One by one, Agit Kabayel is hunting down the bogeymen of the heavyweight division.

The 32 year-old German has been a known commodity on the European scene since he successfully defended his EBU title against Dereck Chisora all the way back in 2017. That victory - which has aged extremely well - may not have propelled him to the heights he might have expected but Kabayel has been one of the major beneficiaries of Riyadh Season’s investment in the heavyweight division.

Kabayel, 25-0 (17 KOs), was unbeaten but meandering along when, in December 2023, he was matched with the giant Canadian based Russian, Arslanbek Makhmudov, on the Day of Reckoning bill. Written off beforehand, Kabayel was too good for the previously unbeaten Makhmudov and stopped him inside four rounds.

Five months later, he followed that up by breaking down the previously unbeaten Cuban stylist, Frank Sanchez, in seven rounds on the undercard of the historic undisputed heavyweight title fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury.

His reward? A fight with another of the heavyweight division’s most avoided men; Zhilei ‘Big Bang’ Zhang, 27-2-1 (22 KOs).

Kabayel - rated at No.5 by The Ring - and Zhang - ranked at No.4 - will collide on February 22nd on ‘The Last Crescendo’ card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The show is headlined by the undisputed light heavyweight title rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol and will be screened worldwide by DAZN.

“My friend said to me I'm the Ghostbusters; I fight only the monsters,” Kabayel told Queensberry. “Makhmudov was a strong opponent, strong guy. I fought with Sanchez and now another monster waits for me.”

Although 41 year-old Zhang is a veteran of the division, Kabayel is preparing for his toughest task yet. Whereas Makhmudov and Sanchez were unproven at the highest level, the 6ft 6in tall southpaw has demonstrated his qualities time and time again.

Zhang earned his own ticket to Riyadh Season by recording back to back stoppages of the teak tough Joe Joyce.

In March 2023, he dropped former WBO champion, Joseph Parker, twice before losing a razor thin majority decision on the undercard of Anthony Joshua’s two round demolition of MMA superstar, Francis Ngannou.

Undeterred, he stepped straight back into the fire just three months later and took apart former WBC champion, Deontay Wilder, in five one sided round.

Kabayel’s run has catapulted him up the world rankings. He is well positioned with the WBC, WBA and WBO and believes that facing tough challenges now will ensure he is perfectly prepared when his world title opportunity comes.

“‘Big Bang’ Zhang is a great boxer,” Kabayel said. “He is a strong person. He fought two times in his career at the Olympics. One time he won the silver. I respect him. I respect all my opponents. This is, for me, another big challenge in my career. I'm ready for this. I will challenge myself.

“When you're world champion you can say, ‘I beat good guys.’ I think this is another challenge for me.

“He fights the the big names. Two times in his career with Joe Joyce, one time [Filip] Hrgovic. Joseph Parker, Deontay Wilder. This is a big name in the boxing and now he fights with Kabayel.”