Osleys Iglesias has scored two devastating first-round knockouts this year and is in search of the hat trick against Sena Agbeko.

Iglesias, rated at No. 3 by The Ring at super middleweight, will face Agbeko in chief support to stablemate’s Christian Mbilli’s bout against Sergey Derevyanchenko at the Videotron in Quebec City, Canada, on Saturday.

“Agbeko is a very experienced and powerful boxer,” Iglesias (11-0, 10 knockouts) told The Ring through Wolf-Dieter Jacobi. “Agbeko is a boxer who is always looking for his chance. He has a KO rate of almost 80 percent. He has a good punch and follows up when he has hit his opponent.

“As with any other opponent, I will take this fight very seriously and prepare myself optimally.”

Iglesias’ Cuban countryman David Morrell stopped Agbeko in two rounds last December and there are bound to be comparisons, but Iglesias is keen to distance himself from that, focusing on the task at hand and not getting ahead of himself.

“David Morrell won the fight convincingly,” he said. “I don’t want to compare myself with others. I’m going my own way, and that won’t end until I’m undisputed super middleweight champion. I will also offer the spectators a spectacular fight on August 17 in Quebec City.”

The 26-year-old has certainly caught the public’s attention, and expectations have peaked with wins over former world title challenger Marcelo Coceres (KO 1) and once-beaten Evgeny Shvedenko (KO 1).

On l’appelle la Tornade🌪️

🥶Le K.-O. au 1er round d’Osleys Iglesias sur Evgeny Shvedenko nous donne encore des frissons…
—
We call him the Tornado🌪️

🥶The first round KO of Osleys Iglesias over Evgeny Shvedenko still give us chills…#ButlerVolny | #EottmArmy pic.twitter.com/i0HqeRu4E8

— Eye of the Tiger (@eottm_boxing) June 7, 2024

“I’m very happy that I was able to offer the fans in Canada two such spectacular knockouts,” he said. “Shvedenko is a good boxer with very good defense.

“I’m all the more pleased that the tactics I rehearsed with my coach, Georg Bramowski, worked out so well. You can’t force the knockout. I want to box well and then consistently exploit every gap in my opponent’s game. It’s great that so many fans watched the fight.”

This will be the power-puncher’s third fight in five months since signing promotional forms with Canada-based promoter Eye of The Tiger.

“I’ve only boxed two rounds this year,” he said laughing, when he was asked about being active. “I was very happy that Camille Estephan offered me another fight after my KO win over Shvedenko.

“I’m ready. Training for my fights is very intensive and very hard work. But I love boxing and success. It’s going to be a great night of boxing in Quebec and I’m very proud to be part of it.”

Each win has seen Iglesias move closer to the top of the super middleweight division, which has recently seen David Benavidez and Morrell depart for light heavyweight.

“Every fight, every victory brings me a little closer to my goal,” he said. “I want to fight the best boxers in the super middleweight division and beat them. If anyone dares — I’m ready. Here we go.”

First, he has to take care of business against Agbeko, and if he can continue the eye-catching performances, it will be interesting to see if he becomes boxing’s latest boogeyman.

His promoter, Camille Estephan of Eye of The Tiger, knows all too well the difficulty in securing fights for his rising star.

“People are definitely super wary to fight him,” said the EOTT president. “It’s quite an exercise to get him opponents.

“I’m very, very happy with his two fights so far. I think he’ll be one of the top two or three guys for many years to come.”

Agbeko (28-3, 22 KOs) turned professional in his native Ghana in 2011. After 15 consecutive wins, he lost in his American debut against Raymond Gatica (TKO 4), after which he did not fight again for three years.

Upon his return, Agbeko scored eight wins before dropping a wide decision to Vladimir Shishkin (UD 10). He got back to winning ways, notably beating Winfred Harris Jr. (TKO 9) and previously unbeaten Isaiah Steen (UD 10) but was stopped by Morrell (TKO 2) in his last fight in December 2023.

Mbilli-Derevyanchenko, plus undercard bouts, will be broadcast on ESPN at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT.

Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at [email protected].

Follow @AnsonWainwright