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Turki Alalshikh felt that now was the time for Saudi Arabia to move into the sport of boxing.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has had a massive push into the sport over the last year or two. Beginning in February, the country began attracting huge fights there, including Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury. However, they've since left the influencers behind.
Last year alone, Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou and the 'Day of Reckoning' boxing card were held in the country. In 2024, they're expected to keep the big fights rolling. Already announced for this year include the return of 'The Gypsy King' vs. Oleksandr Usyk and Ngannou's return against Anthony Joshua.
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The main architect of the country's move into boxing is Saudi advisor Turki Alalshikh. In a recent interview with DAZN, he discussed their upcoming plans for 2024. Alalshikh also added that their plans were spurred on due to his health issues.
While he didn't elaborate, the advisor stated that his work in the boxing world has been accelerated because of it. Speaking to DAZN, he said (via BoxingScene):
“I like to work. I like it for my country and for the trust of my king [King Salman], God bless him, and the trust of the crown prince [Mohammed bin Salman] for me. And I even have a personal situation and reason. I have a lot of health [issues] in the last five years, maybe. And this has [made] me want to do everything and to see it in my life.”
Check out his comments (1:00)
Turki Alalshikh names fights he wants to see most in 2024
Turki Alalshikh got into boxing to make big fights, and he's doing exactly that.
The Saudi advisor has already helped make several massive matchups, which have failed to come together. Fights such as Dmitry Bivol vs. Artur Beterbiev have seemed impossible for years but are now set to go down in the Middle East.
Speaking to DAZN in a recent interview, Alalshikh revealed that a matchup was expected for the summer. However, he also mentioned heavyweight bouts as his most anticipated for 2024.
Also, fear not. Turki Alalshikh isn't giving up on making the long-awaited Deontay Wilder vs. Anthony Joshua happen. Speaking to DAZN, he stated:
“The people need to see Joshua-Fury, Fury-Joshua, need to see Joshua-Wilder. And I hope Wilder [comes] back... It would not be reasonable to have the fight [with Joshua] now. We want him to come back."
