British boxer Hamza Shiraz has declined a mandatory defense of his World Boxing Organization (WBO) super middleweight title against Kazakhstan's Janibek Alimkhanuly and voluntarily relinquished the championship belt. The WBO itself officially announced the decision, according to infohub.kz.
The organization confirmed that Queensberry Promotions, which represents Shiraz, notified the WBO in writing of the boxer's decision, made after the conclusion of the promotional purse bid.
"After reviewing the terms established following the promotional purse bid for a mandatory defense against official challenger Janibek Alimkhanuly, Hamza Shiraz decided not to proceed with this fight and voluntarily relinquished the WBO world super middleweight championship title," the organization said in a statement.
The WBO added that it respects the decision of Shiraz and his team. The organization's Championship Committee will announce its further decision on the status of the vacant belt and the situation in the division on Monday, September 21.
Queensberry Promotions had earlier won the right to stage the Shiraz-Alimkhanuly fight with a bid of $1,001,809. Top Rank, which represents the Kazakh boxer, bid $820,000. November 28 and December 5 were mentioned as possible dates for the bout, with the United Kingdom and New York considered as venues.
Even before the purse bid, Shiraz had expressed displeasure with the WBO's decision to name Alimkhanuly as mandatory challenger. The Kazakh, by contrast, repeatedly stated he was ready for the fight and stressed that his main goal was the championship belt.
Shiraz's refusal does not automatically make Alimkhanuly champion. The Kazakh remains the official mandatory challenger, and the further path to the WBO belt will be determined by the organization's Championship Committee on September 21.
Under WBO rules, a vacant title must be contested in a sanctioned bout. The committee identifies the two best available challengers and gives them up to 30 days to negotiate. If no agreement is reached, the WBO may order a promotional purse bid. The organization must now determine who will earn the right to face Alimkhanuly for the vacated belt.
In August, the WBO officially recognized Alimkhanuly as the mandatory challenger for Shiraz's title after the Kazakh moved up from middleweight to super middleweight. Janibek previously held the WBO and IBF championship belts in the 72.6 kg division.
Alimkhanuly remains undefeated in the professional ring, with 17 wins, 12 of them by knockout. Shiraz has 24 wins, one draw and 19 knockouts.