Jake Donovan reports that after successfully avoiding a purse bid for their ordered IBF light heavyweight eliminator, Jean Pascal and Michael Eifert are set to square off on February 19th in Pascal’s home town of Laval, Canada.
Eifert (11-1, 4 KO) got this opportunity when Joshua Buatsi declined to fight Pascal (36-6-1, 20 KO), allegedly due to a disagreement over VADA testing but probably because Lou DiBella sniped the purse bid out from under Eddie Hearn’s nose. Eifert is, as I’ve stated, an “IBF contender” in the derogatory sense; his qualifications consist of an “inter-continental” belt he won in July with a decision over Adriano Sperandio.
He’s still young at 24, but on paper, he’s the sort of fighter Pascal can still beat through sheer horsepower.
As Donovan points out, it will likely be a year at minimum before the winner gets his shot. Even assuming that Beterbiev’s potential undisputed title fight with Dmitry Bivol falls through like so many other blatantly obvious blockbusters these days, Callum Smith (WBC) will be waiting for the winner of Beterbiev’s fight with Anthony Yarde (WBO) this coming January.