“I’m open to a rematch. If he wants a rematch at 160 or 168, I’ll always be ready to give him that rematch because he knows, and his team knows that I beat him after all. I obviously won that first fight,” Adames told InsideRingShow.
Adames (25-1-1, 18 KOs) has held that position since the February 2025 bout in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where many fans felt he did enough to win despite the bout ending in a 12-round split draw. The result created immediate debate, but the two fighters never returned to settle it in the ring.
Instead of going straight into a second fight with Adames, Sheeraz went on to headline a July 2025 New York card against Edgar Berlanga. He now appears set for another big opportunity, with a fight for the vacant WBO super middleweight title against Alem Begic on May 23 in Egypt as part of the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven undercard.
Adames, meanwhile, sounds like a man who still wants the chance to clear all doubt. He is willing to give Sheeraz another chance, but he also makes it known that, in his opinion, the first meeting is already over.
For a fighter whose biggest career hurdle ended in a stalemate many thought he had lost, Sheeraz’s climb has been remarkably smooth.
When Sheeraz faced Edgar Berlanga last July, many saw it as a match designed to make him look like a world champion against a guy who has been living off the momentum of his early career KO streak for years.
Now Sheeraz jumps into a fight for a vacant WBO title against Alem Begic. Taking nothing away from Begic’s unbeaten record, he is 38 years old and largely unknown to the wider boxing world. This is the textbook definition of opportunistic matchmaking to grab a belt in a second division.
Putting him on the Usyk-Verhoeven card on May 23rd gives him massive global exposure, further cementing the narrative that he’s an elite star before he’s actually cleared his toughest hurdle.
Adames, meanwhile, is still the most shunned man in and around the middleweight division. He did his part by returning to the ring in March 2026 and putting on a clinical performance against Austin “Ammo” Williams in Orlando. He’s proven he’s still the top dog at 160, yet he’s the one who has to beg for the big name fights.
If Sheeraz takes the WBO title at 168 on May 23, he will have even less incentive to look back. He’ll have a belt, a new weight class and the promotional backing to keep moving toward massive paydays like a potential Canelo clash.
Adames was left in a difficult position. He is a high-risk, low-reward opponent for the golden boys like Sheeraz. He is forced to watch fighters with thinner resumes jump him for titles and high-paying undercards.
The injury excuse from their fight in 2025 was effectively used as a shield to avoid the immediate sequel. This is a boxing story of the protected talent against the dangerous champion.
Adames has every right to be vocal, but in an era where titles are often collected through strategic matches rather than obliterating the division, a return to the ring with Sheeraz seems like a dream drifting further away.
