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Galal Yafai-Francisco Rodriguez interim title fight heads to March 25 purse bid

The previously ordered Galal Yafai-Francisco ‘Chihuas’ Rodriguez interim WBC flyweight title fight will head to a purse bid.

Boxing Scene has confirmed that the WBC has scheduled a March 25 hearing after the respective camps for the pair of flyweights failed to reach an agreement during their assigned negotiation period.

England’s Yafai, 9-0 (7 KOs), is promoted by Matchroom Boxing, headed by chairman Eddie Hearn. Mexico’s Rodriguez, 39-6-1 (27 KOs), is represented by Eddy Reynoso’s No Boxing, No Life and Manny Pacquiao’s MP Promotions.

The involved parties can still reach an agreement prior to the purse bid hearing.

Yafai defeated former IBF flyweight titlist Sunny Edwards via sixth-round stoppage to win the interim WBC belt last November 30 in Birmingham, England. The feat capped a three-win 2024 campaign for the 32-year-old southpaw, a gold medalist for Great Britain in the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Rodriguez, also 32, was named the mandatory challenger during the WBC’s 2023 convention in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. He earned the placement after a 10-round win over countryman Joel Cordova earlier that January in San Pedro, mere minutes from his hometown of Monterrey.

The win came after a hard-fought points loss to Junto Nakatani in their November 2022 non-title fight in Saitama, Japan.

Rodriguez, a former unified IBF/WBO strawweight titlist, is unbeaten in his last four fights. However, his most recent appearance – an eight-round decision win over Josue Morales on December 15 in San Antonio, Texas – was changed to a no-decision earlier this year. The fight took place at junior bantamweight, and Rodriguez, who is not under suspension, was permitted to retain his mandatory ranking at flyweight.

Yafai-Rodriguez was ordered while full WBC flyweight titleholder Kenshiro Teraji, 25-1 (16 KOs), was permitted to enter a title unification bout with Seigo Yuri Akui, 21-3-1 (11 KOs), who held the WBA belt. The terrific March 13 clash between these two Japanese titlists saw Teraji rally to stop Akui in the 12th and final round to become a two-division unified titleholder.

Teraji will be ordered to face the Yafai-Rodriguez winner later this year, though the all-action star suggested a possible move to the 115-pound division is in his near future. Should that occur, the Yafai-Rodriguez winner will be named full WBC flyweight titlist.

Yay!

Matchroom won a purse bid.

Matchroom submitted $222,000 as the lone bidder during Tuesday’s hearing

Rodriguez is a trialhorse who has fought once at flyweight in the past eight years. Even in the fight against the 13-6 Cordova that “earned” him the mandatory, he was over the flyweight limit. Seems like a set up win for Yafai but Rodriguez will give him some rounds. Whatever happened to getting rid of the interim belts? Almost as bad as the “regular” title belts

Press Release

British rivals Shabaz Masoud and Peter McGrail will contest the IBO super-bantamweight title on June 21 at BP Pulse LIVE in Birmingham.

Also on the card, Galal Yafai will take on Francisco Rodriguez for the interim WBC flyweight title.

Stoke-on-Trent’s Masoud, 14-0 (4), claimed the IBO belt with an impressive decision win over Telford’s Liam Davies in November, while Liverpool’s McGrail, 11-1 (6) was last seen outpointing Rhys Edwards over 10 rounds in May.

“I’m excited and ready to defend my IBO world title in Birmingham on June 21," said Masoud. “I’ve been in the gym since the last victory over Liam Davies in November. This is another big domestic fight against Peter McGrail that I know will bring the best out of me. I’m looking forward to showing everyone what I’m about again.”

“I can't wait for this one,” said McGrail. “I respect Shabaz Masoud. He’s a top fighter. But the best version of Peter McGrail beats any super-bantamweight in the world, and that’s what you’ll get June 21 in Birmingham.”

Birmingham’s Yafai, 9-0 (7 KOs), stopped former IBF flyweight king Sunny Edwards in six rounds at BP Pulse LIVE in November. Next, on June 21, he puts his WBC interim title on the line for the first time against Mexico’s Rodriguez, 39-6-1 (27), with a shot at Japan’s unified WBC and WBA flyweight champion Kenshiro Teraji in store for the winner.

“I’m excited to be fighting back in my home city of Birmingham, I can’t wait to put on a show against a top fighter,” said Yafai. “I’m looking forward to getting through this one and fighting for the world title.”

“I have been waiting for two years to fight for the WBC 112-pound belt,” said Rodriguez. “I have been world champion at 105 pounds and 108 pounds. Galal Yafai has never been in the ring with a fighter like me – real Mexican style! Come June 21 the WBC belt is mine and will be going back to wear it belongs. Viva Mexico!”

