Etinosa Oliha fights on July 19 in Frisco, Texas – a win against Austin Williams would open the door to the IBF World Championship.
Now it’s official: Etinosa Oliha (20-0, 9 knockouts) will compete in the most important fight of his career to date on July 19, 2025 in Frisco, Texas. In a final IBF eliminator, the Italian from the AGON boxing stable will face US-American Austin “Ammo” Williams (16-1, 11 knockouts). The winner will become the official mandatory challenger for the IBF middleweight world title, currently held by Janibek Alimkhanuly.
After AGON Sports was only narrowly defeated in the bidding duel with Matchroom Boxing (USD 215,313 to USD 233,333), the venue has now also been decided: Williams gets the home match, Oliha has to go to the lion’s den. AGON promoter Ingo Volckmann is nevertheless combative: “Of course we would have preferred to have the fight in Europe – that’s clear. But we trust in Etinosa’s abilities, no matter where. We are traveling to Texas with the goal of scoring a dominant victory and forcing a world championship fight.”
Oliha had earned his ticket to the eliminator with an impressive knockout victory over Alexander Pavlov in September 2024. Originally, an eliminator against Kyrone Davis was planned, but after his withdrawal, the way was clear for the encounter with Williams. AGON had hoped to stage the fight in Italy – but had to bow to the matchroom bid.
“Etinosa is not only unbeaten, he has proven himself consistently against strong opponents,” said his coach Franquis Aldama. “Even though the stage is bigger and the fans are on Williams’ side, our man will show that he belongs among the world’s best.” With a win in Frisco, Oliha would be the first AGON fighter to earn a world championship opportunity with one of the “Big Four” federations directly abroad. Should he overcome the Williams hurdle, a dominant champion awaits in the form of Janibek Alimkhanuly.
Text by Robin Josten