Isaac Chilemba is scheduled to face Sergey Kovalev in Ekaterinburg, Russia on July 11.The Transnational Boxing Rankings rated Kovalev as the number one challenger in the light heavyweight division. Chilemba is rated tenth.
Chilemba (24-3-2, 10 KOs) is coming off of a majority decision loss to undefeated contender Eleider Alvarez (rated seventh in the division by the TBR) in November. One judge scored the bout a tie, another had Alvarez winning by two points, and third judge scored the fight 118-110 in Alvarez's favor.
Kovalev (29-0-1, 26 KOs) is one of the best fighters in the world. He's in the top five on many pound-for-pound lists. In three of his last four fights, Kovalev has defeated Jean Pascal twice and Bernard Hopkins, both former lineal light heavyweight champions.
Kovalev-Chilemba is scheduled for twelve rounds and will be for three world title belts. More importantly, the winner will surely be the number one challenger in the light heavyweight division and could be on pace to face pound-for-pound star Andre Ward (fourth in TBR's light heavyweight division) in the near future.