Everything is set for the grand event in Dražen's home as Ivana Habazin (22-5, 7 KOs) vies for her third world title this Saturday night in Zagreb.
Already a two-time world champion—first in 2014 with the IBF and again in 2018 under the IBO—Habazin aims for glory in yet another prestigious boxing federation. At Cibona Hall, the Croatian star, who is 34, will challenge the younger Hungarian contender, Kinga Magyar (14-4, 6 KOs), with two world titles on the line: the WBC and WBA belts.
Originally, Habazin was slated to face American Jessica McCaskill for a variety of welterweight titles, but financial incentives led McCaskill to opt for a different opponent, leaving Habazin to assert her rights as the mandatory challenger.
Habazin has prepared extensively for this bout since last November, with training stints in Croatia, the United States, and Colombia. On facing Magyar, she expressed a calm but determined mindset. "When Magyar said she came here for her belts, I thought: 'OK, but nobody’s going to hand them over easily,'" Habazin remarked at a press event at the Westin Hotel. Emphasizing her readiness, she added, "I’ve sacrificed three years for this; if she wants these belts, she’ll have to knock me out."
The weigh-in at the end of their joint press conference showed just a slight difference between them, with Magyar at 66.1 kg and Habazin slightly heavier at 66.2 kg.
Fight card:
▪️Ivana Habazin vs. Kinga Magyar, 10x2 rounds, for the WBA Interim World welterweight title and vacant WBC World welterweight title ▪️Petar Pavcec vs. Nodar Robakidze, 8 rounds, super middleweight ▪️Paolo Magui vs. Mike Jurik, 6 rounds, lightweight ▪️Daniel Vernaza vs. Mehmedalija Suljic, 6 rounds, featherweight ▪️Filip Mimica vs. Senad Karic, 6 rounds, welterweight ▪️Mislav Burazer vs. Djorde Macura, 6 rounds, cruiserweight ▪️Pezhman Seifkhani vs. Demir Gulamic, 6 rounds, heavyweight ▪️Andrej Bakovic vs. Milos Janjanin, 6 rounds, middleweight ▪️Marko Stankovic vs. George Aduashvili, 6 rounds, light heavyweight ▪️Petar Cetinic vs. Nehrudin Cikaric, 4 rounds, super welterweight ▪️Zdenko Bule vs. Marko Petricevic, 4 rounds, light heavyweight ▪️Vito Elez vs. Stefan Prodan, 4 rounds, super welterweight
