Matchroom Boxing secured a purse bid on Friday to stage the fight between WBC and WBA flyweight champion Ricardo Sandoval and Galal Yafai.
Yafai's promoter, Matchroom, outbid Sandoval promoter Golden Boy $625,000 to $411,000, the WBC announced. Ninety percent of the total purse ($562,500) will be divided with a 55/45 split in favor of Sandoval, and the winner will get the remaining 10% ($62,500) as a bonus. Matchroom said a date and venue will be announced shortly. Sandoval (27-2, 18 KOs), a 27-year-old from Los Angeles, scored the titles in July with a split decision against two-division champion Kenshiro Teraji in Japan. Yafai (9-1, 7 KOs), a 2020 Olympic gold medalist for Great Britain, last fought in June as the WBC interim titleholder and took a brutal beating in losing a unanimous decision against Francisco Rodriguez. However, less than three weeks later, it was revealed that Rodriguez tested positive for a banned substance. The matter is still under investigation, and the loss remains on Yafai’s record. Yafai, 33, came into the Rodriguez bout off a career-best win against Sunny Edwards in November 2024. Sandoval is ranked No. 1 by The Ring at 112 pounds; Yafai is fifth. Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram : @ManoukAkopyan