Meanwhile, Wolverhampton’s Conah Walker, 15-3-1 (6), makes the maiden defence of his British welterweight title against mandatory challenger Liam Taylor, 28-2-1 (14), and cruiserweight prospect Pat Brown, 1-0 (1), looks to build on his action-packed professional debut in Altrincham last month in what will be his second pro fight.

In addition, Birmingham super-featherweight Ibraheem Sulaimaan, 7-0 (4) returns to action, and heavy-handed Coventry middleweight Aaron Bowen, 5-0 (3) fights for the second time in 2025. Also, Walsall flyweight Hamza Uddin, 4-0 (1), continues his rise on the June 21 card.

Had heard whispers Bostan - Fawaz 2 was going to be on this also but nothing announced yet.

Fight Week!!

McGrail is a joy to watch, looking forward to seeing him again this weekend.

keithmoonhangover wrote: ↑16 Jun 2025, 05:17 McGrail is a joy to watch, looking forward to seeing him again this weekend.

Shame it's not against Shabaz Masoud..

But Baluta loves a fight.

It's a good replacement. Baluta always worth watching.

Galal Yafai on the ‘interim’ title: ‘I don’t know how it works; I’m not world champion’

It’s the eve of another important fight, and Galal Yafai could not be more relaxed about it.

The 2020 Olympic champion, who is nine fights into his professional career at flyweight is relaxed as ever and, in conversation with Boxing Scene, sighs in his laidback Midlands accent: “Yeah, it’s just a fight, you know. Obviously there’s pressure in winning in my home city and fighting against a good fighter.

“I’m expected to win for people that don’t really know who I’m fighting. That’s maybe a problem sometimes at our weights. They don’t really know who the fighter is.

“They’re really good fighters, but you're expected to win almost when it’s not always the case. You fight a really good fighter and it could go either way. And I’m expecting a tough fight Saturday, but I love my job, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Yafai fights Francisco Rodriguez, an experienced Mexican who has boxed the likes of Junto Nakatani, Kazuto Iola, Donnie Nietes, and Ramon Gonzalez in his 47-fight career.

Too often, boxers who have not collected belts going up through divisions, or boxers without significant social media followings, are condemned as mere ‘opponents.’

“And that’s the issue with boxing nowadays,” Yafai explained.

“Sometimes you’re better off taking the fight where people know the fighter you’re fighting, but he’s not as good. It’s really bad when you fight someone who’s not known at all and he’s really good and you’re getting less money. It’s just everything that you don’t go with, but sometimes you have to fight them fights and this is a fight that’s been ordered.”

Yafai wears the WBC’s Interim title. The full belt is worn by Kenshiro Teraji.

Nine fights in and with seven stoppages, the gifted and heavy-handed 32-year-old southpaw is content with the path he has trodden in the pros so far, but the level-headed Yafai has no interest in hyping himself up.

“I’m happy enough,” he said. “You always want to do more and things like that, but I’ve had nine fights. I beat the best fighter at flyweight, it was Sunny [Edwards]. That’s not just my opinion. He was number one in Ring magazine, so that’s their opinion. And then I’ve got the WBC number one ranked fighter [Rodriguez]. He’s fought plenty of good fighters. He’s been in the game longer than I’ve been boxing, but he’s my age, which is crazy. So I’m doing it the hard way and there’s no other way I’d probably want to do it.”

The rampant victory against Edwards last November should have served as a coming out party of sorts. But Yafai has a couple of strikes against him. Firstly, he’s quiet and doesn’t brag. Two, some instantly spoke of Edwards’ decline rather than what Yafai did so well.

The latter bothers Yafai more than the former.

“You know, a lot of people doubted me and they thought, ‘Oh, he [Edwards] is too good for Galal,’ but we always knew I was a better fighter. Whatever people say, they say ‘He wasn’t the best, he wasn’t the Sunny of old. Bam [Rodriguez, who defeated Edwards]’s done this to him’ and all these kind of things.

“He [Edwards] seemed all right when he fought six months before I fought him against [Adrian] Curiel, played with him really in Phoenix. But it is what it is.”

Domestically, fans anticipated the flyweight showdown. It was deemed near enough a 50-50, even though revisionist theories stacked the deck in Yafai’s favor.

It was a fight Yafai always felt he would win. He’d sparred Edwards before, and they knew one another well.

“No disrespect to Sunny, he’s a good fighter, but I’m just better. Probably people were siding with him more, maybe leaning towards him, because he’s a former world champion. He’d fought the top fighters in the world. He’d fought ‘Bam’ Rodriguez and he got stopped, but he put on an okay account of himself. And then people just thought, ‘How has Galal done that to him? He’s only had eight fights.’ I don’t think people could come to terms with how easy I beat him. So it was almost, ‘Oh wait, he’s not the same.’ But Sunny’s a good fighter, but I do think he was made out to be better than what he was.

