WBO establishes Yoenli Hernandez as middleweight mandatory to Denzel Bentley
Sep 5, 2026 • 1:36 AM ET
The WBO championship committee Friday confirmed Cuba’s Yoenli Hernandez as the mandatory contender to their new middleweight champion Denzel Bentley of England.
Rejecting numerous requests and objections by Bentley’s team, the WBO decision was reportedly rooted in the fact that the sanctioning body’s middleweight mandatory defense was more than two years’ overdue – regardless of Bentley, 22-3-1 (18 KOs), gaining the belt this year.
Bentley, the WBO ruled, will have to set aside both his potential plans for a voluntary defense or a unification bout against new IBF middleweight champion Aaron McKenna and meet Hernandez if he intends to keep the belt.
Hernandez, 11-0 (9 KOs), is coming off an August 22 unanimous-decision victory over Argentina’s Francisco Daniel Veron in what stood as his most difficult bout yet.
In a letter to the WBO, Bentley manager Martin Bowers contended the so-called nine-month clock on his fighter’s mandatory obligation should’ve started with his elevation to full champion following an April interim title victory over Endry Saavedra in London.
Hernandez was designated mandatory challenger in July. He also is the No. 1 contender to WBA champion Erislandy Lara, a countryman and Premier Boxing Champions stablemate.
Empowered by that ranking, Hernandez’s team petitioned formally to have the mandatory enforced, which the committee granted.
Bentley was preceded as champion by Janibek Alimkhanuly, who was suspended for one year by the WBO over an anti-doping issue.
The WBO ruling is based on its consideration to protect the rights of its contenders while also tending to protections for champions, a sanctioning body official said Friday.
The sides have 20 days to negotiate and reach an agreement.
Either side can request a purse bid during this period, and the minimum bid is $200,000.
Lance Pugmire has been a full-time boxing writer for nearly 20 years, serving now as BoxingScene’s U.S. Senior Writer and assistant producer for ProBoxTV’s “BoxingScene Today.” Pugmire capped a near 20-year career at the Los Angeles Times (sports investigations, NHL/MLB beat work, law enforcement/courts and boxing/UFC) to join The Athletic, and then USA Today. Pugmire’s stint at The Times started with the first Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fight and the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jnr then-record pay-per-view, leading through a slew of ringside assignments at major bouts, including Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Canelo and the Canelo-Golovkin trilogy. Lance’s appreciation for boxing is rooted in his admiration and appreciation for the fighters, gladiators who have proven to be the most forthcoming and candid of all the athletes he has interviewed over a career dating to 1990. Lance was honored to be named the 2022 winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence and he’s collected many BWAA writing awards in categories ranging from breaking news to deep-dive long features.
