'I let my hands do the talking': Azim silences Scoby with ruthless 12th-round stoppage

Adam Azim showed no signs of any ring rust as he dispatched American Kurt Scoby with ruthless efficiency on Saturday evening, strengthening his claim for a world title fight in the very near future.

Slough’s junior welterweight (14-0, 11 KOs) dominated the big-talking American, who was punished in the ring for letting his mouth run in the lead up to the bout.

Azim’s latest professional bout took place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday evening, on the undercard for the Eubank Jr vs Benn 2 fight.

He controlled every minute of the fight against Scoby before getting the stoppage in round 12.

It was the 23-year-old’s first fight since February, but he showed little sign of any rustiness as he went to work in the ring, setting up behind his left jab before bringing out a range of combinations that left Scoby needing a knockout in the final rounds of the fight.

Azim and domestic rival Dalton Smith look destined for a fight against each other in the not too distant future, however, Smith (18-0, 13 KOs) has a fight lined up with Subriel Matias on January 10 for the WBC title, so a fight between them looks unlikely in the first half of 2026, and Azim’s trainer, Shane McGuigan admitted it’s going to be challenging to find an opponent willing but also worthy of facing his fighter in the coming months.

"The only people that really want to fight him are former world champions that are on their way out," McGuigan told ESPN.

"But if they're just in there getting negative, then that's not going to be a good TV either. So, we want someone that genuinely believes that they can win. But there's not many people that want to risk that. After looking at that [Saturday's win], then they're going to say: 'He can take a shot. He can fight in close; he can box at distance.'

"It's the old [saying] they don't want that smoke, all that bulls---. But they genuinely don't."

Azim has barely put a glove wrong since turning professional in 2020. Scoby did his best to get under his skin in the lead up to Saturday’s fight, but Azim kept his composure and handled his opponent well in front of a large crowd in the capital.

"All my opponents, I never underestimate them, so I was very focused for this fight," Azim said.

*He was a good operator, but I let my hands do the talking this week. I had a lot of s- this whole week about 'he's going to break me, he's going to do this, he's going to do that.' But it didn't happen."

When asked what he expects from 2026, Azim replied: "I want the world titles. That's all I want."