A Pyramid-Side Arena Takes Shape for Usyk v Verhoeven Fight This May

The Pyramids of Giza are set to become the backdrop for one of the year’s biggest boxing spectacles on 23 May, as “Glory in Giza” brings heavyweight champions and rising contenders to Egypt for an international fight night staged beneath the ancient monuments.

Organised by United Sports Company alongside Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, Sela, Tazkarti and The Ring, the event reflects the region’s growing investment in large-scale sports entertainment.
The headline bout sees undefeated Ukrainian heavyweight Oleksandr Usyk face Dutch kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven in a crossover fight that has drawn global attention.

Elsewhere on the card, Britain’s Hamzah Sheeraz takes on Germany’s Alen Babic for the WBO super-middleweight title, while Jack Catterall faces Uzbekistan’s Shakhram Giyasov in the welterweight division.
Egyptian boxer Bassem Mamdouh is also set to appear alongside several emerging local fighters, while Saudi contender Sultan Al Mohammed joins the line-up. In the women’s division, Japan’s Mizuki Hirota defends her The Ring and WBO titles against Australian-Egyptian fighter May Suleiman.

A promotional film released by Turki Alalshikh, chair of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, showed construction already underway for the open-air arena facing the Giza plateau.