Denzel Bentley signs with Zuffa Boxing, faces Shane Mosley Jr as WBO appeal looms

Denzel Bentley has signed a multi-fight promotional agreement with Zuffa Boxing and will face Shane Mosley Jr at London’s Copper Box Arena on November 7, although his status as WBO middleweight champion remains unresolved.

Bentley has appealed to the WBO for permission to make a voluntary defence against Mosley rather than fulfil his ordered mandatory against unbeaten Cuban Yoenli Hernandez. A hearing on the appeal is expected next week.

The Londoner, 22-3-1 (18 KOs), will make his Zuffa debut on a card headlined by the cruiserweight contest between Chris Billam-Smith and Cheavon Clarke. Sky Sports will televise the event in the UK and Ireland, while Paramount+ will stream it in the United States and Canada.

Mosley, 23-5 (13 KOs), is ranked sixth by the WBO but is not Bentley’s mandatory challenger. The American enters the fight after stopping Serhii Bohachuk in the sixth round in Las Vegas on May 10. He had previously beaten former world champion Daniel Jacobs and lost to Jesus Alejandro Ramos in a contest for the WBC interim title.

Bentley challenges WBO mandatory order

The WBO ordered Bentley to defend against Hernandez, 11-0 (9 KOs), after rejecting an earlier request to pursue a unification fight with IBF champion Aaron McKenna.

Warriors Boxing subsequently secured the promotional rights to Bentley-Hernandez with an unopposed minimum purse-bid offer of $200,000. Queensberry Promotions attended the hearing but did not submit a bid.

Warriors proposed dates in December and listed Phoenix, Orlando and Las Vegas as potential locations. Its president, Leon Margules, claimed Bentley had declined several offers during the negotiation period.

“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 has instead asked the WBO to sanction the Mosley contest as a voluntary title defence. He insists he remains champion while that process continues.

“Most importantly I am still currently the WBO middleweight champion,” Bentley told Sky Sports News. “I know everything that’s gone on online and all the rumours [that he could be stripped of belt]. My team has put in an appeal, that appeal has gone through. We are hoping that we can get through this appeal and we get to defend this WBO title against a game, ranked opponent too.”

Bentley won the interim belt by stopping Endry Saavedra in the seventh round at London’s O2 Arena in April. He was later elevated to full champion after Janibek Alimkhanuly vacated the title and moved to super-middleweight.

That run completed Bentley’s recovery from his November 2023 defeat by Nathan Heaney. Victories over Danny Dignum, Derrick Osaze and Brad Pauls returned him to world-title contention following his earlier points loss to Alimkhanuly.

Mosley’s win over Bohachuk has given Bentley a credible first opponent under his new promotional agreement. The 34-year-old is the son of former three-weight world champion Shane Mosley, but Bentley believes that family name brings its own motivation.

“The son of a legend, he’s there with a chip on his shoulder, trying to prove everyone wrong who believes he can’t be as successful as his dad,” Bentley said. “So he’s very dangerous. He’s got real motivation and he’s going to come in there and put on a great fight.”

Bentley also retains an interest in a unification fight with McKenna, who defeated Etinosa Oliha to win the IBF title. “I think me and Aaron, the winner of that will be the No 1 in the division,” he said.

The WBO grievance committee’s ruling will determine Bentley’s title status. If his appeal is rejected, he would either have to vacate the belt or be stripped before making his Zuffa Boxing debut against Mosley.