{"id":612975,"date":"2026-05-31T01:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T01:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/612975\/"},"modified":"2026-05-31T01:54:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T01:54:12","slug":"joel-kodua-plans-to-dominate-the-domestic-welterweight-scene-before-taking-on-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/612975\/","title":{"rendered":"Joel Kodua plans to ‘dominate’ the domestic welterweight scene before taking on the world"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joel Kodua is eager to mop up at British title level, using his domestic success to launch an eventual assault on the world scene.<\/p>\n

While making a first defence of his English title this Saturday, it is only natural that \u2018JFK\u2019 hopes to one day challenge for the highest honours of his sport.<\/p>\n

Before that, though, he must face Central Area champion Will Harrison, featuring on the undercard of Adam Azim vs Steve Claggett at London\u2019s Wembley Arena.<\/a><\/p>\n

With Harrison having previously boxed to two draws against Joe Garside, who Kodua stopped in round seven earlier this year, it would be easy for the 29-year-old to overlook his next opponent.<\/p>\n

While speaking with Boxing News, though, Kodua makes it clear that there is no danger of taking his eye off the ball.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Harrison is] still undefeated and he\u2019s still a champion, so I\u2019ve got to give him that respect. In that sense, I am training my ass off.<\/p>\n

\u201cDepending on the opponent, it\u2019s always a different type of style that I bring to the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Darren Francis, I was walking him down, catching shots and firing back. With Bobby Dalton, I was more so countering off the ropes \u2013 boom, boom, boom \u2013 and, when I needed to step on the gas, I stepped on the gas.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut with Joe Garside, it was just constant pressure throughout the whole fight. You\u2019ve got to have a plan from A-Z.\u201d<\/p>\n

Against Harrison, Kodua will enter his third Boxxer outing on the BBC, where viewers have been fortunate enough to witness his versatility in the ring.<\/p>\n

Outside the ring, meanwhile, the English champ recently returned to his old stomping ground, Kingsford Community School, in an effort to inspire the younger generation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was like taking a walk down memory lane. All the teachers are my age now, which is mad because, growing up, I remember all the teachers seeming a lot older [than 29].<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it was good seeing the youth and giving a motivational talk, showing them that it\u2019s possible to do anything that you want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

During his speech, Kodua emphasised the importance of finding your passion<\/a> and, in turn, discovering your flow state, which he compares to feeling like \u2018Neo\u2019 from The Matrix.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think [I experienced it for the first time] in one of my amateur fights. I was just literally flowing and letting my hands go, like I was in The Matrix.\u201d<\/p>\n

If he emerges victorious against Harrison then Kodua should be in the conversation for a shot at Constantin Ursu, who claimed his British title with a convincing points win over Owen Cooper in February.<\/p>\n

Whatever comes next, though, the unbeaten welterweight expects to be in a far stronger position by the end of 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the end of the year, I want to have established myself a lot more in boxing. First, I want to dominate the British [scene], then go European and then [land on] the world scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

While admitting it would be a \u201ccracking fight\u201d between him and Ursu, Kodua is open to facing any opponent that can accelerate his charge towards the Promised Land.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Joel Kodua is eager to mop up at British title level, using his domestic success to launch an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":612976,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-612975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=612975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/612976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=612975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=612975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=612975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}