Promoter Don King has announced a new date and location for the WBA regular heavyweight championship fight featuring Kubrat “The Cobra” Pulev defending against Michael “The Bounty” Hunter. King says the show will take place on October 4th at Miami’s Jai-Alai Fronton Casino, despite the threats of a lawsuit by [Pulev's promoter] Epic Sports and Entertainment who King says continue to spread lies that Hunter is unavailable for this fight. King, who in the spring won the $1.1 million purse bid by the WBA to stage the fight originally scheduled for August 23rd, said he still has a binding three-year contract with Hunter that was signed in February of 2024 and then was victorious in two consecutive appeals to the WBA by Epic Sports and Entertainment to prevent the fight from happening. [Hunter apparently signed to fight Jarrell Miller rather than wait for King to promote a Pulev fight, but as a result of this mess, Miller-Hunter may not ever happen].
“The threats of lawsuits continues against the WBA by Epic Sports and Entertainment,” King said in a statement. “It’s all corruption, fraud, bribery, rigged schemes and crooked scams by Epic Sports appealing to the WBA for reconsideration of the WBA purse bid, for Pulev vs Hunter, which DKP won. Now, Epic Sports is trying to change and to nullify the bout. This clouds the atmosphere with lies and the deception of the truth, fake and false news.”
King continued: “The WBA honorably stood up for their rules and regulations and declared the purse bid valid and legitimate, as held, then Epic Sports and the WBA [regular] champion Kubrat Pulev made an appeal to change the meaning of the WBA rules and regulations…The WBA honorably denied the champion Kubrat Pulev and Epic Sports, then Epic Sports rewrote the purse bid contracts just as though they had won the purse bid, and asked the WBA to dishonorably and illegally grant their appeal.”
King said now that the WBA has made its decision to uphold the purse bid decision regarding Kubrat Pulev, that, upon approval by the WBA, he has announced the October 4th date and Miami location. “However, John Wirt never stops in trying to prevent the bout, for Hunter, not to fight. Now Epic Sports, John Wirt and Ivaylo Gotzev are filing a lawsuit for the arbitrations against the WBA’s decisions of justice and fair play against their Epic Sports and Entertainment Company.
“However, DKP will not wait for that decision to come about. DKP will stand up and support the WBA’s honor and credibility in their decision for fair play and justice regarding the WBA purse bid situation. The credibility of the WBA is at stake.”
King said the October 4th card will also feature DKP fighters Blair “The Flair” Cobbs, former four-division champ Adrien “The Problem” Broner and former WBC cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian.
Last weekend, DKP issued a cease-and-desist letter to SELA and TKO Group Holdings, Inc., after it was reported that there was a fight in the works that would pit Hunter against Jarrell Miller on September 11th during the mega-fight week featuring Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford in Las Vegas.
