of Efe Ajagba ESPN’s scheduled main fight against Oscar Rivas in January for Top Rank Boxing will no longer feature the two fighters as Rivas is sidelined with an eye injury and the Nigerian boxer will need a new opponent to fight.
Rivas’ promoter, Yvon Michel, confirmed the sparring injury on social media on Wednesday evening.
“We have just informed Top Rank Boxing that Oscar Rivas unfortunately has to withdraw from his fight against Efe Ajagba on January 14th in Verona. In his last sparring he injured an eye and his doctor forbids him to enter the ring in these conditions”, said Michel.
Ajagba looked forward to challenging veteran Rivas on the Top Rank/ESPN card at the Turning Stone Resort in New York.
Ajagba (16-1, 13 KOs), a 2016 Nigerian Olympian, has quickly established himself as one of the heaviest hitters in the division, racking up six first-round knockouts in his first eight bouts. Then in April 2021, Ajagba used his big right hand to knock out American Brian Howard in a Knockout of the Year contender.
Ajagba suffered his first loss in October 2021 by decision to Frank Sanchez. Ajagba then underwent surgery on both elbows, returning last August to stop Hungarian veteran Jozsef Darmos in the second round without missing a beat.
Rivas (28-1, 19 KOs) is a 2008 Olympian from Colombia who moved to Montreal in 2009 to begin his professional career. He scored a victory at Turning Stone Resort in January 2019, knocking out former world title challenger Bryant Jennings in the 12th round.
He then suffered a controversial loss six months later when he traveled to England to drop a unanimous decision to Dillian Whyte after beating Whyte in the ninth round. After the fight it was revealed that Whyte had tested positive for a banned substance, but had not informed Rivas and his camp and was still cleared to fight by the British Boxing Board of Control.
Since the Whyte defeat, Rivas has fought twice, knocking out Sylvera Louis in three rounds and defeating Ryan Rozicki by unanimous decision in an all-Canadian showdown to win the WBC Bridgeweight title. Rivas had two more bouts postponed by opponents and has been sidelined for almost 15 months and with the eye injury, he needs more time out of the ring.
Top Rank will have to find a suitable opponent in time for Ajagba to remain as the main eventer for January 14th or else the Nigerian will not headline the event.
