Kessler vs. Stieglitz postponed

Former super middleweight titlist Mikkel Kessler suffered an injury to his right hand in training, forcing postponement of his Nov. 5 fight with titleholder Robert Stieglitz, Kessler's promoter announced Tuesday.

Promoter Kalle Sauerland said the fight would be rescheduled for sometime early next year, and that the venue, PARKEN Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark, Kessler's hometown, would remain the same.

"This is a major disappointment for me," Kessler said in a statement. "We've had a great preparation and I was in fantastic shape when I injured my right hand during a routine training session. The doctors advised me that it needs a rest and I can't fight on Nov. 5. I am very sorry to keep my fans waiting. The good news is that the injury should heal quickly after a little break."

Kessler is no stranger to injury. He was an original member of Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Classic but withdrew following the second round of the round-robin tournament because of an eye injury, suffered in a decision win against Carl Froch to claim his third world title in April 2010.

Because of the injury, the 32-year-old Kessler (44-2, 33 KOs) dropped out of the tournament, vacated his belt and was out of action for 14 months until returning to stop Mehdi Bouadla in the sixth round on June 4.

Kessler and his handlers had an offer to travel to Canada to challenge titlist Lucian Bute on Nov. 5, but elected to instead finalize a deal with Germany's Stieglitz (40-2, 23 KOs), who was willing to go to Denmark to defend his version of the 168-pound title.

Stieglitz-Kessler was scheduled to be televised in the United States on Showtime, along with Bute's defense against Glen Johnson in Quebec City as part of a split-site doubleheader.

"It's a shame that this big clash of champions has to be postponed," Sauerland said. "I know how hard Mikkel has worked and how disappointed he is to postpone the original fight date, but we have been through this before."

Sauerland said he hoped to work with his various television partners -- Showtime in the U.S., TV2 in Denmark and ARD in Germany -- to find a new date as quickly as possible.

"We will then kick off the new year with a massive show at PARKEN, with two of the world's best super-middleweights battling it out," Sauerland said.

Sauerland said tickets purchased for the Nov. 5 fight remain valid for the new date, or refunds are available.

Stieglitz, 30, stopped Karoly Balzsay in the 11th round in August 2009 to claim his belt, and has made four title defenses.