Masternak Without a Bout for the WBA Interim Championship

There will be no bout between Mateusz Masternak and Ilunga Makabu, which was supposed to be for the interim WBA cruiserweight world title.

Although the fight had been officially announced and both boxers had signed contracts, the fighter from the Democratic Republic of the Congo failed to reach an agreement with his promoter, Rodney Berman. The same man is organizing the event scheduled for June 21 in Monte Carlo. In this situation, Makabu withdrew from the bout.

“I hope to receive an offer to fight for a significant title around the same time. It is a shame that I have missed out on a major challenge, but that is boxing. If Makabu changes his mind, I will be ready. I will continue training hard until the end of the week,” comments the 27-year-old “Master.”

Masternak’s promoters from Sauerland Event told him that the bout for the interim WBA title could still go ahead. One of the options under consideration involves keeping both the date and the venue of the event unchanged. The Pole’s opponent would then be Youri Kalenga. However, this scenario appears unlikely.

The event’s organizer is not the promoter of either the Pole or the Frenchman. Theoretically, therefore, he has no reason to finance a title fight. In addition, Kalenga is not in the top “15” of the WBA rankings.

Perhaps Denis Lebedev, the full WBA champion, would be interested in inviting the Pole to Moscow. The Russian was recently scheduled to box Guillermo Jones, but the Panamanian was caught doping. The bout was canceled at the last minute.

“For me, that would be the best option, but for now I can treat it only as a wish. I do not consider Denis a better boxer than Makabu, and the stakes in the fight would be higher. The money would be greater as well. I did not intend to complain, but after adding up the costs of preparing for the fight, I would have been left with no more than ten thousand dollars after the Monte Carlo bout,” says the Wrocław native.

Polish fans would be most pleased by a Masternak fight against Paweł Kołodziej, who occupies first place in the WBA rankings. If someone in Poland were willing to organize such a confrontation, recognizing it as a fight for the interim WBA belt should not be a major problem.

“So far, we have not held any serious talks on the matter. However, if the idea took real shape and Paweł wanted to take up the challenge, I would be fully in favor,” Masternak declares.

Przemysław Osiak, przegladsportowy.pl