THE undercard for the Canelo Alvarez-William Scull undisputed super middleweight title fight has been announced by Turki Alalshikh.
Canelo, 62-2-2 (39 KOs), will fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for the first time in his career as part of a deal working with Alalshikh and Riyadh Season. The formidable three-belt champion is aiming to become a two-time undisputed king with a win over Scull, 23-0 (9 KOs). The Cuban picked up the IBF world title, which Canelo vacated, with victory over Vladimir Shishkin in Germany last year.
On the undercard Canelo’s compatriot and new gym-mate Jaime Munguia, 44-2 (35 KOs), will look to avenge his shock defeat to Bruno Surace, 26-0-2 (5 KOs). Munguia, who lost to Canelo last May made it two defeats in three fights when he was knocked out by the Frenchman in round six of their December bout in Mexico. The rematch is a must-win for Munguia who is looking to get back into world title contention.
Elsewhere, there is heavyweight action when Martin Bakole, 21-2 (16 KOs), takes on Efe Ajagba. Bakole made the headlines recently when he stepped in to fight Joseph Parker last month. The New Zealander needed a new opponent after his IBF title tilt against Daniel Dubois was cancelled late on during fight week following the champion’s withdrawal because of illness. Bakole, weighing a career high of 310lbs, received praise for stepping in but was stopped in the second round by the in-form Parker.
Ajagba, 20-1 (14 KOs), comes into the fight on a five-fight winning streak since being outboxed by Frank Sanchez in October 2021. The 2014 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist is, like Bakole, an imposing powerful and physical presence which could lead to a slugfest between the two.
Badou Jack, 28-3-3 (17 KOs), returns to the ring after a two-year layoff with a defence of his WBC cruiserweight title against mandatory challenger Ryan Rozicki, 20-1-1 (19 KOs). Jack was reinstated as champion following the WBC’s convention in Hamburg last December. The title had become vacant after Jack was installed as “champion in recess.” Noel Mikaelijan won the belt against former champion Ilunga Makabu in November but withdrew from defending against Rozicki. The WBC have now made the Armenian there latest “champion in recess.”
Olympic silver medallist Marco Verde will make his professional debut at middleweight against Michel Polina, 4-5-3 (2 KOs). Verde medalled at the Paris 2024 Games, beating GB’s Lewis Richardson in the semi-finals, but lost out in the welterweight final to Uzbekistan’s Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev. The 23-year-old is managed by Canelo’s manager and trainer Eddy Reynoso but will be continue to be trained by long-time coach Radames Hernandez.
Undefeated Cuban light heavyweight Brayan Leon, 6-0 (6 KOs) also managed by Reynoso, rounds off the card against Aaron Guerrero, 11-3-1 (7 KOs).
