WBC 56th convention Day 3: Mandatories

By Boxing Bob Newman

The mandatory challenger meeting opened day 3 of the 56th WBC convention in Kyiv, Ukraine. This is easily as contentious an affair as is the ratings meeting. Starting with the heavyweight division, possibly one of the more complex scenarios regarding mandatory status, things got off to a gritty start.

Dominic Breazeale had won a mandatory eliminator against Eric Molina, while at the same time, Dillian Whyte of the UK has won several WBC Silver championship fights and remains ranked #1, which isn’t the same as being mandatory challenger. The situation grows more complex as WBC champion Deontay Wilder is slated to fight lineal champion Tyson Fury on December 1. The winner of that fight will most certainly look to unify all the belts against Anthony Joshua, which would further set back any mandatory defense against either Breazeale or Whyte. To be continued…

Four belt champion in the cruiserweight division, Oleksandr Usyk will defend against WBC emeritus champion Tony Bellew. The winner, will face the ever complex task of four different mandatories to be ironed out.

Adonis Stevenson, the light heavyweight champ, will face mandatory challenger and interim champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk on December 1 in Quebec City.

Super middleweight champion David Benavides was found to have marijuana in his system after a voluntary testing. World Boxing Super Series winner Callum Smith happens to be the WBC Diamond champion as well. Benavides will be designated as champion in recess until at such time the WBC rules on his situation. Meanwhile, there has been a motion for #1 Anthony Dirrel to fight #2 Avni Yildirim with the winner in a position to face Benavides, should he still be champion.

In the middleweight division, new champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is requesting via his promoter Oscar de la Hoya a voluntary defense. Gennady Golovkin, through his promoter Tom Loeffler is requesting an immediate rematch. Interim champion Jermall Charlo, through Sampson Lewkowicz who was representing Charlos’ promoter Tom Brown, is requesting to fight Canelo for the full WBC championship. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman proposed a solution to satisfy all involved- Golovkin vs Charlo and Canelo in a voluntary defense. Sulaiman’s proposal was approved unanimously. The WBC did however support an immediate rematch if the other scenarios doesn’t come to fruition.

Super Welterweight champion Jermell Charlo is in a voluntary phase. Erislandy Lara vs Julian Williams is ordered as a final eliminator for the mandatory position.

As the new champion at welterweight, Shawn Porter inherited two mandatory defenses when he won the vacant title. As former champion Keith Thurman has the right to reclaim his title and the WBC has ordered negotiations for that mandatory. Andre Berto just won an eliminator against Devon Alexander and is considered the second mandatory. Teams Porter and Thurman have 30 days to negotiate.

Super Lightweight champion Jose Carlos Ramirez is in a voluntary phase. Diamond champion Regis Prograis is involved in the World Boxing Super Series and is tied up with that for the foreseeable future- likely one year. Initially Mauricio Sulaiman ordered an eliminator between Jorge Linares and Adrien Broner. At that, NABF president Craig Hubble strongly opposed to Broner, a fighter who definitively disembodies the code of WBC ethics with his conduct in and out of the ring. Viktor Postol, who is at the convention was recommended to fight Mohamed Mimoune as a semi-final eliminator pending the outcome of the WBSS and the possible Linares-Broner match.

Mikey Garcia is the WBC/IBF lightweight champion, with Luke Campbell the WBC mandatory challenger. Javier Fortuna and Zaur Abdullaev were ordered to face off in a final eliminator.

Super feather champ Miguel Berchelt will make his mandatory defense against Miguel Roman on November 3. Jhonny Gonzalez and Francisco Vargas have been ordered to fight a final eliminator for the next mandatory.

Gary Russell made his featherweight championship mandatory defense in May against Joseph Diaz. Russell has been ordered to fight Diamond champion Leo Santa Cruz.

Super Bantam champion Rey Vargas is recovering from shoulder surgery and pneumonia after his defense against Azat Hovhannisyan. An interim title will be vied for between Tomoki Kameda and Cesar Juarez.

The vacant bantamweight title will be contested between Rau’shee Warren and Nordine Oubaali. Luis Nery was stripped after grossly failing to make weight against former champion Shinsuke Yamanaka in a rematch.

Super Fly champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai will make a voluntary defense this weekend against Iran Diaz. He also has one more voluntary defense before being mandated to face Juan Francisco Estrada in a mandatory rematch.

Flyweight champion Cristofer Rosales is rumored to be fighting a voluntary defense in December. Lee Selby is rated #1, but is not considered the mandatory as he did not fight a final eliminator. The caveat is that Rosales’ last loss was to Selby last year. There have been some motions made for the rematch with Selby being considered the mandatory challenger. Selby’s camp accepted Mauricio Sulaiman’s proposal for Selby to face Julio Cesar Martinez in a final eliminator.

Light fly champ Ken Shiro is facing Milan Melindo this Sunday, October 7. Jonathan Taconing and Hiroto Kyoguchi have been ordered to face off in a final eliminator.

Minimumweight champ Wanheng Menayothin is in a voluntary phase. A final eliminator between Simphiwe Khonco and Tsubasa Koura has been ordered.

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Dr. Paul Wallace was invited due to his impending departure, to deliver his medical seminar report to the board of governors and assembly. Hydration And Weight Loss was addressed as not only a problem in all combat sports, but also a “culture” in those sports.

Wallace elaborated on the adverse side effects of hydration manipulation, such as: kidney failure, electrolyte problems, cardiovascular function, mood swings and mental status changes. Extreme measures of cutting weight such as rubber suits, excessive heat exposure, diuretics and laxatives should be avoided.

The California State Athletic Commission, of which Wallace is a member, conducted a study on weight gain after the weigh in, which spanned over 700 fighters and nearly 400 bouts. The most extreme case showed a 24 lb. weight gain which represented 18% change in body mass.

While the WBC has long mandated 30 day and 7 day weigh-ins prior to title fights, Wallace maintains that fighters are ballooning back up in between those weigh-in intervals. A 14 day weigh-in has been suggested for implementation.

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Dr. Marina Sheppard of BoxRec.com also gave a brief presentation on the tweaks and changes on the site over the last year. The update spanned 227 Commissions across 118 countries and included over 10,000 suspensions in the previous 12 months, up 14% from the previous year. Also new and improved:

*Champions table
*Highlights if a boxer is currently suspended
*Displays if boxer is enrolled in VADA CBP
*”What If” function makes comparisons between two fighters and the probability of one winning over the other- a great tool for matchmakers and promoters, helping avoid mismatches and proving accurate 91% of the time.
*Watch list- keep an eye on your favorite boxer

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Luis Escalona took the floor for a moment to discuss the financial burden to keep thee Clean Boxing Program alive. At least $75,000 was spent last year outside of contributions of promoters paying the costs through tournaments, etc.

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The WBC talent show will begin at 7 p.m. in the Atrium hall. Mayor Vitali Klitschko has promised a special surprise!