Brandon Figueroa gave up his best leverage for a massive payday against Naoya Inoue on Friday, surrendering his WBA title on the scale ahead of Saturday’s matchup with Tomoki Kameda in Las Vegas. Figueroa weighed in at 127.4 pounds, missing the featherweight mark by 1.4 pounds. A victory over Kameda will not change his status; he exits the ring beltless, stripping away the primary bait he possessed to lure Inoue up to 126 pounds. The entire draw for Naoya Inoue to face Figueroa was immediate division hardware. Inoue wants belts as soon as he steps foot at 126, and Figueroa…

Rico Verhoeven has accepted an offer to fight Deontay Wilder on December 11, potentially adding another heavyweight bout to the Tyson Fury–Anthony Joshua undercard in Cardiff. Wilder’s response is still outstanding, and the terms need to be negotiated. However, Verhoeven has made his willingness clear as he looks to continue boxing after his stoppage loss to Oleksandr Usyk. “I can’t confirm just yet,” Verhoeven told talkSPORT. “What I can tell you is that they offered me the fight. They offered me Deontay Wilder. I said yes.” “The details need to be talked about still. But for that, I’m waiting on…

Carlos Adames got the green light to take an interim bout before dealing with mandatory challenger Meiirim Nursultanov. The WBC approved a November 17 date above 160 pounds, but it includes a massive catch. If Adames loses, he loses his middleweight world title on the spot, even with the belt not officially on the line. The WBC confirmed the ruling in an October 14 update. They left out the opponent, the venue, plus the exact weight limit. Because of that, nobody knows how tough this assignment will actually be. Meiirim Nursultanov gets stuck waiting again. Holding the mandatory slot didn’t…

Vito Mielnicki Jr. is asking for a major step up in class against Xander Zayas, calling for the fight on social media and offering to meet the former unified light middleweight champion at Madison Square Garden or in Puerto Rico. Mielnicki’s win over Austin Williams has put him in position to pursue a bigger fight. Zayas would test whether Vito’s fairly basic style can take him much further against opponents with championship experience. “Nothing but respect for my guy @xander.zayas, but this is the fight that needs to happen!!” Mielnicki wrote. “The big room at MSG or in Puerto Rico.”…

Bill Haney is calling on Shakur Stevenson to back up his public words regarding a 145-pound clash with Devin Haney. Bill confirmed that Devin accepts the weight limit with zero rehydration restrictions attached. With November 28 in Atlanta being discussed as the proposed date, the two sides still have work to do before the fight becomes official. Bill’s frustration is that Shakur’s public response made the weight issue look settled, yet they’re still waiting for a completed agreement. “I think he came out and he said done deal at 145.0. So stand on it,” Bill said to 78SPORTSTV. That puts…

Canelo Alvarez plans to proceed with his October 31 bout against Christian Mbilli in Riyadh, Turki Alalshikh confirmed, standing by the Saudi boxing chief amid ongoing uncertainty around the event. “Canelo reached out and told me he’ll still fight in Riyadh this October, no matter what happens. He fears nothing,” Alalshikh wrote on X. That commitment signals a fighter acting in full partnership with organizers. Instead of requesting a change of venue, Canelo gave private assurances that he will make the trip as scheduled. For someone working to hold the fight card together, receiving that backing from the main attraction…

Tristan Kalkreuth (18-1, 13 KOs) stopped previously unbeaten Ivan Rosado (12-1, 9 KOs) at 0:44 of the third round in cruiserweight action. Kalkreuth used his height and reach to control the scheduled ten-round fight, leaving the shorter Rosado struggling to get his offense going. The 24-year-old pressed the action and overwhelmed Rosado with his power. Rosado could not adequately defend himself as Kalkreuth continued the attack early in round three. The referee stepped in with Rosado still on his feet, ending a one-sided contest. Rosado’s unbeaten record offered little protection against the larger Kalkreuth, who dictated the fight throughout. Heavyweight…

Deontay Wilder’s side has agreed to terms for a heavyweight meeting with Jai Opetaia on the Tyson Fury versus Anthony Joshua undercard, per Dan Rafael. That step nudges an odd co-feature closer to reality, even if the bout still needs an official green light. Wilder’s manager, Shelly Finkel, told Rafael that their team gave the okay and is simply waiting on final sanctioning. Finkel noted that discussions regarding an encounter with Murat Gassiev occurred as well. The proposal is on the table, though nothing is finalized. Wilder against Opetaia sounds nearly as bizarre as the debunked rumors pairing Manny Pacquiao…

David Benavidez laid out a wish list featuring Jai Opetaia, Artur Beterbiev, Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury, but his willingness to skip ahead to Usyk shows how quickly his cruiserweight plans could change. “We got two great fights at cruiserweight before we get up there first,” Benavidez said to Inside Ring Show. “We got Jai Opetaia, then I think Beterbiev is going to come up to cruiserweight.” “If we can get a fight in with Usyk and Tyson Fury, then that’s something I’m willing to do.” Benavidez appears to smell the money available at heavyweight. He describes his ambitions as…

Anthony Yarde claims Ben Whittaker’s team wanted another year before putting the two together, despite Eddie Hearn now including him among the options for Whittaker’s next fight. Yarde is willing to accept the bout immediately. His account of the earlier discussions adds a different perspective to Hearn’s proposed route after Whittaker’s difficult finish against Conor Wallace. “Personally, we tried to get that fight, and then his team came back and said he would need another year. He’s still in that stage where he’s growing and he’s learning and all these kind of things. But if that fight got offered to…