Uzbek super bantamweight contender and former world champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev has a fight planned for December 14 on a Matchroom card where he is set to headline against Mexican contender Ricardo Espinoza Franco. Co-headlining the card will be rising British cruiserweight contender Cheavon Clarke, as well as a potentially career-defining fight between Irish lightweight contender Gary Cully and British contender Maxi Hughes. Brazilian Olympic bronze medalist and IBF women’s lightweight champion Beatriz Ferreira is also set to compete on the card against French contender Licia Boudersa. The upcoming show will be the fifth installment of Matchroom’s “Monte Carlo Showdown” series, with the last taking place in 2023.
Murodjon Akhmadaliev (12-1, 9 KO’s) appears to still be the WBA mandatory challenger of the super bantamweight (122 lbs) division, but in lieu of not receiving an opportunity to face Japanese undisputed [WBA, WBC, WBO & IBF] champion Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 KO’s)―due to his own upcoming fight against Australian contender Sam Goodman (19-0, 8 KO’s), Akhmadaliev will be vying for the vacant WBA interim title.
Akhmadaliev will be facing unranked Mexican fighter Ricardo Espinoza Franco (30-4, 25 KO’s) in what is clearly a stay-busy1 fight as a result of the WBA not ordering the Uzbek contender and Inoue to face each other, thereby resulting in Inoue facing IBF mandatory challenger Goodman instead. The Akhmadaliev-Franco fight has been scheduled for a full 12 rounds.
The WBA interim title appears to have been introduced for Akhmadaliev’s fight as a consolidation or apology of sorts for the sanctioning body having neglected to order a Inoue-Akhmadaliev bout. Akhmadaliev, 29, had previously won the WBA mandatory challenger position at 122 lbs by defeating Mexican contender Kevin Gonzalez (27-1-1, 14 KO’s) on December 16, last year.
As such, on December 14 it will be almost a year since first becoming the WBA mandatory challenger that Murodjon Akhmadaliev has not been granted an opportunity to face Naoya Inoue―despite it being obligated to him due to his mandatory status.
The WBA interim title in itself does not equate to actually receiving an opportunity as can be glimpsed from Venezuelan super lightweight (140 lbs) contender Ismael Barroso’s (25-5-2, 23 KO’s) brief tenure as a WBA interim champion. Having first won the then-vacant interim title in January of this year after shockingly defeating British contender Ohara Davies (25-4, 18 KO’s) in just the 1st round, Barroso was never afforded an actual opportunity to fight then-WBA 140 lbs American champion Rolando “Rolly” Romero (16-2, 13 KO’s).
Romero went on to lose his title in March to a lightweight (135 lbs) contender in Mexican contender Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz (26-3-1, 18 KO’s), who would go on to lose his WBA title his very next match to another lightweight fighter in American contender Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela (14-2, 9 KO’s) in August.
In the meantime, Barroso was denied any opportunity to fight for the interim title as the WBA would make the title vacant at some point. His match against Japanese contender Andy Hiraoka (24-0, 19 KO’s) in September was a final eliminator2 bout rather than a fight that included Barroso’s interim title―indicating the interim title had been made defunct prior to their bout
Given these facts, the only benefit Murodjon Akhmadaliev seems to have from facing Ricardo Franco is the opportunity for him to remain active. Though he still appears to be the WBA 122 lbs mandatory, Akhmadaliev might still not receive the just opportunity to face Inoue anytime soon given the WBA’s history in preventing its placeholder champions from fighting the incumbent WBA world champions.
Fighting in the co-main event of the Monte Carlo Showdown V card will be British cruiserweight (200 lbs) contender Cheavon Clarke (10-0, 7 KO’s) who will be facing French contender Leonardo Mosquea (15-0, 9 KO’s) for the vacant European Boxing Union (EBU) European title in a 12-round fight.
On the undercard, Irish lightweight contender Gary Cully (18-1, 10 KO’s) and English contender Maxi Hughes (27-2-2, 6 KO’s) will face off in a pivotal battle for the winner to position themselves as a potential world title challenger. Though no eliminator or title have yet been introduced for their fight, both fighters have occupied the top 10 rankings of the sanctioning bodies in the past, and will likely be placed accordingly following their fight.
Brazilian IBF women’s lightweight contender Beatriz Ferreira (5-0, 2 KO’s) will resume her professional career following a stint in the 2024 Paris Olympics where she won the bronze medal in her weight class. She will be making her maiden defense of the IBF title against French contender Licia Boudersa (23-2-2, 4 KO’s).
- A low-risk bout for a boxer, often against a lesser opponent, to maintain activity and sharpness between more significant or high-stakes fights. ↩︎
- A final eliminator in boxing is a high-stakes bout between two fighters, with the winner earning the right to challenge the current champion for a world title―often culminating in them becoming a “mandatory challenger”. It’s often organized by a sanctioning body (like the WBA, WBC, WBO or IBF) between the two highest-ranked contenders. ↩︎
