Brooklyn Barwick to Face Shaniqua Frazier

Brooklyn "Big Deal" Barwick is scheduled to battle Shaniqua Frazier in a tune-up fight at the Moore Building at the Fairgrounds in Columbia, South Carolina, USA on Saturday night.

Barwick, 26, made it down to South Carolina today. Her mother was supposed to join her, but her flight on Spirit Airlines was cancelled when the company closed its doors on May 2. She has not yet been able to get a refund.

Based in New York, Barwick (6-1, 6 KOs) attended a pre-fight get-together last week with 25 of her Jewish friends at the 2nd Ave Deli. It was a chance for Brooklyn to unwind as fight night approaches. She took special glee in roasting Aryeh, one the attendees at the shindig.

The party also provided an escape from several incidents of antisemitism Barwick has recently faced. BoxRec changed her nationality to Israeli, and she has been outspoken in her love for the Jewish people. She has received positive messages from Israeli girls who look up to her, but she has also received some backlash for her unapologetic Jewish pride. She even experienced an incident today on the trip to South Carolina.

Frazier, a 34 year old from Wilson, North Carolina, is the right opponent for Barwick at this time. Brooklyn is coming off of a disputed loss in February and a rough Team Boxing League showing in March. Frazier's size, height at 5'7", and her wild formless punches are her best assets. But she sports a poor record of 0-8 with eight first round stoppages. Frazier's best opponent was Stevie Morgan (19-2, 17 KOs), who once challenged the great Amanda Serrano back in 2024.

Barwick will be observing Shabbat in between the weigh-in on Friday and her fight Saturday night. Her kosher food is sponsored by Mazza and More and The Kosher Concierge. This bout is scheduled for four two-minute rounds and marks Barwick's U.S. debut.

David Malul to Fight in June

Welterweight prospect "King" David Malul is scheduled to fight at the Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA on June 13. The 4-0 native of Queens, New York last fought in November, a decision victory over Colin Huntington on a card David promoted.

This show, promoted by Boxing Insider, will be David's first fight outside of New York. He turned pro in September of 2024. After three fights, he suffered a fractured nose which contributed to a seven and a half month layoff. Since the Huntington fight, Malul has been scheduled to enter the ring twice, but both fights fell out.

The king is back with Main Street for his four rounder next month. No opponent has yet been announced.

The Thieves of Cherbourg: Ben Ephraim-Kaddour Called a Draw

Odelia Ben Ephraim dominated Sarah Kaddour at Gymnase Jean Jaures in Cherbourg, France today. Yet, two judges inexplicably called the fight even. Earlier this week, The Jewish Boxing Blog prophesied, "As the opponent, Odelia will need to win in convincing fashion." She did just that and the judges still saddled her with a majority draw.

Kaddour, a 30 year old, began each round firing combinations at her 26 year old opponent. However, most of her wide shots were blocked or slipped. Ben Ephraim stalked, wearing down Kaddour with pressure. In the first, Odelia landed a couple of hard looping rights after setting them up by dipping her left shoulder. While Kaddour attacked without much forethought,  Ben Ephraim showed her class by feinting, setting up her power shots, and exhibiting impressive accuracy.

Ben Ephraim completely controlled the second round. At one point, Kaddour switched to southpaw in desperation. Later, she was caught in the corner and ate a barrage of punches. The third wasn't any better for Kaddour, who was exhausted by the end of the round. Odelia cut off the ring beautifully and picked her punches like the artist that she is.

To her credit, Kaddour never gave up and displayed a warrior's heart. She showed flashes of skill, particularly during the second half of the fight. The former kickboxing champion boxed well in the round, landing her jab and a nice right uppercut. Ben Ephraim's corner had delayed the opening of the fourth after forgetting to stick in her mouthpiece, just when Kaddour was very tired. But Odelia finished the fourth strong, battering her opponent to take another round.

Kaddour connected with some sneaky rights in the fifth, but she ate a lot of left hooks. Midway through the round, she vacillated between running and flinging wild combinations that missed their mark.

The sixth and final round proved to be Kaddour's best. She mucked up the fight by holding. Ben Ephraim landed some quality one-twos, but Kaddour showed a good right uppercut.

The Jewish Boxing Blog scored the fight 59-55 for Ben Ephraim. The announcers seemed to concur. Yet the judges showed utter incompetence or worse in their scorecards. One read 59-55, but the announcer didn't pin it to either fighter. Thankfully, it turned out to be for Ben Ephraim. The other two judges, Eric Butel and Frederic Arnaud, committed larceny, scoring the fight 57 apiece. To give the judges the benefit of the doubt, Kaddour's hands were very active. They just weren't nearly as effective as Ben Ephraim's precise punches.

This fight was a masterclass for Ben Ephraim, but unfortunately boxing can be a dirty game. Her record is 5-6-1. Kaddour is 1-1-1.