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Andreas Hale
Badou Jack will put his WBC cruiserweight title on the line in a rematch with Noel Mikaelian on Dec. 13 at the Ace Mission Studios in Los Angeles.
The WBC mandated a rematch after Jack won a close majority decision over Mikaelian on May 3 in Saudi Arabia.
Jack (29-3-3, 17 KOs) won the title in February 2023 with a 12th-round TKO of Junior Makabu. Now 41, Jack will look to again turn back the challenge of Mikaelian (27-3, 12 KOs), who stepped in to the initial fight on short notice when Ryan Rozicki was forced out by injury.
Mikaelian, 35, held the WBC title briefly with his victory over Makabu in November 2023, when Jack was declared “champion in recess” after attempting to move up to bridgerweight to challenge Lukasz Rozanski. That fight never came together, however, and Jack was reinstated as WBC champion.
The Jack-Mikaelian rematch will headline a card that has been dubbed “Championing Mental Health presents CMH 2: Rematch Season,” which will be dedicated to mental health awareness.