Title: World Champion Returns to the Ring After Three-Year Absence
Get ready for the boxing comeback of the year! Keith "One-Time" Thurman (30-1, 22 KOs; 1 NC) is stepping back into the ring after a three-year hiatus. The much-anticipated clash against Brock Jarvis (22-1, 20 KOs) is set for March 12 in Sydney, Australia, as reported by Ring Magazine.
On February 22, Thurman will address the media to announce this high-stakes bout, along with the co-main event, which is rumored to include middleweight Michael Zerafa.
Thurman's most recent bout occurred in February 2022, where he outclassed current WBA champion Mario Barrios, securing a unanimous decision victory. Sadly, his scheduled match against Tim Tszyu in March 2024 was canceled due to Thurman's withdrawal, just two weeks prior to the event.
Tszyu went on to protect his WBO 147-pound title against Sebastian Fundora, with Fundora snatching the win in a split decision, ascending to the world champion rank. Given Thurman's temporary inactivity, he'll need to ready himself to shake off any lingering rust. It appears his camp has chosen Jarvis as a suitable opponent for this purpose.
Although Jarvis boasts a glittering record, his opponents have not been particularly challenging. The only notable name in his ring history is former IBF 140-pound champion Liam Paro—a man Jarvis was unable to conquer in a first-round knockout loss in October 2022.
Jarvis' willingness to jump between weight categories has been admirable, leading to a total of six different divisions throughout his four-and-a-half-year professional career. He recently notched a victory over a lesser-known contestant named Adrian Rodriguez in the middleweight division in December 2024.
Since his defeat to Paro in 2022, Jarvis has only managed two bouts. Boxing enthusiasts shouldn't hold onto hopes of seeing the Thurman powerhouse that once placed him on numerous pound-for-pound lists in 2017. Instead, they'll likely witness a test phase for Thurman to gauge his current capabilities against a suitable opponent like Jarvis.
March 2025 marks a series of exciting fights, according to The Ring. Here are the upcoming events:
Boxing Schedule 2025
January 24, 2025
- Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim for The Ring, IBF, WBC, and WBO Junior Featherweight Championships
January 25, 2025
- Dalton Smith vs. Walid Ouizza for the European Title
- Diego Pacheco vs. Steven Nelson
- Ernesto Mercado vs. Jose Pedraza
- Andy Cruz vs. Omar Salcido Gamez
February 1, 2025
- Adam Azim vs. Sergey Lipinets
- David Benavidez vs. David Morrell
- Brandon Figueroa vs. Stephen Fulton
- Alejandro Ramos Jr. vs. Jeison Rosario
- Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz vs. Angel Fierro
February 2, 2025
- WBO World Heavyweight Championship: Claressa Shields vs. Danielle Perkins
February 8, 2025
- Dereck Chisora vs. Otto Wallin
February 14, 2025
- WBO World Lightweight Championship: (c) Denys Berinchyk vs. Keyshawn Davis
February 15, 2025
- Jack Catterall vs. Arnold Barboza
- Oscar Duarte vs. Regis Prograis
February 22, 2025
- The Ring, WBA, WBC, WBO, and IBF Light Heavyweight Championship: (c) Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol
- IBF Heavyweight Championship: (c) Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker
- WBC Lightweight Championship (c) Shakur Stevenson vs. Floyd Schofield
- WBC Middleweight Championship (c) Carlos Adames vs. Hamzah Sheeraz
- Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs. Israil Madrimov
- Joshua Buatsi vs. Callum Smith
- Zhilei Zhang vs. Agit Kabayel
February 24, 2025
- WBC World Bantamweight Championship: (c) Junto Nakatani vs. David Cuellar Contreras
March 1, 2025
- WBA World Lightweight Championship: (c) Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach Jr.
March 7, 2025
- The Ring Welterweight Championship: (c) Natasha Jonas vs. Lauren Price
March 15, 2025
- WBA World Featherweight Championship: (c) Nick Ball vs. TJ Doheny
March 16, 2025
- Callum Walsh vs. Dean Sutherland
Keith Thurman's next fight will take place on March 12, 2025, against Brock Jarvis in Sydney, Australia. This information was revealed by Ring Magazine.
Brock Jarvis, with a record of 22-2, will be Thurman's opponent in his return to boxing, marking the end of Thurman's three-year hiatus.
It's important to note that Jarvis has not faced particularly challenging opponents so far in his career, but he has shown admirable adaptability by competing in six different weight categories throughout his career. His recent victory was against Adrian Rodriguez in the middleweight division in December 2024.
