The venue is set for an upcoming light heavyweight title unification between two of the division's hardest punchers.
Top Rank announced an IBF/WBC light heavyweight title unification between Artur Beterbiev and Oleksandr Gvozdyk will take place on October 18 at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. The fight will be televised on ESPN with the undercard being streamed on ESPN+. The fight will crown a unified champion at 175 pounds since Andre Ward held the unified WBA, WBO and IBF titles from 2016 to 2017.
-- We interrupt tonight's fights to bring you this important announcement:
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) August 18, 2019
A Light Heavyweight unification is set. @ABeterbiev faces Oleksandr "The Nail" Gvozdyk on Friday, Oct. 18 on @ESPN at Philadelphia's @LiacourasCenter. #BeterbievNail pic.twitter.com/LpWIW1thII
Beterbiev has held the IBF title since later 2017 when he knocked out Enrico Koelling on ESPN. Since then, Beterbiev has been somewhat inactive since winning the title with his first defense coming 11 months after the win over Koelling. After retaining the title against Callum Johnson on DAZN last October, Beterbiev returned to ESPN in May when he stopped Radivoje Kalajdzic in five rounds.
Gvozdyk won his world title last year when he traveled to Canada and knocked out Adonis Stevenson while down on two of the three scorecards. Trained by Teddy Atlas, Gvozdyk returned to the ring in March and beat Doudou Ngumbu after Ngumbu couldn’t continue fighting in the fifth round due to a calf injury.
