BOXING heads to Africa this weekend as Malabo, Equatorial Guinea hosts a rare professional card and does so in style, as Souleymane Cissokho headlines against Egidijus Kavaliauskas in a genuine pick ‘em scrap with world title implications.
Cissokho, 17-0 (9 KOs), and Kavaliauskas, 24-2-1 (19 KOs), were set to meet on December 7 until an injury to the undefeated Frenchman caused the card to collapse, but the bout was rescheduled for this Saturday.
Ahead of the fight, Senegal-born Cissokho has endured an 18-month spell of inactivity but previous wins over Tulani Mbenge and Isaias Lucero saw him win and defend the WBC Silver welterweight title and position him at #2 in the WBC ratings.
Fans in the United Kingdom may best remember Cissokho for his split-decision win over Northampton’s Kieron Conway back in Texas in 2021 and since that fight, Cissokho has registered just one win inside of the distance, struggling to halt opponents since moving up in levels.
Nevertheless, the Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medallist will step through the ropes as the favourite and will presumably have the crowd on his side as the African-born, French-speaking fighter of the two.
Meanwhile, Lithuania’s Kavaliauskas represents a name seen more regularly on the big stage, with ‘Mean Machine’ best known for a knockout defeat against Terence Crawford when challenging for the American’s WBO welterweight title in 2019.
As for Kavaliauskas’ other shortcoming, that too came by stoppage but did so against another elite fighter in Vergil Ortiz Jr. back in 2021, fighting just twice since and taking part in only 13 rounds.
Still, a 2018 knockout of former European champion and world title challenger David Avanesyan proves that the 36-year-old was at the very least a fringe world level operator, although his inactivity raises the question of how much of Kavaliauskas’ skills are still present.
Having only lost to two of boxing’s biggest names, Kavaliauskas is a name that would represent a career-best win on the résumé of Cissokho, as two former Olympians each attempt to shake off their ring rust and re-establish themselves as threats to Mario Barrios and his WBC welterweight title.
Souleymane Cissokho vs. Egidijus Kavaliauskas Fight Prediction
While not of the level of those who have overcome Kavaliauskas prior, Cissokho will battle his way to a points decision win in a back-and-forth fight, boxing with an amateur-favouring style and utilising his strong jab to do enough in the eyes of the judges.
