Odel Kamara is officially taking the paid route, and Matchroom Boxing just planted its flag on one of Britain’s brighter young fight prospects. The Liverpool super welterweight has turned professional with Eddie Hearn’s promotional machine after a decorated amateur run, giving the UK boxing conveyor belt another name to throw into the mix alongside the chaos already bubbling around Eddie Hearn flirting with crossover boxing chaos.
Matchroom announced the signing on Monday, August 17, 2026, and teased that Kamara’s pro debut news is coming soon. That means this is not just a handshake photo and a shiny graphic. The kid is about to get walked to the fire pretty quickly.
KING KAMARA 👑
Welcome to the team, Odel Kamara 🤝
News on a very exciting pro debut dropping 🔜
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) August 17, 2026
Kamara is 22, fights out of Liverpool, and will be trained by Tony Sims in Essex. That matters because Sims has been around the big nights, the messy rebuilds, and the young fighters who either level up or get swallowed once the cameras come on. Kamara is walking into that room with a serious amateur receipt folder.
Kamara Brings A Real Amateur Pedigree Into The Paid Ranks
Before this Matchroom deal, Kamara represented Great Britain out of Salisbury Amateur Boxing Club and won seven national titles, including the Senior Elite Championship. He then moved through the GB Boxing setup, where prospects do not exactly get bubble wrap and soft touches every week.
His 2024 international run did a lot of heavy lifting for the hype. Kamara won gold at the Dacal Memorial World Cup, then claimed the 71kg title at the World Boxing Cup Finals in Sheffield. In that final, he beat Japan’s Sewon Okazawa by unanimous decision, a result that carries more weight than the usual prospect press-release flex.
He also boxed for England at the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool last year and took bronze at 70kg. One of the loudest moments from that run came when he dropped Canada’s Kuwardeep Manu just three seconds into the opening round before winning by unanimous decision. Three seconds. That is not a feeling-out process, that is a man trying to turn the opening bell into a jump scare.
Kamara said his decision came down to who could push him to the top of the sport, adding, “I met with Eddie Hearn and Frank Smith and I knew straight away that Matchroom Boxing was the place for me.” He also gave fans the line they wanted to hear before the record even starts.
“Expect fireworks because I want to give the fans value for money every time I’m in the ring,” Kamara said.
The Matchroom fit is obvious. Hearn has been stacking young names and platform plays, from the Queensberry vs. Matchroom madness to bigger DAZN-fronted matchmaking swings, and Kamara gives that pipeline another homegrown name with actual amateur hardware behind him.
Hearn is already talking like he thinks he stole one from the market. He called Kamara “one of the future faces of British boxing” and said the Liverpool fighter has “the looks, the personality, the power, and, above all, he can really fight.” Promoter language can get spicy, but this is the sort of bet Matchroom loves when the fighter has a city, a story, and a highlight-friendly style.
Kamara said he wants to become a superstar and believes DAZN gives him the right platform to get there. Sam Jones, his boxing advisor, called him a “superstar in the making” and said every major manager and promoter wanted him. Now the job gets simple and brutal. Turn the hype into wins, make the debut pop, and prove this is more than another shiny signing graphic.
There is plenty of runway if he delivers. British boxing needs fresh names who can sell tickets before title belts enter the chat, and Kamara now has the kind of machine behind him that can move fast. After the Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte drama Matchroom had to navigate, this one is more old-school. Find the puncher, build the city, and see if the kid is really built for the bright lights.
