Wilder Vs Zhang Running Order, Fight Card, UK Time, Ringwalks, TV Channel

May 31, 2024

100

Promoters Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren will settle decade-long rivalry in the ring
The Queensberry vs Matchroom 5 vs 5 is headlined by the Heavies: Wilder vs Zhang
All of the action takes place on Saturday in Riyadh and is available on pay-per-view

Chinese giant “Big Bang” Zhilei Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) takes on the former WBC world heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) in the main event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this Saturday, June 1.

It’s Chinese power vs Alabama power as the 40-year-old southpaw takes on the Bronze Bomber, who made 10 successful defences of the title he won by defeating Bermane Stiverne in 2015. The man from Alabama, with the trademark ‘Bomb Squad’ chant, has executed a chilling 42 KOs from his 43 wins.

Wilder vs Zhang Card

Frank Warren and Queensberry have selected heavyweight force of nature Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs), the young UK powerhouse who was a recent challenger to unified champion Oleksandr Usyk, to go up against IBF No.1 contender Filip Hrgovic (17-0, 14 KOs) on behalf on Matchroom in a battle to determine who will be first in line to fight for the IBF World Heavyweight title later this year.

These Next Generation heavyweights will also be battling to determine just who will represent the future of the sports marquee division.

At featherweight, in what many predict will be a ‘fight of the year’ contender, and arguably should have been a world title unification, Queensberry’s Nick Ball, (19-0-1, 11 KOs), and Matchroom’s American world champion Ray Ford, (15-0-1, 8 KOs), compete for the WBA World Featherweight championship recently won by Ford in spectacular fashion against Otabek Kholmatov via a stoppage with just seven seconds of the 12 rounds remaining.

In March in Riyadh, ferocious Liverpool firebrand Ball, was hugely unfortunate not to have won the WBC world title following his fight against two-weight world champion Rey Vargas from Mexico. Ball dominated much of the fight and knocked the Mexican down twice, but the judges returned cards declaring a split draw.

A classic middleweight encounter will be guaranteed when Queensberry’s undefeated Hamzah Sheeraz, the WBC Silver and Commonwealth champion with a record of 19-0 (15 KOs), trades blows with Matchroom’s USA product Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams, who has impressively assembled a record of 16-0 (11 KOs) and won the IBF North American title in 2023.

A huge prize is on the line in the fight with the fight being recognised as a Final Eliminator for the WBC World Middleweight title. Sheeraz is also rated as the No.1 contender with the WBO so a World title opportunity beckons for the winner. Sheeraz, at just 24, is on a run of 13 straight stoppages, the longest consecutive KO streak currently in British boxing.

In the final fight, Queensberry light heavyweight and former World Amateur champion Willy Hutchinson (17-1, 13 KOs), one of the brightest talents in British boxing and the current WBC International champion, will face Matchroom’s former British champion and WBA world title challenger Craig ‘Spider’ Richards (18-3-1, 11 KOs).

The current WBA world light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) will make the 11th defence of his title against Libya’s Malik Zinad (22-0, 16 KOs).