- Vacant WBA Continental (Gold) super lightweight title — 10 rounds — slotted as the headline co-feature on the Wardley vs Dubois card
- Rafferty (26-0-1, 17 KOs) hasn't fought since August 2025, vacated his domestic belts and is openly already mapping the move to welterweight after this
- Essuman (22-2, 8 KOs) is 36 and coming off two domestic-level points wars — the timing of this one matters more than the styles do
Right Then — The Real Co-Feature
Right then. Everyone's eyes on the Manchester card next Saturday are on Fabio Wardley versus Daniel Dubois, and rightly so — that fight on its own justifies the price of admission. But the co-feature has quietly become the most interesting thing on the rest of the card. Jack Rafferty versus Ekow Essuman at super lightweight, ten rounds, vacant WBA Continental (Gold). Don't sleep on it.
What Rafferty Is Walking Into
Rafferty's a proper unbeaten domestic-level operator at 26-0-1, with 17 stoppages and a draw with Mark Chamberlain that everyone in the country thought he won. He's been out since that draw in August 2025 — eleven months on the shelf with an injury, and he's vacated his domestic titles in the meantime. The man's already saying the words 'welterweight' before he's even walked to the ring. That tells you exactly where his head is at.
Make no mistake — that's a confidence move, not a comfort move. He's not picking Ekow Essuman because he thinks Essuman's an easy night. He's picking him because if you can't get past Essuman, you don't deserve to talk about the next division up. That's a proper attitude.
What Essuman Brings
Essuman is 22-2 with eight stoppages and a record that's deceptive in both directions. He outpointed Catterall's old foe Josh Taylor in May 2025 — that was a brilliant night for him — and then got hauled out in eleven by Jack Catterall in November. Two career-defining fights in six months, one win, one loss, both went deep. He's 36 years old and his miles are starting to show. But — and this is the bit Rafferty's camp will be honest about — he's a problem on his best night. He uses his angles, he doesn't stop coming forward in straight lines, and his jab is one of the most underrated in the British 140-147 corridor.
The Tactical Read
Two ways this can go. Either Rafferty has used the eleven-month layoff well, has the fresher legs, the sharper jab, and chops Essuman up over rounds five through nine for a late stoppage — that's the version where he announces himself for a welterweight title shot inside twelve months. Or, the rust shows in the early rounds, Essuman robs three on the cards before Rafferty wakes up, and we get a 96-94, 95-95, 96-94 mess that goes either way and tells nobody anything. That second version is the nightmare for Queensberry.
Where The Belt Sits In All This
Don't get carried away with the WBA Continental (Gold) bit — it's a regional ribbon, not a world strap. What matters is the WBA ranking that comes with it. Win this, and Rafferty walks into the back end of their top ten at 140 with a reset clock and a reason to push for a serious eliminator. Lose, and the welterweight chat gets quietly shelved while everyone pretends they never said it. That's what's actually on the line on Saturday — not a piece of metal, a runway.
Luke's Pick
If you know, you know — Rafferty's levels above where Essuman is right now. The eleven months off doesn't worry me, because the injury that caused it has been treated and the man trains in the gym whether he's got a fight or not. I'm taking Rafferty by stoppage between rounds eight and ten, and I'd back him to do it cleanly enough that he books a welterweight world-rated fight before the end of the year. Pick: Rafferty TKO 9. Don't beat around the bush — he's the better fighter on the night, and the only question is how long Essuman makes him work for it.
What To Watch For
Watch the first round. If Rafferty's snapping his jab and not stepping back at it, he's dialled in and the fight will be over by nine. If he's a half-step late and walking onto Essuman's jab, the rust is real and we're in for a 12-round… well, ten-round war that nobody quite predicted. The opening minute is your tell. The rest of the night is just paperwork.