Jack Massey (right) lands a right hand on Isaac Chamberlain en route to a unanimous decision victory on June 15 in London. (Photo credit: Lawrence Lustig, BOXXER)
The European Boxing Union (EBU) has been around for over a hundred years, albeit in different guises.
The prestigious European title was formed in 1911 in Paris, France and was known as the International Boxing Union (IBU) title. It was called that until 1942.
The organization had problems during World War II and the Associazione Pugilistica Professionistica Europea (APPE) replaced the IBU from 1942-44. It was based in Rome, Italy. APPE closed its doors in 1944.
It was then, after a two-year hiatus, that the EBU as we know it today came into being and is still based in Rome. They celebrate their 75th anniversary this year.
Today, 41 countries are members of the EBU. Although there are 17 weight classes (18 if you include the WBC and, more recently, WBA accepting the bridgeweight division), only 14 divisions are recognized by the EBU. The three divisions omitted are junior bantamweight, junior flyweight and strawweight.
Over the years, many European champions have become world champions, including the likes of Lennox Lewis, Tyson Fury, the Klitschko brothers, David Haye, Nino Benvenuti and Naseem Hamed.
Here’s an update on the current champions and their plans:
Heavy weight
Oleksandr Zakhozhyi (19-0, 15 knockouts) won the vacant title against Granit Shala (KO 2) in April. He will make a voluntary defense against a yet-to-be-determined challenger in Heidelberg, Germany, on November 23.
Cruiser weight
Jack Massey vacated the title to face Ring/IBF champion Jai Opetaia on October 12.
Former titleholder Michal Cieslak (26-2, 20 KOs) and Leonardo Mosquea (15-0, 9 KOs) have been earmarked to fill the vacancy. There will be a purse bid on September 23, if the two parties fail to reach an agreement in the meantime.
Kevin Lele Sadjo (right) stepped in as a late replacement to face Jack Cullen in December 2021 and eventually won the European super middleweight title with a sixth-round stoppage. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Light heavyweight
Daniel Blenda Dos Santos (22-1, 10 KOs) will make the first defense of his title against official challenger Shakan Pitters (19-2, 6 KOs). The fight was supposed to take place in France on November 9, but was postponed due to TV issues.
Super middleweight
Kevin Lele Sadjo (23-0, 20 KOs) has made two successful defenses since first claiming the vacant EBU title in December 2021. The Frenchman was scheduled to face mandatory challenger Ivan Zucco (19-0, 16 KOs), but the fight was postponed when Zucco was injured. Sadjo will instead make a voluntary defense
Middle weight
Tyler Denny (19-2-3, 1 KO) will look to make his second defense of the title he won last November when he takes on voluntary challenger Hamzah Sheeraz (20-0, 16 KOs) at Wembley on Saturday stadium.
Abass Baraou (right) – Photo by Leigh Dawney/Wasserman Boxing.
Junior Middleweight
Abbas Barou (16-1, 9 KOs) won the vacant EBU title by turning back the spirited effort of Sam Eggington (MD 12) in March. The German has made one defense and will next face mandatory challenger Oscar Diaz (13-0, 6 KOs).
Welterweight
Jordy Weiss (32-0-1, 3 KOs) claimed the vacant European title against Meriton Karaxha (UD 12) last October and made one defense. His mandatory challenger is Michael McKinson, but he won’t make a voluntary defense against Samuel Molina (29-3, 15 KOs) until October 19.
Junior Welterweight
Adam Azim vacated the title and Dalton Smith (16-0, 12 KOs) and Jon Fernandez (26-3, 22 KOs) will meet to fill the vacancy. They were supposed to meet on September 28, but the fight was postponed until November.
Lightweight
Sam Noakes (15-0, 14 KOs) burst onto the scene earlier this year and dominated Yvan Mendy (UD 12). He has made one save since then. His official challenger is Laid Douadi (26-0-1, 2 KOs).
Junior lightweight
Khalil El Hadri (19-2, 9 KOs) won the title in June and will face Salvador Jimenez (13-0-1, 5 KOs) on December 21st in Les Mureaux, France.
Featherweight
Cristobal Lorente (19-0-1, 8 KOs) defeated Mauro Forte (MD 12) to win the title in July. He will defend the title against an as yet unknown opponent in November. His official challenger is Nathaniel Collins.
Junior Featherweight
Dennis McCann (16-0-1, 8 KOs) beat Ionut Baluta (UD 12) in their rematch to win the vacant crown. He is mandated to face Peter McGrail (9-1, 5 KOs) and the fight must be negotiated.
Bantamweight
Thomas Essomba (18-8-1, 4 KOs) will make a voluntary defense against Charlie Edwards (19-1, 7 KOs) on September 27th in London. The winner must face the official challenger, former two-time world champion Paul Butler.
Flyweights
Jay Harris (21-3, 11 KOs) will face fellow British boxer Conor Kelstall (12-0, 1 KOs) at a venue and date to be determined.
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at (email protected).
