By Scott Gilfoid: World Boxing Organization president Paco Valcárcel, Esq is saying that #1 WBO Matt Korobov (24-0, 14 KOs) will be facing #2 WBO Billy Joe Saunders (20-0, 11 KOs) for the vacant WBO 160 pound title in the UK.
Saunders was supposed to be fighting domestic level fighter Chris Eubank Jr on October 25th, but Eubank Jr never signed his portion of the contract. The Korobov-Saunders fight will take place in London at a still to be determined date.
“Boobooboxing [Demetrius Andrade] will defend Worldboxingorg 154 lbs title. Looks like Korobov-Saunders will take place in England for the vacant 160lbs belt,” Paco Valcárcel said on his twitter on Tuesday.
The WBO had recently accepted an application by WBO junior middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade to face Korobov for the vacant WBO middleweight title, but now Valcarcel is saying that Andrade will be defending his WBO junior middleweight title instead. It makes you wonder whether he got cold feet at the idea of fighting Korobov. If so, that would be the second fighter in a row who didn’t want to fight the unbeaten Russian fighter.
Korobov was going to be facing former WBO middleweight champion Peter Quillin for the WBO title, but Quillin instead chose to vacate his title rather than face Korobov for a career high payday of $1.4 million. It would have been a great payday for Quillin, but he followed instructions from his adviser to vacate the title. Presumably his adviser has a bigger payday in store for him against someone like WBA champion Daniel Jacobs.
Korobov is promoted by Top Rank, and they’ll likely green light the idea of him fighting Saunders in the UK due to the payday that Korobov will get from the fight. He’s not going to get big money fighting Saunders in the U.S because that’s not a fight that will sell.
Korobov defeated knockout artist Jose Uzcategui by a 10 round unanimous decision last June to earn the spot to fight for the WBO title.
Saunders has beaten Emanuele Blandamura and John Ryder in his last two fights. I thought that Ryder beat Saunders, but instead Saunders was given a 12 round unanimous decision.
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