An ordered fight that has gained little traction in the past two months has been granted an additional one-week delay.
BoxingScene has confirmed that Tuesday’s scheduled Bakhram Murtazaliev-Josh Kelly IBF 154lbs title fight purse bid was postponed. The hearing was due to take place on Tuesday, but is now pushed back to October 28 following a mutual agreement between all involved parties.
A deal can still be reached in that time, though not much progress has been made since the fight was ordered on August 19.
Murtazaliev, 23-0 (17 KOs), is promoted by Main Events and managed by Egis Klimas. Kelly, 17-1-1 (9 KOs), is with Wasserman Boxing and managed by Adam Booth.
It remains to be seen what progress can be made with another seven days, though Main Events is eager to secure a financer for its lone remaining titlist.
Russia’s Murtazaliev won the title in an April 2024 knockout win over Jack Culcay on the road in Falkansee, Germany. Just one win has followed – a career-best, third-round wipeout of former WBO 154lbs titleholder Tim Tszyu last October 19 in Orlando, Florida.
The frustration in returning to the ring during that time mirrored Murtazaliev’s path to the title. He was the mandatory challenger for more than four years but settled for a series of step aside packages while Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) – who controlled all of the 154lbs titles at the time – sought to crown an undisputed champion.
That vision came to fruition when Jermell Charlo stopped Brian Castaño in the 10th round of their May 2022 rematch in Carson, California. The two previously fought to a draw in July 2021, atop one of four PBC shows where Murtazaliev was granted a non-televised undercard slot.
The IBF finally intervened in October 2023 and ordered Charlo-Murtazaliev, two weeks after Charlo lost a lopsided decision to then-undisputed 168lbs champ Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. The matter went to a scheduled purse bid hearing, only for Charlo to bail and vacate his IBF title.
Charlo has not fought since then, nor had he ever defended his undisputed championship.
The ordeal speaks to Murtazaliev’s career-long frustration in lining up the best that the 154lbs division has to offer. His year-long ring absence included failed negotiations with Erickson Lubin, his previous mandatory challenger.
Lubin waited until the day of their scheduled August 10 purse bid to inform all parties that he planned to instead next face WBC interim 154lbs titlist Vergil Ortiz. The two are scheduled to clash on November 8 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Kelly was then summoned to next face Murtazaliev as the next highest rated available contender, though still not the true IBF number one challenger.
The distinction is a key difference in the Brit’s entitled compensation in the event a promoter secures rights through the purse bid process. The split is 65-35 when between a reigning titlist and a No. 1 ranked mandatory challenger. It widens to 85-15 when the challenger is rated No. 3 or lower.
Kelly, 17-1-1 (9 KOs) – a 2012 Olympian for Great Britain – is currently rated No. 3 at 154lbs by the IBF.
The 31-year-old Sunderland native has won seven in a row since a Feb. 2021 knockout loss to David Avanesyan, his lone career defeat. His current career resurrection coincided with his multi-fight deal with Wasserman in 2023. In his most recent start, Kelly halted Romania’s Flavius Biea in just over two minutes on June 6 in Newcastle.
Per IBF rules covering purse bids, both boxers are required to move forward with the fight.
Kelly will be subject to a demotion outside the IBF top 10 and ineligible to fight in any IBF-sanctioned bout for at least six months. Similarly, Murtazaliev would be subject to having his title stripped should he fail to move forward with the ordered fight.
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on X and Instagram.