“And that’s no disrespect as well, because I still see him around and we’re cool.”

Yafai, partly because of his skills and pedigree and partly because of his age, is on a fast-track and he’s in a position that, despite his talents, he never assumed he would be in or take for granted.

Yafai, through his amateur years, had a job in a Land Rover factory. He quietly worked while his brother, Kal, claimed a WBA title and his other brother, Gamal, claimed European honors.

He wasn’t in the limelight, but he made it to the Rio Olympics, lost in Brazil, but stayed amateur and made it to Tokyo. Staying amateur was a calculated risk, but he rolled the dice and triumphed all the way to gold.

“I never really overthink things,” said Yafai, asking about whether staying amateur so long risked eating into his time as a pro. “I’m quite calculating with some decisions, but in boxing, I was so early on then [in his journey] I didn’t even think, ‘Oh, I can wait four years and then I’m going to win gold and then I can do that.’ Or I can go pro now, get the knowledge.

“I just thought, ‘You know what? I’ve just got onto the team [GB]. I’ve been working for the past three, four years. I’m on a Great Britain team now. I’m getting paid for it. I might not be the richest, but I’m travelling the world. I’m getting better. Boxing for my country. I’ll just give this a go and carry on with it. I wasn’t really calculating, like, ‘I’m going to wait out four years, go to the Olympics, go pro after with a gold medal.’

“I never even got that far. I just took it year by year. And thank God it just worked out for me. I had to put the work in, obviously. But yeah, thank God it worked.”

The Olympic delay caused by the pandemic made it and even greater risk, although with how well placed Yafai is now, everything is working out.

And despite having the interim title with the WBC, he refuses to acknowledge it as a real world title, or that he is a real world champion. In fact, he is borderline insulted by the question.

“No, of course not. Definitely not. I haven’t said once I’m a world champion,” he laughed.

“How can I be world champion if someone else is there? I don’t get how that works. It’s not me. I’m an Olympic gold medalist. There’s only one Olympic gold medalist at my weight. There can't be two Olympic gold medalists or an interim gold medalist. That [the belt]’s just nice to have in the house.

“But you know what? I haven’t even picked it up and looked at it properly. It’s nice to keep and maybe show a few people in the future. But if I don’t win a world title, then I’m going to just look stupid handing them that.

“And they’re going to say, ‘It says world champion on there,’ but they’re going to say, ‘Were you world champion?’ And I’m going to have to tell them, ‘No, I wasn’t world champion.’ It looks great, but really, I’m not world champion.”

Yafai stops for a moment and adds: “You know what, sometimes I’m too honest. It probably doesn’t help me, but it’s all right. I live an alright life.”

For Yafai, however, while he might be lacking in bluster, he knows what he wants. He’s happy to discuss future opponents, but he is not at all fussed by who he fights.

It’s about titles, for now, rather than opponents. The latter will come in time.

The full champion Teraji would be an obvious target.

“I’m not going to sit here and long and say, ‘Yeah, I’m dying to fight him.’ I don’t care who I fight,’ Yafai added. “It’s who's got the belt. And Kenshiro’s got the belt so I have to fight him for that belt. It’s never personal, and ‘I want to fight this guy.’”

What Teraji also brings, however, is he is often in pound-for-pound discussions and should he topple the Japanese star, Yafai would find himself closer to that conversation.

“Yeah, he’s a good fighter,” Yafai continued.

“He’s not unstoppable, is he? I've watched a few of his fights and he’s just a force to be reckoned with. He's a good fighter, but am I good enough to beat him? Of course I am.

“I’m not deluded. But could I lose? Yeah, of course I could lose as well.

“It’s just a really good fight, and people will go with him because he's got the experience, and he’s been around a long time. I’ve had nine fights. It’s crazy even putting him in conversations. But yeah, he’s got the belt so this is just a step on Saturday. But what a run it would be, Sunny, Rodriguez, and then Kenshiro for the world title. I’ve not had it easy, where former Olympic champions might have had it a little bit easier, but I haven’t.”

Pat Brown isn’t drawn to the limelight: ‘I just want to walk my dogs’

Pat Brown is adapting well to life as being one of the UK’s brightest prospects.

Brown made headlines in his debut, quite literally. The 25-year-old cruiserweight topped the bill in his first professional outing and returns this Saturday in Birmingham, this time tucked beneath the Galal Yafai–Francisco Rodriguez Jnr main event. But while Matchroom continues to fast-track the unbeaten prospect, Brown insists that back home in Sale, little has changed.

