Badou Jack defeats Noel Mikaelian in a close fight to retain WBC cruiserweight title

Badou Jack defeats Noel Mikaelian in a close fight

Vintage Swede Badou Jack retained his WBC cruiserweight title by defeating Armenian Noel Mikaelian by majority decision in a bout at The Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The fight was competitive and fairly close. Mikaelian was more active throwing punches, but the effectiveness was on the side of Jack, a 41-year-old veteran who utilised his vast experience and effectively held back the years, to defeat the Armenian on two of the scorecards 115-113 and 115-113, while a third judge saw the fight tied 114-114.

Jack hadn’t fought since winning the title in February 2023, when he knocked out Ilunga Makabu in the twelfth and final round. Mikaelian hadn’t fought since knocking out Makabu that same year, winning the belt Jack had vacated with the intention of moving up and winning the bridgerweight title.

With this result, Jack "The Ripper" improved his record to 29-3-3, with 17 knockouts, while Mikaeljan dropped to 27-3, with 12 knockouts.