Osleys Iglesias vs Pavel Silyagin announced
The “Boogeyman” is back! IBO Super Middleweight World Champion Osleys Iglesias will attempt to add the vacant IBF world title to his collection when he faces undefeated contender Pavel Silyagin on April 9, in what is expected to be the biggest boxing event ever presented at the Casino de Montréal.
“Make no mistake about the challenge ahead of us: Pavel Silyagin is a world-class boxer. However, we believe Osleys Iglesias has generational talent, with the potential to be not only among the elite at super middleweight, but among the global elite — pound-for-pound. For us, it was unthinkable not to bring this fight home to Montréal, where we are confident Osleys will prove us right on April 9,” said Eye of the Tiger President Camille Estephan.
“It will be a great battle. I know I’m facing a very experienced opponent and I thank him for accepting the challenge. But I believe this opportunity has come to me for a reason. With God by my side, I will be ready to take what belongs to me. May the best man win — and as always, that will be me,” said IBO World Champion Osleys Iglesias.
“Osleys has dedicated his entire life to this moment, working relentlessly to earn this opportunity. This is a fantastic matchup — two elite undefeated fighters putting everything on the line for the IBF world title. We have the utmost respect for Silyagin, who has proven himself at the highest level since his amateur days. However, I have complete confidence in Osleys, who in my eyes is by far the best super middleweight in the world,” added Iglesias’ manager, Benedikt Poelchau.
Nicknamed “El Tornado,” Osleys Iglesias (14-0, 13 KOs) has built a reputation as one of the most feared fighters in boxing in recent years. He won the IBO world super-middleweight title in 2022 and has defended it four times.
Since joining Eye of the Tiger in March 2024, the Cuban southpaw has delivered impressive stoppage victories over Marcelo Coceres, Evgeny Shevedenko, Sena Agbeko, and Petro Ivanov — all inside the distance.
In November, Iglesias secured the most significant win of his career by stopping Vladimir Shishkin in the 8th round to become the IBF mandatory challenger, at the time when the title was held by Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Following Canelo’s surprise defeat to Terence Crawford and Crawford’s subsequent retirement, the IBF title became vacant. After Alvarez, Munguia, Sheeraz, and Williamson declined negotiations to face Iglesias, the opportunity ultimately went to IBF’s No. 7-ranked contender, Pavel Silyagin (16-0-1, 7 KOs).
The 32-year-old Russian is not one to shy away from challenges. Five of his 16 victories have come against previously undefeated opponents. In his most recent and most significant win last July, he handed Argentine puncher Pablo “Pacman” Corzo his first loss in 24 fights, dominating him over 10 rounds.
Still unbeaten in 17 professional bouts, Silyagin now aims to become world champion and upset another heavy puncher in Iglesias — in his first fight outside of Russia.
“When I found out about the official announcement of the IBF title fight with Iglesias — I saw my real chance to leave a mark in history of boxing. Put my name in Russian boxing history. To be honest, I still can’t believe it’s all real! From what I know — Osleys has got a strong punch and throws punches from different angles regularly. It’s going to be a long and tough fight — before it, we’ll definitely go with the team into the mountains to build up stamina, we’ll pay extra attention to that,” said IBF No. 7 contender Pavel Silyagin.
Undercard
Also in action that evening, Quebec City’s Wilkens Mathieu (15-0, 10 KOs) will defend his WBC Continental and NABF super middleweight titles.
Témiscouata’s former unifed world title challenger Leïla Beaudoin (13-2, 2 KOs) will make her long-awaited return in Quebec.
Buckingham puncher Alexandre Gaumont (13-1, 9 KOs) will look to bounce back from the only loss of his pro career.
Montreal’s Luis Santana (15-0, 7 KOs) will compete for the vacant NABA lightweight title. Eye of the Tiger prospect Erik Israyelyan (4-0, 2 KOs) will fight in his first scheduled six-round bout.
Finally, Montreal’s Stéphane Fondjo (14-2-1, 9 KOs), coming off an explosive fight against Steven Butler, will also return to action.
The full event, #IglesiasSilyagin, will be broadcast exclusively on Punching Grace in the province of Quebec, while TVA Sports will air the preliminary bouts. The event will also be distributed worldwide on the DAZN platform. EOTTM has signed a two-event deal with the international broadcaster, which will also air the #ButlerHiseni card on March 5, also in Montreal.
Tickets for the April 9 event, presented by Eye of the Tiger in association with RCC Boxing, are on sale now via Ticketmaster HERE.