“Yeah, I think in Sale, it's still exactly the same, and that's how I like it,” Brown told BS. “I love saying hello to everyone, I love speaking to everyone and these people, they see me for me. Obviously they care about the boxing, but we have chats outside of boxing, so it's good. When I went and watched Dave Allen-Johnny Fisher, that was probably the first time when I was walking through… I had kids and people leaning over the rails for pictures and that, I've never experienced that before, so that was nice because I remember when I was a kid, and I would look at people who used to watch on my phone.

“I'd be like, ‘I really want a photo’, so it's brilliant. It's good. It's overwhelming. But I'm just a normal lad who's chasing his dream. I don't kind of think, ‘Oh this is great, I'm getting loads of photos’. I don't really think like that. I just think as long as I can show the kids anything's possible, that's all I care about.”

Brown has already seen what can happen when the spotlight lands too early and shines too brightly. While the likes of former Olympic silver medallist and gowing British star Ben Whittaker have wrestled publicly with success in the ring, Brown is quietly building his foundation – with his feet on the ground and the voices of Jamie Moore and Nigel Travis in his ear.

“I think Ben Whittaker obviously, he got a medal at the Olympics, he went viral through obviously his style, which is quite unorthodox and stuff, people kind of got drawn to it,” Brown said. “So, he kind of… I've never seen an athlete rocket like he did, he just went from one extreme to the other, and even when he was on GB he was already well known around the circuit. So for me, when I do start going down that way, if I ever do, I'll definitely keep my feet grounded. I've got the right people around me, it's not in my make-up. I'm not saying it was in Ben's make-up either, but it's not in my make-up to kind of go off-track.

“Boxing is just like my lifestyle really, I'm not really that bothered about going out and partying. I'd rather walk my dog, go and see the lads, play a bit of golf, play a bit of padel, just enjoy myself that way to be fair. Don't get me wrong, I like having a Guinness after my fight with the boys and stuff like that, but I know when to rein it in a little bit.”

Weigh in today

Full list of weights:

12x3 - WBC interim flyweight title
Galal Yafai - 111.6lbs
Francisco Rodriguez - 111.1lbs

10x3 - Junior featherweight
Peter McGrail - 121.9lbs

Ionat Baluta - 121.9lbs
12x3 - British welterweight title
Conah Walker - 146.8lbs
Liam Taylor - 146.7lbs

8x3 - Junior lightweight
Ibraheem Sulaimaan - 132.4lbs
Brian Phillips - 132.8lbs

8x3 - Junior lightweight
Giorgio Visioli - 133lbs
Elias Federico Duguet - 132.5lbs

8x3 - Middleweight
Aaron Bowen - 164.1lbs
Mykola Vovk - 163.5lbs

8x3 - Flyweight
Hamza Uddin - 115.7lbs
Leandro Jose Blanc - 114.9lbs

6x3 - Cruiserweight
Pat Brown - 209.6lbs
Ivan Duka - 206.7lbs

6x2 - Junior featherweight
Tiah Mai Ayton - 119.9lbs
Sara Orszagi - 117.6lbs

Looking forward to seeing Visioli again, world champ right there

Fight Night!!

Live from BP Pulse Live in Birmingham, England, UK..
Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing presents: Yafai vs Rodriguez

Time: 4:30 pm (UK time)
TV/Live stream: Facebook/Youtube
Time: 7 pm UK
TV/Live stream: DAZN UK | Price: £19.99/Month, £100/Year
Time: 2 pm ET/ | 11 am PT
TV/Live stream: DAZN | Price: $19.99/Month, $129.99/Year

Running Order

*Fight card subject to change.

Live on Facebook | Youtube: 4:30 pm

8 Round Flyweight Contest
Hamza Uddin vs. Johsua Vallejo

8 Round Super-Featherweight Contest
Ibraheem Sulaimaan vs. Brian Phillips

8 Round Super-Featherweight Contest
Giorgio Visioli vs. Elias Federico Duguet

8 Round Middleweight Contest
Aaron Bowen vs. Alvaro Godoy

Live on DAZN: 7 pm UK | 2 pm ET

6 Round Super-Bantamweight Contest
Tiah Mai Ayton vs. Bec Connolly

Followed by

6 Round Cruiserweight Contest
Pat Brown vs. Ivan Duka

Followed by

10 Round Super-Bantamweight Contest
Peter McGrail vs. Ionut Baluta

Followed by

British Welterweight Championship
Conah Walker vs. Liam Taylor

Followed by

WBC Interim Flyweight Championship
Galal Yafai vs. Francisco Rodriguez Jr.

There’s the running order.

Why is Liam Taylor listed as suspended until September?

Visioli should be on the main card.