Erislandy Lara and Janibek Alimkhanuly are reportedly in negotiations for a three-belt middleweight Unification clash in December.
Lara-Alimkhanuly is a decent fight, but not the one that casual fans would be excited about. There was hope that Terence Crawford would move down to 160 to challenge Janibek (17-0, 12 KOs) for his IBF and WBO belts or the 42-year-old Lara (31-3-3, 19 KOs) for his WBA strap.
According to Jake Donovan of BoxingScene, Lara vs. Janibek would be a PBC PPV event in December as part of the Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz vs. Lamont Roach card. It’s unclear which of the two fights would be the headliner. Given the popularity of ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, his fight with Roach would make more sense as the main event.
It’s hard to know how much the Cuban Lara has left in the tank at this point in his long 17-year pro career because he hasn’t faced a live body since his 2018 clash against Jarrett Hurd, which he lost by a 12-round split decision. Erislandy has won his last six fights since 2019, beating this tattered group:
- Danny Garcia (37
- Michael Zerafa
- Gary ‘Spike’ O’Sullivan
- Thomas LaManna
- Greg Vendetti
- Ramon Alvarez
See what I mean? Lara has been winning lately, but look at who he’s been fighting. What happened to the middleweight division? Janibek obviously doesn’t care that Lara has been feasting on lesser guys. He wants his title so that it can help him come up a little bit.
Janibek, 32, has been hounding WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames for the last two years, pressuring and trying to shame him into a fight by questioning his courage.
Understandably, Adames hasn’t bitten on his offers for a fight, perhaps because he can make a goldmine if Crawford picks him as the lucky belt-holder that he wants to battle in an attempt to win his sixth division world championship.
Additionally, Adames has his mandatory defense that he must satisfy next against Meiirim Nursultanov. Of course, that’s not an excuse for why he’s not fighting Janibek. If he wanted to fight him, that would take precedence due to it being a unification fight. It makes more sense for Adames to hold onto his golden ticket so that if Crawford does come down to 160, he might pick him and make millions in that fight.
Chris Williams has covered boxing since 2010, bringing fans reliable analysis and insight from ringside to headline events.
Last Updated on 10/02/2025
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