Nathan Heaney faces Sofiane Khati for WBA Continental Europe title

Nathan Heaney and Sofiane Khati clash for regional WBA strap

Former British middleweight champion Nathan 'Hitman' Heaney (18-1-1, 6KO) will face French champion Sofiane Khati (17-5, 6KO) on February 8 at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester on the undercard of Derek Chisora vs Otto Wallin.

The middleweights will clash for the vacant WBA Continental Europe title .

The Stoke-on-Trent showman is aiming to bounce back from a draw and a defeat to Brad Pauls during 2024. 35-year-old Heaney used to own the WBA Continental middleweight belt, but that was taken by Pauls in their July rematch.

Khati is the reigning French champion, but is resolute in his ambitions to win a regional title having missed out before. Both boxers turned pro within a year of each other and have raced to become champions of their countries within a short time.

Khati has fought in Ireland before but not in England, so who is the Frenchman looking to cause an upset against Heaney? Find out more below.

Who is Sofiane Khati?

Sofiane Khati was born September 24, 1992, in Nevers, France.

Now 32, Khati's pro debut was only in October 2018, and he won his first 10 contests, all within 14 months.

His first defeat was in 2021 when he had been out of the ring for 14 months and jumped into a 12-round IBO Continental championship contest with unbeaten Vincenzo Gualtieri in Germany. He lost the fight on points, but it was his first 12-rounder having previously only completed one six-rounder. Gualtieri went on to challenge Janibek Alimkhanuly for his IBF and WBO world titles in 2023.

After losing out on IBO Mediterranean and the national French titles, he eventually became the French middleweight champion in his 17th fight in November 2023.

Khati is still the reigning French middleweight champion after defending his national title three times during 2024.

His last loss came in December 2024 when challenging for the IBF International middleweight title against unbeaten Souleimane Mohammedi, narrowly denied on a mixed decision.

Just two weeks later, he defended his French title on December 21, winning via fourth-round knockout.

Khati upset Gary O'Sullivan, the popular Irish boxer known as 'Spike'. He fought the charismatic Irishman in Castlebar in March 2024 and was able to pip the home fighter to the post by 77-76 in an eight-round contest.

Khati is managed by Drakarys Agency in France.