Denzel Bentley’s 102-day reign as WBO middleweight champion came to an abrupt end this past Friday when the WBO officially stripped him of his title.
Bentley was upgraded to full champion in July after former title holder Janibek Alimkhanuly decided to continue his career at super middleweight. Although the WBO initially granted Bentley a voluntary defense, it then accepted the request of top contender Yoenli Hernandez to immediately press his position as ambassador.
Advertisement
Bentley told “The Ariel Helwani Show” Wednesday that he believes the way things are going is a direct result of his decision to leave Francis Warren Queensberry and switch to Zuffa Boxing’s loyal promotions.
“I can’t say for sure, but I think so.” [that I was not allowed a voluntary defense because I left with Zuffa]Bentley said. I think so, because there was no other reason for that decision [WBO president Gustavo Olivieri] be drawn out and reconsidered.
“For” [Olivieri] before the end of the year the voluntarism was said and done; Shane Mosley Jr. 6 with WBO number No. He is ranked 6 with the WBO, and this was a solid defense, and then we go next year. [against Hernandez].
“They took the board now, and whoever was the messenger in Hernandez, he certainly can’t fight for him next year. You took the title from me for no reason. I pay the penalty like everyone else, but in this case I didn’t feel like I was treated like a winner.”
According to the WBO’s official senate, when the body sanctioned Bentley’s elevation to full WBO champion on July 20, it expressly reserved the right to determine whether to allow Bentley to make a voluntary defense in the first place.
Advertisement
Queensberry Promotions, a former supporter of Bentley, planned a fight between Bentley and Liam Smith on November 7 in Liverpool. What the WBO approved as a voluntary defense, but it ultimately did not materialize as a precaution, and Bentley did not request permission for another fight, forcing the WBO to make the commitment.
Olivieri confirmed on Uncrowned that Bentley has now filed another appeal against the WBO’s handling of the matter and the decision to strip him. Hernandez also ordered Michael Zerafa for the currently vacant middleweight belt in Australia.
Considering Zuffa Boxing’s initial stance against sanctioning bodies at the beginning of the boxing year, some organizers thought they might have decided not to have one of their fights join the WBO, but Bentley doesn’t believe that’s the case.
“I’m not quite sure [what Zuffa thinks]What they told me was that they would clearly prefer that I have a title on the show — it’s a fun show,” Bentley said. [legwork] – I think the WBO has spoken, but I’m not quite sure what my team and my team’s management were dealing with.
Advertisement
“But I know this case came up before we were signed, so there was nothing they could really do until we showed that we were interested and signed.”
Denzel Bentley lost his WBO title in one title defense without a fight.
(Adam Davy – PA Images via Getty Images)
Bentley has officially ended his seven-year relationship with Warren Queensberry just weeks after his upgrade to full champion. The British boxer believes he hasn’t been in Queensberry before and has been disappointed with how busy he has been with the promotion.
Bentley had not formally entered into an agreement with Queensberry in recent years. But his manager, Martin Bowers, struggled to negotiate a handshake with Warren.
“My last fight [was] in April “I came out 16 months ago and I was very inactive, and I was definitely not happy with the circumstances and stuff around it,” Bentley said.
Advertisement
“Your guess is that my good [as to why I didn’t fight for 16 months]Bentley continued.[I was] Britain and [WBO] At the time of Europe. Because the WBO No. 2 at that time restrained [Brad Pauls in December 2024]We promised that the winner of that battle would fight for the world. It is not so.
“But because of that promise, I was advised to leave my titles, sit tight, and wait for the world title to be released. In July. [2025]I was told that I would fight in the eliminator against No. 2 again Endry Saavedra, whom I controlled. [in my last fight]and that about a year or 16 months completely to transcend the race.
Bentley said that during his 16-month hiatus from his ring, he tried to become an Amazon delivery driver in order to earn income and help those who stopped working. He could not do this, although there were no opportunities in these regions.
Advertisement
For every word of the boxer must be paid for, the state of things which is said by No. is a sad matter. 1 contender had to apply for a driver’s license because of sustained inactivity and his income up to that point in his career had not accumulated enough to live comfortably without a certain fight.
“When I win that [WBO interim title in April] and he returned [Queensberry] role, there was still that uncertainty,” Bentley said.” “Well, you will be on this day,” and that was not the date. Or, ‘You fight here in another city for so much money,’ which I thought not so much as to defend the champion of the challenger in the country, and he would not have received any part of the money for the lion.
“It was around that time when I started to think, ‘You know, I should look for someone else and try and talk to other authors and see where I’m rated, and I’ll get back there and continue my career.’
Bentley spoke to several authors about the future. Eddie Hearn’s matchroom made Bentley — who is of Ghanaian descent — an offer to defend his title against Hernandez on December 19 in Ghana, but Hearn’s offer was lower than Zuffa Boxing’s, and Bentley says it came after he had already agreed on Zuffa’s trade.
Bentley will have to talk about White’s promotion against Shane Mosley Jr. in co-feature Zuffa Boxing 12 on Saturday in London.