“Cancer couldn’t defeat me, and boxing couldn’t either.”

Billy Dib was once told he only had six months to live after he was diagnosed with stomach cancer.

It ended the career of the former IBF featherweight titlist, whose last fight came in March 2022. The health discovery came later that October, which officially began the comeback trail outside the ring.

That journey resulted in Sydney’s Dib (47-6, 29 KOs) receiving The Ring’s 2024 Comeback of the Year award, as part of the inaugural ceremony Saturday at Old Royal Naval College in London.

“I never thought I’d receive this award, given to so few,” Dib stated during his acceptance speech.

Nearly three years after a March 2022 disqualification win over unbeaten Jacob Ng, Sydney’s Dib made the unlikeliest of ring returns at age 39. It was only for one night, born from a passing joke during the 2023 WBC convention in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

“It was nothing more than a joke,” Dib revealed of his suggestion of one more fight. “The powers that be never let it stop there. Through the grace of God… this became a reality.

The assignment was a made-to-order opponent in Germany’s Atilla Kayabasi (12-16, 7 KOs).

The fact that Dib even climbed through the ropes one last time was the true victory. The actual win was an eight-round unanimous decision win on Dec. 12 in Hamburg, Germany. It came more than 11 years after the end of his featherweight title reign and at the tail end of the annual WBC convention.

“It wasn’t about winning a fight. I already won,” Dib noted, speaking to his enjoying a full recovery from cancer. “It was about going out on my own terms.

“What a way to finish.”

Dib also thanked Turki Alalshikh—the driving force behind Riyadh Season and also the new owner of The Ring magazine and its components—and WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman.

Most of all, he thanked his fans.

“Without your support, I never would have had a reason to perform. This is not the last you will see of me. This is the beginning of a new chapter.”

Liverpool’s Ball (21-0-1, 12 KOs) was considered unlucky to settle for a split decision draw in his March 8 bid for Rey Vargas’ WBC featherweight strap in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Two knockdowns still weren’t enough to get the win and the belt.

The unbeaten 27-year-old immediately regrouped for another stiff test versus WBA featherweight titlist Ray Ford, whom he defeated via split decision win to claim the belt on the June 1 ‘Queensberry vs. Matchroom 5v5’ card in Riyadh. Ball capped his 2024 with a Oct. 5 tenth-round knockout of Ronny Rios at home in Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena.

Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) re-emerged as a threat after a tenth-round knockout of unbeaten Jarrell Miller last Dec. 23 in Riyadh instantly breathed new life into the Londoner’s career. The 2024 extension began June 1 in eighth-round stoppage of unbeaten Filip Hrgovic. He claimed the interim IBF title but the upgrade came in his greatest feat to date.

A five-round destruction of former two-time titlist Anthony Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) came in front of an announced crowd of 96,000 at Wembley Stadium for Riyadh Season’s UK launch. Dubois scored four knockdowns to claim the full version of the IBF heavyweight title on Sept. 21 for his third straight knockout victory.

The former WBO 122-pound titlist was all but forgotten about after a ring absence of more than two years before he signed with ProBox TV last fall. A win last November paved the way for two more fights on that circuit before Leo (25-1, 12 KOs) landed another title shot.

All he had to do was beat the best featherweight in the world.

Leo welcomed IBF featherweight titlist Luis Alberto Lopez (30-3, 17 KOs) to his Albuquerque hometown. A competitive fight ended with a left hook to put Lopez flat on his back, and Leo atop the featherweight rankings.

The resurgence of the Philippines’ Taduran (17-4-1, 13 KOs) came the hard way—on the road and against unbeaten Ginjiro Shigoeka, The Ring’s top-rated strawweight. The former IBF titleholder showed no fear in their July 24 clash in Shiga, Japan.

Taduran left Shigeoka limp and defenseless along the ropes to force a ninth-round stoppage and regain the belt he lost more than three years prior. Fast forward to present day, where Taduran is now The Ring No. 2 strawweight.

A knockout defeat to countryman Kenshiro Teraji in their March 2022 rematch left the suggestion that Yabuki (17-4, 16 KOs) was a one-hit wonder. After all, his Sept. 2021 knockout to win the WBC title came versus a Covid-recovering version of Teraji.

Four knockouts later, the 32-year-old banger is back atop The Ring junior flyweight ratings. Two came in 2024, none bigger than his ninth-round knockout of two-time titleholder Sive Nontshinga in his hometown of Nagoya, Aichi. Yabuki floored the visiting South African three times to lift the IBF 108-pound belt for his second title reign.