The WBC has reversed its postion on the mandatory defense obligations of its middleweight champion, Carlos Adames, just days after Adames signed a promotional contract with Zuffa Boxing. Just prior to Adames inking his Zuffa deal, the WBC ordered him to make his next defense against Meiirim Nursultanov. On Wednseaday, however, ihe WBC approved Adames’ petition to instead participate in a non-title fight on November 17th. The WBC further promised to review Adames’ mandatory obligations during its upcoming annual convention, to be held in Acapulco, Mexico from November 8th through 13th. Nursultanov won a WBC eliminator in 2023 and has not fought since then while waiting, and then having the Ramos fight fall out. Today's development means he wont get a title shot until 2027. Nursultanov's record is 32-1 including paid bouts in the World Series of Boxing.
According to the WBC announcement, the current status of the WBC middleweight championship is that if Adames loses the November 17th fight, the title will be declared vacant. If he wins, Adames must make the mandatory defense against Nursultanov, with the winner of the Adames vs. Nursultanov bout then obligated to fight WBC interim champion Jesús Ramos Jr.
PRIOR BOXINGTALK COVERAGE:
OCT. 14, 2026: Zuffa Boxing announced that WBC middleweight champion Carlos “Caballo Bronco” Adames has signed a multi-fight promotional contract with the company. Adames hails from Elias Piña, Dominican Republic, joins a Zuffa boxing roster that also includes WBO middleweight champion Denzel Bentley, although Bentley may soon be stripped by the WBO for skipping his mandatory defense obligation. An announcement regarding Adames’ Zuffa Boxing debut will be made shortly. The WBC recently ordered Adames to make a mandatory defense against undefeated Meiirim Nursultanov.
“This is a new chapter in my career, and I’m here to make history. Zuffa Boxing is building something special, and I want to be part of it,” Adames said. “I’m ready to face the best fighters in the world on the biggest stage. The best of ‘Caballo Bronco’ is yet to come.”
Adames (25-1-1, 18 KOs), 32, is an eleven-year pro who is unbeaten in seven fights since moving up to middleweight in 2021. He has defended the WBC championship three times, including a hard-fought draw against Hamzah Sheeraz last year and a one-sided decision over Austin “Ammo” Williams in March. Prior to becoming world champion, Adames knocked out former unified s154-pound champion Julian Williams in nine rounds. As an amateur, he won more than 200 fights and competed at the international level, capturing gold at the 2012 Pan American Youth Championships and the 2015 Jose Cheo Aponte Tournament.
SEPT. 25, 2026: Undefeated Kazakh Meiirim Nursultanov is getting a title shot against WBC middleweight monarch Carlos “El Caballo Bronco” Adames. No date has been set for the fight, but the WBC has officially ordered both boxers' camps to begin negotiations, setting October 20th as the deadline to reach an agreement. If a deal is not finalized within the allotted time frame, the WBC will call for a purse bid to award the promotional rights for the fight. The path to this long-awaited matchup accelerated directly following the unfortunate withdrawal of the division’s interim champion, Jesus Ramos, who was unable to compete in the scheduled eliminator against Nursultanov last weekend due to health reasons. Under these circumstances, the WBC granted Nursultanov the direct right as the division’s official mandatory contender.
Adames, from the Dominican Republic is coming off a successful decision defense against Austin “Ammo” Williams in Orlando, Florida. Carrying power and an increasingly cerebral approach, Adames looks to reaffirm his absolute dominance over the division.
Nursultanov, age 33, earned his mandatory challenger status way back in November 2023 with a decisive victory over Chile’s Julio Álamos. Despite the long layoff away from the squared circle, Nursultanov has maintained constant physical preparation while awaiting the final call to fulfill his dream of becoming a champion.
SEPT. 18, 2026: The WBC has ordered its reigning middleweight champion, Carlos Adames of the Dominican Republic (pictured) to make his next title defense against the winner of this weekend's clash between Mexican-American Jesús “Mono” Ramos Jr. and undefeated Meiirim Nursultanov of Kazakhstan. Ramos is recognized as the WBC interim champion but the WBC ruling officially transforms the showdown at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego into a definitive title eliminator. Adames (27-3-1 including the World Series of Boxing) has had only two fights in the last two years and three months, the last one being a win over Austin Williams in March.
