Anthony Cacace vs Josh Warrington Predictions: The end for ‘The Leeds Warrior’?

IBF super featherweight champion Anthony Cacace gets a big-name opponent as he takes on Josh Warrington this Saturday, September 21. The fight takes place on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium. DAZN PPV and Sky Sports Box Office will both screen the event live.

Here are my Cacace vs Warrington predictions ahead of this thrilling super featherweight clash.

Interestingly, despite the fight being at the super featherweight limit, Cacace’s newly-won IBF title will not be on the line here. This is not by choice or design, with all involved in the promotion and the fighters themselves wanting the belt up for grabs. 

But the governing body refused to sanction Warrington as a challenger due to the fact he has not fought at this weight for over a decade. 

That usually isn’t an issue. Terence Crawford captured the WBA super welterweight title in his very first fight at the weight last month. But he was the WBA champion down at welterweight at the time, so special dispensation was made. Warrington is unranked at featherweight by the IBF, so the sanctioning body would not sign off on a title shot in the division above.

In truth, the fact this isn’t for the IBF title (Cacace’s minor IBO belt is on the line) is probably a fair reflection. Warrington is certainly not on the sort of form that justifies an opportunity to fight for a belt. 

‘The Leeds Warrior’ has lost his last two outings. Warrington has only won once in his last five bouts, stretching back to 2019. The 33-year-old keeps getting marquee fights because he brings a big name, an illustrious past and a huge fan following. But it has been a long time since he has looked like the fighter who beat the likes of Carl Frampton, Lee Selby and Kid Galahad.

From a fighter who arguably shouldn’t be here to a fighter who nobody thought would get here. Cacace was supposed to provide an opportunity for then-champion Joe Cordina to showcase his talents on the Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk card back in June. At the age of 35, it was thought the Belfast man would be a durable but compliant opponent as the champion continued his meteoric rise.

It didn’t quite work out like that. Boxing has a propensity to scupper the best-laid plans. A punch in the skull will do that to a man. Cacace landed plenty such blows as Cordina’s time at the top faded at his fists. ‘The Apache’ stopped his quarry in eight rounds, taking the Welshman’s title and scoring a raft of new fans in the process given the high viewing numbers for the Fury-Usyk extravaganza. 

At any other point in their respective careers, this bout would have looked like a mismatch in Warrington’s favour. Cacace lost a British, Commonwealth and European title fight to Martin Ward in 2017, while Warrington would beat Lee Selby to capture the IBF super featherweight title the following year. 

For most of their careers, Cacace has operated at domestic level while Warrington has taken on the world. With the Belfast boxer being the elder man, you would have assumed ‘The Leeds Warrior’ would always be one step ahead. But this fight finds each man in an unexpected role.

Warrington is coming off losing his IBF title to Luis Alberto Lopez and being knocked out by WBA kingpin Leigh Wood. His world title credentials are hanging on by a thread. A win here might only net him the IBO gold rather than Cacace’s IBF prize, but a victory is vital for reasserting his claim at elite level. 

Cacace must avoid reverting to the mean here. He is coming off the back of a career-defining performance against Cordina. While Warrington cannot win the title, the IBF have made clear they will vacate their belt if Cacace loses. For all intents and purposes, the title is on the line as far as Cacace is concerned. 

A stadium crowd and two fighters with everything to gain and even more to lose? This is what big-time boxing is made of.

Anthony Cacace vs Josh Warrington Fight Odds

Cacace is the favourite here at 4/9. Warrington is 2/1 to take home the IBO belt while a draw is priced at 16/1. 

Anthony Cacace vs Josh Warrington Full Card

Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois (c); IBF heavyweight title 

Tyler Denny (c) vs. Hamzah Sheeraz; European middleweight title 

Anthony Cacace (c) vs. Josh Warrington; IBO super featherweight title 

Joshua Buatsi vs. Willy Hutchinson; Light heavyweight 

Mark Chamberlain vs. Josh Padely; Lightweight

Josh Kelly vs Ishmael Davis; Middleweight

Anthony Cacace vs Josh Warrington Prediction

I am not convinced that Warrington still has what it takes at world level. ‘The Leeds Warrior’ has been a tremendous fighter over the years and has left it all in the ring. But the Wood loss in particular may have sapped him.

Cacace impressed against Cordina and I think he has another performance of that type in his locker. I like the Belfast boy to pull off the knockout here at 17/10.

You can find all our latest boxing betting tips and analysis at our Betfred Insights Boxing page and our latest boxing odds here.