Former WBO president Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel has asked the Association of Boxing Commissions to take action over the WBA’s continued exploit of “regular” and “interim” world titles.

Valcarcel, one of boxing’s most experienced sanctioning body figures, has taken aim at the WBA after another period of confusion over secondary belts, stoppage rulings and title fights that have left fans in need of a flowchart.

The WBA has repeatedly promised to reduce the number of belts in circulation.

He still hasn’t cleaned up the mess.

Paco Valcarcel attacks WBA titles

“When will the Association of Boxing Commissions come to their senses and force the WBA to kill the stinking “regular” and “interim” titles?” – asked Valcarcel.

“Enact the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act now.”

Changes to the Ali Law currently proposed by TKO Group and Zuffa Boxing state only one champion per division will be allowed in the United States.

After calling for reform, Valcarcel then pointed to promises made years ago regarding the WBA belt reduction process.

“A few years ago, they promised to end the celebration of these titles, and the word was not kept,” he said.

“And this was promised not only to the fans, but also to ABC, which ordered the WBA to put an end to these titles under pain of not being able to receive sanction fees for fights held in the US.”

Confusion surrounding the WBA title is growing

WBN reported that as of November, the WBA had 38 super, lasting and interim champions in 18 boxing divisions.

The latest comments follow Paco Valcarcel’s “joking” verdict on the WBA title tussle, which comes after Seiya Tsutsumi publicly admitted he no longer knows where he stands in the WBA bantamweight title fight.

In 2013, then-WBA vice president Gilberto Mendoza told World Boxing News that the organization would review its “superchampion” system after years of criticism about too many belts.

A year later, Mendoza again informed WBN that the WBA super and interim titles “may change,” adding that officials were checking to see what would happen next.

More than a decade later, boxing still suffers from the same belt problem.

Gervonta Davis was moved to the “Champion in Recess” title before the WBA later ordered him to face Floyd Schofield.

Murat Gassiev holds the WBA Regular heavyweight title, while Tony Yoka has been included in the title fight despite spending years outside the sanctioning body’s top 15.

ABC pressure

It’s no longer just about fans mocking too many belts or fighters trying to explain their championship status. The former chairman of the sanctioning body points directly to the regulatory threat that once hung over the WBA’s secondary championships.

The WBA promised fewer belts, and the same elderly mess is back in various divisions.

Valcarcel’s question now is whether ABC will do something about it.

About the author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.

This comment stood out because it reflected a broader theme running through the responses.

“I have to beat the next fight first,” one fan wrote.

“AJ is fed up,” wrote another.

“Itauma would humiliate AJ,” predicted a third commenter.

“The man is just talking nonsense, stfu and let’s see then,” wrote another fan.

Others questioned why Joshua had already spoken to Fury, Daniel Dubois, Fabio Wardley, Agit Kabayel, Moses Itauma and Deontay Wilder before joining Prengi.

This reaction shows how rapidly the opinion about the former two-time heavyweight champion has changed. Joshua still talks openly about becoming a three-time world champion and competing in the biggest fights available.

Many fans remain unconvinced.

Joshua lost twice to Oleksandr Usyk and was knocked out by Dubois in his last fight against a top heavyweight. These setbacks led some observers to doubt whether he could still compete with the most threatening fighters in the division.

Skepticism was evident throughout the reaction to Joshua’s list. Instead of debating which fight should come first, many fans focused on whether he could beat any of the opponents he mentioned.

Joshua sees Fury, Dubois, Wardley, Kabayel, Itauma and Wilder as the main options still available to him.

Former WBC cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellew has described what he considers to be the “greatest night” of his impressive 34-fight career; during which he faced players such as Adonis Stevenson, David Haye and Oleksandr Usyk.

Bellew began his professional career at lightweight heavyweight, winning the British and Commonwealth titles at 175 pounds, but losing to both Nathan Cleverly and Adonis Stevenson while fighting for world titles.

The defeat against the Canadian resulted in his move to cruiserweight, where the proud Evertonian defeated Mateusz Masternak in the fight for the EBU European belt, then stopped Ilunga Makabu within three rounds and won the WBC world title at Goodison Park.

Two victories over the legendary David Haye would soon follow, but the third defeat of his career, at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk, turned out to be “The Bomber’s last appearance as a professional, as the iconic Ukrainian stopped Bellew when he had no cards in the eighth round of the game in 2018.

On X, Bellew celebrated the 10th anniversary of his world title win over Makabu, describing the evening as “the greatest night ever”.

My greatest night ever!! I can’t believe it’s been 10 years already! 💛💚💛 #WBC pic.twitter.com/uHQdeeLuyu

— Tony Bellew (@TonyBellew) May 31, 2026

“My greatest night ever!! I can’t believe it’s been 10 years already!” #WBC“

The Bellew-Makabu card featured a wealth of Liverpool talent on the evening, with Callum, Paul and Stephen Smith performing alongside David Price, James Metcalf, Tom Farrell, Gerald Carroll and Craig Glover in an incredible display of Liverpool’s talent pool.

Makabu won the WBC world title himself, overtaking Michał Cieślak in the fight for the belt in 2020, and then defended the title twice before losing it to Badou Jacek in 2023.