WBC Orders Usyk’s Next Move

The WBC has officially ordered Oleksandr Usyk (25-0, 16 KOs) to defend his heavyweight titles against mandatory challenger Agit Kabayel (27-0, 19 KOs), with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman confirming the order on June 1.

“Yes. The WBC ruling was one voluntary defence and then the winner against Kabayel. That fight is being ordered today, and it is a mandatory defence for Usyk,” Sulaiman

The order comes less than two weeks after Usyk’s controversial eleventh-round stoppage of Rico Verhoeven, a fight in which the Dutchman pushed the champion, building a lead on one official scorecard before Usyk scored a knockdown and referee Mark Lyson stepped in to wave off the contest amid widespread controversy. Kabayel earned his mandatory position with wins over Frank Sanchez, Arslanbek Makhmudov and Zhilei Zhang, but remains sceptical that Usyk will agree to the fight, believing the Ukrainian may instead vacant the belt.