Murat Gassiev Opponent Saturday Is German Kadiru

Newly elevated full WBA heavyweight titleholder, Russian Murat Gassiev ,will make the first defense of his belt against Germany's Peter Kadiru, who has stepped in as a late replacement.

The announcement was made by IBA Pro and the WBA on Monday evening that Kadiru will step in for French contender Tony Yoka, who has a back injury and had to withdraw.

Insider Dan Rafael had more on his Substack out Tuesday morning

"The bout will headline an IBA Pro event on Saturday at VTB Arena in Moscow and will stream on the IBF Boxing YouTube channel beginning at 4 a.m. ET. While an official announcement has not yet been made, a source familiar with the plans told Fight Freaks Unite that DAZN is also expected to carry the event," Rafael wrote.

Gassiev, 33-2, 26 KOs,  is a former unified cruiserweight champion, who lost his titles to Oleksandr Usyk by unanimous decision in their four-belt undisputed championship fight in 2018. However, Gassiev has had some success as a heavyweight fringe contender.

In his most recent outing in December, Gassiev was trailing on all three scorecards and struggling against WBA "regular" champ Kubrat Pulev before turning the fight around with a devastating one-punch knockout in the sixth round in Dubai, UAE.

The victory positiioned Gassiev for a potential full title shot, but then, Usyk announced he was vacating his three unified belts on June 26th. So, Gassiev became the WBA's sole heavyweight titleholder.

Hear Rafael and me discussing the scramble for the Gassiev opponent that now has resulted in Kadiru here off our "Fight Freaks Unite Recap Podcast" by clicking play,

Meanwhile, the 29 year old Kadiru, 23-1, 13 KOs, has won nine fights in a row since his lone defeat, a first-round knockout to journeyman Marcos Antonio Aumada in November 2022 in his hometown of Hamburg, Germany.

Kadiru is coming off a unanimous 10-round decision over Senad Gashi on May 15 in Mannheim, Germany, got the fight over the other potential replacement, Brandon Moore (19-1, 10 KOs), 32, of Lakeland, Florida, a source with knowledge of opponent told Rafael.

“I was fully prepared and ready for Tony Yoka, but boxing is unpredictable and champions must adapt,” Gassiev said in a press statement. “Peter Kadiru is a big, strong, experienced fighter with a solid amateur pedigree and real power. Fighting at home in Moscow in front of my Russian fans for my first defense is special. I will be ready and I intend to keep the WBA world heavyweight title in Russia.”

“Since my win over Senad Gashi, I’ve been in the gym training and wanting to be back in the ring,” the new challenger Kadiru said. “I’m excited for the opportunity to travel to Russia and challenge for the WBA heavyweight world title. This is my moment. My team and I are locked in and Moscow should get ready for a big performance.”

It had been speculated that English veteran Joe Joyce, who is on the undercard, would be seriously considered as the replacement for Yoka, but he'll stay on the undercard. Joyce, 16-4, 15 KOs, who's 40 and has lost four of his last five fights, will still fight Russian prospect Artem Suslenkov, 14-0, 9 KOs in the co-feature.