After the loss of Latvia’s leading boxer Mairis Briedis in the semi-finals of the previous season of the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS), many things came to life, before the finals of this season, which is expected on Saturday, Briedis emphasizes.
The first WBSS heavyweight final will take place on September 26 in Munich, where Briedis will fight Cuban Junier Dorticos.
“There were two camps, but I don’t know which was better. We’ll see what the outcome of the fight will be. The duel will take place in the boxing kingdom of Germany, which is my great honor. I will fight in Germany for the first and hopefully not for the last time,” Briedis emphasized at the conference.
In the previous season of the super series, Briedis stopped in the semi-finals, acknowledging the superiority of the later champion Oleksandr Usik.
“After the loss, Usik realized that it had to happen. After that fight, a lot happened in life – both inside and outside the team. If he had won the fight, his career might not have gone up. Usik deserved more than I did at that time. “My second chance. I think we will show the fight that the boxing world will remember for a long time and enjoy for many years after this event,” said Briedis.
He last fought in Germany in April 2017, when he defeated Mark Hook and won two champion belts.
“It was the same feeling as my son going to school for the first time. I climbed the big stage for the first time and got the title. I trust my team, we’ve put a lot of work into it and keep working together. Home walls help, but my ‘wall’ will be my team Let ‘s go to the ring and show a fantastic fight, looking forward to tomorrow’ s weighing and Saturday ‘s fight, “stressed Briedis.
Dortikos, meanwhile, said he had a couple of workouts a day at this time.
“I was active and working with the team. We did everything to keep me healthy. Thank you to everyone who did not lose faith,” said the Cuban.
Dorticos also stopped in the semifinals last season, where he acknowledged the superiority of the Russian Murat Gasijev.
“It was a different experience, I have become more mature. I am pleased to be here. I want to prove why I am the best in the world and why I am called Doctor Knockout. To become the best of all time, you have to give yourself 100%,” Dorticos explained.
Both boxers will fight for a trophy named after Muhammad Ali. It was in Munich that Ali won for the last time in his career with a knockout, beating Richard Dan in May 1976.
“I will fight to preserve Muhammad Ali’s legacy,” Dorticos said.
Both boxers will also compete for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion belt and the Ring magazine belt.
Initially, the fight was planned for March 21 in Riga, but due to the rapid spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, it was postponed to May 16. Later, the fight planned for May 16 was postponed.
The duel will take place at the Plazamedia Broadcasting Center television studio, but viewers will not be able to watch the fight in person.
35-year-old Briedis has won 26 victories in his professional boxer career, 19 of whom have been killed, and suffered one loss in the WBSS first season semi-final in Riga against Ukrainian Oleksandr Usik, who later became the trophy winner.
Dortikos, the youngest Cuban boxer of the year, has won 24 victories, only two of them have been forced to play all the rounds in the ring, and also suffered one loss – a week after the deer lost to Usik, the Cuban in Sochi lost to Murat Gasij in the second WBSS semifinals.
In the quarterfinals, Briedis defeated the German boxer Noel Mikaeljan with the judges’ evaluation, but Dorticos dealt with the polar Mateus Masternak in the same way.
Both semi-final fights of this season’s super series took place on June 15, 2019 in Riga. Dorticos first made it to the finals after success over US boxer Andrew Tabiti, but soon after, Briedis defeated Krzysztof Glovacki from Poland in a scandalous fight.
–
