Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams will get his title shot, after all.
BoxingScene has confirmed that plans are back in place for Williams, 20-1 (13 KOs), to challenge WBC 160lbs titlist Carlos Adames. The rescheduled affair – expected to be announced within the next 24 hours – is set for a March 21 card to be presented by Matchroom Boxing on DAZN from Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida.
Ring Magazine’s Mike Coppinger first reported the development.
The pair of top-rated middleweights were previously due to meet on the January 31 Ring VI show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. However, the Dominican Republic’s Adames, 20-1-1 (14 KOs), fell ill on the eve of the final pre-fight weigh-in and was treated for dehydration upon withdrawing from the voluntary title defense.
Williams remained on the card and beat short-notice opponent Wendy Touissant via lopsided decision in a sanctioned super middleweight contest. The weight was a career-highest for Williams, though a one-time concession to not squander a full training camp without anything to show for it.
Adames is still due to make a mandatory defense of his WBC 160lbs title, though the sanctioning body has been extraordinarily forgiving in delaying the matter.
Kazakhstan’s Meiirim Nursultanov has held the top contender position for more than two years, though has been inexplicably inactive during that time. Their bout was twice ordered, but yet to produce a deal for the fight to move forward.
Jesus Ramos currently holds an interim version of the WBC middleweight belt and has also called for his own showdown with Adames.
Both will have to wait, as Williams was contractually obligated to receive his first career title shot.
To his credit, Adames and his team stuck to their word of revisiting the matter, amidst unconfirmed rumors of his possibly moving up to 168lbs.
Adames will attempt the third defense of the full version of the belt. He held the interim title for two years before the WBC finally acted and downgraded inactive titleholder Jermall Charlo. Upon the upgrade, Adames outpointed Terrell Gausha over 12 rounds in their June 2024 title fight.
In his most recent outing, Adames was considered unlucky to have settled for a 12-round draw with unbeaten Hamzah Sheeraz last February 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The rescheduled date will put Adames out of the ring for 13 months.
Williams is 3-0 in that time, a credit to Matchroom and manager Sam Katkovski for keeping him active during difficult circumstances. The 29-year-old, Houston-based southpaw was hit with emergency replacement opponents in each of his last two fights. He was due to face Etinosa Oliha in a July 19 IBF title eliminator. However, Oliha was not medically cleared by the Texas Department of Licensing and Control due to a failed eye exam discovered during fight week.
A major risk was taken by Williams in agreeing to face Adames, perhaps more so outside the ring. It meant sacrificing his place in line for the IBF title, which could become vacant pending the final ruling on Janibek Alimkhanuly’s drug testing investigation.
With the right backing, things have fallen back in Williams’ favor.
