IBF rescinds order for Usyk-Hrgovic mandatory, could open door for Fury undisputed tilt

A major hurdle been cleared on the path to crowning an undisputed heavyweight champion.

The IBF has formally rescinded its order for its No. 1-ranked heavyweight contender, Filip Hrgovic, to next face three-belt heavyweight world titleholder Oleksandr Usyk. The unbeaten Ukrainian was ordered to face Hrgovic in November. However, the sanctioning body has formally withdrawn their request.

Big Fight Weekend’s Dan Rafael was first to reveal the news.

However, another mess could soon take its place.

The WBA has not had a mandatory title defense in more than four years. This could mean a potential fight between Usyk—who holds the ‘Super’ version of the WBA heavyweight title—and ‘Regular’ titlist Daniel Dubois (19-1, 18KOs). On December 12 during its annual convention in Orlando, Florida, the WBA called for a title consolidation bout between the two fighters. Of course, this could serve as yet another thorn to an undisputed showdown between Usyk and WBC titleholder Tyson Fury.

While an exception could be filed with the WBA, there is always the possibility the sanctioning body could reject the proposal, given that it has been almost half a decade since a mandatory obligation has been fulfilled. But if cooler heads prevail, this could open the door for Usyk to accept a fight with Fury.

If the WBA should deny Usyk's request, a chance of a lifetime would fall into the hands of Dubois, who is still recovering from an injury suffered in his come-from-behind, third-round TKO of Kevin Lerena last December 10 in North London. The victory occurred on the undercard of Fury's third one-sided win over Derek Chisora.