Bakhram Murtazaliev vs. Josh Kelly | DAZN - 31 January 2026

[Ruthless-RKO]

IBF orders Bakhram Murtazaliev to defend against Josh Kelly

The IBF has instructed their junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev to face Josh Kelly.

With No. 1 contender Erickson Lubin seemingly heading towards a fight with WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz and the No. 2 spot vacant, the No. 3 contender, Sunderland’s 17-1-1 (9 KOs) Kelly, is set to challenge the feared Russian, sources have informed Boxing Scene.

The IBF has ordered negotiations – between Murtazaliev’s representatives at Main Events and Kelly’s team – to start now and for a deal to be struck within 30 days, by September 19.

Kelly is trained by Adam Booth, and the camp recently were linked to contest with Jaron “Boots” Ennis in Philadelphia.

But Kelly, a 2016 Rio Olympian, told BS months ago that Murtazaliev was his No. 1 target.

“Perfect fight for me,” he said of facing the champion.

Murtazaliev is 23-0 (17 KOs) and scored impressive stoppages of Jack Culcay and Tim Tszyu in 2024.

Kelly blitzed Flavius Biea in two minutes in June and has won seven in a row since the lone loss of his career against David Avanesyan in 2021.

[Ruthless-RKO]

What chance has Kelly got?

[joshj909]

What chance has Kelly got?

Probably quite a slim one but I wouldn't say none at all

[THEBUTCH]

Pleased Kelly is getting a "world" title crack. He's been treading water for a while and it will be good to see him put his undoubted talent to the test again.

[Boxerbeetle]

Good fight this.

[MPW]

I kind of like this one.

Murtazaliev has been treated like the big, bad boogeyman of 154 because of what he did to Tszyu and maybe rightly so. With the exception of Culcay, whom he eventually stopped, no one's really given him much of a test as all of his decision wins have been by a pretty wide margin.

Kelly is a fighter whose talent and skill have always been lauded, but he never quite seemed to live up to those lofty expectations. Now is his chance, if this fight comes off.

[Ruthless-RKO]

BAKHRAM MURTAZALIEV-JOSH KELLY: IBF ORDER UNBEATEN RUSSIAN TO MAKE TITLE DEFENCE

Ask and you shall receive.

Unimpressed by an initial Matchroom offer to face Jaron Ennis in the American's 154-pound debut, Josh Kelly insisted he would outbox reigning IBF titleholder Bakhram Murtazaliev if given an opportunity.

Now, it appears he'll have the chance to back up his bullish words as the IBF has instructed its champion to face No. 3-ranked Kelly, with No. 1-ranked Erickson Lubin set to face Vergil Ortiz on Oct. 18. The No. 2 spot is vacant.

Boxing Scene was first to report the news.

The IBF ordered Murtazaliev's team at Main Events and Kelly's Wasserman handlers to strike a deal within 30 days, by Sept. 19. This comes after a proposed purse bid for Murtazaliev-Lubin was canceled.

Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs) won the then-vacant title with an 11th-round stoppage of Jack Culcay in April of last year and successfully defended it with a third-round finish of former WBO beltholder Tim Tszyu six months later.

Inactivity has been a concern the champion recently made public, telling The Ring of his frustration that many of his divisional peers were seemingly unwilling to test themselves against him – whether title unifications or otherwise.

It has been 10 months since the Tszyu fight.

"I haven't fought in almost a year," he said. "Maybe I forgot how to fight. It's not good that I am not fighting. I'm a world champion and need to stay active, fighting at least twice a year.

"You feel the rust when you are not active. Assessing distance and punches in a real fight becomes more difficult. It's a big disadvantage to give away rounds like that.

"But I am using this time to be with my beautiful family and sharpening my technical skills. What else can I do?"

Kelly (17-1-1, 9 KOs) defeated Ishmael Davis by a majority decision on the Daniel Dubois-Anthony Joshua undercard in September and stopped 24-1 Flavius Biea in the first round on June 6.

