Man admits punching former world champion boxer Joe Cordina outside petrol station - while fighter denies assaulting him back

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 15:57 EDT, 26 August 2026 | Updated: 15:57 EDT, 26 August 2026 A driver has admitted to punching former boxing world champion Joe Cordina outside a petrol station.Jamie O'Brien, 33, pleaded guilty to assaulting Cordina, but the fighter denied assaulting him back.The two-time super-featherweight champion was also arrested after the flare-up at a Texaco garage in Pentwyn, Cardiff, in February.O'Brien, of Pentwyn, walked free from court after he was given a conditional discharge.Judge Charlotte Murphy heard O'Brien was suffering a 'mental health crisis' at the time.He was soon after detained under the Mental Health Act.Cordina denies two charges of assault by beating Mr O'Brien and is due to stand trial at Magistrates' Court in October.South Wales police said the alarm was raised on February 27 this year before both men were arrested. Joe Cordina, 34, a two-time IBF super-featherweight champion, appeared at Cardiff Magistrates' Court on Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to two charges of assault by beatingVideo footage appears to show the boxer punching a man outside a petrol station Video footage showed the two men in a brawl outside the petrol station The footage, shared online, a man dressed in a pink hoodie appears to barge into a second man who was exiting the Texaco store, seemingly to return to his vehicleCordina was due to fight for the WBO lightweight title in the United States on July 4 before his US visa was refused.He is charged with assault by beating and threatening a person with an offensive weapon in a public place. He denied both charges.District Judge Charlotte Murphy listed the matter for a trial which is due to last for a day on October 13. O'Brien was ordered to pay £85 court costs and pay a mandatory surcharge of £26. Video footage of the incident appears to show the boxer punching a man outside a petrol station.In footage shared on social media, a man dressed in a pink hoodie appears to barge into a second man who was exiting the Texaco store, seemingly to return to his vehicle.The second man is then seen taking a fighting stance and raining several punches on his opponent, who then drops to the floor.The Cardiff fighter, who has a 19-1 record including nine knockouts, revealed in an Instagram story in June that his application for a US visa had been rejected, triggering the collapse of a July 4 bout against Abdullah Mason in Cleveland.In a video, he said: 'Just to let everyone know that I'm not going to fight. There's no injuries, I've had a great camp and I was meant to fly over this week.'A couple of days back, I went to the US embassy in London and they basically denied me a visa. I tried to explain certain things and I had all the paperwork to back it up and they wasn't having it.'They just basically told me "you ain't getting in". It's out of my hands and I'm absolutely gutted because it was my chance to become a three-time, two-weight world champion.'Cordina represented Wales at the 2014 Commonwealth Games where he took home bronze, before going on to win a gold medal at the 2015 European Championships.He also represented Team GB at the 2016 Olympics.