Undefeated WBA Cruiserweight Titlist Dorticos signs up for Muhammad Ali Trophy as fourth World Champion joins World Boxing Super Series
The World Boxing Super Series is delighted to announce that undefeated WBA Cruiserweight World Champion Yunier Dorticos (21-0, 20 KOs) has signed up for the Muhammad Ali Trophy, The Greatest Prize in Boxing. The 31-year-old Cuban joins a star-studded tournament line-up that that already features IBF Champion Murat Gassiev (24-0, 17 KOs), WBC Champion Mairis Briedis (22-0, 18 KOs) and former IBF / WBC Champion & IBF top-ranked challenger Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (53-3-1, 37 KOs) in the cruiserweight competition as well as WBA Super Champion George Groves (26-3, 19 KOs) in the super-middleweight competition.
Dorticos is thrilled that the revolutionary bracket-style elimination tournament will provide him with the chance to add the IBF and WBC belts to his collection.
“I love the idea of the elimination tournament,” he said. “It will be a hell of a ride but I will come out on top! After the World Boxing Super Series, the whole world will know my name.
“I can´t wait to add the WBC and IBF belts to my collection. I will enter the tournament with one belt and leave it with three.”
“On top of that, I will take home the Muhammad Ali Trophy and a lot of money. Really it does not get any better than this, not for the fans and certainly not for us fighters.”
Roberto Dalmiglio, Comosa`s Head of Management Board, is thrilled to deliver on the promise to pit the best against the best.
“In the cruiserweight division, the inaugural season of the World Boxing Super Series will feature the WBA, IBF and WBC World Champions, all of which happen to be undefeated,” he said. “This is great for the fans because it is what they want to see – the best fighting the best.”
Added Richard Schaefer, Comosa`s Chairman of the Americas: “Right now, we have got three undefeated cruiserweight world champions plus a top-ranked contender who is a former world champion. There are four more spots to be filled in the cruiserweight competition. We will make sure it will be exciting names and fighters the fans want to see.”
In the inaugural season of the World Boxing Super Series, 16 elite fighters – eight super-middleweights and eight cruiserweights – will battle out a bracket-style elimination tournament. In both divisions, there will be four quarter-finals (September / October 2017), two semi-finals (early 2018) and one final (May 2018), making for a total of 14 high-class fights.
The exact pairings will be determined during a Draft Gala in Monaco in early July. In each weight class, the top-seeded boxers (which will be determined by the Comosa Board) will select their quarter-final opponents from the unseeded boxers. Once the pairings are set, the exact fight dates and venues will be announced. Further participants as well as details about the Draft Gala will be revealed shortly.
Summary
Combined Record of World Boxing Super Series Participants:
146 wins, 6 losses, 92 KOs
Confirmed Cruiserweights:
Yunier Dorticos (21-0, 20 KOs), WBA World Champion
Murat Gassiev (24-0, 17 KOs), IBF World Champion
Mairis Briedis (22-0, 18 KOs), WBC World Champion
Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (53-3-1, 37 KOs), former IBF / WBC World Champion & IBF top-ranked challenger
Confirmed Super-Middleweights:
George Groves (26-3, 19 KOs), WBA Super Champion