Richards vs Azeez

Who won Richards vs Azeez?

Craig Richards beat Dan Azeez by knockout in the 12th round on Saturday, December 20th, 2025, at Legon Sports Stadium, Accra.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 175 pounds (12.5 stone or 79.4 kg).

The undercard featured the clash of Allotey vs Raquinel.

Richards vs Azeez stats

Craig Richards stepped into the ring with a record of 19 wins, 4 losses, and 1 draw, 12 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Dan Azeez made his way to the ring with a record of 22 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw, with 14 of those wins by knockout.

The stats suggested Azeez had a slight advantage in power over Richards, with a 64% knockout percentage compared to Richards' 63%.

Craig Richards was the younger man by 1 year, at 35 years old.

Richards had a height advantage of 3 inches over Azeez. That also extended to a 3-inch reach advantage.

Both Craig Richards and Dan Azeez fought out of an orthodox stance.

Richards was arguably the less experienced fighter, having had 1 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2015, 2 years and 9 months earlier than Azeez, whose first professional fight was in 2018. He had fought 33 fewer professional rounds, totaling 150 compared to Azeez's 183.

Craig Richards went into the fight ranked number 12 by the WBC at light heavyweight.

Richards vs Azeez form

Craig Richards had stopped 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had beaten Padraig McCrory on March 1, 2025, by knockout in the 8th round at The SSE Arena (Odyssey Arena), Belfast, United Kingdom.

Prior to that, he had been beaten by Willy Hutchinson on June 1, 2024, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Boris Crighton on February 10, 2024, by technical knockout in the 7th round at Indigo at The O2, Greenwich, United Kingdom.

Before that, he had lost to Joshua Buatsi on May 21, 2022, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at The O2 Arena, London.

He had won against Marek Matyja on October 30, 2021, by technical knockout in the 6th round at O2 Arena, London.

Azeez had beaten 2 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had beaten Sulaimon Adeosun on October 1, 2025, by technical knockout in the 4th round at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos, Nigeria.

Prior to that, he had been beaten by Lewis Edmondson on October 19, 2024, by majority decision in their BBBOC British Light heavyweight championship fight at Copper Box Arena, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Hackney Wick, United Kingdom.

Going into that contest, he had drawn with Hrvoje Sep on June 15, 2024, by points in the 8th round at Selhurst Park Football Ground, Crystal Palace.

Before that, he had lost to Joshua Buatsi on February 3, 2024, by unanimous decision in their BBBOC British Light heavyweight and CBC Commonwealth Light Heavyweight championship fight at OVO Arena Wembley, London.

He had beaten Thomas Faure on March 11, 2023, by technical decision in their 12 round contest at Zenith Paris - La Villette, Paris, France.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Dan Azeez had been fighting more than Craig Richards.

Going into this contest, Craig Richards had last fought 9 months and 19 days ago, while Dan Azeez's last outing had been 2 months and 19 days ago.

Richards' last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years, 1 month and 20 days, which means he had been fighting approximately every 9 months and 29 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 45 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 9 rounds on average.

Azeez's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 9 months and 9 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 6 months and 22 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 48 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 9.6 rounds on average.

What time did Richards vs Azeez start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 10:00 PM UTC at Legon Sports Stadium, Accra, Ghana, which was 5:00 PM EST or 2:00 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 10:00 PM GMT in the UK.

Who broadcast Richards vs Azeez?

The DAZN show began at 2:00 PM EST / 11:00 AM PST. The DAZN Global broadcast of the card started at 7:00 PM (GTM).

What were the odds on Richards vs Azeez?

Craig Richards was a 7/20 (-290) favorite going into the contest, while Dan Azeez made his way into the ring at 9/4 (+230) with oddsmakers.