Christian Mbilli vs. Kevin Lele Sadjo likely to take place in either Quebec City or Paris

Promoters say they are nearing a deal to match up France’s two top super middleweights in an IBF title eliminator, with the fight to either take place in Quebec City, Canada or Paris, France.

The promoters for unbeaten contenders Christian Mbilli and Kevin Lele Sadjo are deep in negotiations for a fight that will decide the mandatory challenger for IBF 168-pound titleholder William Scull. Mbilli’s promoter Camille Estephan, who heads up the Montreal-based Eye of the Tiger Management, and France-based Yohan Zaoui of Y12 Boxing have until January 16 to reach a deal, after which a purse bid will be ordered. The sanctioning body had previously set a deadline of January 2, but granted both parties a two-week extension due to the holidays.

Estephan tells BoxingScene.com that he is hopeful the fight can be held at Quebec City’s Videotron Centre, where Mbilli has become a popular draw among the French speaking Quebecois fans. He says he has already blocked off dates at the venue from late March to early May for the showdown. Zaoui says that, if the fight takes place in Paris, it’ll be hosted at Accor Arena, previously known as Bercy Arena, which can seat over 20,000 fans, with the dates April 19 and 26, plus May 3 in mind.

“It’s more the financial side that we have to close but we know that the arena will be full. We are very confident that this arena will be full and people will buy tickets,” said Zaoui.

The one thing both promoters agree on is that this fight will do big business.

“It’s widely recognized that Mbilli is the top fighter pound for pound [in France]. Sadjo is a very good fighter, a very live underdog in this fight and they’re both excellent showmen. They really bring a lot of heat to the ring so it promises to be a war,” said Estephan.

“We’re gonna have a big crowd for either city, we’ll see where it ends up.”

Zaoui says that, while there had been world title fights between Frenchmen that captivated France’s attention in the past, including Khalid Rahilou vs. Jean Baptiste Mendy in 1998 and Julien Lorcy vs. Mendy in 1999, this fight has the potential to surpass those matchups because Mbilli and Sadjo are both undefeated and in their athletic primes.

“This fight is crazy, everyone wants this fight. They’re both undefeated with a big knockout ratio and everybody knows them in France,” said Zaoui.

This fight wouldn’t be the first time the two have crossed paths. The two met once in the amateurs, with Mbilli scoring a points win in December of 2016 in what was Mbilli’s final amateur bout.

Both fighters are Cameroon born, France raised boxers who stand 5ft, 8 ins and usually end their bouts in the early rounds.

The 29-year-old Mbilli, who represented France at the 2016 Olympics, has a record of 28-0 (23 KOs) since turning professional in February of 2017. Mbilli is coming off a win over his most experienced opponent to date, a unanimous decision victory over former title challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko last August in Quebec City. Though he now lives and trains in Montreal under Marc Ramsay, he hasn’t been a stranger to French audiences in recent years, having fought eight times in France as a pro, with the most recent being his decision win over Vaughn Alexander in December of 2022.

The 34-year-old Sadjo (24-0, 21 KOs) has scored stoppages in seven of his last eight bouts, including a fourth round stoppage of aging former contender Diego Gabriel Chaves in his last bout in December.

“What’s interesting is how similar they are in their boxing styles. They’re both offensive, aggressive and throw lots of punches. It promises to be a war. I think it’s one of the fights where the boxing fans really look forward to seeing what happens,” said Estephan.

The winner will be next in line to face the Germany-based Cuban Scull (23-0, 9 KOs), who is coming off a unanimous decision win over Vladimir Shishkin last October to win the title, which had been stripped from Saul “Canelo” Alvarez due to failing to make a mandatory defense.

France hasn’t had a male world champion in boxing since March, when Arsen Goulamirian lost his WBA cruiserweight belt to Gilberto Ramirez in his fifth title defense.

Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.