Viddal Riley likely to headline in next fight.
Viddal Riley is one of Britain’s most promising cruiserweights. First coming to attention for training YouTuber KSI in his rematch with Logan Paul, the Londoner has since carved out his own path by winning the English, British, and European titles.
Undefeated in 14 contests, the technician now finds himself in a very interesting position. Though world-ranked by three of the four governing bodies, it is the IBF he holds the most lofty position with.
In fact, upon Jai Opetaia being stripped of the IBF belt, Riley was being lined up for a fight with Chris Billam-Smith for the vacant championship. Following Billam-Smith signing with Zuffa Boxing, though, this has become very unlikely.
While his next opponent is unclear, we now have confirmation that Riley will likely be headlining when he next appears in the ring.
Speaking to Boxing News, Amer Abdallah (president of MF Pro Boxing) stated, “Viddal has got a lot of options. He is looking at the EBU defence, he is looking at the IBF, and he is looking at the WBC. He is in a great position where he has got some options and he has some choices to make in the next couple of weeks. Nothing is definitive, but the options are there.
“There are multiple ongoing negotiations, and they are all progressively at the same stage.
“Absolutely [we are wanting him to headline his next event in London]. I think that Viddal is going to be a future superstar in boxing, not just in the United Kingdom.
“Obviously, his grassroots, his home, his backyard is where it starts. I think that he has proved now, after the co-main event of Chisora-Wilder–where he had an amazing, career-best performance–it warrants him taking the main stage next.
“We are targeting late summer, early fall, for his next outing.”
With Billam-Smith and Opetaia unavailable as options, the highest-ranked contender next to Riley is David Nyika. However, it ultimately depends on which route the Briton will look to take.
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