Janibek Alimkhanuly will face another British contender in his first defense of the WBO middleweight title.
BoxingScene.com has learned that undefeated Kazakhstan native and Englishman Denzel Bentley have agreed to meet in a 12-round main event that ESPN+ will broadcast on November 12 from an unspecified location in Las Vegas. Bentley ranks 14th among WBO 160-pound contenders, but Alimkhanuly is not required at this point to make a mandatory defense of a WBO belt he won when he demolished England’s Danny Dignum in the second round of their fight. May 21 at Resorts World. Las Vegas.
Alimkhanuly replaced Oscar Valdez as Top Rank’s headliner for their November 12 show. Mexican Valdez (30-1, 23 KOs), a former WBO featherweight and WBO junior lightweight champion, was forced to postpone his return to the ring until January due to recently suffering an injury unrelated to boxing that prevented him from training.
Alimkhanuly (12-0, 8 KOs), 29, won the interim WBO title when he knocked out Dignum (14-1-1, 8 KOs) four months ago. The interim tag has since been removed from Alimkhanuly’s championship because former WBO 160-pound champion Demetrius Andrade decided to move up to the 168-pound super-middleweight limit rather than fight Alimkhanuly next.
London’s Bentley (17-1-1, 14 KOs) will make a quick turnaround for this championship opportunity. Bentley defeated compatriot Marcus Morrison (25-6, 16 KOs) by fourth-round TKO on Friday night at London’s York Hall, giving him little time to catch a break before returning to the field. training for the lefty. Alimkhanuly (Morrison fights from an orthodox stance).
Seniesa Estrada (22-0, 9 KOs) will defend her WBA minimumweight championship in the co-feature before Alimkhanuly fights Bentley on November 12. An opponent has not been finalized for Estrada of Los Angeles for what will be her debut with Top Rank. Inc., Bob Arum’s promotional company.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
