2017 which required two surgeries. However he was back in the ring five months later and turned pro shortly after.
Prediction…
Kelly is a solid pro with decent power but he surprised many fans with his excellent showing against Murtazaliev. If he can replicate that performance then he definitely has the edge over Agyarko this weekend. Agyarko will give it a good go, but I believe at this stage he’s a European-level boxer while Kelly’s effort against Murtazaliev proved that he might be ready for elite-level opposition at this point. I’m going with Kelly and there’s a good chance it goes the distance.
Kelly’s slightly a class above Agyarko at this stage of their careers.
Play: Kelly -370 @ BetOnline.ag
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Caoimhin Agyarko betting • Josh Kelly betting