The teams of Callum Smith and David Morrell have once again found common ground.
WBO officials confirmed that a purse bid hearing scheduled for Monday has been canceled, satisfied with the communication from all parties involved regarding the ordered interim light heavyweight title fight. No further details were offered, such as date or location.
“WBO acknowledges receipt of written confirmation from Matchroom Boxing & Warriors Boxing/PBC,” WBO president Gustavo Olivieri announced on Monday. “We have a deal in place and the event date is secured. Purse bid is hereby canceled. Announcement is forthcoming.”
Liverpool’s Smith, 31-2 (22 KOs), is the current WBO secondary titleholder and is promoted by Matchroom Boxing. Morrell, 12-1 (9 KOs), is represented by Warriors Boxing on behalf of Premier Boxing Champions (PBC). Messages left separately with each were not immediately returned as this goes to publication.
Whenever the fight takes place, Smith will be looking at an inactive period well past one year. The former WBA super middleweight titlist has not fought since a February 2025 points win over countryman Joshua Buatsi in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
With the win, Smith claimed an interim version of the WBO belt that Dmitry Bivol regained – along with the lineal, WBC, IBF and WBO titles – in his majority decision win over Artur Beterbiev in that show’s main event. Bivol, 24-1 (12 KOs), avenged his lone career defeat in the process, but also has not fought since that night. He has since parted ways with the WBC title but still holds the rest of the divisional hardware, including the primary version of the WBO strap.
Smith’s inactivity is largely in part to the constant stops and starts in this very matchup. He and Morrell were first ordered to begin negotiations last July, shortly after Morrell’s narrow victory over Imam Khataev in Queens, New York.
Morrell previously held secondary versions of the WBA title at super middleweight and light heavyweight. The latter was conceded in a 12-round, unanimous decision defeat to David Benavidez last February 1 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Once this bout crosses the finish line, the winner will become Bivol’s WBO mandatory challenger. However, the IBF and WBA both remain ahead in line – further calling into question the point of an interim title, particularly given its inactivity.
