The WBA is looking to make a fight between cruiserweight titleholders Denis Lebedev and Arsen Goulamirian as soon as possible.
The organization announced that it will have a purse bid in less than two weeks in Panama City in the hopes of finding a quick resolution and have Lebedev defend the WBA "Super" title for the first time since crowned as champion in the aftermath of Oleksandr Usyk vacating the belt. Below is the WBA's statement and details on the purse bid:
"The World Boxing Association (WBA) Championships Committee call for the Purse bid to grant the promotional rights of the Cruiserweight division, between the Super Champion, Denis Lebedev and the Regular Champion, Arsen Goulamirian.
The Bid will take place on June 20 at the WBA offices in Panama City. The minimum amount to participate in the bidding process is US $ 200,000.
The purse bid disbursement will be as follows: Lebedev 75% and Goulamirian 25%."
Originally, the WBA ordered Lebedev to fight Beibut Shumenov, the previous WBA "Regular" titleholder at 200 pounds with Don King winning a purse bid. A fight date could not be secured despite plans to hold the fight in Kazakhstan in May and since then, Shumenov is no longer listed as the "Regular" champion, with Goulamirian being elevated after being the WBA Gold champion.
Since losing his IBF cruiserweight title to Murat Gassiev back in 2016, Lebedev has won three straight, most recently against Mike Wilson last year. Goulamirian has won all 24 of his pro bouts with 16 of them ending inside the distance.
