Drozd vs. Wlodarczyk II, Makabu-Mchunu in Eliminator

By Alexey Sukachev

According to Anton Zhdanov, a manager of the reigning WBC cruiserweight champion Grigory Drozd (38-1, 27 KOs), the World Boxing Council has ordered a rematch between the Russian and former champion Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (49-3-1, 35 KOs) of Poland.

Drozd dominated WBC #5 Wlodarczyk to a wide decision win this past September. However, the chances are slim that the fight will take place in immediate future.

“It’s too early to talk about that now”, said Zhdanov. “Based on our latest meeting with Krzysztof during the WBC convention, Wlodarczyk has suffered an injury to his right arm and is out indefinitely”.

Meanwhile, the WBC has also ordered a WBC cruiserweight eliminator between two top-notch fighters out of Africa. Taking part in the contest is the WBC #2 rated stylist Thabiso Mchunu (17-1, 11 KOs) of South Africa and WBC #3 ranked slugger Ilunga Makabu (17-1, 16 KOs) from Congo.

Both fighters are known for their marquee wins in 2013, when Makabu has soundly upset previously undefeated Ukrainian Dmytro Kucher, while Mchunu outpointed former multi-title contender Eddie Chambers.

All four fighters are rated by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board: Drozd is #4, Wlodarczyk is #6, Mchunu is comfortable at #7, while Makabu is ranked #9.