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Krusher To Face Mohammedi
In
His First Mandatory Title Defense July 25 From Mandalay Bay,
Las Vegas
Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev (27-0-1, 24 KOs) the undefeated
unified WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion
will take on his first IBF mandatory contender Nadjib "Irondjib"
Mohammedi (37-3, 23 KOs) on Saturday, July 25 at Mandalay
Bay Resort and Casino at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in
Las Vegas, Nevada and televised live on HBO World
Championship Boxing.
The Russian Wrecking Ball - Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev - is
headlining in the storied fight town for the first time. The
charismatic and unbeaten knockout artist boasts three
current world title belts, 2014 Fighter of the Year honors
from numerous publications and an astounding 89%
knockout-to-win ratio. After capping off his impressive 2014
campaign with a unanimous decision win over the legendary
Bernard Hopkins to unify the WBA and IBF belts with his WBO
belt, he began 2015 with a thrilling eighth round knockout
of former world champion Jean Pascal in Montreal. The
Krusher is on his way to becoming one of boxing's next big
superstars.
Kovalev, the 32-year old from Chelyabinsk, Russia now
residing in Fort Lauderdale, FL and Los Angeles, CA, said,
"I am very excited to return to ring on July 25 and fight
for Vegas fans. I love fighting on HBO and am happy for this
next opportunity."
Egis Klimas, Kovalev's manager, added, "We are so happy to
be back in the ring with HBO and Main Events' help. This
show will be televised live on HBO. Another good thing is
Sergey will be able to fight in mega boxing city Las Vegas
and start building as his home base fighting town. Thanks to
people at Mandalay Bay for giving this opportunity to us."
In the opposite corner, the IBF's number one contender,
Nadjib "Irondjib" Mohammedi will challenge Kovalev with his
awkward and aggressive style. He earned this title shot with
an exciting win over Anatoliy Dudchenko by TKO in an IBF
elimination contest in June of last year. Mohammedi elected
to wait as Kovalev unified the belts with Hopkins then took
a voluntary defense against Pascal while he added some
serious fire power to his corner - world renowned trainer
Abel Sanchez. Sanchez, who trains middleweight champion
Gennady "GGG" Golovkin and previously worked with Kovalev.
Nadjib, 30, is from Gardanne, Bouches-du-Rhone, France and
trains in Big Bear Lake, California. He will be making his
Las Vegas and HBO debuts. When asked about his mandatory
fight with Kovalev, he said, "My turn has come to show the
world who I am. I let this Kovalev beat some guys but now I
will show you he ain't no Krusher. I am smarter. I am
faster. I am the next generation of light heavyweight real
champions!"
Main Events CEO Kathy Duva, who promotes both pugilists,
said, "This will be a great fight. Sergey had a little
trouble with Jean Pascal's awkward, aggressive style in
March. Nadjib will bring a similar style to the ring on July
25th. He also has Abel Sanchez in his corner, who might have
some inside knowledge about Kovalev. The Krusher will try to
do what he does best - Krush him. We know for sure that this
will be an all-action night at Mandalay Bay, where Main
Events is very happy to return."
"Fans who appreciate underdogs, respect Sergey Kovalev,"
said Peter Nelson, Vice President, programming, HBO Sports.
"As an amateur and professional, the unified light
heavyweight champ has spent his entire life as an underdog,
beating the odds as he does his ring opponents: with total
domination. Now a new underdog, Nadjib Mohammedi, seeks to
shock the boxing world and dethrone the light heavyweight
king. July 25 in Las Vegas will be a great event."
"This light heavyweight fight at Mandalay Bay will be a
sensational matchup," said Richard Sturm, President of
Entertainment and Sports for MGM Resorts International. "We
look forward to working with Kathy and her entire Main
Events team as well as Peter Nelson and his HBO staff on
this championship event."
Undercard information will be announced shortly.
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