The February 22 card in Riyadh is considered a candidate for the best boxing event in the history of the sport. Some of the best cards from the past could compete with the proposed February 22nd card for high-profile fights.
Riyadh card proposed for February 22
– Daniel Dubois vs Joseph Parker
– Shakur Stevenson vs Floyd Schofield
– Jaron Ennis vs Vergil Ortiz
– Hamzah Sheeraz vs Carlos Adames
– Zhilei Zhang vs. Agit Kabayel
Historical Comparisons
September 28, 1979, Caesars Palace, Las Vegas
– Larry Holmes vs. Earnie Shavers
– Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Andy Price
– Roberto Duran vs. Zeferino Gonzalez
– Wilfredo Gomez vs. Carlos Mendoza
May 8, 1993, The Mirage, Las Vegas
– Gerald McClellan vs. Julian Jackson
– Lennox Lewis vs. Tony Tucker
– Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Terrence Ali
Both of those cards from the 70s and 90s are superior to the February 22 card contenders in terms of competitive parity. The February event could surpass those cards with some minor tweaks in the mix.
The February 22 card in Riyadh features two great fights: undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol and Vergil Ortiz vs. Jaron Ennis. Those two stood out. However, these fights are not yet official, and none of the six fights on the card have been finalized.
The rest of the card involves good fights with predictable results. These are not 50-50 matchups. For example, WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson will defend against Floyd Schofield.
The Zhakur-Schofield fight is unique because Schofield is still a 22-year-old coach who has yet to cut his teeth against a top-level opponent in his four-year tenure. He has been fighting as a professional for as long as Jake Paul and has a similar career.
“If that card is true, that’s the greatest fight card I’ve ever seen in my life. I can’t remember all the fight cards I’ve seen,” said Ade Oladipo on his YouTube channel, referring to the February 22 card in Riyadh.
It is not clear how long Oladipo has been following boxing because it sounds like he is just a casual fan, not someone who has been watching the sport since childhood.
“A lot of people talk about Don King’s fight cards in the 1980s. I don’t remember them. Honestly, you can have Zhang vs. Kabayel as the first fight of the night. Are you kidding? An amazing fight card. What did you put in there? Three world title fights, an undisputed fight.
“You’ve got two guys in Vergil Ortiz and Boots Ennis who should be or at least be marked as the future of American boxing, and you’ve got Shakur Stevenson going up against Floyd Schofield. It’s probably too good to be true. I expect a few of those to be released.
The Saudis should have insisted that Shakur fight someone with at least a chance to win, like Andy Cruz, Keyshawn Davis, Raymond Muratalla, or Abdullah Mason.
“As much as I like a big fight card, you definitely want to save something for another big fight card down the line. Almost something for everyone, like every region around the world. Brits, we have something [Sheeraz]. With Zhang, he made the Asian market.”
Zhang is 41 years old and has just been beaten by Joseph Parker. Having him on the card makes for an exciting fight, but he may be too old to beat Kabayel. Matching Parker and Kabayel would have been a better fight, as would Zhang and Dubois. Those would be good fights.
“Then you have Floyd Schofield, Shakur Stevenson, Boots Ennis, and Vergil Ortiz from the American market. He literally ticked every box,” said Ade.
Ennis-Ortiz is the keeper and could easily be the main event on this card because it could be more exciting than the Beterbiev-Bivol 2 matchup. Again, the Saudis should reject the Shakur vs. Schofield because it is expected that there will be differences.
Before William Zepeda suffered a hand injury, he and Shakur were being talked about fighting in February, and it would be interesting. But Schofield is too young and inexperienced to go up against Shakur. That fight will likely leave fans unhappy.
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