Macca to face Azzaoui

Enzo Maccarinelli will face unbeaten Algerian Mohamed Azzaoui for his WBO cruiserweight title defence at the Millennium Stadium.

Maccarinelli secures last-minute title showdown with Azzaoui

Enzo Maccarinelli will face unbeaten Algerian Mohamed Azzaoui for his WBO cruiserweight title defence at the Millennium Stadium on November 3. The fight was hastily arranged after the British Boxing Board of Control rejected Maccarinelli's original opponent Ezra Sellers due to inactivity. Azzaoui has been victorious in 22 appearances, including eight inside the distance. On his last outing he beat Henry Saenz in the eighth round on the undercard of Sultan Ibragimov's victory over Evander Holyfield in Moscow two weeks ago.

Tough

And Maccarinelli, who has a 27-1 record, is under no illusion that the task will be an easy one. He said: "Azzaoui looks a tough fighter. It is never easy taking on someone at short notice "I know he'll be in shape because he was coming off the back of a good win when he took the call to face me. "But I have to overcome these type of challenges if I'm to cement my position as the best cruiserweight in the world." Maccarinelli faces the New Zealand-based Algerian on the undercard of Joe Calzaghe's super middleweight unification bout against Mikkel Kessler.