Alen Babic looks set to return to the ring next month.
The Croatian heavyweight has not yet fought this calendar year.
Babic, 29, has a record of 3-0 and has finished all three of his pro outings early.
And the man who is managed by Dillian Whyte is expected to feature on his mentor’s undercard on August 22.
Callum Johnson will take on Igor Mikhalkin for the vacant EBU European Light-Heavyweight Title on the undercard of the blockbuster Heavyweight clash between Dillian Whyte and Alexander Povetkin at Manchester Arena on Saturday July 4, live on Sky Sports Box Office.
The 34-year-old Johnson (18-1, 13 KO) is a banger and a solid fighter at 175 pounds. He challenged Artur Beterbiev for a world title in Oct. 2018, and it was a real firefight, with both fighters hitting the canvas before Beterbiev stopped Johnson in the fourth round. Johnson has held the British and Commonwealth titles in the past.
Mikhalkin (23-2, 10 KO) is a 34-year-old veteran from Russia, now based in Germany. He also fought for a world title in 2018, stopped in seven by Sergey Kovalev. He’s won two straight since and is a former European champion.
Whyte vs Povetkin tops a huge night of action in Manchester as Katie Taylor (15-0, 6 KOs) and Amanda Serrano (38-1-1, 28 KOs) collide in a blockbuster super fight with the Irish legend’s Lightweight World Titles on the line against the seven-weight World Champion
During an interview with Sky Sports earlier today, Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn revealed that the waylaid Dillian Whyte-Alexander Povetkin/Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano card will “probably” take place “late July or early August” behind closed doors. According to Hearn, it will be in the “early part of the return” in an effort to “come back with a bang.”
The card was initially rescheduled for July 4th, though that does not appear to be on the table anymore.
Neither Whyte (27-1, 18 KO) nor Povetkin (35-2-1, 24 KO) has tasted defeat since falling to Anthony Joshua. Whyte has won 11 straight, most recently returning from drug test controversy to beat Mariusz Wach, while Povetkin returned from the Joshua defeat with a decision over Hughie Fury and a competitive draw against Michale Hunter. Taylor (15-0, 6 KO) vs. Serrano (38-1-1, 28 KO) remains one of the best possible fights in women’s boxing.
It’s not Fury-Joshua, but there are far worse ways to end boxing’s drought than two solid heavyweights and a clash of pound-for-pound women.
Katie Taylor will defend her undisputed lightweight world titles against Amanda Serrano on the undercard of Dillian Whyte vs Alexander Povetkin, May 2 at the Manchester Arena.
Ireland’s history making Olympic gold medallist and two-weight champion faces a tough task in the face of the Puerto Rican seven-division ruler.
Taylor won gold at London 2012 as an amateur and has reached 15-0 in her pro career.
At lightweight, she’s unified all four of the WBA, WBC, IBF & WBO belts following last year’s contentious win over Delfine Persoon.
Serrano also competes in MMA, but has made her biggest mark in boxing.
She’s claimed titles from super-flyweight all the way up to super-lightweight and has a record of 38-1-1.
Taylor said: “It’s a fight that seems to have been talked about for years so I’m just glad it’s finally on.
“It’s a massive fight and one that I have been looking forward to for a long, long time. I’ve been working hard in training camp in the US since the start of the year so it’s great have a date to focus on now and I can’t wait for May 2nd.”
Serrano added: “I’m happy we finally got this big fight made because both myself and Katie deserve to be in this position.