WBA Blocks Jaime Munguia vs Nikita Zon as Melikuziev Demands Title Strip
The WBA refuses to approve Munguia's proposed October 31 fight while mandatory challenger Melikuziev says he accepted every concession.
The WBA has refused to approve Jaime Munguia's proposed October 31 fight against Nikita Zon, reaffirming that Bektemir Melikuziev is the official mandatory challenger for the super middleweight title, per Boxing News 24.
The sanctioning body announced the decision on X on Thursday night, stating it had not approved the Munguia vs. Zon bout. The fight was reportedly planned for the Canelo Alvarez vs. Christian Mbilli card in Riyadh.
Hours earlier, Melikuziev took to Instagram to blast Munguia for allegedly refusing to honor their ordered mandatory fight. The Uzbek contender said he accepted every possible concession to make the bout happen, including fighting on short notice without a training camp, waiving VADA testing that his team had always insisted on, and accepting the lowest possible purse.
"We made every concession possible to make this fight happen," Melikuziev wrote. "Stop acting as if there is no mandatory and no rules."
The WBA ordered the Munguia-Melikuziev fight on September 21, giving both teams until October 21 to reach an agreement. The published order states that Munguia's 120-day mandatory defense period expired on August 30. If negotiations fail, the championship committee may call a purse bid.
Munguia's team has not publicly responded to Melikuziev's claims. The champion could risk losing his WBA title if he proceeds with the Zon fight without the sanctioning body's approval.
Boxing politics at its finest. Melikuziev is doing everything short of begging for this fight, and the WBA is actually enforcing its own rules for once. Give the sanctioning body credit here.
Munguia trying to slot in an unranked opponent while the mandatory clock has already expired is a bold move. His team has to know the WBA is watching. The October 21 deadline is twelve days away, and instead of negotiating in good faith, they are trying to squeeze in a fight on a Riyadh card that the WBA has not blessed.
Melikuziev deserves his shot. The guy offered to fight without VADA, without a camp, and for minimum money. If that is not enough, nothing will be. Either Munguia takes the fight or the WBA should order the purse bid and stop letting this drag out.
