The rematch between Eleider Alvarez and Sergey Kovalev appears to have a set date and venue, at least according to one report.
ESPN's Dan Rafael reports that the rematch, for Alvarez's WBO light heavyweight title, will take place on February 2, 2019 at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. The fight was already previously announced to be televised on ESPN after the first fight was televised on HBO.
Alvarez would be making his first world title defense after scoring a shocking seventh round upset over Kovalev this past August in Atlantic City. In the fight contract for the first fight, there was a rematch clause but the fight needed to take place by early 2019. When HBO, Kovalev's longtime TV home, declined to broadcast the rematch, ESPN swooped in to take the fight and will be the main event of a Top Rank Boxing telecast.
The Ford Center has only hosted one boxing event in its history. That card was a Showtime Championship Boxing card from June 16 that saw Errol Spence Jr. knock out Carlos Ocampo at the end of the first round in the main event. The venue, which serves primarily as the practice facility for the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, was supposed to host a pay-per-view bout between Miguel Cotto and James Kirkland in early 2017 but the fight got scrapped after Kirkland suffered an injury before the fight.
Kovalev will be attempting to start a third reign as the WBO champion at 175 pounds after his latest reign as champion lasted less than a year with one title defense.
