Official: Benavidez vs Cieślak on December 5 – Ortiz meets Thurman
David Benavidez defends his WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles on December 5 in Glendale, Arizona, against WBC champion Michał Cieślak. In the co-main event, Vergil Ortiz Jr. faces Keith Thurman.
Graphic: TERRA WORLD NEWS (own graphic based on the sources listed)
The cruiserweight unification is official: David Benavidez meets Michał Cieślak on December 5 at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale near Phoenix. Benavidez holds the WBA and WBO titles, while Poland's Cieślak makes the first defence of his WBC title as full champion. The IBF title is currently vacant, Ring Magazine reports. According to MiddleEasy, the card airs on pay-per-view via DAZN and Prime Video; tickets go on sale on October 23.
According to Boxing News, December 11 had initially been mooted; the date was brought forward to avoid a clash with Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua. According to Ring Magazine, in the co-main event, Vergil Ortiz Jr. makes his middleweight debut against former welterweight world champion Keith Thurman, with no title at stake. Emiliano Vargas and Nikita Tszyu, making his US debut, are also on the card.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman also commented on the title's future, according to MiddleEasy: "Opetaia asked to be considered the mandatory challenger and the WBC accepted. We'll see what happens."