Sports
Briton Daniel Dubois will defend his world heavyweight title against former champion Joseph Parker in Saudi Arabia on 22 February.
Dubois, 27, made a spectacular first defence of his IBF belt by beating Anthony Joshua in September.
New Zealand’s Parker, 32, held the WBO title between 2016 and 2018 before losing it to Joshua.
Also on the card in Riyadh, Artur Beterbiev will defend his undisputed light-heavyweight crown in a rematch with fellow Russian Dmitry Bivol.
Undefeated Londoner Hamzah Sheeraz will challenge for his maiden world title against WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames.
Shakur Stevenson will put his WBC lightweight belt on the line against Floyd Schofield while Zhilei Zhang faces Agit Kabayel for the interim WBC heavyweight title to complete the blockbuster card.
Dubois captured the interim title with an impressive win over Filip Hrgovic last year and was elevated to world champion when Oleksandr Usyk vacated the belt.
The Londoner legitimised himself as a world champion when he upset the odds by dismantling two-time champion Joshua inside five rounds at Wembley Stadium.
Parker earns a title shot after a four-fight winning streak, including impressive wins over Deontay Wilder and Zhang in his past two fights.
In October, Beterbiev defeated Bivol by majority decision to become the first undisputed light-heavyweight champion since 2002.
Many ringside observers felt Bivol, who suffered a first career defeat, should have been awarded the decision.
Ilford-born Sheeraz, 25, has won all 21 pro bouts with 17 stoppages. He withdrew from an ordered fight against WBO champion Janibek Alimkhanuly to take on Dominican Adames, who has lost once in 25 bouts.
Analysis – Dubois on a high but Parker a live challenger
BBC Sport’s Kal Sajad
Dubois is still riding the high of his destructive win over Joshua. He has become a confident, fearless puncher – nothing like the fighter who lost to Joe Joyce in 2020 – and will fancy his chances to finish Parker inside the distance.
If he does that, he sets up a lucrative rematch with Joshua or an undisputed contest against the winner of December’s bout between fellow champion Usyk and Tyson Fury.
But make no mistake, Dubois is up against a live opponent. Parker has been reinvigorated by his link-up with trainer Andy Lee and is fully deserving of another crack at world honours.
Saudi Arabia’s ever-growing influence on boxing is once again apparent with a stacked card, including a second bout between two of the best pound-for-pound stars in Beterbiev and Bivol.
The event could be a breakout night for Sheeraz, who has all the tools to become a global boxing superstar. After a low-key amateur career, he learned his trade on the professional scene and relocated to the United States.
He is an articulate and respectful character who has the opportunity to make all that hard work and sacrifice pay off.
Photo Caption: Dubois (left) has won 22 professional fights, with 21 knockouts, and lost two, while Parker boasts a record of 35 wins with three defeats
Culled from BBC
3rd December, 2024.C.E
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