Denzel Bentley signs with Zuffa Boxing and will vacate his WBO title, Dan Rafael reports
The London middleweight will not take the $160,000 on offer to defend against Yoenli Hernandez and fights on the Billam-Smith vs Clarke card in London on 7 November.
Denzel Bentley has signed a multi-fight deal with Zuffa Boxing and will give up his WBO middleweight title rather than defend it against Yoenli Hernandez for $160,000, Dan Rafael reported.
"Per source with direct knowledge, Denzel Bentley has signed a multi-fight deal with Zuffa Boxing & will face a foe to be named in the Chris Billam-Smith-Chev Clarke co-feature Nov. 7 in London," Rafael wrote on X on Wednesday night. "Bentley will not accept terms of this week's WBO 160 title defense purse bid that would have paid him only $160k to face mandatory Yoenli Hernandez & will vacate the title."
The move follows Tuesday's purse bid, when Hernandez's promoter, Warriors Boxing, was the only bidder, at the $200,000 minimum, and Queensberry attended without bidding. Warriors proposed dates in December in the United States.
Bentley's first fight under the new deal is the co-feature to Chris Billam-Smith against Chev Clarke in London on 7 November, against an opponent yet to be named.
Every UK fight result and what's next, every Friday. Get the free UK fight briefing
More Boxing from Combat Sports UK
The UK fight briefing
The stories, results and upcoming fights worth knowing. Every Friday.