Activity and finding quality opposition have been issues for the 31-year-old from Sunderland, too, dating back to his oft-cancelled European title fight against David Avanesyan. The bout finally took place in February 2021, with Kelly suffering his only pro defeat.

Having bemoaned the sport's politics, Kelly spoke enthusiastically about facing Murtazaliev and confirmed that his name has been placed into the sweepstakes for the champion's second title defence.

"I'll fight him no problem, and about Tom and Jerry fights, styles make fights," he told The Ring's Louis Hart. "This Tom and Jerry fighter will go in there, beat Murtazaliev and stand him on his head.

"I heard Turki talking on ThaBoxingVoice, said he couldn't get anyone to fight him, offered three opponents and everyone's scared. ... We put our name in for that. Haven't heard nothing back.

"I think I make him look silly. I saw him against Jack Culcay, and that was a bad night for him at the office. He's got two arms and two legs, exactly like me.

"I'm faster than him. He probably hits harder and is bigger, but it's not about that. It's the IQ, and I've got everything to stand him on his head, 100%."

Murtazaliev responded to that comment on Instagram, saying he better hide well. And now, finally, there's some encouraging movement toward an agreement with this IBF order.

[JxhDel.]

Great for Josh going straight into the Lion's den.

[SeanBrennan]

Tough night for Josh, fair play for stepping up. Hope he pulls it off, big big ask though in light of what the chap did to Tszyu.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Josh Kelly moves into WBO’s No. 1 spot at junior middleweight

Josh Kelly now has two paths toward a title shot at 154lbs.

Earlier this week, the IBF ordered a fight between Kelly and junior middleweight titleholder Bakhram Murtazaliev. Kelly is rated No. 3 by the IBF, but its top-ranked contender, Erickson Lubin, is instead pursuing a bout with interim WBC titleholder Vergil Ortiz Jnr, and the IBF’s No. 2 spot is vacant.

And now the WBO’s latest ratings update – released August 21 and reflecting results through August 15 – has Kelly positioned at No. 1.

Kelly, 17-1-1 (9 KOs), had been rated third as of last month. He was elevated thanks to a fight between the two men who were rated above him, Xander Zayas and Jorge Garcia Perez. Zayas outpointed Perez in July to win the WBO’s vacant belt; Perez subsequently dropped down to No. 10.

Kelly, a 31-year-old from Sunderland, England, competed in the 2016 Olympics, losing to eventual welterweight gold medalist Daniyar Yeleussinov.

He is coming off a first-round knockout of the 24-1 Flavius Biea in June. That was Kelly’s seventh win in a row since his lone loss. He had turned pro in 2017 and was moved quickly – perhaps too quickly. In 2019, Kelly was held to a draw against Ray Robinson. And then in early 2021, Kelly was stopped in the sixth round by David Avanesyan.

Kelly then moved up to junior middleweight in 2022. Later that year, he took a wide decision over the 19-0-1 Troy Williamson. Kelly was supposed to face Liam Smith in September 2024 on the undercard of Daniel Dubois-Anthony Joshua. When Smith pulled out because of an illness, Kelly instead took a narrow majority decision over a late replacement, the 13-0 Ishmael Davis.

Kelly-Davis was at middleweight, and he came in just shy of 157lbs for the Biea bout. That means Kelly hasn’t actually fought within the junior middleweight limit since December 2023.

[coneye]

Woild.nt bet my house on Kelly but he.s in with a chance. There.s been big hype over him demolishing tszu . But bear in mind Tim along with his brother were brought up on a lot hme cooking a lot more hype than substance

[gregregegg]

RIP Kelly.

[Taansend]

I'd fornicating love it if Kelly did a number on Murtazaliev. I have the Russian as a big favourite but it would be great if Josh just boxed rings around him for 12 rounds.

However, if Bakhram does a demolition job on Kelly then I might not think people are over-hyping him based on one fight.

I'll think they're over-hyping him based on two fights

[skanksta]

What chance has Kelly got?

