By Keith Idec

Top Rank Inc. won a purse bid Friday morning for the WBO featherweight title bout between champion Oscar Valdez and mandatory challenger Shakur Stevenson.

Bob Arum’s company promotes Valdez and Stevenson. It was the lone bidder for the right to promote the 126-pound championship match and won with a bid of $1.5 million.

BoxingScene.com has been informed that Valdez-Stevenson, though mandated by the WBO, is not expected to happen. Mexico’s Valdez (26-0, 20 KOs) has indicated to Top Rank that he’ll give up the WBO featherweight title, which would leave Stevenson to fight another contender for that crown.

“We expect Oscar Valdez to move up in weight, as rumored, and see what big fight can be made at 130 [pounds],” Carl Moretti, Top Rank’s vice president of boxing operations, told BoxingScene.com. “We plan on offering Oscar a fight against Miguel Berchelt.”

Top Rank co-promotes Mexico’s Berchelt (36-1, 32 KOs), who holds the WBC super featherweight title.

Stevenson, meanwhile, would like to fight former featherweight and super bantamweight champion Carl Frampton for the unclaimed championship once Valdez vacates it. According to the WBO’s rules, Top Rank must offer a fight against the No. 1-ranked Stevenson (12-0, 7 KOs) to the WBO’s next available contender.

Joet Gonzalez (23-0, 14 KOs), of Glendora, California, is No. 2 in the WBO’s featherweight ratings. Las Vegas’ Jessie Magdaleno (26-1, 18 KOs) is ranked No. 3, one spot ahead of the fourth-rated Frampton.

Gonzalez is represented by Golden Boy Promotions. Top Rank is Magdaleno’s promoter and Frampton’s co-promoter.

“There are a couple different scenarios that could play out,” Moretti said. “That could take a couple weeks to sort out.”

Whomever he fights, Top Rank intends to bring Stevenson’s first title fight to his hometown of Newark, New Jersey, either in October or November. Stevenson’s last fight was held at Prudential Center in downtown Newark, where the 2016 Olympic silver medalist knocked out Alberto Guevara (27-5, 12 KOs) in the third round July 13.

The heavily favored Frampton (26-2, 15 KOs) would have to win his August 10 fight in Philadelphia to remain in contention for this fight versus Stevenson. Northern Ireland’s Frampton is scheduled to meet Mexico’s Emmanuel Dominguez (26-8-2, 18 KOs) that night in a 12-round main event ESPN+ will stream from Temple University’s Liacouras Center.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.