Agit Kabayel has appreciated the high praise that has come with his willingness to next face Zhilei Zhang.

The reality is that he was more interested in the opportunity to fight on this stage, more than he was concerned about who would be in the opposite corner.

A similar mindset carried by Zhang is what led to the pairing of the top-rated heavyweights meeting for the interim WBC title this weekend.

“I can’t really take credit for this fight,” Kabayel told The Ring. “I didn’t ask for Zhang specifically; we just made it clear that we are willing to fight anybody.

“Riyadh Season came back to us and let us know it would be Zhang. We were fine with it and are up to the challenge.”

Zhang-Kabayel is one of seven fights that will air live as part of a loaded Riyadh Season show this Saturday on DAZN Pay-Per-View and PPV.com from ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Along with the Daniel Dubois-Joseph Parker IBF title fight, Saturday’s card features four of the five highest rated RING heavyweight contenders. Zhang (27-2-1, 22 KOs) and Kabayel (25-0, 17 KOs) are No. 4 and No. 5, respectively; Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) is No. 2 and defends his IBF belt against Parker (35-3, 23 KOs, who holds The Ring’s No. 3 slot.

All four heavyweights have enjoyed career resurgences thanks to their readiness to take on all comers. Of the lot, Kabayel is the only one who didn’t need to rebuild following a defeat, simply because he’s yet to lose as a pro.

However, the undefeated contender from Germany also lacked profile and struggled to land the fights he wanted prior to joining the Riyadh Season circuit. He’s since registered knockout wins over Arslanbek Makhmudov and Frank Sanchez, both of whom were unbeaten before Kabayel handled his business in this very venue.

The mentality of taking on all comers led to his landing an interim title fight against Zhang, who shares his mindset. The hulking Chinese southpaw rebounded from a loss to Parker last March with a fifth-round knockout of former WBC heavyweight titlist Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) last June 1, both fights taking place at the Kingdom Arena.

Neither Zhang nor Kabayel fought for the rest of 2024 but closed out the year with the understanding that their paths would ultimately cross. The winner will become the WBC mandatory to current RING, WBC, WBA and WBO champ Oleksandr Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs).

While Kabayel has proven his eagerness to take on anyone at any time, his mind has not leapfrogged any further than this weekend.

“After the fight, we will weigh our options but we still have to take care of business,” noted Kabayel, who has stopped his last four opponents. “I want to fight the best in the world. That is why we are part of Riyadh Season. Right now, Oleksandr Usyk is the best. He is the heavyweight champion of the world and we are both undefeated.

“But to be clear, we fight whoever His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] and Riyadh Season decide. That is why we are fighting Zhang now, and what we are focused on.”