Billy Joe Saunders to face Shefat Isufi in WBO super-middleweight title bout
- Published
Billy Joe Saunders forced Ghana's Charles Adamu to retire after four rounds on his return to the ring in December
Britain's Billy Joe Saunders will step up to super-middleweight to challenge for the vacant WBO belt against Serbia's Shefat Isufi at Wembley.
Saunders, 29, will become a two-weight world champion if he beats the WBO's top-ranked Isufi, 29, on 13 April.
Former middleweight world champion Saunders returned to the ring in December after a year out during which he failed a doping test.
"It is a brilliant opening for me," said the undefeated Saunders.
"Winning this super-middleweight title will put me in a great position for unifications with the likes of Callum Smith, while we've got Chris Eubank Jr boxing James DeGale at the weekend.
"There are a lot of big, big fights at this weight, but my real home of homes is middleweight, so I can move down at any time I want and be back as mandatory for my middleweight title and then become a three-time world champion."
Germany-based Isufi is undefeated at super-middleweight and has a record of 27-3-2 with 20 KOs.
Saunders was set to defend his middleweight title against mandatory challenger Demetrius Andrade but was refused a licence to fight after returning an adverse finding in a Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (Vada) test in August.
"Isufi comes as a really stiff test," he said. "He is very, very strong and you have to be really switched on and calculating with this sort of opponent.
"He is one of those who, with what he does, he does very, very well when the bell goes."
- Published22 December 2018
