Top Rank is moving the Raymond Muratalla-Zaur Abdullaev IBF interim lightweight title bout to May 10 in San Diego to respect Abdullaev’s observance of Ramadan, an official familiar with the situation told BoxingScene Wednesday.
Muratalla-Abdullaev was originally slotted as the main event of Top Rank’s April 5 card at The Palms hotel in Las Vegas, but Ramadan falling from February 28 to March 29 would compromise the training regimen of Abdullaev, 20-1 (12 KOs), a Russian-born fighter residing in Armenia.
Top Rank hasn’t finalized the April 5 card, an official said. One possibility is elevating a 140-pound bout between Mexico’s Lindolfo Delgado, 22-0 (16 KOs), and Dominican Republic’s Elvis Rodriguez, 17-1-1 (13 KOs), to the main event.
Abdullaev is currently the IBF’s No. 2-ranked lightweight contender with Muratalla, 22-0 (17 KOs), of Fontana, California, positioned at No. 4 behind sidelined champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, 18-3 (12 KOs), of Ukraine.
The IBF has ordered Lomachenko to fight the Muratalla-Abdullaev winner.
Delaying Muratalla-Abdullaev will provide three-division champion Lomachenko, 36, more time to recover from a back injury he suffered in training near the end of 2024.
Egis Klimas, who manages both Lomachenko and Abdullaev, told BoxingScene Wednesday that Lomachenko is doing “better” and has started “moving around, doing some physical therapy.”
The lightweight division has a busy three weeks at hand with WBO champion Denys Berinchyk making the first defense of his belt Friday in New York against 2021 U.S. Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn Davis. Following that, WBC champion Shakur Stevenson defends his belt against Floyd Schofield Feb. 22 in Saudi Arabia, and on March 1, WBA champion Gervonta Davis meets super-featherweight champion Lamont Roach Jr. in a pay-per-view bout in Brooklyn.
The Muratalla-Abdullaev May 10 card will be staged at San Diego’s Pechanga Arena.
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