Hernandez to Face Herelius

Posted by Ramon Aranda on 01.14.2011

The two men will battle it out for the interim WBA Cruiserweight title on February 12.

Written by Michael Payne

Cruiserweight Yoan Pablo Hernandez (23-1, 12 KOs) could not have wished for a better start to 2011 as it is confirmed he will face Steve Herelius (21-1-1, 12 Kos) for the interim WBA Cruiserweight title on February 12th in Mülheim/Duesseldorf.

Talking about the up coming fight Sauerland Event CEO Chris Meyer said "After Hernandez successfully obtained the right to a mandatory challenge from the World Boxing Governing Body WBA with a KO victory over Ali Ismailov in Berlin in December, the opportunity to fight Herelius soon emerged, we immediately tried to realize this opportunity and we managed to bring this fight to Germany, We immediately tried to realize this opportunity and we managed to bring this fight to Germany."

Hernandez is extremely excited about his opportunity and praised Herelius, but he also intends to take full advantage of his chance saying "Last July, Herelius gained the interim World Title in Stuttgart by beating Firat Arslan in sweltering conditions. He showed then that he is a strong fighter. He throws lots of punches and was very active. But he leaves a lot of holes in his defense. That is my chance, in 2002, I won the Junior World Title in Santiago de Cuba. Winning the professional World Championship belt would be a thousand times more valuable." Hernandez was born in Cuba but now lives in Germany and is trained in Berlin by Ulli Wegner. Expect this to be an interesting battle between two talented southpaws.

Alexander Frenkel will also be on the Sauerland Event card. The European Cruiserweight champion won his title in September with an explosive KO victory over ex-World Champion Enzo Maccarinelli and this will be his first defence. His win over Maccarinelli was voted KO of the year by ESPN's Dan Raphael. The 25-year-old was originally due to step into the ring in a Sauerland Event show on February 26, but due to the Hernandez developments the event has been merged forming the spectacular February 12 show. Furthermore on the undercard, Super Middleweight King Arthur Abraham will fight a ten-round contest.