​Less than two weeks out from fight night, Matchroom has added two world title bouts to the Anthony Joshua vs Kristaps Porija event in Jeddah. Hamzah Sheeraz (23-0-1, 19 KOs), who last dominated Alem Begic in May to claim the vacant WBO super middleweight title left vacant by Terence Crawford, will make his first defense against the No. 7 contender Simon Zachenhuber (29-1, 18 KOs). Despite Zachenhuber’s solid record, he’s only three months removed from a six-round setback to Pawel August, who also resurfaces on the undercard opposite unbeaten Jacob Bank. It’s curious that they didn’t pair Sheeraz with Bank, who sits at No. 2 in the rankings behind Canelo Alvarez; perhaps the matchup is being allowed to marinate a bit longer.
In what looks to be the more evenly matched confrontation, Josh Kelly (18-1-1, 9 KOs) defends his IBF super welterweight title against Caoimhin Agyarko (18-0, 7 KOs). Kelly surprised reigning champion Bakhram Murtazaliev in January, finally hitting the heights analysts expected from his pre-Avanesyan trajectory, while Ireland’s Agyarko endured some concerning swelling to narrowly defeat Ishmael Davis last September.
Other notable names on the card include rising super featherweight prospect Reito Tsutsumi, alongside Olympians Oleksandr Khyzhniak and Nishant Dev, all of whom add depth and star power to the lineup. This pairing of title clashes and promising talent heightens the intrigue for the event in Jeddah, just days before fight night.