Leo Atang “1000 Percent Sure” He Will Be Undisputed Heavyweight Champion

Young heavyweight sensation Leo Atang turned 19 this week (January 28th), and the gifted, hard-working boxer from York in the UK has yet to go past the opening round of a pro bout. Still, Atang, all 6’6” and around 230 lbs of him, is “1000 percent sure” he will one day be undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

Having already been compared to Anthony Joshua, of whom he is said to be the “next” version, the easy-going, always smiling Atang returns to action tonight, this in Newcastle, on the undercard of the Bakhram Murtazaliev-Josh Kelly IBF light-middleweight title fight. Atang, who is currently 3-0 (3) will face Amine Boucetta of Belgium. The 33 year old “Beast” currently holds a 9-17 (0) record, and he has been halted on four occasions. Most people feel Boucetta, who has been in with top names such as Moses Itauma (who has already been put forward as a potential, indeed inevitable, ring rival for Atang down the not too distant road), Dave Allen (with whom Boucetta went the distance in a four-rounder), and Tony Yoka, will get stopped again in a few hours’ time.

But will Atang be extended beyond the first-round this time? Wondering this and other things, pundit/broadcaster Adam Smith paid a visit to York and to Atang’s gym to find out, for a feature on his ‘The Voice of Boxing’ podcast.

“I loved AJ [when I started boxing] – he was the man on TV,” Atang tells Smith in the video. “But when I got more into boxing and I understood it more, I started to watch more of the lighter fighters, trying to take bits of their game. I like watching older fighters as well, like Evander Holyfield, who was a smaller heavyweight in his generation.”

Atang – who compiled a fine amateur career during which he won, amongst other things, a gold at the European Youth Boxing Championships in 2024, and a gold at the European Junior Championships the year before – says he has the heart needed to match his skills and that his ability to dig down deep will be a key element in his getting all the way to the very top. Also, Atang says he wants to box his career “the traditional way.”

“I just wanna keep learning, getting different, harder opponents, more rounds under my belt,” Leo says. “And I definitely want to do it the traditional way. You know, win each title and then, when that world title comes, it will be all the sweeter. I’ve got a lot of heart. I will dig deep. If it has to be a fight, I’ll make it a fight. If a war has to happen, I’m more than happy to do it.”

Really, the sky does seem to be the limit as far as Atang’s promising career is concerned. Having been snapped up by Eddie Hearn, who is, as we know, chief among those people who are referring to Atang as “the next AJ,” Atang is, above all, enjoying the journey he is on. Stardom, Atang says, is way down his list of goals.

“I’m not trying to force being some massive celebrity or anything, I don’t think I’d really want that. As long as I can get to the top of the sport where I wanna be, that’s all that matters to me,” Leo says. “I’d love to spar all the big names, because they’ve all got different styles. I’d love go to America and spar with all of them. I’d love to go to the Eastern European camps. I’d love to spar the main man, [Oleksandr] Usyk. That’d be unreal.”

And the big question: can and will Atang rule the heavyweight division one day?

“I want to be undisputed heavyweight champion. Honestly. I feel like it’d be a waste of time if I didn’t want to do that,” Atang says. “Some people have goals to be British [champion], some have goals to be English, and hats off to them. But that’s just not me. If I’m gonna do it, I’m gonna do it properly. And, yeah, I wanna be world champion, with all the belts one day. I’m giving everything I can, so if I can’t, that’s in God’s hands. 1000 percent [I will be undisputed heavyweight champion.]”

Next up comes Atang’s first fight of 2026, his fourth bout since going pro in July of last year, and the Boucetta fight that is, perhaps optimistically, scheduled for four-rounds.