What's next for Kabayel?: A complicated scenario could lead to Klitschko

After his liver-hook triumph over Chinese giant Zhang Zhilei, Agit Kabayel has secured a world championship fight against heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk. At least on paper. Because it is anything but certain that Kabayel will get his hands on the Ukrainian any time soon. What happens next? It is complicated.

Agit Kabayel has finally reached the top of the world heavyweight boxing class thanks to his knockout victory against the feared knockout boxer Zhang Zhilei. The "liver king" from the Ruhr area is even already listed as "interim" world champion by the world association WBC. "This makes him a kind of interim world champion," says boxing manager Bernd Bönte in an interview with RTL/ntv and sport.de, breaking down the unusual term: "Practically all associations have introduced this status because for a long time now there has been a world champion in the heavyweight division, Oleksandr Usyk, who holds the titles of several associations and briefly even held all the belts."

In such a case, there is a "rotation process" among the major world associations WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO to determine the next challenger of the unification world champion, explains Bönte, who knows the game from his time as manager of Wladimir Klitschko. "Dr. Steelhammer" also held several world championship belts from 2008 to 2015. "When a unification fight is pending, all associations normally forgo insisting on a fight against their respective mandatory challenger, which is actually supposed to take place once a year," explains Bönte.

And it is precisely this circumstance that could put Kabayel on hold. WBA/WBC/WBO world champion Usyk had already announced before the German's victory in Riyadh that he wanted IBF world champion Daniel Dubois as his next opponent. The Briton was supposed to defend his title against Joseph Parker at the weekend, but had to cancel at short notice due to an infection.

But first: the "showdown for everything"?

For Usyk, a duel with Dubois would be more financially lucrative than the obligatory task of facing Kabayel. "This is a fight that can easily be held in an English stadium," says Bönte, assessing the dimensions: "And there is still this discussion from the first fight: was it a low blow or not? It is certainly a duel that boxing fans want to see," says the DAZN expert. In addition, the "showdown for everything" is also the fight that Saudi boxing mogul Turki Al-Sheikh would most like to see.

Usyk defeated Dubois (then WBA mandatory challenger) in Breslau in the summer of 2023 by knockout in round nine. The world champion himself went down in round five after an alleged body shot from the Englishman. Because Dubois' right body hook landed just below the belly button at bladder level, the referee judged the action to be a low blow and gave Usyk several minutes to recover. Dubois and his promoter Frank Warren nevertheless suspected fraud - a debate has been raging ever since, especially in England, about the value of Usyk's victory.

After his victory over Dubois, the Ukrainian defeated the next Briton, Tyson Fury, in 2024, crowning himself the first undisputed heavyweight world champion of all recognized associations since 1999. Because Usyk entered the ring at the end of last year for revenge against Fury instead of giving Dubois, who had become the mandatory challenger at the IBF, his chance, the US-based association stripped the champion of the red and gold belt. Dubois has been IBF champion since then, and he impressively defended the championship in autumn 2024 by knocking out superstar Anthony Joshua.

Long story short: You have to swim for a long time in the alphabet soup of the world associations, you need a lot of patience before you can fight for the world title. This also applies to "interim" champion Kabayel. Whether the 32-year-old will get his chance soon depends on "what the new undisputed champion - that is, Usyk or Dubois - does then," explains Bönte: "From that moment on, the mandatory challengers will come."

It is possible that Kabayel will then have to take a back seat in the aforementioned rotation process of the world associations. With Joseph Parker, the WBO also has an "interim" title holder. The New Zealander has been waiting longer than Kabayel for a chance to fight for a full title. Ironically, the last WBO "mandatory" was Usyk, who, thanks to this status, got his chance against Joshua in 2021 and dethroned the Brit in London. At the WBC, the Englishman Dillian Whyte was given a title shot in 2022 as "interim" champion against the then champion Fury (who knocked Whyte out).

However, there is still a scenario in which Kabayel becomes the first German heavyweight world champion since Max Schmeling in 1930 without throwing a punch. Should a new undisputed world champion give up the WBC title or not defend it against Kabayel within the deadline, the association could declare the Bochum native a full champion at the green table. The IBF proceeded accordingly last year: When Usyk did not fight Dubois, the association upgraded the Englishman to a "real" world champion.

The WBC has also done this: in 1978, Ken Norton became heavyweight champion because Muhammad Ali did not compete against him (for a fourth time). Lennox Lewis also "won" the WBC title in 1992 by proclamation of the officials because world champion Riddick Bowe had thrown the green and gold belt into a garbage can.

It is also conceivable that the WBC will sign Kabayel to a world championship fight against another opponent if the unified heavyweight crown is split - perhaps due to Usyk's withdrawal. And here the former Klitschko manager has a fight in mind that would electrify boxing in Germany: Agit Kabayel against Wladimir Klitschko.

"Coal" is not a problem

"The moment the titles become vacant, it is possible that one of the associations will say: We are opening the door for an ex-champion with many years of service to boxing. The WBC would also be a good option," says Bönte, who worked as a manager for the Klitschko brothers for many years.

The former world champion is toying with the idea of ​​a comeback. According to information from sport.de, Klitschko was actually planning his return after almost eight years of retirement from boxing for last Saturday against Dubois. The 48-year-old is motivated by the record set by boxing icon George Foreman. The American crowned himself the oldest heavyweight champion in history in 1994 at the age of 45. Klitschko will turn 49 in March.

The Ukrainian is supported by Turki Al-Sheikh. The chairman of the Saudi entertainment authority, which currently controls prize boxing, had already spoken out in favor of a comeback for Klitschko at the end of 2024 to give him the chance to break Foreman's record - fittingly also at the WBC Congress in Hamburg (at which Klitschko was also a guest).

Kabayel vs. Klitschko for the WBC crown? "Of course, that would fill every stadium in Germany," emphasises former Klitschko manager Bönte: "You can box in Schalke or Düsseldorf. Kabayel comes from NRW." The "Liver King" himself would love to box in his home country. "Even though I'm currently earning big money in Saudi Arabia. I would bite the bullet and fight in Germany, even if I had to make cuts in terms of money," said Kabayel in an interview with sport.de. After his victory over Zhang, his manager Spencer Brown also suggested a fight in Germany. "Money"? No problem with a blockbuster against Klitschko.

The boy from the Ruhr area against Germany's former boxing favorite, who wants to give it one more go. A dream for every promoter. As of now, it's just a daring thought experiment - but one that fits in with the crazy stories of the boxing business like Kabayel's left hook to the liver.