Anthony Cacace Explained

Anthony Cacace (; born 2 February 1989)^[2] is a professional boxer from Northern Ireland. He has held the International Boxing Organization (IBO) super-featherweight title since 2022, and previously held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) super-featherweight title from 2024 to 2025.

Professional career

Early career

Cacace made his professional debut on 25 February 2012, scoring a first-round technical knockout (TKO) victory over Ben Wager at the Emerald Roadhouse in Belfast, Northern Ireland.^[3] Followed three more wins—a points decision (PTS) over Kristian Laight in April;^[4] a sixth-round TKO over Mickey Coveney in July;^[5] and Aivaras Balsys by PTS in September^[6] —Cacace fought Mickey Coveney for a second time on 3 November 2012 at the National Basketball Arena in Dublin. Cacace won via first-round TKO to capture the BUI super-featherweight title.^[7] His final fight of 2012 was a PTS victory against Youssef al-Hamidi in December.^[8]

He gained decision victories over Zsolt Nagy in March^[9] and Osnel Charles in October 2013,^[10] followed by wins over Dawid Knade by TKO in September^[11] and Simas Volosinas by PTS in December 2014.^[12] He began 2015 with a PTS win over Santiago Bustos in February^[13] and a TKO win against Karoly Lakatos in June.^[14] His last fight of 2015 was against Ronnie Clark for the vacant Celtic super-featherweight title. The bout took place on 16 October at the Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh. Cacace captured the Celtic title via tenth-round TKO in a scheduled ten-round fight.^[15]

Following two fights in 2016 — a corner retirement (RTD) win against Jamie Quinn in September^[16] and a PTS win over Leonel Hernandez in November^[17] —Cacace challenged British super-featherweight champion Martin J Ward on 15 July 2017, at the Wembley Arena in London, with the vacant Commonwealth title also on the line. In what was a close competitive fight, Cacace suffered the first defeat of his professional career, losing by unanimous decision (UD) over twelve rounds, with the judges' scorecards reading 116–113, 116–114 and 115–113, all in favour of Ward.^[18]

Following his defeat to Ward, Cacace gained a PTS victory over six rounds against Reynaldo Mora in December 2017.^[19] After 14 months out of the ring, Cacace was back in action in February 2019 with an eight-round PTS win over Alan Castillo.^[20]

Cacace, as the mandatory contender, was due to challenge for the British super-featherweight title on 3 August 2019 against reigning champion Sam Bowen, however, Bowen pulled out of the fight due to a back injury.^{[21] [22]} The bout was rescheduled for 30 November at Arena Birmingham. Cacace won, capturing the British title via split decision (SD), with two judges scoring the bout 115–113 to Cacace while the third scored it 115–112 to Bowen.^[23]

Cacace won the IBO super-featherweight title by defeating Michael Magnesi via split decision at Manchester Arena on 24 September 2022.^{[24] [25]}

IBF Super featherweight champion

Cacace vs. Cordina

On 18 May 2024, Cacace challenged then unbeaten champion Joe Cordina for the IBF super-featherweight title on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk. After dropping and badly hurting Cordina in round three, Cacace continued to pour on the pressure and ended up scoring an eighth round technical knockout win. This made him the first Irish super-featherweight champion.^{[26] [27]}

Cacace vs. Warrington

Cacace defeated two-time former featherweight world champion Josh Warrington by unanimous decision at Wembley Stadium on 21 September 2024. The three ringside judges scored the fight 118–110, 117–111, 117–111 respectively in his favour.^{[28] [29]} Cacace's belt was not on the line as the IBF did not recognise Warrington as a challenger due to his inactivity in the super-featherweight division, with the governing body announcing he would be stripped of the title had he lost the contest.^[30]

Vacating title

Cacace vacated the IBF title on 31 January 2025. In a social media post announcing the decision he said: "Becoming a world champion was an absolute dream and an incredibly proud moment for me. However, at this stage of my career, I only want the biggest fights possible, regardless of the belt on the line."^{[31] [32]}

Cacace vs. Wood

Cacace successfully defended his IBO title by stopping Leigh Wood in the ninth round of their bout at Nottingham Arena on 10 May 2025.^{[33] [34]}

WBA super-featherweight title challenge

Cacace vs. Dickens

Cacace is scheduled to challenge WBA super-featherweight champion Jazza Dickens at 3Arena in Dublin on 14 March 2026.^{[35] [36]}

