Matchroom Boxing had luck with one purse bid and will now have to try its hand at another.
BoxingScene has confirmed that the IBF-ordered welterweight Karen Chukhadzhian-Paddy Donovan fight will become available to the highest bidder. Sanctioning body officials have scheduled a March 24 hearing to determine promotional rights for the matchup.
Ukraine’s Chukhadzhian, 26-3 (14 KOs), is represented by P2M-Box Promotion, while Ireland’s Donovan, 14-2 (11 KOs), is promoted by Matchroom Boxing.
The winner will become the sanctioning body’s next mandatory challenger. Its current titlist, Lewis Crocker, 22-0 (11 KOs), is already due to face Australia’s Liam Paro, 27-1 (16 KOs), this spring in either Brisbane or on the Gold Coast.
This particular fight was ordered in mid-February, not long after Ireland’s Donovan, 14-2 (11 KOs), was forced to drop out of a scheduled January 16 clash with Paro.
The bout carried the same stakes – the right to become the No. 1 IBF contender at 147lbs. However, Donovan – a 27-year-old southpaw from Limerick – fell ill during training camp and was forced to withdraw from the planned road trip to Australia.
Paro was advanced to the top spot by default, just in time for promoter No Limit Boxing to secure the rights to his title fight with Belfast’s Crocker, who is also with Matchroom Boxing.
Donovan had his own two-fight set with Crocker, resulting in the lone two blemishes on his record. He was unbeaten at the time of their first meeting last March 1 in Belfast and was well ahead on the scorecards through seven rounds.
The ending to the eighth round sealed his fate, however.
Donovan – who legitimately dropped Crocker earlier in the fight – floored him with a right hook marginally after the bell sounded to end the round. Referee Marcus McDonnell was out of position to properly separate them at the time, but the in-ring ruling was that Donovan failed to honor the verbal command, thus resulting in the disqualification verdict.
The stakes were raised from their March 1 title eliminator to their September 13 rematch, which carried the vacant IBF belt after Jaron “Boots” Ennis abdicated his throne. This time, it was Donovan who was floored twice, which provided the margin of victory for his bitter rival (114-112 and 114-113 Crocker, 115-111 Donovan).
The Andy Lee-trained boxer is now stuck with Karen problems for his next outing.
Ukraine’s Chukhadzhian has emerged as a favorite of the IBF. He has twice challenged for its welterweight title, both times resulting in decisive points losses to Philadelphia’s Ennis.
The first defeat to Ennis snapped a 20-fight win streak for Chukhadzhian after his previous lone blemish came in his second pro fight – which came on his first night as a pro boxer, as part of a one-day knockout Super 8 Boxing Tournament.
Following the first meeting with Ennis, Chukhadzhian won three in a row, including a May 2024 points victory over England’s Harry Scarff to re-emerge as the IBF mandatory. It led directly back to Ennis, this time with P2M securing the promotional rights to the rematch after outbidding Matchroom.
However, the fight fell back into Matchroom’s hands, which resulted in a home game for Ennis. Their second meeting saw Chukhadzhian suffer a fifth-round knockdown but also push Ennis, only to once again fall well short on the final scorecards.
Two wins have followed, including a second-round knockout of Joel Mafauad last October 11 in Riga, Latvia.
Per IBF rules covering purse bids, neither boxer can secure another fight during the interim. Such actions will result in the abandoning party being dropped outside the sanctioning body’s top 10 and ineligible to fight in any IBF-sanctioned contests for a minimum of six months.
