World Boxing Council (WBC) president Mauricio Suleiman Salvidar confirmed banning boxers from Russia and Belarus on 8th November. The governing body, based out of Mexico City, Mexico, took the decision, departing from its earlier stand of not barring athletes from the two countries after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Lausanne, Switzerland-based International Boxing Association, which looks after amateur boxing, had taken similar measures. But, it later allowed Russian and Belarusian boxers to compete under their national flags, axing the earlier decision in October.

Mauricio Suleiman Announcement

WBC’s decision is pivotal since the fate of critical titles and the respective holders are at stake. Mauricio Suleiman stated, “All fighters from Russia and Belarus are being removed from the WBC rankings. “The WBC will not sanction any fights in those two countries and no national citizen from those two countries can compete for a WBC championship title. I wish to express our deep regret for the athletes, for the promoters, for the members of the boxing industry from Russia and Belarus who will suffer with these consequences of the actions outside the ring. The WBC believes in peace, believes in fair play, and believes human dignity.”

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The Light Heavyweight division is dominated by the Russian duo – Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev. Dmitry is the reigning WBA champion in the division. He is fresh from deflecting Mexican Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez’s challenge.

Arthur holds the WBC, WBO, and IBF titles for good measure. He fought American Joe Smith Jr. in June this year and grabbed the WBO title in parallel to retaining the remaining two WBC and IBF titles.

Straight thinking postulates a face-off between the two outstanding pugilists. Though in light of the recent decisions, the bout remains in a state of uncertainty.

Way Out…

But there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. Beterbiev, of Chechen stock, was born in Dagestan. But, he has taken Canadian citizenship and lives with his family in Montreal. Bivol, though, is a resident of St. Petersburg, Russia.

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Thus, a way out could be purely on technical grounds. While Beterbiev’s Canadian passport may prevent him from the clutches of a complete ban. Bivol, simply because of his affiliation to the World Boxing Association (WBA), which, although disengaging all non-champion Russians from its list, still endorses the Russian who trains mainly in the US.

Earlier this year, while weighing Beterbiev’s matter in question, Mauricio Suleiman said, “He has been in Canada for 15 years, he lives in Canada, his children were born in Canada, he has a Canadian passport and Canadian residency and a boxing licence from Canada. “So the WBC board is evaluating that specific case as we speak. “We believe in what the world is doing but we also have to look at specific cases and make justice prevail.”

Left to fans and lovers of the sweet science, the two greats should continue. No one would want to miss a chance to witness the orthodox boxers facing off in a ring. Do let us know your opinion on this burning headline.

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