Salita Promotions announced a world title fight coming in a few weeks: "May 9th, we’re bringing the action to Atlanta. Angelo Leo vs. Reese Aleem for the IBF featherweight championship." Salita P romotions apparently made a deal with Manny Pacquiao Promotions to bring the fight to Atlanta. In February, the IBF held a purse bid for featherweight champion Angelo Leo’s mandatory defense against Aleem. The winning bid was in the amount of $227,100 and was submitted by Aleem’s promoter, Sean Gibbons of Manny Pacquiao Promotions. Under IBF rules, Manny Pacquiao Promotions had to hold the fight within ninety days.

 

Aleem is 23-1 and is riding a streak of three straight high-quality wins since a split decision loss to Sam Goodman in Goodman’s native Australia. Aleem’s last outing was a unanimous decision road win over previously undefeated Mikito Nakano in Tokyo last November. Leo, from New Mexico, is a two-division champion with a 26-1 pro record. He won the title by knocking out the favored Luis Alberto Lopez in 2024. Leo defended his title only once since then, defeating Tomoki Kameda in Japan in May. Leo's only career loss was to then-WBO 122-pound champion Stephen Fulton in 2021.