Anthony Cacace to Defend WBA Title Against Nick Ball in Belfast

What happened: Anthony Cacace will make the first defence of his WBA super-featherweight world title against Nick Ball at The O2 in Belfast on December 19. BBC Sport reported the confirmed all-British matchup on Saturday, with the Belfast champion set to face the former WBA featherweight titleholder from Liverpool.

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Cacace, 37, claimed the WBA belt in March by defeating James ‘Jazza’ Dickens on points in Dublin. The result took his professional record to 25 wins and one defeat. Before that victory, Cacace had won and later relinquished the IBF championship, making the win over Dickens his return to world-title status at super-featherweight.

The December contest will also bring Cacace back to fight in his home city for the first time since May 2023. On that occasion, he defended his IBO belt against Damian Wrzesinski on the undercard of Luis Alberto Lopez’s featherweight title victory over Michael Conlan. Cacace told DAZN he expects a demanding contest and is prepared either to trade punches with Ball or box him.

Ball enters the matchup with a record of 23 wins, one loss and one draw. His only professional defeat came in February, when Brandon Figueroa stopped him in the final round of a WBA featherweight title defence. Ball had won that championship on points against Raymond Ford in 2024, three months after his first world-title attempt ended in a draw with then-WBC champion Rey Vargas.

Why it matters: Ball is moving up from featherweight with the chance to become a world champion in a second division, while Cacace is beginning his first defence of the WBA belt. Ball told DAZN that the contest represents a major opportunity at a new weight and described Cacace as a solid champion. The pair have appeared on the same Belfast card before, with Ball stopping Ludumo Lamati on the May 2023 bill.

What to watch: The announced contest pairs Cacace’s home advantage and established record at super-featherweight with Ball’s first attempt to win a championship in the heavier division. Both fighters indicated that they expect an aggressive meeting, but the confirmed stakes remain straightforward: Cacace’s WBA title and Ball’s bid for two-weight champion status will be decided in Belfast on December 19.