It was a memorable Saturday evening, May 30, 2026, in the sold-out Magdeburg Exhibition Hall , packed with over 3,500 spectators . The event hosted its first-ever SES Boxing Gala , and it was a resounding success. A fantastic atmosphere crowned the thrilling fights, and the Magdeburg boxing crowd was repeatedly brought to their feet. Top-class boxing from established fighters as well as very young up-and-coming talents ensured a great atmosphere from the very beginning!
SES promoter Ulf Steinforth: “For me, that fight in May was one of the most spectacular and emotional bouts of my promoting career; it couldn’t get more dramatic! We all know the Rocky films, the third installment ‘Eye of the Tiger!’, and other trilogies in top-level boxing – this third fight will hopefully be another exciting continuation of the story for the spectators and boxing fans. However, as a promoter, the draw in the second fight was the most ridiculous result; it didn’t benefit any of us three. In my opinion, Armend had the edge. Our two cruiserweights, Fress and Xhoxhaj, are currently ranked #1 and #11 respectively by the WBO. On November 14th, we all want the final decision, and the ‘Grand Final’ should once again make the Magdeburg Exhibition Center tremble and thrill the spectators!”
“The grand finale” – there must be a clear decision! WBO Inter-Continental Champion Roman Fress and WBO Europe Champion Armend Xhoxhaj finally want to box out the ultimate winner!
Looking back: in May, at the memorable cruiserweight title fight, the “World Championship Showdown – The Decision”, three WBO belts or titles were contested for the first time. With the titles “International,” “Inter-Continental,” and “European,” the winner of this fight would have been on the path to a world championship bout. However, there was no winner in the rematch between the two SES boxers, Roman Fress and Armend Xhoxhaj , and consequently, the draw meant no decision was reached.
But after this thrilling 12-round draw , Roman Fress remained number 1 and Armend Xhoxhaj number 11 in the WBO rankings. Now, in the minds of both boxers, the ultimate winner must be determined in a third fight on November 14th at the Magdeburg Exhibition Center , following their two previous encounters – true to the motto: “There can be only one!”
Sound bites from today’s press conference at the Magdeburg Museum of Cultural History:
Roman Fress: “Of course, we always show each other mutual respect. Armend is a great athlete, a tough fighter – he achieves a lot through his willpower. But in terms of boxing technique, he can’t match me, and I will and must exploit that. He won the first fight, the second was a draw, so I will win the third. And, it wasn’t always entirely fair between us, that should be mentioned as well. It’s also important for me to emphasize here: I would like to sincerely thank my former coach, Robert Stieglitz, for eight years of fantastic collaboration – without him, I wouldn’t be here now!”
Armend Xhoxhaj: “Our last fight went well, we were both in top shape. Roman may be a good athlete, a good guy, but now I only see him as a sparring partner! I clearly won the first time, and I felt I won the second one too – so I’ll win this fight as well! That’s my job, my mission!”
Mete Alijaj, Xhoxhaj’s coach: “I’m not looking back, I’m looking forward. Both put on a great fight. I expect the same from this third fight; they should thrill the spectators!”
Georg Bramowski, the new food coach : “I was at the second duel between the two at the Magdeburg trade fair and for me it was a clear draw. We’ve only been working together for about five weeks now and are therefore only looking ahead!”
Further battles:
Professional debut in the atomweight division for Tatjana Genrich from Magdeburg
Tatjana Genrich, from Magdeburg, is well known as an international model . She has already walked the catwalks of Milan and Paris and won numerous beauty titles, including Miss Germany twice (2015 and 2022) and Queen of Europe (2016). and Miss Intercontinental Europe (2022). For seven years she has successfully run her own modeling agency and modeling school “Genrich Model Studios” .
She will now make her professional debut in the ring on November 14th . As a multiple Saxony-Anhalt youth champion in the flyweight division (2007 to 2009), Tatjana Genrich demonstrated her athletic and boxing talent early on. Now, the 33-year-old is fulfilling a long-held dream: On November 14th, she will step into the ring as a professional boxer for the first time at the Magdeburg Exhibition Hall . Under the guidance of SES coach Dirk Dzemski, she will present herself to the Magdeburg boxing audience in a four-round atomweight bout.
Sound bites from today’s press conference at the Magdeburg Museum of Cultural History:
SES promoter Ulf Steinforth: “We are the ‘experts in the atomweight division’ in Europe. With ‘Undisputed Champion’ Tina Rupprecht (world champion of all four sanctioning bodies) and WBC world champion Fabiana Bytyqi, we’ve already broken the dominance of Asian boxers. Now, Tatjana is 1.70 m tall, a real advantage in this weight class. I’m delighted that after ten years she’s fulfilling her promise and making another run. Everything else will be revealed in her debut on November 14th in the ring!”
Tatjana Genrich: “Yes, we had an agreement and I am now fulfilling it. I have always lived very closely with boxing over the years and now my dream of stepping into the ring as a professional boxer is coming true!”
SES coach Dirk Dzemski: “Tatjana is already making huge progress in training – it’s great fun to see her pushing herself so hard and challenging herself. I really believe she’s capable of a lot!”
Further information about the entire boxing program of the SES boxing gala, including “Team Germany” cruiserweight Paul Schmidt (Magdeburg), on November 14th at the Magdeburg Exhibition Centre will be announced in the coming weeks!
The post Press Conference At Magdeburg Museum Of Cultural History: Fress Vs. Xhoxhaj – “The Grand Finale!” appeared first on FightNews.
