Following the disaster that was Mahmoud Charr having his travel blocked, a replacement has magically been found for Don King’s heavyweight event.
Bermane Stiverne, scheduled to fight on the undercard against no opponent, is now in the main event.
The former WBC heavyweight champion will fight Bryan, potentially for at least the WBA interim championship.
Despite Charr having no means of defending his belt due to a visa issue, we could all see from a mile away. King is pushing the WBA to strip the champion of his belt.
Instead, King his two in-house fighters to compete for the vacant title, a move that would give the long-time promoter a foothold in the heavyweight division.
King would then have one of his boxers in line to meet the Tyson Fury winner vs. Anthony Joshua winner – seemingly getting to that point by any means necessary.
Hopefully, but not expected to happen, the WBA will see sense and allow Charr to retain his secondary crown.
If they don’t, Charr should at least face the winner of Bryan vs. Stiverne.
HEAVYWEIGHT CASE
Charr has been unable to put his belt in the air since claiming in 2017. All due to a legal case from Fres Oquendo against the WBA.
Oquendo won his case but has still not managed to get his opportunity. ‘The Big O’ is now 47 years old. He’s far more likely to accept a payoff than a fight due to seven years of inactivity.
The Puerto Rican has launched legal challenges every step of the way, which is the main reason why Charr is yet to defend the strap.
This fact is also likely to halt King from gaining approval for Charr’s vacant belt, but you never know with the WBA.
Getting back to Saturday night’s action and King has managed to salvage his pay-per-view. The show is set for tonight at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL.
CRUISERWEIGHT
The WBA cruiserweight championship co-main event is off the $19.95 Don King TV live-streamed PPV, to add insult to injury for any fans planning to watch.
Beibut Shumenov vs. Raphael Murphy took pride of place on the poster. But there are claims that it was never on in the first place, just like Charr vs. Bryan.
Shocking accusations made against King. And if true, more damage will inflict his already fragile reputation.
Should the WBA rule in favor of King, the former Mike Tyson handler will have worked a miracle.
Only in America.
The views expressed in this article are that of the Editor, Phil Jay. WBN celebrated its 10th Anniversary on August 1st, 2020, and is the top-visited independent boxing news website in the world.
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