It's Official: Carlos Adames vs. Gerome Warburton Headlines Zuffa Boxing 13 in Riyadh on Nov. 14

Well, it's official now. Carlos "Bronco" Adames has a date, a dance partner and a desert. The WBC middleweight champion will face Wales' Gerome Warburton in the main event of Riyadh Season Zuffa Boxing 13 on Saturday, Nov. 14, at The Venue in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Tickets went on sale Friday morning.

When we first wrote about Adames signing with Zuffa Boxing, the question was who'd be in the other corner. Dan Rafael reported Warburton's name on Oct. 19, citing sources. On Friday, Turki Alalshikh and The Ring Magazine made it official.

The Ring also confirmed a piece of the undercard: Australia's Jason Moloney returns in a bantamweight fight against Andres Teran.

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The matchup

Adames (25-1-1, 18 KOs) is the Dominican banger who holds the WBC belt at 160. Warburton (18-2-2, 2 KOs) is a Welsh southpaw coming off back-to-back decision wins over Nathan Heaney. Those records come from The Ring's fight graphic.

Here's the part you need to know. Zuffa's official release, sent out Friday morning, confirms it: Adames vs. Warburton is a 10-round fight at a contract weight of 165 pounds, five pounds over the middleweight limit. So Adames' green belt isn't on the line in Riyadh, which lines up with what Rafael reported back on Oct. 19. That matters, because the WBC has already lined up mandatory business for him, with Meiirim Nursultanov at the front of that line.

The release also fills in the résumés. Adames, The Ring's No. 1-ranked middleweight from Elías Piña, Dominican Republic, is unbeaten in his last eight and returns less than eight months after his third title defense, a dominant win over Austin "Ammo" Williams. Warburton, 31, from Colwyn Bay, is a former Welsh middleweight champion who has fought for British and Commonwealth honors.

The rest of the card

Moloney (29-4, 20 KOs), the Australian former world champion, makes his Zuffa debut in the 10-round bantamweight co-feature against Mexico's Andres Teran (19-2, 14 KOs). Moloney has won two straight in Australia, and Teran knocked out the previously unbeaten Floyd Diaz in the sixth round at Zuffa Boxing 08 in June.

Super middleweight Bruno Surace (26-1-2, 5 KOs), two fights removed from his upset knockout of Jaime Munguia, faces Poland's unbeaten Kamil Bednarek (17-0, 10 KOs) over 10. Unbeaten lightweights Ivan Ortiz (13-0-2, 9 KOs) and Dariial Kuchmenov (10-0, 8 KOs) meet over eight. Middleweight Radzhab Butaev (16-2, 12 KOs) takes on Colombian puncher Alexander Castro (15-2, 12 KOs) in a 10-rounder, and Uzbek prospects Jakhongir Zokirov (2-0, 2 KOs) and Tullo Boymatov (1-0, 1 KO) both return.

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Riyadh Season Zuffa Boxing 13 streams on Paramount+ in the U.S. and Canada and airs on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland.

The Kimster's take

Let's be honest. Nobody's circling this one as a pick-'em. Warburton has two knockouts in 22 fights, and he's walking into the Bronco's first fight under a new banner, in a building that isn't his, against a guy who throws everything with bad intentions. For Adames, this is about shaking off the rust and getting a Zuffa win on the board before the real money fights at middleweight.

But I've been around long enough to know the "tune-up" label has a funny way of biting people. Warburton is a southpaw who can box, and he's got nothing to lose. If he makes Adames miss early and the champ starts loading up, it gets interesting.

It's also another big night in Riyadh at a time when the region's security has been the story. This weekend's Canelo-Mbilli card is pressing on after the aerial-threat alerts, and now Riyadh has its next date on the board two weeks later. The Kingdom isn't slowing down its boxing calendar.

Think Warburton has the upset in him, or does Bronco get him out of there? Make your call in Fight Picker on Boxbid once the card goes live. New to it? Here's how Fight Picker works.