The WBA Championship Committee has ruled on a request by WBA heavyweight champion Manuel Charr to reconsider a WBA resolution calling for a 50/50 purse bid split if a purse bid is required for his mandated defense against Fres Oquendo. Charr claims he was not given timely notice of the conditions in the WBA resolution approving his November 25 bout with Alexander Ustinov. He also requested that the minimum purse bid requirement for the Oquendo bout be altered.

Charr’s request for reconsideration was partially granted due to the timing of the notices regarding the resolution conditions and based on both parties’ request that the purse bid minimum be removed for a Charr-Oquendo bout. Therefore, the minimum purse bid amount for the bout is removed, but the 50/50 split remains.

On November 24, 2017, the WBA Championships Committee issued a resolution approving a Special Permit for Manuel Charr to face Alexander Ustinov for the WBA heavyweight title the following day. The Special Permit had conditions, one being that the winner must immediately start negotiations with WBA #3 ranked Fres Oquendo with an agreement being made before December 22. Another condition was that if a purse bid was required, the split would be 50/50.

Oquendo’s representatives did not oppose a reduction of the minimum purse bid amount, but argued that Charr and his representatives knew the conditions of the resolution and participated in the Ustinov bout anyway.

The Committee believes there is ample evidence that Charr’s representatives were aware of the underlying Special Permit request, and the WBA assumed that Charr had been adequately informed of the conditions. Nevertheless, they consider it unlikely that Charr would have declined to participate in the Ustinov vacant title bout conditioned on a 50/50 purse split because the bout would not have been for the title otherwise.

Expect a call for a Charr-Oquendo purse bid to be issued by the WBA shortly.