Beterbiev vs Bivol 2! Ortiz vs. Madrimov! Riyadh season ticket announced

The Riyadh season ticket has now been officially announced for February 22, with a few surprises. In the headliner, undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev will defend against Dmitry Bivol in a rematch, who most fans believe deserves to be at the top of the list.

Virgil Ortiz Jr. vs. Israel Madrimov

His Excellency Turki Alalshik surprised fans by scheduling WBC Interim Junior Middleweight Champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. to face former WBA Champion Israil Madrimov.

We heard that Ortiz Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs) could face Xander Zayas, but this is a big choice. Madrymov is a big player with outstanding technical skills, and they came close to beating Terence Crawford last summer on August 3rd.

Season ticket on February 22 in Riyadh

Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitri Bivol 2: Main Event
Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker
Shakur Stevenson vs. Floyd Schofield
Carlos Adames vs. Hamza Shiraz
Vergil Ortiz vs Israil Madrimov
Zhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabaiel
Joshua Buatsi vs Callum Smith

Interestingly, Madrymov has been rumored to fight former WBC 154lb Interim Champion Serhiy Bohuk on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk 2 on December 21st.

Madrymov is still scheduled to fight Bohachuk on December 21st, so he will play old school approach fighting twice within two months. Turki’s great addition uses Madrimov as Vergil Ortiz Jr.’s opponent, rather than Xander Zayas, who said he was offered the fight.

Putting IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois against Joseph Parker as the main support is highly questionable as American fans have little interest in seeing this fight. Parker is seen as a guy with boring style and is not popular in the United States.

The fans are more interested in WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson’s defense against Floyd Schofield. That matchup will generate a lot more interest in the build-up than a lackluster Dubois-Parker fight.

Another interesting addition to the card is Callum Smith challenging Joshua Buatsa for his interim WBO light heavyweight title. Smith struggled last Saturday night and is making a quick turnaround.