On May 13, Kazakh southpaw Alimkhanuly (13-0, 8 KOs) will defend his 160-pound championship against Steven Butler (32-3-1, 26 KOs), and the 12-round main event will be broadcast on ESPN. However, the venue for the card has not been confirmed yet.
Although former WBO junior middleweight champ Liam Smith is the WBO's number one contender for Alimkhanuly's title, he is contractually obligated to an immediate rematch with Chris Eubank Jr. Therefore, he cannot challenge Alimkhanuly next.
Even second-ranked Jaime Munguia was not interested in fighting Alimkhanuly. Instead, Butler, who is ranked sixth among the WBO's middleweight contenders, will take on Alimkhanuly.
Montreal's Butler has won his last four fights since his surprising loss to Mexican underdog Jose de Jesus Macias in January 2021. However, Alimkhanuly, who is 29 years old and promoted by Bob Arum's Top Rank Inc., is still expected to be heavily favored in his fourth consecutive contest.
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