Two years after Buatsi edged Hutchinson in a hard-fought split decision, the British light-heavyweights will meet again on November 7 at Manchester’s AO Arena. Hutchinson says he has waited two years to settle the score and is predicting the best version of himself yet, while Buatsi remains characteristically composed, insisting the only thing that matters is what is at stake.

“I’ve waited two year for this one,” Hutchinson said. “I said, ‘Give me the rematch.’ And here we are two years later… I’m very, very happy this fight’s happening.”

The confident “Hutch Train” believes he is entering the defining stretch of his career.

“I’m older, I’m wiser, I’m fitter, I’m stronger, I’m handsomer — I’m everything. You name it, I’m better from two years ago,” Hutchinson said. “This is the beginning of the Hutch Train becoming world champion.”

Buatsi, who dropped Hutchinson twice en route to winning their first 12-round encounter, was unmoved by the rematch talk and outside criticism, making clear that the prize is his motivation.

“There wasn’t a lot of things that made me want to take it,” Buatsi said. “It was for what was at stake… that’s the exact and only reason why I’ve taken it.”

Asked how he expects the rematch to unfold, Buatsi kept it simple: “I’ll go away, I’ll prepare, I’ll come back to win — and I’ll see everyone on November the 7th.”

Hutchinson, however, promised a far more emphatic result: “I know what I’m going to do on the 7th of November. I’m going to get this man out there and I’m going to push on with my career.”

Joshua Buatsi and Willy Hutchinson will renew their rivalry on Saturday, 7 November 2026, when the British light-heavyweight contenders meet for a second time with the vacant interim WBC World Light-Heavyweight Championship on the line at Manchester Arena in Manchester, Lancashire, United Kingdom.

The eagerly anticipated rematch brings together two of the division’s leading contenders more than two years after their first meeting, when Buatsi prevailed over Hutchinson by split decision in a fiercely contested WBO interim light-heavyweight title fight at Wembley Stadium on September 21, 2024. Buatsi dropped Hutchinson twice during the 12-round contest before securing the judges’ decision and claiming the interim championship. This time, the stakes are once again championship stakes, with the vacant interim WBC title providing the prize.

Joshua Buatsi, the Ghana-born British contender and 2016 Olympic bronze medallist, enters the rematch with a 20-1 professional record, including 13 victories inside the distance. After establishing himself as one of Britain’s leading light-heavyweights and capturing the WBO interim world title against Hutchinson, Buatsi suffered the first defeat of his professional career against former world champion Callum Smith in February 2025, losing a unanimous decision in Riyadh. He responded with a majority-decision victory over Zach Parker in Manchester on November 1, 2025, his most recent outing, to move back into the world-title picture. Buatsi now returns to Manchester seeking another championship triumph and an opportunity to add the interim WBC crown to his résumé.

Willy Hutchinson, the talented Scottish southpaw known as “The Hutch Train,” brings a 20-2 record with 14 knockouts into the rematch. A former European Junior and World Youth amateur champion and the first Scot to win World Amateur Championship gold, Hutchinson turned professional in 2017 and has since established himself as a major force at light-heavyweight. Following his narrow defeat to Buatsi, Hutchinson rebuilt with consecutive victories, stopping Mark Jeffers in October 2025 before defeating previously unbeaten Ezra Taylor by unanimous decision on March 28, 2026, in a contest for the vacant WBO Global Light-Heavyweight Championship. The Taylor victory extended Hutchinson’s winning streak to two and earned him another opportunity to settle the score with Buatsi.

The rematch will take place on Saturday, 7 November 2026, at Manchester Arena in Manchester, Lancashire, United Kingdom, under the jurisdiction of the British Boxing Board of Control, with Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions as promoter. The event will be broadcast live on DAZN. Current listings confirm Buatsi-Hutchinson II as the headline attraction for the vacant interim WBC World Light-Heavyweight Championship.

Hutchinson has made no secret of his desire to secure a second opportunity against Buatsi, having campaigned for the rematch ever since their first encounter. At the official launch, he made clear that the fight has been a long-term objective and that he believes the intervening two years have transformed him as a fighter. “I’ve waited two years for this one,” Hutchinson said, emphasizing his belief that he is now older, wiser, fitter and stronger and ready to fulfil his ambition of becoming world champion.

Buatsi, meanwhile, has approached the rematch with his customary measured focus, making clear that the championship stakes were the decisive factor in accepting the return bout. “It’s an important fight,” Buatsi said. “It’s a fight that’s happened before but here we are with a rematch with something on the line. Something very important on the line.” He added that he and his team were immediately on board once the significance of the opportunity was communicated.

For Hutchinson, the contest represents the chance to rewrite the result of the first encounter and capture a major world title. For Buatsi, it is an opportunity to once again establish himself at the forefront of the 175-pound division and add another championship achievement to his career. With both men arriving off victories and the vacant interim WBC World Light-Heavyweight Championship at stake, their second meeting promises to be another compelling chapter in one of British boxing’s most intriguing rivalries.

Tickets for Buatsi vs. Hutchinson II - Saturday, November 7th, at AO Arena Manchester go on venue and promoter presale Wednesday, 9 September at 1:00 p.m. BST, with general sale beginning Thursday, 10 September at 1:00 p.m. BST. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster just (click here).