Matchroom Boxing has secured promotional rights for Galal Yafai ordered WBC and WBA flyweight title challenge against unified champion Ricardo Sandoval after outbidding Golden Boy Promotions $625,000 to $411,000 on Friday.
The result hands Matchroom, which promotes 2020 Olympic gold medalist Yafai, control of a mandatory fight against a unified titleholder promoted by a rival stable. Date and venue are still to be confirmed.
The Matchup: Sandoval vs. Yafai
This fight is a significant moment for the flyweight division, pitting the technical prowess of the champion against the aggressive style of the Olympic gold medalist.
| Fighter | Role | Record | Status |
| Ricardo Sandoval | WBC World Champion | 27-2 (18 KOs) | Reinstated as champion after wins over Kenshiro Teraji and Francisco Rodriguez. |
| Galal Yafai | WBC Interim Champion | 9-1 (7 KOs) | The 2020 Olympic gold medalist seeking to become the absolute world monarch. |
Why the fight was re-ordered
The WBC re-ordered the consolidation bout on January 20, effectively killing advanced talks for a three-belt unification between Sandoval and WBO champion Anthony Olascuaga that had been targeted for March 15 in Yokohama, Japan. The sanctioning body had originally ordered Sandoval-Yafai in August 2025, rescinded that ruling to allow both fighters voluntary defenses, then reversed course again in January to push the mandatory back to the front of the queue.
The move ensured the WBC would have a single champion under its banner without waiting on another organisation’s timeline. Olascuaga, meanwhile, was left searching for another opponent after the cancellation of the unification bout.
Purse Breakdown & WBC Rule
Under the WBC’s innovative “10% Bonus” rule for mandatory fights, the total purse will be distributed as follows:
-
90% Base Purse ($562,500):
Divided between the two fighters. As the champion, Ricardo Sandoval is entitled to a 55/45 split in his favor. -
10% Win Bonus ($62,500): This amount is held back and awarded specifically to the winner of the fight as an extra incentive.
Sandoval’s position at 112 pounds
Ricardo Sandoval (27-2, 18 KOs) won the WBC and WBA flyweight titles on July 30, 2024, when he travelled to Yokohama to defeat two-division champion Kenshiro Teraji. He spent the second half of that year out of the ring for general maintenance and had been eyeing his first defense in early 2026 before the WBC’s January order locked in Yafai as the next opponent.
His promoter, Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, had publicly favoured pursuing a third belt against Olascuaga. Instead, Sandoval will defend against a mandatory challenger promoted by a competing outfit, with Matchroom running the show.
Yafai’s route back to mandatory status
Yafai’s path to this title shot nearly collapsed after a points loss to Francisco Rodriguez on June 21, 2025, in Birmingham. Yafai was dropped during the 12-round fight. The result was later invalidated for WBC purposes after Rodriguez tested positive for the banned substance heptaminol through a VADA test administered under the WBC’s Clean Boxing Program.
The WBC ruled in July 2025 that Rodriguez had “unknowingly and unintentionally ingested the banned substance” via an over-the-counter energy booster, according to BBC Sport. Rodriguez was placed on 12 months’ probation and required to undergo a minimum of three random VADA tests. The WBC restored Yafai’s interim title and his mandatory position.
The loss still sits on Yafai’s official UK record. The British Boxing Board of Control cannot overrule the result until UK Anti-Doping completes its own investigation, a process that has moved slowly while the WBC’s independent restoration cleared Yafai’s path on the sanctioning side.
Yafai’s last meaningful win came in November 2024, when he stopped former IBF titlist Sunny Edwards in six rounds at the bp pulse LIVE Arena in Birmingham.
Matchroom now holds the rights to stage the ordered bout. The next step is finalising when and where Yafai challenges Sandoval for the WBC and WBA flyweight titles.
