Listen up, boxing hipsters!
This is the weekend you might well be referencing for years to come: The professional debut of Oleksandr Khyzhniak.
The popular Ukrainian won middleweight gold for his nation at the Paris Olympics in 2024 and makes his long-awaited debut in the paid ranks this Saturday on an Oleksandr Usyk-promoted show in Lesniki, Ukraine, under the Usyk17 Promotion banner.
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So, if Khyzhniak is to have even a slither of the success that the likes of Usyk, Vasyl Lomachenko and the Klitschko brothers have had in the sport, you can be the one educating your mates down at the pub about him in a couple years time, just before he irons out .
Alongside Khyzhniak’s debut, let’s take a closer look at this weekend’s unmissable boxing action.
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1. Adames and “Ammo” get their main event upgrade
Roll back a couple of years and Austin “Ammo” Williams was hotly tipped as being one of the brightest young stars in the sport, before a bruising loss to Hamzah Sheeraz derailed his hype train and forced him to rethink his path to the top.
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He spoke with Uncrowned in depth ahead of the original date for Saturday’s WBC middleweight title bout at the end of January, and exudes the confidence of a man who is going to force Adames to dig deep if he is to retain his 160-pound crown this weekend in Orlando, Florida.
Adames is no mug. The Dominican looked good last time out against shared opponent Sheeraz in Saudi Arabia, unlucky to leave that evening with a draw after nailing his game plan against the Briton.
But Adames should expect to have to engage in a different type of fight for the third defense of his crown. Williams is an aggressive, come-forward fighter, and with plenty to prove, the challenger won’t be expected to wilt in their DAZN main event.
2. Olympic gold medalist Khyzhniak makes his pro debut
Listen, predicting whether an amateur fighter will successfully transition into the pros is a bit of a fool’s game — but it’s one I am willing to play with the aforementioned Oleksandr Khyzhniak.
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The 30-year-old is an all-action wrecking machine who has been conditioned within an inch of his life and will be looking to continue a successful run into the pro game after one loss in nine years.
His amateur record reads 126-17, seeing him bag gold medals at the Olympics, World Championships, European Games, European Championships and Youth World Championships. Next up? Looking to go 1-0 as a pro against Colombia’s Wilmer Baron.
Under the watchful eye of Oleksandr Usyk, Khyzhniak has all the tools available to become a superstar over the next few years — so don’t miss his first few steps this weekend so you can claim you “knew him before he was cool,” like I have been doing this year with the band Geese…
Gold medalist Oleksandr Khyzhniak of Ukraine poses on the podium during the boxing men’s 80kg medal ceremony at the 2024 Olympic Games.
(Anadolu via Getty Images)
3. Liddard continues his middleweight march
George Liddard lit up York Hall in east London last October, stopping a game Kieron Conway in the 10th round to become the British and Commonwealth middleweight champion.
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A few months later and the 23-year-old from Essex is the talk of the domestic Matchroom stable — and his push to the world scene begins this weekend.
On Saturday night at London’s Copper Box Arena, Liddard will headline for the second consecutive time when he faces experienced former European middleweight champion Tyler Denny, and a win for Liddard could see him catapulted into world title opportunities quicker than expected.
His promoter for the weekend, Matchroom’s CEO Frank Smith, sees an opportunity at 160 pounds, claiming that “the division is wide open” and that “there aren’t many stars out there.”
But if their stars align this weekend, Eddie Hearn’s promotional outfit could have both Austin “Ammo” Williams and George Liddard rocketing up the middleweight rankings.
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4. Aleem refuses to admit he’s a huge underdog against Martinez
At +900 odds with BetMGM, Immanuwel Aleem is one of the biggest dogs of the weekend.
The 32-year-old, monikered “The Chosen One,” takes on the unbeaten Lester Martinez on ProBoxTV this Saturday night, as the Guatemalan looks to bounce back from a frustrating draw against Christian Mbilli last September.
This super middleweight contest in San Bernardino, California is for the WBC interim title at 168 pounds, and underdog Aleem has unshakable faith that he can be the first man to lodge a blemish on the record of the 30-year-old Martinez.
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“I don’t understand what an underdog is. I can fight. I can see. And I’ve got hands,” Aleem explained at his media workout this week.
If only boxing was that easy…
Teremoana Teremoana is a terrifying in-ring presence.
(Matt Roberts via Getty Images)
5. Teremoana Teremoana is so good they named him twice
Footballer Jay-Jay Okocha was one of the most exciting players in the Premier League throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
The Nigerian was a brave, flashy, exciting attacking midfielder, whose tricks and flicks could easily bamboozle the best of defenses across the world.
They’d say that “Jay-Jay was so good that they named him twice,” and Australian heavyweight Teremoana Teremoana will be looking to take a page out of the Okocha playbook this weekend as he continues his climb up the heavyweight ladder.
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The 28-year-old is 9-0 with 9 stoppages since turning pro in 2020, and returns to the ring this weekend in Orlando in the first scheduled eight-rounder of his career.
Curtis Harper is the man tasked with derailing the Teremoana x2 train, bringing his 19-12 record to the Caribe Royale after losing his most recent outing just three weeks ago against American southpaw Roney Hines.
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