Ghana’s Commey closing in on IBF title defence

Ghana’s International Boxing Federation (IBF) lightweight champion, Richard Commey, is close to finalising a deal to fight Mexico’s Ray Beltran on June 28.

The fight will be Commey’s first title defence since winning the IBF belt in February.

The winner of Commey-Beltran bout would be obligated to face the winner of the July 19 world title eliminator between Teofimo Lopez and Masayoshi Nakatani.

Commey, with (28-2) and a total of 25 knockouts, has been searching for an opponent to mark his first title defence, having been declared fit from a hand injury that ruined a planned unification bout against WBA and WBO lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko. Lomachenko will instead face Luke Campbell for the vacant WBC title.

Beltran (36-8-1, 22 KOs) on the other hand made his super lightweight debut in February with an impressive stoppage victory over Hiroki Okada after losing his WBO crown to Jose Pedraza last August.