Joshua vs Ruiz: Souleymane Cissokho, Diego Pacheco added to card

2016 Olympic bronze medalist Souleymane Cissokho and middleweight prospect Diego Pacheco have been added to the June 1 Joshua-Ruiz card at Madison Square Garden.

Cissokho, 27, is a French junior middleweight who is with Anthony Joshua’s management team. He turned pro in Jan. 2017 and has gone 8-0 (6 KO) to date, including a win over former Carlos Molina in June 2018. He most recently fought on Feb. 9, beating Roman Garofalo via third round TKO to win the vacant French title at 154 pounds.

The fight next weekend will be his US debut, and his first pro fight outside of his home country.

Pacheco (3-0, 2 KO) is an 18-year-old that Matchroom are very high on. A 6’4” middleweight with a 79-inch reach, he projects as a nightmare matchup at 160, 168, or even 175 as he matures, if he can live up to the hype. He made his pro debut on Dec. 22 in Tijuana, and has since fought on Feb. 23 in Tijuana again (the Rios-Soto card) and on the April 26 SSR-Estrada II card in Inglewood, California, near his home in LA.

Joshua-Ruiz will stream live on DAZN in the US.