Unbeaten challenger Oliver Zaren wasn't among them.

Instead, the 26-year-old Dane relishes the task ahead when challenging the gifted Cuban in his first IBF super middleweight title defense. Their world title fight will headline Thursday's Eye of the Tiger show on DAZN from Capitole de Quebec in Canada.

"If you don't take any chances you're not going anywhere," Zaren (19-0-1, 8 KOs) told The Ring. "I know he's the division's boogeyman, there's no doubt about that, everyone is ducking him. I think he wanted to unify the titles but people are saying no.

"A lot of people are trying to avoid him until they can't anymore. In the meantime, I'm ranked No. 5 by the IBF, have a good shot at the title so why not take it? If you don't try, you'll never succeed."

Zaren arrives in enemy territory following a technical draw, having boxed Jose Navarro Jr. on June 19 for the vacant European title before adverse weather conditions halted their contest after three rounds.

Still, the experience served him well.

"Navarro is a top European-level fighter and I beat him for three rounds before the storm caused a fight stoppage," he said. "In my head, I proved to myself that I'm above European level and can compete at world level ... that's why it feels natural when you get the chance to take it."

A protege of his trainer in former unified 168-pound champion Mikkel Kessler, Zaren believes he's well prepared for what is ahead.

"He's a little bit similar to Navarro, 6-foot-3 tall, same as me ... got two arms, two legs, I'm not afraid of that.

"We have our concerns on the power he's coming with, but I've sparred some heavy guys who can really punch and I can take one, so it's going to be a good fight. I'm not coming just to take part, I'm here to win."

The challenger turned professional at cruiserweight in 2019 and believes unlike some of opponents, Iglesias won't hold significant physical advantages.

"I was a heavy boy. I was a heavyweight, you can see in my first fight that I was 198," he said. "That's what I have in mind when I'm fighting him, faced guys who punch harder, who are bigger, taller, once fought a 7-foot tall guy. This is a fight. I try to be as technical as possible, but no matter how it goes, if it turns into a dog fight, I'm ready."

Iglesias (15-0, 14 KOs) is The Ring's No. 2 super middleweight and has left a destructive trail behind him.

He won four fights inside nine rounds during a breakout 2024, stopping former world title challenger Marcelo Coceres while Evgeny Shvedenko also followed in the same round. He iced Sena Agbeko in two, before a five-round beatdown of the previously unbeaten Petro Ivanov.

In an attempt to force a title fight, the 28-year-old Cuban scored an eighth-round stoppage of former IBF title challenger Vladimir Shishkin. Several opponents passed before his one-sided win over Pavel Silyagin, who retired after eight rounds in their vacant IBF title contest on April 9.