Lomachenko-Crolla purse bid cancelled for the second time

The World Boxing Association (WBA) Championships Committee has postponed the purse bid for the mandatory title fight between WBA "super" lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko and challenger Anthony Crolla for the second time.

The purse bid was initially slated for February 4, but was moved to February 13. However, the WBA agreed to extend the deadline again as both sides attempt to work out a deal or come up with an alternative solution.

Beibut Shumenov's WBA "regular" cruiserweight title defense against Arsen Goulamiriam was the only purse bid that went through. Don King bid $821,000, beating the $621,500 offer from Sébastian Acariés, Goulamiriam’s promoter.

Lomachenko (12-1, 9 KO's), 30, a Ukraine native based in Oxnard, California, has been recognized as the super champion since he scored a ninth-round stoppage against former titleholder Jorge Linares in May. In December, the dual Olympic gold medalist outpointed former titlist Jose Pedraza in December to unify two world titles in his first fight following shoulder surgery.

Crolla (34-6-3, 13 KO's), 32, of the United Kingdom, held the WBA "regular" 135-pound world title from 2015-2016 and made two successful defenses before he lost a unanimous decision to Linares in September 2016. They fought again in March 2017, but Linares outpointed him again.

The minimum bid amount was $150,000 and the distribution was supposed to be 75 percent for Lomachenko and 25 percent for Crolla.