Murat Gassiev's team seeks WBA clarification over Joshua-Fury super title plan

The co-promoter of WBA heavyweight champion Murat Gassiev has formally asked the organisation to clarify its rules, BoxingScene reported, amid reports that its super title will be contested when Anthony Joshua fights Tyson Fury in Cardiff on 11 December.

Murat Gassiev's co-promoter has formally asked the WBA to clarify its rules, and to enforce them where they apply, amid reports that the organisation's super heavyweight title will be contested when Anthony Joshua meets Tyson Fury in Cardiff on 11 December, BoxingScene reported.

Ivaylo Gotzev, of Epic Sports and Entertainment, said: “We are formally seeking clarification from the WBA and, where applicable, enforcement of Murat’s rights under its rules and regulations.” He added that Gassiev had won the championship in the ring, defended it and fulfilled his responsibilities as champion.

The WBA's latest heavyweight rankings list Gassiev as champion, with Jarrell Miller at No 1, Fury second and Joshua third. The Ring has reported that Joshua and Fury will fight for the WBA super title. If they do, it will be the first time the belt has been contested in a heavyweight bout between two fighters who do not hold a title.

In July, while negotiations for the fight were ongoing, Fury's manager, Spencer Brown, publicly urged the WBA to bring back the super title. He told BoxingScene: “I want to see the WBA [super title] for the [Joshua-Fury] super fight.” Brown argued that the belt was vacant and that the winner would become a three-time world champion.

The WBA charges sanctioning fees, set as a fixed percentage of the fighters' purses, for any contest involving one of its titles, whether a world or regional belt. At the organisation's annual convention in December 2024, WBA president Gilberto Mendoza said sanctioning fees made up 67 per cent of its gross annual revenue, equating to $4 million from fighters' purses. Fury's promoter, Frank Warren, told Sky Sports that Joshua and Fury were being paid more than any British fighter had ever earned for a fight.

The super title was originally created for champions who also held belts with other sanctioning bodies. Over time it was extended to established titlists, allowing the WBA to recognise several champions, including interim beltholders, in every weight class.

In 2021, the Association of Boxing Commissions demanded that the WBA reduce its number of titles, and Mendoza said: “We will reduce titles permanently. That flexibility we’ve had with championships, we will phase it out progressively.” The WBA recognised 27 champions across 18 divisions in June 2024. By June 2026 that figure had risen to 43, with the organisation saying in a statement that it remained committed to reducing the number of world champions.

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