EDDIE Hearn has opened the door to a potential clash between Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero and Shakhram Giyasov, insisting that his man is being treated unfairly.
Romero, 17-2 (13 KOs), pulled off a sizable upset against Ryan Garcia in May, as he dropped, and eventually outpointed, the American star in an otherwise lacklustre encounter.
In doing so, the 29-year-old claimed the WBA ‘regular’ title at 147lbs, only for unified world champion Jaron Ennis to announce his move up to super-welterweight shortly after.
It was not long, then, before Ennis vacated his welterweight strap which, in turn, meant that ‘Romero’ was swiftly upgraded to full WBA champion.
Giyasov, 17-0 (10 KOs), however, has all the while resumed his position as the sanctioning body’s interim champion, thus making him the mandatory challenger for Romero’s black and gold belt.
The unbeaten Uzbek has flown under the radar for quite some time, with perhaps his most notable victory arriving against Pablo Cesar Cano last year.
Since then, the 32-year-old has not exactly tested himself against his division’s elite, while his last performance, which came against a relatively uninspiring opponent, saw him halt proceedings with a ruthless fourth-round finish.
In any case, though, Giyasov has a compelling argument to suggest that he, instead of Romero, should have been awarded full world championship status.
And so, as a result of that less than desirable situation, his promoter, Matchroom Boxing boss Hearn, has voiced his intentions via social media.
“We are pushing hard [for the Romero fight],” Hearn wrote on his Instagram story earlier today. “I don’t believe he [Giyasov] is being treated fairly.”
At one point, it appeared as though Romero’s rematch with Garcia was likely to happen but, in a more recent development, Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya has emphatically rejected the possibility of a second encounter.
So with Garcia having seemingly been removed from the equation, perhaps Giyasov will, in fact, secure himself a shot at Romero’s title.
