The World Boxing Association has revealed its latest stipulations at 168 and 175 pounds, Canelo Alvarez knows who his next opponent will be.
If Canelo comes through Jaime Munguia, the WBA will order the Mexican superstar to battle Edgar Berlanga in September, further delaying the possibility of a David Benavidez blockbuster. Berlanga was in line for a shot in May until Canelo ultimately selected Munguia for an all-Mexican battle on Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas. The knockout artist now bypasses secondary champion David Morrell Jr. in what looks like an eyebrow-raising decision.
Per the WBA Rules and Regulations, the secondary titleholder usually gets the first shot at the ‘super’ champion. However, Canelo receives a reprieve from facing Morrell as Berlanga leapfrogs the undefeated Cuban. Morrell can move up in weight and claim the same belt he holds at super middleweight in the higher division to compensate for this unexpected decision.
The ruling goes against everything the WBA has promised regarding eradicating the ‘regular’ belts. Adding a light heavyweight version comes just six months after the WBA reintroduced the heavyweight version.
Mahmoud Charr revived the belt just over a month after Oleksandr Usyk ended the title by defeating Daniel Dubois.
Explaining the occurrences in both weight classes, the WBA said: “The World Boxing Association Championships Committee granted special permission for David Morrell to move up a division and fight for the light heavyweight championship against No. 6 ranked Radivoje Kalajdzic in June of this year.
“The pioneer body approved the request of TGB Promotions, representative of the Cuban fighter, who base the argument on the history Morrell has had with the WBA and all his achievements in his career.
“The approval was made with specific conditions. Among those is that Morrell must vacate his super middleweight title if he wins his 175-pound bout. This will make him a “regular” champion [at 175]. This is the category in which Bivol is the super champion and will have an undisputed championship bout against Artur Beterbiev in June.”
Adding that Berlanga is the mandatory challenger for Canelo, the WBA stated: “The committee decided that with Morrell’s weight move, Edgar Berlanga will be the mandatory super middleweight challenger. The Puerto Rican has just defeated Padraig McCrory in a final eliminator, and now he will have the opportunity to be the mandatory challenger for the organization.
“Any other situation that arises concerning these divisions will be resolved by interpretation of the WBA; in addition, this resolution cancels all previous ones that have been published.”
The fact the WBA didn’t order Morrell vs Berlanga for the mandatory spot can only be down to the former’s desire to move up. Canelo is currently holding up the division with his ability to pick and choose opponents, leaving those in the mandatory spots waiting longer than usual.
Morrell could have argued the decision. However, he opted to take the high road and do what David Benavidez did with the World Boxing Council. President Mauricio Sulaiman and the WBC Ratings Committee found a way around Canelo not wanting to give Benavidez his opportunity yet. They also incentivized the fighter to campaign in a higher division by allowing an interim title fight with Oleksandr Gvozdyk.
The WBA and WBC’s rulings mean Canelo doesn’t have to face Morrell or Benavidez. Instead, the undisputed champion has Berlanga – already in the running and favored by Canelo – ratified as the next challenger.
This all works out well for Canelo, who avoids two of the most dangerous boxers at 168 pounds for the foreseeable future. It will be interesting to see whether undefeated William Scull, the IBF number one contender, gets his chance after Berlanga.
Read all articles and learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor Phil Jay. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
