Denzel Bentley set to vacate WBO title after signing Zuffa Boxing deal

Denzel Bentley is set to vacate his WBO middleweight title after signing a multi-fight agreement with Zuffa Boxing.

The Londoner is expected to make his promotional debut on November 7 at the Copper Box Arena. An opponent has not been announced for Bentley, 22-3-1 (18 KOs), who will appear on the Zuffa Boxing 12 card headlined by a 10-round cruiserweight fight between former WBO champion Chris Billam-Smith and Cheavon Clarke.

Bentley’s decision follows a purse bid for his mandatory defence against unbeaten Cuban Yoenli Hernandez. Warriors Boxing, Hernandez’s promoter, secured the rights with an unopposed minimum bid of $200,000, leaving Bentley entitled to an 80 per cent share worth approximately $160,000 before expenses.

Queensberry Promotions, which has guided most of Bentley’s career, attended the hearing but did not submit a bid. Warriors proposed December 12 and December 19 as possible dates, with Phoenix, Orlando and Las Vegas among the potential locations.

The purse bid was ordered after the WBO rejected Bentley’s request to pursue a unification fight with IBF champion Aaron McKenna. The sanctioning body ruled that Bentley’s mandatory defence was overdue and accepted a petition from Hernandez’s representatives for the 29-year-old to be installed as his challenger.

Bentley’s team objected on the grounds that Hernandez, 11-0 (9 KOs), had neither fought over 12 rounds nor won a WBO eliminator.

Warriors Boxing president Leon Margules claimed Bentley had rejected several offers during the negotiation period without making a counterproposal.

“Bentley could have made substantially more money if he’d made an agreement with us before the purse bids,” Margules told BoxingScene. “But he showed no interest. We made him several lucrative offers, and he never even submitted a counter proposal. It’s clear he doesn’t want any part of fighting my guy.”

Bentley won the interim WBO title by stopping Endry Saavedra in the seventh round at The O2 Arena in April. He was later elevated to full champion after Janibek Alimkhanuly vacated the belt and moved to super-middleweight following his suspension for PED use.

Hernandez, a two-time amateur world champion who is also ranked No. 1 by the WBA, faced the most demanding test of his professional career when he earned a majority decision over Francisco Daniel Veron in Las Vegas on August 22.

The WBO said it had yet to receive formal written confirmation from Bentley or his representatives that he would reject the purse-bid terms. If the title becomes vacant, Hernandez is likely to be ordered to negotiate with third-ranked Vito Mielnicki Jnr, the highest available contender, with No. 2 Tim Tszyu in advanced talks to challenge WBA champion Erislandy Lara.