Heavyweight Zhang “Big Bang” Zhilei (24-0-1, 19 KOs) has touched down in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to prepare for his IBF heavyweight title eliminator against Croatia’s Filip Hrgović (14-0, 12 KOs). The fight is set for August 20th, and the winner will become the IBF’s #1 heavyweight contender. “I’m happy to be in Saudi Arabia. This is a business trip for me. I had the best training camp of my career. I wanted to come early and adjust to the time difference. I am ready for next Saturday.”

 

Zhang vs. Hrgovic was originally supposed to take place on May 7th in Las Vegas. However, Hrgovic’s father passed away after a long illness just a few weeks before the fight, causing Filip to withdraw from the bout. After completing a long training camp in the spring, Zhang did opt to fight a different opponent. He handed Scott Alexander his first KO loss by placing a perfectly-timed left hand on the button in the first round. Alexander was knocked cold. The footage of the KO was viewed tens of millions of times on Chinese social media, elevating Zhang’s celebrity status in his home country. 

 

Prior to the rescheduling of the title eliminator, several top heavyweights shied away from fighting the young Croatian who is ranked number three. Zhang, who was ranked thirteen, had publicly stated that he wanted the fight against Hrgović several times. As each heavyweight “contender” passed on fighting Filip Hrgović, Zhang jumped at the chance when his name was called.  “I still don’t understand why other contenders turned down this fight. I want to be the best, and for that, you have to beat the best. This is my pathway to becoming heavyweight champion of the world.”

 

Zhang vs. Hrgović is the co-feature bout underneath the unified heavyweight championship rematch - Oleksandr Usyk versus Anthony Joshua - August 20th at Superdome in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Check local listings for broadcast details.