Sulaiman said after reports stated that the green and gold belt would be at stake in Egypt Illustrated sports that there was no formal discussion about recognizing this fight as a title defense.
“The WBC fully supports this crossover fight,” Sulaiman said.
“We will create an amazing belt with elements of Egyptian pyramids.
“At this time, there has been no discussion about requesting a title defense, only a special event featuring the WBC heavyweight champion.”
Simply put, the WBC is prepared to support the event and design the fresh belt. It is unclear whether his current heavyweight title will be defended.
Agit Kabayel is the holder of the interim WBC heavyweight belt. This is supposed to mean he’ll be next, not that he’ll get a nice photo and polite applause. The provisional title exists to block the mandatory placement. Kabayel earned it the old-fashioned way by beating ranked heavyweights under WBC sanction. He didn’t pick it up for showing up at a press conference or changing sports for the evening.
If the Usyk fight is treated as a special event, the WBC sidesteps the question of why an unranked opponent is ahead of the interim champion. If approved as a defense, Kabayel’s mandatory status should be activated immediately thereafter.
Usyk (22-0) commented on Verhoeven’s credibility.
“I really respect people who reach the very top in their sport. Rico is one of them, a powerful athlete and a great champion. But it’s boxing, a different game, with its own rules and its own kings.”
This is how it should work. Sanctioning bodies set the rules, rankings set the agenda, and interim titles determine the next man in line. At least that’s what the theory printed in the documents says.
Kabayel dealt with his end. He is undefeated. He owns the interim lane. According to the WBC guidelines, this puts him in a mandatory position.
The WBC must now decide whether her heavyweight title will follow its own ranking structure or whether event considerations will take precedence. If transient status means anything, Kabayel is next.
If the WBC does not enforce Kabayel’s mandatory position, the interim belt will become meaningless and the organization will lose the credibility it claims to protect, although it still lacked much of it to begin with. You can’t talk about structure, charge sanction fees and then ignore your own rankings when a crossover event looks more profitable.
Tomek Galm is a boxing journalist covering the global fight landscape since 2014, specializing in heavyweight analysis, industry trends and fighter psychology.