Canadian cruiserweight contender Ryan Rozicki has withdrawn from his scheduled May 3 title shot at Badou Jack’s WBC championship due to a torn biceps. Rozicki sustained the injury in training and is expected to be out of the ring for several months. The bout was set to take place on the high-profile card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, headlined by Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s undisputed super middleweight title defense against William Scull.
The matchup came together after Rozicki’s team, Three Lions Promotions, won the purse bid to secure a mandatory fight for the WBC cruiserweight belt. Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh subsequently increased the pot, moving the event to Riyadh. With Rozicki sidelined, promoter Daniel Otter expressed both disappointment and confidence that the Nova Scotia slugger’s quest for a world title will resume once he recovers. Meanwhile, Jack remains on the card but requires a new challenger for his first defense since being reinstated as WBC champion. Former title claimant Noel Mikaelyan has already offered to step in, with promoter Don King claiming readiness to stage a Jack-Mikaelyan matchup if a deal can be struck in time.
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