WBO Interim Heavyweight Champion Zhang Zhilei revealed that he could have appeared in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 23 to compete with other big-name fighters, but due to related reasons, it could not be realized.
It's no secret that there will be a series of top-level bouts in Riyadh on December 23, when former world heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder will face their respective opponents. At first, Zhang Zhilei was also invited, and he planned to compete against MMA sensation Francis Nganno.
Zhang Zhilei is currently a WBO mandatory challenger, with the qualifications to face WBA, IBF, WBO champion Olekosandr Usyk, but Usyk has reached a boxing champion unification agreement with WBC champion Tyson Fury, Zhang Zhilei can only continue to wait, but he doesn't want to be idle like this, and decided to stay active, so he thought of the "iron blood" Naganno, and the two teams once made contact, but unfortunately Zhang Zhilei said that Naganno ruthlessly rejected his request and was not interested in the competition between the two sides.
Zhang Zhilei said:"Initially someone put me thereMay 23Day against Nganno, I thought okay, it's as easy as a walk in the park for me, I'll go for it, but Nganno didn't want to do it, and then that's what you see, the big name fighters appear at 12May 23In the game of the day, things like Joshua were there to fill in the cards, and that's how it happened. ”
The battle between Zhang Zhilei vs Naganno failed to materialize, which has to be said to be a huge regret, but the reality is that it is impossible for Naganno to compete with Zhang Zhilei on the same stage, because the danger factor is too high.
Naganno's real rise came in October of this year, when he shone in a clash with boxing champion Fury, when he knocked out an opponent once, and although he lost by the final points, it opened up the market and became the focus of fans and ** heated discussions.
In the battle with Fuli, Naganno received a total income of 10 million US dollars, and if he fought against Zhang Zhilei, how much could he gain?Even if at best, the remuneration may be discounted in half, but the key is that Naganno is likely to be destroyed by Zhang Zhilei, so in the case of shrinking remuneration and easy defeat, will Naganno fight Zhang Zhilei?
Nganno has made it clear that he wants to fight Fury in a rematch, or against Joshua and Wilder, and Nganno thinks very clearly that he can get a good appearance fee against these people, even if he loses, it is worth it, but when facing Zhang Zhilei, this situation no longer exists.
Zhang Zhilei returned to the United States last month and has been training at the gym since then, and according to the ** he posted, this time has been completely polishing his strength. In Zhang Zhilei's latest release, he sweated like rain under the leadership of the physical coach, and the title of ** was:As long as there is light in your heart, there is a road under your feet!
Zhang Zhilei has yet to confirm his next match, and he hopes to feature in the Fury vs Usyk match on February 17 next year, with an opponent to be determined, and one of the rumored potential targets is Derrick Chesola. Although the next plan is not clear, Zhang Zhilei is still quite optimistic and bluntly said that he will make a bigger breakthrough in 2024.
Zhang Zhilei said:"I'm sure everybody is busy with their own arrangements, but I'm one of those guys who puts it in front of me and I'm going to take on it, depending on my team, I thinkThe New Year's War is coming, and people will see it at that time. The people behind the scenes are working hard to push this every day, and I'm sure it's going to be in 2024It's a strong feeling to see a high-level World Championship where everyone will be invited, and if you watch my fight, I won't let you down. ”
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