Cruiserweight titleholder Noel Mikaelian would seem to have his next mission, should he choose to accept it.
Armenia’s Mikaelian, 28-3 (12 KOs), has been offered a June date by his promoter to make his next fight against Lyubomyr Pinchuk, 17-4-2 (11 KOs), Don King Productions announced Thursday.
“I have contacted my champion Noel Mikaelian as we wait to confirm this amazing matchup for this coming June,” King said in a press release. “Mikaelian is a tried-and-true world champion, and our success inside and outside of the ring is a testament to our relationship. Pinchuk is a dangerous opponent for anyone in the cruiserweight division, and I look forward to building Mikaelian’s next title defense.”
Mikaelian’s title reign has been a rocky one. He won a vacant cruiserweight belt in November 2023 with a stoppage of Ilunga Junior Makabu before a series of injuries, canceled fights and promotional headaches with King led to an 18-month layoff that ended with a controversial majority decision loss to Badou Jack in Mikaelian’s first defense. An appeal triggered a rematch, in which Mikaelian earned a unanimous decision over Jack last December.
“Noel showed his greatness after being robbed of his championship in his first fight with Badou Jack,” King said. “He dominated him in the rematch, showing what a true fighter he is in taking his title back.”
King calls Pinchuk, a 29-year-old from Ukraine who now fights out of Pittsburgh, “one of the WBC’s ranked contenders,” though Pinchuk isn’t listed among the sanctioning body’s current top 40 cruiserweights, let alone its top 15, according to its website.
Pinchuk most recently stopped Nick Kisner in two rounds in February, after fighting just once in 2025 – a fourth-round stoppage of Brian Holstein. Pinchuk has yet to face a world-class opponent – and, in fact, has fought in only four scheduled 10-rounders as a pro. He has never fought for a title or in a 12-round bout.
