In 2024, Nick Ball laid siege to the world’s top featherweights.

In March, the Liverpudlian was forced to settle for a disappointing draw despite appearing to bully then WBC champion, Rey Vargas but regathered himself to rip the WBA belt away from quality American, Ray Ford.

Ball, 21-0-1 (12 KOs), made a successful first defense of his title by stopping the game Ronny Rios in ten rounds last October.

His excellent run and exciting style have put him squarely in contention for a future super-fight with Japan’s pound-for-pound superstar and multi-weight world champion, Naoya Inoue.

On Saturday night, the 28 year-old starts his 2025 campaign by making the latest defense of his WBA belt against Ireland’s T.J Doheny, 26-5 (20 KOs).

The fight will take place at Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena. TNT Sports will televise the event.

Last September, Doheny boxed Inoue in Tokyo and although he acquitted himself relatively well, he was under fire when he retired early in the seventh round citing a back injury.

From the outside it appears that Ball’s handlers have smartly selected the former IBF super bantamweight champion with one eye on that future fight with Inoue.

If Ball can do a more impressive job on the 38 year-old southpaw than Inoue managed, it will add another interesting thread to the story that is being woven between them.

The no nonsense Ball hasn’t paid too much attention to anything that might happen after this Saturday.

“I just fight whoever they say,” Ball said during Queensberry’s ‘Behind The Grind’ show. “Whoever they put in front of me, whoever is in my way I just turn up, fight and get them out the way.”

In December, Ball and Doheny came face to face at the fight’s launch press conference.

Clearly upset by Ball’s suggestion that he had taken an easy way out against Inoue, Doheny made it plain that he will be looking to make him pay for his words.

Ball prefers to let his hands do his talking but he also isn’t the type to backtrack or qualify his statements when he comes face-to-face with an opponent.

He can see why Doheny took offence at his comments but he also doesn’t particularly care.

“Some fighters need to get fired up at press conferences to get up for the fight so that might be what he has to do,” he said.

“I feel like he quit, like I said. I’m not going to go back on that. He got hit with a body shot, went down and said something about his back, whatever. To me that's quitting

“He’s just going to make it worse for himself [by talking]. My sights are set on smashing him and getting him out the way.”