Arthur Biyarslanov irked by Lindolfo Delgado withdrawal

When Lindolfo Delgado chose to pull out of a vacant junior welterweight title fight against Arthur Biyarslanov scheduled for Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, most observers understood the rationale initially given for the withdrawal.

Safety concerns and fight-week logistics complicated by violence in the area – which included a missile strike at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh that left more than a dozen dead earlier this month – were enough to convince Team Delgado that the reward wasn't worth the risk.

Biyarslanov was not as understanding.

On Saturday, during the "Mexico vs. The World" card featuring a Christian Mbilli-Saul Canelo Alvarez main event, the Russian-born Canadian Biyarslanov, 21-0 (17 KOs), posted to his X account: "I wonder what the narrative would have been like if it was me that did not show up to the fight…I trained 12 hard weeks away from friends/family and”risked” as they say…. 19/20 boxers showed up. I waited a fuIl week but no mentions of my name or explanation from Delgados team…"

Further complicating the situation was a report that Delgado had passport issues in the lead-up to the card and may have been blocked from international travel had he chosen to fight.

It's unclear for now whether the matchup between Mexico's Delgado, 24-0 (16 KOs), and Biyarslanov will be rescheduled.

Delgado is ranked No. 1 by the WBC at 140 pounds, while Biyarslanov is the sanctioning body's No. 3-ranked fighter in the division.

In an additional X post, Biyarslanov wrote: "Its okay… Sooner or later i will take whats meant for me and nobody will get a chance to take it away from me. #140 #worldchampion #unified."