Probably quite a slim one but I wouldn't say none at all

He's got a great chance of looking good, establishing control and being 3-1, 4-1 up in rounds, then.. pop !
Just when you think he might put it all together he bursts physically or mentally.
Great chance of getting splattered around the ring in 4-5 rounds without ever establishing any control too.

And just a very tiny chance, that he DOES put it all together for once and tough out a points win a la Khan vs Maidana....

Good fight.

[KiwiRider]

What chance has Kelly got?

Probably quite a slim one but I wouldn't say none at all

He's got a great chance of looking good, establishing control and being 3-1, 4-1 up in rounds, then.. pop !
Just when you think he might put it all together he bursts physically or mentally.
Great chance of getting splattered around the ring in 4-5 rounds without ever establishing any control too.

And just a very tiny chance, that he DOES put it all together for once and tough out a points win a la Khan vs Maidana....

Good fight.

Nice summation
I think Josh has the ability to win a cautious decision here. But if he steps off the gas he's in trouble. And if he pulls it off it's going to be pretty special.

[Ruthless-RKO]

BAKHRAM MURTAZALIEV-JOSH KELLY: 'DAILY CONTACT' TO STAGE WORLD TITLE FIGHT IN UK

Josh Kelly's first world title shot will likely be on home soil, as the Sunderland man seeks to dethrone the division's boogeyman in IBF beltholder Bakhram Murtazaliev later this year.

Earlier this month, the IBF officially ordered the two sides to negotiate terms after declaring Kelly (17-1-1, 9 KOs) was Murtazaliev's newly-inserted mandatory challenger.

The 31-year-old, who dismissed Romania's 24-1 pro Flavius Biea inside a round on June 6, was recently upgraded to the No. 1-ranked 154-pound contender for Xander Zayas' title after the Puerto Rican outpointed Jorge Garcia Perez to win vacant honours last month.

Although he told The Ring of an eagerness to test himself against all the champions - Zayas included - he's content starting with the hardest assignment after several years' worth of frustrating matchmaking have only allowed him to showcase his skills in fleeting spurts.

Murtazaliev's promoter Kathy Duva of Main Events told WBN that advanced discussions are ongoing with Kelly's trainer, Adam Booth, as they push towards finalising terms over finances, date and location as well as the right television network. Erickson Lubin, the original mandatory, instead opted for a fight with WBC interim beltholder Vergil Ortiz.

"I am in touch with Adam Booth pretty much daily, we are working diligently to get a deal done. It's obvious that the UK is the logical place to start looking."

She added that while developments are promising, it's easy for negotiations to be derailed by talking, so instead opted to disclose no further details. Kelly has fought all but two of his 19 professional bouts across the UK, predominantly in Newcastle and North West England.

He inflicted Ishmael Davis' career-first pro defeat on the Anthony Joshua-Daniel Dubois undercard at London's Wembley Stadium last September and that represents his best win, three years since making his debut in a new weight class at 154-pounds.

Longtime former European champion David Avanesyan, who has recently been training alongside Paddy Donovan before his Lewis Crocker rematch, stopped him in six rounds during their February 2021 bout and has earned two world title opportunities since then.

Murtazaliev-Kelly would represent one of few world title fights on UK soil this year, open the champion to a new audience and provide an acid test on whether 'Pretty Boy' Kelly is really as good as many have believed his potential suggested.

In Manchester earlier this weekend, Sauerland told Boxing News:

"We're in positive discussions with the other side, a few different options of how and where it could take place. Finally, Josh Kelly's moment to seize the stage, very excited about that, really want to get it over the line - he's been through hell the kid, really done well, I'd love him to become a world champion and believe he can do it.

"When you hear Murtazaliev, immediately you're thinking tough Russian. He travels well, went to Germany and got the result against Jack Culcay, this guy is as tough as they come, it's not an easy fight but Josh had agreed the Boots Ennis fight - that didn't happen - 48 hours later we got the call from the IBF that we were mandatory."

