Noel Mikaeljan-Ryan Rozicki WBC Title Fight Rescheduled For Dec. 7 In Sydney, Nova Scotia

10/05/2024 11:00 AM

It was not a glorious afternoon for the #PurseBidHeads, but a big one for Ryan Rozicki and his team.

The Ring has confirmed that an eleventh-hour deal was reached for Rozicki’s rescheduled challenge of WBC cruiserweight titlist Noel Mikaeljan. Their oft-postponed title fight is now set for Dec. 7 at Centre 200 in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Don King Productions and Three Lions Promotions, the promoters for Mikaeljan and Rozicki, respectively, were able to come to terms Friday afternoon. Common ground was found just minutes before a scheduled purse bid hearing which was canceled as a result.

Mikaejan (27-2, 12 knockouts) will now have to travel to Rozicki’s hometown for his maiden title defense.

"We were able to make a deal with Don King minutes before the deadline, Three Lions Promotions’ head Daniel Otter told The Ring. “We are overly excited to bring the world title to Canada.

"Ryan is ready to become the world champion and is eager to get in the ring."

That eagerness could not be overstated enough.

Mikaeljan-Rozicki has already endured four postponements. Issues have arisen ever since a cut suffered by Mikaeljan during training camp killed off their planned June 7 fight date.

The latest rescheduling effort had the two meeting atop a Sept. 28 Don King show in Casino Miami Jai Alai in Miami, Florida. However, the show was canceled outright without any explanation from King’s office.

It resulted in a default in the eyes of the WBC, who re-ordered the title fight and sent the matter to a purse bid hearing. For now, the sanctioning body is pleased with the latest outcome.

"This will be an unbelievable fight,” WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman told The Ring. “I am glad the WBC cruiserweight title fight will be in the ring before the end of this year."

The fight location marks a true home game for Rozicki (20-1, 19 KOs).

The building’s main occupants are the Cape Breton Eagles of the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League.

Rozicki (20-1, 19 KOs) is also every bit the venue regular. He has headlined or was prominently featured in all six boxing events to appear at the site in the 21st century. His most recent came in a Dec. 2022 first-round knockout of Mario Aguilar (23-9, 19 KOs).

Four more knockout wins have been tacked on to Rozicki’s impressive record as he emerged as the WBC cruiserweight mandatory challenger. The several title fight delays have left him out of the ring since a first-round knockout of Olanrewaju Durodola (46-10, 41 KOs) last Dec. 3 in Sydney.

All told, the 29-year-old has won seven in a row since an October 2021 defeat to Oscar Rivas. Their fiercely contested battle marked the inaugural WBC Bridgerweight title fight.

His previously planned title challenge of Mikaeljan would have marked Rozicki’s first career fight outside of Canada.

Now it is Mikaeljan who gets to hit the road and fight on another promoter’s show.

Mikaeljan, rated No. 2 at 200 by The Ring, won the belt in a third-round knockout of former titlist former champ Ilunga Makabu last November 4 in his adopted Miami hometown. The 33-year-old Armenian remains the only active titlist on King’s current promotional roster.

Rozicki is The Ring’s No. 8-rated cruiserweight.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Follow @JakeNDaBox

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