26 February 2023 , 09:44
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Jake Paul and Tommy Fury are finally going to square off this evening in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia after two years of needle and cancelled fights.
And the pair will have a stacked undercard to back them up at the Diriyah Arena that features a rare women's fight, a battle of the YouTubers and even world title action. Controversially, the winner of the main event will become ranked at cruiserweight with the WBC, whose belt is on the line at the weight this evening.
Adam Saleh faces Stuart 'Evil Hero' Kellogg in the prelim opener, and Paul's sparring partner Muhsin Cason is in action on a card that also features prospects from the region. It had been planned to feature Ashton Sylve, but the teen prospect was unable to compete.
Here's all you need to know about the undercard....
5pm - Ziad Al-Majrashi vs Phillip Quansah
Opening bell at the Diriyah Arena is 8pm local time, which is three hours ahead of the UK. There will be a number of prelim fights including this battle of local prospect Al-Majrashi and Ghanaian Phillip Quansah. The lightweight battle will get us underway for the prelim section of the card, which is two hours before the main bouts begin at 7pm.
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5:30pm - Ragad Al-Naimi vs Perpetual Okaidah
An historic women's bout will feature early on in the night as Al-Naimi becomes the first Saudi female boxer to compete on a major professional card in the country. She faces Ghana's Okaidah in a rare female fight, which follows Ramla Ali's win over Crystal Garcia Nova on the Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua 2 card from Jeddah last year.
6pm - Philip Samson vs Salman Hamda
Another Saudi prospect in Hamda faces Indian Samson in our third prelim bout of the evening. The host nation are keen to showcase their own home boxers on this event, which will be viewed by a massive audience including Paul's tens of millions of social media followers.
6:30pm - Adam Saleh vs Stuart 'Evil Hero' Kellogg
Adam Saleh is back in action tonight (Getty Images)New Yorker Saleh is one of the Arab world's most beloved influencers, and he will head up the prelims against fellow social media star 'Evil Hero' in the prelim main event. Kellogg tasted defeat for the first time back in August when he was stopped in a round by Deen The Great, and he faces another stiff challenge in Saleh who has yet to a lose in the influencer boxing scene.
7pm - Main Card begins - Bader Samreen vs Viorel Simion
The main card begins on BT Sport Box Office at 10pm local time with unbeaten prospect Samreen taking on the experienced Belgian Simion. The Jordan native who now fights out of Dubai is still moving through the early stages of his career, but he takes a sizable experience jump to face Simion in this fight.
7:30pm - Muhsin Cason vs Taryel Jafarov
Cason, the brother of former world heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman, is known as 'The Muslim Boxer', so he'll be ecstatic to get a chance to fight in Saudi Arabia tonight. He takes on Jafarov in a difficult contest as he looks to move to 11-0 on his sparring partner Jake Paul's card.
8pm - Ziyad Almaayouf vs Ronnald Martinez
Top Saudi prospect Almaayouf faced a late opponent change for his sophomore outing, but appears unfazed as he looks to continue his winning star to his young career. Colombian Martinez is 3-1-1, so a tougher challenge than most young fighters face in their early careers.
8:45pm - Ilunga Makabu vs Badou Jack - WBC cruiserweight title
Badou Jack fights for world honours tonight (PA)Two-weight world champion Jack has one thing on his mind this evening; becoming the first Muslim fighter to win world honours in the Middle East. Based in Dubai, the Swede has been training intensively for his bout with two-time champion Makabu, who will prove a stern test in a weight class where he has struggled to fully settle.
10pm - Jake Paul vs Tommy Fury
The massive showdown between Paul and Fury will kick off at 1am local time after the pair finally tipped the scales at the catchweight of 185lb yesterday. Bookies now have them at exactly evens, with a draw into the single figures due to the closeness of this 50/50 fight.