[Ruthless-RKO]

BAKHRAM MURTAZALIEV-JOSH KELLY: UK, USA OPTIONS BEING EXPLORED, PROMOTER SAYS

Bakhram Murtazaliev's world title defence against Josh Kelly could land in America after fresh interest in the fight from the States.

As reported by The Ring last month, the IBF ordered their 154-pound champion Murtazaliev to defend his title against Kelly and gave the sides until September 19 to strike a deal.

It is understood that talks are progressing well between the champion's promoters, Main Events, and that of Kelly, Wasserman Boxing before the deadline but there is still no concrete agreement yet.

Both sides have suggested that, although the champion is a California-based Russian, it is a fight that would make sense in Kelly's home country of England.

Now Kalle Sauerland has told The Ring that it could land on American soil after an interesting offer presented itself during negotiations. He also confirmed that a purse bid currently looks unlikely despite the deadline looming.

"It is two weeks away but if the two sides are in positive talks then you can extend in order to complete the deal," Sauerland said. "I don't think a purse bid really favours either side anyway.

"It's in the interests of both sides to be as creative as possible to make the fight on the best platform possible. There's a lot of things going on in world boxing right now so we need to see where the big fight nights are going to be and when they are.

"We've had some positive discussions with a number of platforms and promoters so we can definitely get things to work. We are keen for the fight to happen in the autumn and, as Josh's promoters, we'd love it in the UK but at the same time there is also interest from the States for that fight to take place over there which is of interest to us too.

"I've worked with Kathy and the Duva family for a long, long time and they have another professional advisor on that side too because Egis Klimas is his advisor. We are all confident that we can come to an agreement on this being as big as it possible can for both guys."

Murtazaliev is currently 23-0 (17 KOs) but has not boxed since October when he crushed former WBO titleholder Tim Tszyu inside three rounds at Orlando's Caribe Royale.

That was the first defence of the title he won via an 11th-round stoppage of Jack Culcay in Falkensee, Germany six months earlier. They remain the 32-year-old's only two outings since December 2022.

Kelly meanwhile, has steadily worked his way up the IBF rankings with a seven-fight unbeaten run since he was beaten by David Avanesyan in February 2021. His last outing was the first-round blowout of Flavius Biea (24-2, 12 KOs) in Newcastle on June 6.

"There is a scarcity of British world champions on the men’s side right now," Sauerland added.

"I think this is the step up that Josh has been craving and I think for British boxing this is a really interesting fight."

[Ruthless-RKO]

EXTENSION EXPECTED ON MURTAZALIEV-KELLY TALKS AFTER IBF DEADLINE PASSES

- With talks regarding Bakhram Murtazaliev’s mandatory defence against Josh Kelly still progressing well, an official extension on the negotiating period now looks ‘most likely’.

That is the opinion of Kelly’s promoter Kalle Sauerland, who has been communicating with the champion’s promoter Main Events since the IBF ordered the clash for their junior middleweight strap back in August.

At the time, the sanctioning body gave the two sides 30 days, which ended on Friday, September 19, to reach a deal for the fight. However, as that deadline came and went without any purse bid, an official request for a short extension is now expected.

It is understood that there is hope on both sides that a deal will be reached for 32-year-old Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs) to defend his title against Kelly (17-1-1, 9 KOs) without the need for a purse bid.

“Given we are deep in talks at the moment, and they are still progressing, I suspect it will be delayed a week so we can try and reach an agreement,” Sauerland told The Ring. “That’s what looks most likely at this point.”

Kelly, 31, is currently No. 3 in the IBF’s ratings but, with the first and second spot not occupied, that made him the champion’s highest ranked challenger.

The Sunderland man is on a seven-fight winning run since his February 2021 defeat to David Avanesyan at Wembley Arena. He most recently stopped 24-1 Flavius Biea in just 121 seconds of their June clash, which was Kelly’s only fight since last September.

