Bentley On Losing WBO Title After Zuffa Move

Denzel Bentley says he was caught in boxing politics when the WBO stripped his middleweight title shortly after he signed with Zuffa.

Bentley, who faces Shane Mosley Jr this weekend in the co-main event of Zuffa's UK card, told Ariel Helwani that the sanctioning body reversed course on a promised voluntary defense once word spread that he was leaving Queensberry Promotions. "I just kind of got caught in the middle of the politics of boxing," he said, per Bad Left Hook.

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Bentley Believes WBO Stripped Belt Over Zuffa Signing

The British fighter had been out of action for 16 months before winning an eliminator in April. He said Queensberry had advised him to vacate his British and European titles and wait for a world title shot, only to be ordered into another eliminator that dragged on. After he won that fight, WBO president Paco Valcarcel reportedly tweeted that Bentley would get a voluntary defense before facing his mandatory challenger next year.

That statement was retracted after Bentley's Zuffa signing became public. The WBO installed Yoenli Hernandez as mandatory challenger, though Hernandez cannot fight until next year anyway. "They've just taken my title from me for no reason," Bentley said. "In this instance I didn't feel like I was treated like the champion."

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Bentley described Zuffa as a well-oiled machine behind the scenes but said the American company is still adjusting to the UK market. Mosley Jr is ranked sixth by the WBO and could have served as a voluntary defense had the sanctioning body not stripped the belt. The fight goes ahead this Saturday on Sky Sports.

Reported via:

• Bad Left Hook — ‘Politics of boxing’: Denzel Bentley talks about losing his WBO title after Zuffa signing