Professional boxing record

	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
25	Win	24–1	Leigh Wood	TKO	9 (12),	10 May 2025
24	Win	23–1	Josh Warrington	UD	12	21 Sep 2024
23	Win	22–1	Joe Cordina	TKO	8 (12),	18 May 2024
22	Win	21–1	Damian Wrzesiński	UD	12	27 May 2023
21	Win	20–1	Michael Magnesi	SD	12	24 Sep 2022
20	Win	19–1	Lyon Woodstock	UD	12	28 Aug 2021
19	Win	18–1	Sam Bowen		12	30 Nov 2019
18	Win	17–1	Alan Castillo	PTS	8	23 Feb 2019
17	Win	16–1	Reynaldo Mora	PTS	6	21 Dec 2017
16	Loss	15–1	Martin Joseph Ward	UD	12	15 Jul 2017
15	Win	15–0	Leonel Hernandez	PTS	6	19 Nov 2016
14	Win	14–0	Jamie Quinn		1 (6),	3 Sep 2016
13	Win	13–0	Ronnie Clark		10 (10),	16 Oct 2015
12	Win	12–0	Karoly Lakatos	TKO	3 (6),	14 Jun 2015
11	Win	11–0	Santiago Bustos	PTS	8	28 Feb 2015
10	Win	10–0	Simas Volosinas	PTS	6	6 Dec 2014
9	Win	9–0	Dawid Knade	TKO	2 (4),	6 Sep 2014
8	Win	8–0	Osnel Charles		4	12 Oct 2013
7	Win	7–0	Zsolt Nagy	PTS	6	9 Mar 2013
6	Win	6–0	Youssef al-Hamidi	PTS	4	8 Dec 2012
5	Win	5–0	Mickey Coveney	TKO	1 (10),	3 Nov 2012
4	Win	4–0	Alvaras Balsys	PTS	8	7 Sep 2012
3	Win	3–0	Mickey Coveney	TKO	6 (6),	21 Jul 2012
2	Win	2–0	Kristian Laight		4	7 Apr 2012
1	Win	1–0	Ben Wager		1 (4),	25 Feb 2012

See also

• List of southpaw stance boxers
• List of British world boxing champions
• List of world super-featherweight boxing champions

External links

• • Anthony Cacace - Profile, News Archive & Current Rankings at Box.Live

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Notes and References

1. [DAZN]
2. Web site: Anthony Cacace Fighter Profile . 5 July 2022 . .
3. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Ben Wager. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
4. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Kristian Laight. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
5. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Mickey Coveney. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
6. News: Kelly. David. Ricky Hatton the role model as Luke Wilton aims for title. 10 September 2012. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 27 January 2020. en-GB. 0307-1235.
7. Web site: Anthony Cacace destroys rival in Dublin. 5 November 2012. www.newsletter.co.uk. 27 January 2020.
8. Web site: James Tennyson is on the rise after Coveney win. 10 December 2012. www.newsletter.co.uk. 27 January 2020.
9. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Zsolt Nagy. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
10. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Osnel Charles. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
11. Web site: TheJournal.ie – Carl Frampton crowned world champion on a special night in Belfast. 7 September 2014. www.the42.ie. 27 January 2020.
12. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Simas Volosinas. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
13. News: Victorious Anthony Cacace has yet to reach his top gear. 2 March 2015. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 27 January 2020. en-GB. 0307-1235.
14. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Karoly Lakatos. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
15. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Ronnie Clark. boxrec.com. 27 January 2020.
16. News: Classy Anthony Cacace moves closer to a tilt at the British boxing title. 5 September 2016. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 27 January 2020. en-GB. 0307-1235.
17. Web site: The Irish Eye. 13 December 2016. Boxing Monthly. en-GB. 27 January 2020.
18. News: Cacace left frustrated as Ward edges title battle. 17 July 2017. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 27 January 2020. en-GB. 0307-1235.
19. Web site: BoxRec: Anthony Cacace vs. Reynaldo Mora. boxrec.com. 28 January 2020.
20. News: Castillo win just the start, insists Cacace. 25 February 2019. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 28 January 2020. en-GB. 0307-1235.
21. Web site: British camp not afraid of Cacace or Belfast – coach quashes 'fake' Bowen injury talk. Stapleton. Jonny. 3 July 2019. Irish-boxing.com. en-US. 28 January 2020.
22. Web site: Sam Bowen free from work and sciatica to focus fully on British title defence. 31 October 2019. www.britishboxingnews.co.uk. 28 January 2020.
23. Web site: Anthony Cacace Beats Sam Bowen To Become British Champion. 30 November 2019. BoxingScene.com. en-us. 28 January 2020.
24. Web site: Boxing: Cacace defeats Magnesi to claim IBO title. belfastmedia.com. 2 January 2026.
25. Web site: Anthony Cacace Edges Michael Magnesi By Split Decision To Win IBO Title. Boxing Scene. 2 January 2026.
26. Web site: Ireland's Anthony Cacace stuns Joe Cordina to become world champion . the42 . 18 May 2024 . 19 May 2024.
27. Web site: Anthony Cacace pulls off shock TKO over Joe Cordina for first world title. ESPN. 23 September 2024.
28. Web site: Cacace claims unanimous decision win over Warrington. BBC Sport. 23 September 2024.
29. Web site: Anthony Cacace claims clear points victory over Josh Warrington. Boxing Scene. 23 September 2024.
30. Web site: IBF world title not on line for Cacace v Warrington. BBC Sport. 23 September 2024.
31. Web site: Cacace vacates world title for 'biggest fights possible'. BBC Sport. 1 February 2025.
32. Web site: Anthony Cacace Relinquishes IBF 130-Pound Belt; Eduardo Nuñez-Masanori Rikiishi Vacant Title Fight Expected. The Ring. 1 February 2025.
33. Web site: Cacace stops Wood in brutal ninth round to retain title. BBC Sport. 11 May 2025.
34. Web site: Anthony Cacace ends Leigh Wood's comeback with ninth-round TKO. ESPN. 11 May 2025.
35. Web site: 'Jazza' Dickens-Anthony Cacace set for Dublin on March 14. Boxing Scene. 2 January 2026.
36. Web site: Dickens to make Dublin title defence against Cacace. BBC Sport. 2 January 2026.