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The additional time requested by the teams behind Leigh Wood and Michael Conlan to secure a deal only delayed the inevitable.
Negotiations for the ordered WBA “World” featherweight title fight between Wood and Conlan ended with the two sides unable to reach a deal. BoxingScene.com has confirmed that the mandatory title fight is now the subject of a purse bid hearing to take place Monday, October 11 from WBA headquarters in Panama City, Panama.
The session will be available to all WBA-registered promoters. The winning bid will be split 55/45 in favor of England’s Wood, who is due to make the first defense of the WBA “World” featherweight title he acquired less than two months ago.
Belfast’s Conlan will be entitled to the remaining 45% percent as the mandatory challenger, the same amount afforded WBA interim titlists prior to the belt being removed from circulation on August 25, three days before Wood-Conlan was ordered on August 28. The 30-day deadline arrived without a deal in place and with the WBA prepared to order a purse bid hearing. Both sides—Wood promoted by Matchroom Boxing, while Conlan was represented by older brother Jamie who heads Conlan Boxing—requested additional time, of the belief that a deal could be reached.
It proved to be for naught.
Wood (25-2, 15KOs) claimed the belt in a dramatic 12th round stoppage of China’s Xu Can to win the belt July 31 at the outdoor makeshift venue on the property of Matchroom Boxing headquarters in Brentwood, Essex, England. Promoter Eddie Hearn angled for a rematch, only for the WBA to intervene with the ordered mandatory title fight which disallows Wood and Conlan to entertain any other fight during such period.
The title win for Wood came six days prior to Conlan (16-0, 8KOs) claiming the WBA “interim” featherweight belt in an entertaining 12-round, unanimous decision win over former WBA junior featherweight titlist TJ Doheny.
The fight took place August 6 at Falls Park in Conlan’s hometown, giving him an interim title reign of just 19 days before the WBA ruled to eliminate the belt across all weight divisions.
Previous claimants such as Conlan—a two-time Olympian and 2012 Olympic Bronze medalist for Ireland—were inserted as mandatory challenger where applicable, though still granted the same benefits as was the case for interim titlists
The winner of Wood-Conlan will become the mandatory challenger to Santa Cruz who still holds the WBA “Super” featherweight title. Santa Cruz (37-2-1, 19KOs) last defended the belt in a February 2019 win over late substitute Rafael Rivera. The four-division titlist has spent his last two fights at junior lightweight, most recently in a sixth-round knockout loss to Gervonta Davis last Halloween.
If Santa Cruz opts out of such a fight or chooses to no longer campaign at featherweight, the WBA will be able to recognize a single titlist by default.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox