Eddie Hearn expects the WBC flyweight title fight between Ricardo Sandoval and Galal Yafai to take place in early 2026.
Yafai was installed as the 26-year-old Sandoval’s mandatory challenger in the aftermath of the revelation that his conqueror in June, Francisco Rodriguez Jnr, had failed a drugs test when testing positive for heptaminol, a cardiac stimulant.
While the WBC – perhaps not atypically – said that he was not guilty of intentionally doping and ordered an immediate rematch, it then emerged that the Mexican had also failed a drugs test in December 2024 when testing positive for the primary compound in cannabis, THC.
Sandoval had by then dethroned Kenshiro Teraji as the WBC champion, leading to the fight with Yafai being ordered, and while an injury suffered by Sandoval contributed to a delay, Hearn, Yafai’s promoter, believes that the 32-year-old’s sought-after world-title fight is imminent. Yafai, similarly, will likely have benefitted from time to recover from the physically punishing affair he endured for 12 difficult rounds.
“That fight was called and ordered by the WBC, but Sandoval was injured, coming off the Teraji fight, so we allowed time for that and we expect that fight to take place in January or February,” Hearn, of Matchroom, told BoxingScene. “Galal Yafai’s next fight will be for the WBC world title, which is a quite incredible turn of events. You can’t knock him that opportunity after what he went through in that fight against Rodriguez.
“When it was first called we were thinking that fight could be November, December, so the extra time – he would have been good to go then, but the extra time won’t do him any harm. He’s not a young man, but he’s young in rounds, particularly in professional boxing. He’s never been in a fight like that before. You never know until a fighter goes into training camp how a fight will affect them.
“We don’t see that fight physically affecting him, it was just a very tough night’s work. A fight against Sandoval won’t be easy but it’s one I think he can win.”
