Turki Alalshikh sought to allay concerns about his still-untitled boxing league, stating that he will still be collaborating with promoters and sanctioning bodies.
In a live Spaces broadcast on the social media platform X, the head of Riyadh Season said he will allow the league’s chief executive Dana White to announce further details.
“This league is a project not against anyone,” Alalshikh stated. “Not against the commission; not against the promoters. This is my opinion and this is from my side. It is a project that will have space in the market and we will still see the four belts and the commissions and the promoters. The market is huge and no one can delete anyone from this market.”
Alalshikh adds that the relationship between The Ring Magazine, which he owns and which has been the host for a number of his upcoming events, and established promoters he has partnered with, will continue “at least for the next one or two years”. Alalshikh mentioned two of those promoters by name, including Matchroom, whom he says he is in negotiations with for significant fights “around the world”, and Golden Boy Promotions, saying that some of their fighters will be factoring in his upcoming shows.
“I see what happened in the market in the last week and I understand the panic in the market because there are a lot of companies and a lot of promoters,” he said. “What I want to say – we care about the fans and the fighters and we support the fans and the fighters and we will continue doing the big fights for the people.”
Alalshikh revealed some of the plans for upcoming events. He says that, in addition to Ring cards, beginning with Chris Eubank Jnr-Conor Benn on April 26 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London and the Ryan Garcia-Rolando Romero card in New York’s Times Square on May 2, they are also planning another card in New York on July 12, and another show set for Alcatraz Prison in California in March 2026.
Alalshikh shared his dream match-ups for Naoya Inoue, whom he says will fight in Saudi Arabia in December, ideally against his fellow unbeaten Japanese champion Junto Nakatani, 30-0 (23 KOs). Provided that both Garcia and Devin Haney, who fights Juan Carlos Ramirez, win on May 2 in New York, Alalshikh says that a rematch of their eventual no contest in 2024 would be targeted for October. Alalshikh also said he’d like to see Teofimo Lopez, who will defend his WBO junior-welterweight title against Arnold Barboza Jnr on the Times Square card, fight IBF welterweight titleholder Jaron “Boots” Ennis “or someone else on the same level”.
Perhaps the biggest fight Alalshikh discussed was between Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Terence Crawford, adding that “we finished everything” but will hold off on announcing it as official until after Alvarez’s undisputed super-middleweight title fight against William Scull on May 3 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“We will not announce before the third all the details, and there is surprise about who will be the promoter of this big fight and the platform you will see the big fight on,” said Alalshikh.
Alalshikh also said that undercard details for Alvarez-Scull will be announced imminently.
