Yuniel Dorticos (24-1, 22 KOs) and Mairis Briedis (26-1, 19 KOs) were each handed their only professional defeat in the semi-finals of the first World Boxing Super Series cruiserweight tournament. Now, they will meet in the final of the second edition after a long road to get here.
Cruiserweight tournament No. 2 actually began in late 2018, mere months after Briedis conqueror Oleksandr Usyk unified the division with victory over the man who beat Dorticos, Murat Gassiev.
But after various delays followed by the biggest delay of them all, when live boxing was shut down for several months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the two will do battle behind closed doors on Saturday in Munich.
The final was initially set for March and then May in Briedis’ native Lativa, with lockdown scuppering both attempts.
Cuba’s Dorticos, meanwhile, is done waiting for his big moment.
“I was looking forward to beating Mairis Briedis in his hometown,” Dorticos told BoxingScene.com.
“I was ready to come home with my [IBF cruiserweight] title, along with the Muhammad Ali Trophy.
“It never mattered to me where the fight takes place. I went to France to win my first world title, and came home last year [from Riga] with this championship. Where the fight takes place won’t change the outcome.”
Dorticos is known as the "KO Doctor", and he has every intention of filling out a prescription with Briedis’ name on it this weekend.
“I always go for the knockout, and I intend to do just that,” he said.
“I came back to this tournament to win it all, no matter who or where I had to fight.
“This will be a historic moment in boxing, and I will cement my name as one of the best boxing champions in recent years.”