Murtazaliev, meanwhile, is The Ring’s No. 4-ranked junior middleweight as a result of his undefeated run to the IBF title. He won the vacant belt by stopping Jack Culcay in the 11th round of their fight last April and defended it once six months later, dropping and stopping Tim Tszyu inside three.

That fight against the Australian challenger, arguably the best win of his career so far, took place in October and he has not boxed since.

[forcefraser]

From what I've seen of his opponent Kelly in for a world of hurt

[Ruthless-RKO]

IBF has scheduled a purse bid for October 21st.

[Taansend]

IBF has scheduled a purse bid for October 21st.

This year?

[MPW]

I'm not sure this process could move forward any slower.

[Ruthless-RKO]

IBF has scheduled a purse bid for October 21st.

This year?

Probably..

[Ruthless-RKO]

Bakhram Murtazaliev-Josh Kelly heads to October 21 purse bid hearing

The sport’s least sought-after beltholder will once again turn to the IBF to speed up the process in advancing his next title defense.

BS has confirmed that the IBF has scheduled a purse bid hearing for the previously ordered Bakhram Murtazaliev-Josh Kelly 154lbs title fight. The session is due to take place on Tuesday, to be conducted via video conference as monitored from the sanctioning body’s headquarters in Springfield, New Jersey.

The development comes two months – almost to the day – after England’s Kelly was named the new mandatory challenger for Russia’s Murtazaliev, the reigning IBF 154lbs titleholder.

After weeks of promises that a deal was within reach, the sanctioning body took matters into its own hands.

Murtazaliev, 23-0 (17 KOs) is promoted by Main Events and managed by Egis Klimas. Kelly, 17-1-1 (9 KOs), is with Wasserman Boxing.

The fight was first ordered after Murtazaliev saw his previously ordered title defense against Erickson Lubin, 27-2 (19 KOs) fall through on the morning of a scheduled August 19 purse bid. Lubin became the mandatory challenger in a May 10 knockout win over Ardreal Holmes. However, he bailed on the proceedings to instead next face WBC interim titlist Vergil Ortiz, 23-0 (21 KOs) on November 8 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Meanwhile, Murtazaliev has yet to fight in 2025. In fact, he just passed one full year of inactivity on Sunday. His last bout came in a brutally one-sided, third-round knockout of former WBO 154lbs titlist Tim Tszyu last October 19 in Orlando, Florida.

The bout remains the lone defense of the IBF 154lbs title he claimed in an 11th round knockout of Jack Culcay last April on the road in Falkansee, Germany.

Kelly has won seven in a row since a Feb. 2021 knockout loss to David Avanesyan, his lone career defeat. The 2012 Olympian for Great Britain has since boxed his way into contention, a career resurrection that came about after he signed with Wasserman in 2022.

Among his notable victories, Kelly withstood a stiff challenge from late replacement and then-unbeaten Ishmael Davis to take a majority decision last September 21 at Wembley Stadium. Kelly was due at the time to face former 154lbs titleholder Liam Smith, who withdrew from their Daniel Dubois-Anthony Joshua undercard clash due to a viral infection.

Just one fight – though barely that - has followed for the 31-year-old Sunderland native, who knocked out Romania’s Flavius Biea in just over two minutes on June 6 in Newcastle.

Per IBF rules covering purse bids, both boxers are required to move forward with the fight.

Kelly will be subject to a demotion outside the IBF top 10 and ineligible to fight in any IBF-sanctioned bout for at least six months. Similarly, Murtazaliev would be subject to having his title stripped should he fail to move forward with the ordered fight.

[Taansend]

Kelly has won seven in a row since a Feb. 2021 knockout loss to David Avanesyan, his lone career defeat. The 2012 Olympian for Great Britain has since boxed his way into contention, a career resurrection that came about after he signed with Wasserman in 2022.

Kelly was at the 2016 Olympics, not 2012. He was still at Youth level in 2012.

Jake Donovan reporting again. He's been slipping lately.