LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: His Excellency Turki Alalshikh during the Ring Magazine Awards event … [+]
The network of boxers working with Turki Alalshikh is expanding at a steady pace.
On Tuesday, January 14, Ring Magazine, owned by Alalshikh, reported that the Saudi Arabian boxing broker was in advanced talks and finalizing fight deals with 16 of boxing’s biggest names, including Canelo Alvarez.
Here’s a look at the names:
- Canelo Alvarez
- Anthony Joshua
- Terence Crawford
- Naoya Inoue
- Ryan Garcia
- Devin Haney
- Shakur Stevenson
- Teofimo Lopez
- Jai Opetaia
- Chris Eubank Jr
- Conor Benn
- Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz
- William Zepeda
- Martin Bakole
- Anthony Yarde
- Adem Azim
Future deals and fight cards will begin a collaboration with the fighting video game SNK Fatal Fury: City of Wolves.
While specific matches were not identified for all 16, Alalshikh took to social media shortly after the report to confirm that the highly anticipated grudge match between Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr. finally settled on April in London.
There is also growing speculation that a fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford is already set for September. Canelo is expected to face William Scull in May. If Canelo wins as expected, then he will face Crawford in a massive pay-per-view fight.
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: Canelo Alvarez at the Ring Magazine Awards event at the Old Royal … [+]
It’s unclear if Crawford will have an improved fight before making the jump up two weight classes to face Canelo.
Additionally, Devin Haney has dropped his lawsuit against Ryan Garcia to help facilitate a big money rematch. Anthony Joshua has expressed his desire to fight Tyson Fury in 2025, but Fury announced his withdrawal.
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: Devin Haney arrives ahead of the RING Magazine Awards at the Old Royal … [+]
Could Joshua’s next fight be against Martin Bakole, the Congolese heavyweight who upset Jared Anderson in 2024?
Naoya Inoue will fight Ye Joon Kim later this month, suggesting that his inclusion on this list pertains to his upcoming bout. The only remotely practical opponent on this list for him would be Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, but Cruz would need to drop to at least 130 pounds to make it a super bantamweight clash.
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: Jai Opetaia arrives ahead of the RING Magazine Awards at the Old Royal … [+]
Cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia has expressed interest in moving up to heavyweight to challenge Oleksandr Usyk, but Anthony Yarde appears to be the only realistic opponent for him on this list. Yarde is a lightweight.
Many would prefer to see Opetaia face Gilberto Ramirez in a unification match.
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: Teofimo Lopez at the Ring Magazine Awards event at the Old Royal Naval … [+]
Teofimo Lopez vs. Adam Azim seems to make sense, although Azim has a match scheduled for February 1st against Sergey Lipinets. Most recently, the potential clash between Shakur Stevenson and William Zepeda has been discussed for almost a year.
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 11: Shakur Stevenson arrives ahead of the RING Magazine Awards at the Old … [+]
Stevenson will face Floyd Schofield on February 22, but if he wins as expected, a meeting with Zepeda is logical for the third or fourth quarter of 2025.
Some of these speculative matches will happen, and some will not. In any case, it’s great to see so many fighters seemingly on track to engage in intriguing fights.
