Last week a press conference was held in Las Vegas to announce the October 31st "Crown Jewel" event being put on by the WWE in Saudi Arabia. The world's leading wrestling company has put together two very interesting bouts that will generate interest from both boxing and MMA fans.
Lineal boxing heavyweight champion Tyson Fury will take on the 385 pound Braun Strowman and former UFC champions Cain Velasquez and Brock Lesnar will square off in a rematch of their UFC bout from nearly 10 years ago that Velasquez won.
Fury already has a lucrative February 22nd rematch against Deontay Wilder penciled in but has decided to squeeze in this wrestling match just 6 weeks after he suffered a deep cut over his eye in his unanimous decision victory over Otto Wallin. Further injuring the eye could put the rematch in jeopardy.
On November 2nd there will be another big fight in the boxing world. This bout will pit Saul "Canelo" Alvarez against WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev. Alvarez will move up 2 weight classes in a bid to capture a world title in a 4th weight class. The fight takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
In addition to being a fighter, Velasquez is also an avid combat sports fan. The Northern California native of Mexican descent believes that Canelo's skills and desire will be enough to overcome the size advantage that Kovalev possesses. Many observers expect Kovalev to have at least a 10 pound weight advantage when they set foot in the ring.
"Canelo, you know man, he has the skill. Where he is at right now - he is at the top of his game. Just his style, his technique is so good, so clean. His defense is on. Yes, in that sport anything can happen and both guys are very skilled but I just think with his heart and skill level - he will do it," Velasquez told BoxingScene.com.
Send questions or comments to ringsidewriter@gmail.com You can follow Ryan on Twitter @ringsidewriter
