London, UK (6 September 2021) Former striker Bilel Jkitou has offered to play up front for Coventry City FC this Saturday after he has beaten WBC Silver Middleweight Champion Sam Eggington the night before.
And the unbeaten French hitman has the backing of his superstar friend the Real Madrid and France striker Karim Benzema.
Jkitou challenges Eggington for his crown at the Coventry Skydome Arena this Friday night, but the former Red Star forward is happy to swap his gloves for boots again and turn out at home for the Sky Blues, who are 7th in the Championship, against Middlesborough.
Before Jkitou switched to professional boxing he played as a striker for Red Star, the oldest league football club in Paris, and the sharpshooter scored 15 times in one season.
He has equalled his football prowess in the squared circle with an unbeaten 15-fight record and 6 knockouts and has captured the WBC Mediterranean Middleweight title as he heads into the biggest fight of his career against the Birmingham ‘Savage’ Eggington.
The 29-year-old has been in top form with back-to-back KO’s in his last three fights. In his last fight in March he destroyed Gyorgy Mizsei inside two rounds; prior to that in February last year he smashed Felice Moncelli in the opening round and Ernesto Olvera was despatched in eight rounds in October 2019.
Jkitou said, “It was a real pleasure for me to play and grow at Red Star, a club so prestigious in France for its level and its history. I scored about 15 goals in one season at Red Star. When I beat Eggington and take his title and while I’m still in the city before I go home I’d be happy to help out Coventry City against Middlesbrough
“Karim wanted to come to see the fight but with the Covid and the fact that he plays often complicates matters. Karim and I met on social networks he is passionate about boxing, he liked what I did and he wrote to me and since then our friendship is very healthy, we give advice to each other, we encourage each other. I also had to go see him in Madrid but the Covid has complicated all these trips, but it will be done very soon. Regarding the fight against Sam he encouraged me to win,”
He has also played alongside some other big French stars including former Spurs and Marseille winger Georges-Kévin Nkoudou.
He added, “I played with Nkoudou who played at Marseille and for Spurs in England, who now plays at Be?ikta?. Yacine Bammou who played in Nantes and with the national team of Morocco. I played with Abdoulaye Diaby who played in Lille, Bruges, Be?ikta?. Mario Lemina, he is also a friend, we come from the same neighbourhood.”
Jkitou says he has transferred all the qualities of a striker such as accuracy, speed, strength and confidence to being a boxer and will use them to defeat against Eggington. He finished, “Yes exactly I am a striker in football but also in boxing and you will see that on September 10 in Coventry.”
Remaining tickets are available to purchase from the Coventry Skydome Arena website https://iceaccount.co.uk/championship-boxing
Sam Eggington’s WBC Silver Middleweight title defence against unbeaten French star Bilel Jkitou headlines an action packed card Hennessy All-Stars featuring some of the stars from the promoter’s stable including big-hitting Brixton star Isaac Chamberlain; Irish KO king Stevie McKenna faces France’s Moussa Gary over six rounds ; Birmingham’s Former British Light-Heavyweight Champion Shakan Pitters tackles Holland’s Farouk Daku over eight rounds; Coventry’s dynamite-punching middleweight sensation River Wilson-Bent takes on Bosnian hardman Sladjan Janjanin in a 10-round international contest, Birmingham welterweight ace Kaisee Benjamin battles Finland’s Jarkko Putkonen over ten rounds; Birmingham’s flash and brash Love Island and super-middleweight star Idris Virgo takes on the Czech Republic’s Michal Ryba over six rounds; red-hot Irish super-welterweight talent Brett McGinty faces Lithuania’s Lukas Ulys over four rounds; Brighton heavyweight destroyer Tommy Welch squares up against Spain’s Alvaro Terrero over four rounds and completing the card is the silky skilled Sevenoaks prospect Michael Hennessy Jr. against Latvian Maksims Dembovskis.
ITV Central feature | Michelin starred chef Glynn Purnell gives a masterclass in cooking with Sam Eggington, Shakan Pitters, Kaisee Benjamin and River Wilson-Bent
MEDIA EVENTS
Wednesday 8th September: Press Conference
Samoan Joe’s
Spon Street
Coventry
CV1 3BB
Time: 1.30pm for a 2pm start
In attendance will be Sam Eggington-Bilel Jkitou and the undercard boxers’ will meet head-to-head with their opponents: River Wilson, Isaac Chamberlain, Stevie McKenna, Shakan Pitters, Kaisee Benjamin, Idris Virgo, Michael Hennessy Jr., Brett McGinty and Tommy Welch.
One-one-interviews and photo opportunities will be available.
Thursday 9th September: Weigh-in
Samoan Joe’s
(Address as above)
Time: 12.30pm for a 1pm start
All boxers’ will officially weigh-in for their contests.
