British WBO super middleweight champion Hamzah Shiraz has said he is ready to make a mandatory defence of his title against Kazakhstan's Zhanibek Alimkhanuly. According to the British boxer, he will step into the ring if the financial terms of the bout are suitable, infohub.kz reports.
"We're going to fight, we accept the fight. Let's do it," Shiraz told The Ring in an interview with the publication's editor-in-chief, Rick Reeno.
Notably, Shiraz initially criticised the WBO's decision to install Alimkhanuly as mandatory challenger. Now, however, the Briton has made clear he is ready to meet the Kazakh in the ring.
The two sides have yet to agree on terms for the bout. According to Shiraz, he has received no offers from the streaming service DAZN, his promotional company Queensberry Promotions or Top Rank, which represents Alimkhanuly's interests.
"We're professional boxers and we fight for a decent purse," the Briton stressed.
Because the teams were unable to reach an agreement directly, the WBO has scheduled a purse bid for 16 September. The minimum acceptable bid will be 300,000 US dollars.
Shiraz considers a fight with Alimkhanuly potentially the biggest of his career, but fears the final bid sum may prove insufficient to stage such a bout. According to the Briton, if a good financial offer comes in, there will be no obstacles on his side to fighting the Kazakh.
Shiraz holds the WBO super middleweight belt and has a professional record of 24 wins, one draw and no defeats, with 19 of those wins coming by knockout. In his last fight on 25 July, the Briton beat Simon Zachenhuber by majority decision.
Recall that Alimkhanuly previously publicly appealed to Turki Al ash-Sheikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, asking him to help organise a fight with Shiraz.
The 33-year-old Alimkhanuly moved up to super middleweight in the summer of 2026, giving up the WBO middleweight title to do so. He remains unbeaten in the professional ring — 17 wins in 17 fights, 12 of them by knockout.