Murtazaliev abandons Kelly pursuit, plans fall clash with Lubin

Bakhram Murtazaliev is looking to face mandatory challenger Erickson Lubin after plans to face Josh Kelly fell through

When news broke last month that IBF super welterweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev had his sights on a September showdown with Josh Kelly, I questioned why the sanctioning body would allow him to do so when mandatory challenger Erickson Lubin is due a shot by mid-October. Turns out I was right to wonder, as Lance Pugmire reports that Murtazaliev vs Lubin is now “in [the] works for early fall.”

Igor Klimas tells Pugmire that negotiations with Kelly “slowed over efforts to strike a broadcast deal,” and with Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KO) on the clock to battle Lubin (27-2, 19 KO), making both bouts became infeasible.

To be frank, this isn’t a big loss. Lubin’s had his share of struggles and his best win to date, a UD over Jesus Ramos, perplexed everyone save the three judges, but he’s still a far more proven and interesting opponent than Kelly.

It also has the advantage of getting the mandatory defense out of Murtazaliev’s system for the next 12 months. If Tim Tszyu can get past Sebastian Fundora in their rematch this weekend and Murtazaliev can get past Lubin in the next few months, a unification rematch seems like the obvious next step.