WBO President Defends Janibek Alimkhanuly's Mandatory Status Against Sheeraz's Claims
WBO president Gustavo Olivieri has hit back hard at Hamzah Sheeraz, flatly rejecting the champion’s accusation that the sanctioning body acted “corruptly” in naming Janibek Alimkhanuly as his mandatory challenger at super middleweight.
Sheeraz, who holds the WBO title at 168 pounds, publicly blasted the organization after Alimkhanuly — a former unified middleweight champion who recently failed a VADA test — was elevated to mandatory status despite having never boxed in the division.
To Olivieri, the line had been crossed.
“I respectfully but unequivocally disagree with his assertions, particularly any suggestion of ‘corruption,’ improper ‘motives,’ or decisions influenced by ‘personal relationships,’” he told Uncrowned, after Sheeraz’s interview with Ariel Helwani ignited the controversy.
Sheeraz calls it “a joke”
The row stems from a decision that stunned many in the sport.
Alimkhanuly, unbeaten at 17-0 (12 KOs), tested positive for a banned substance just days before a planned three-belt middleweight unification with Erislandy Lara in December. The fight collapsed. The Kazakh was suspended, and the bout disappeared from the schedule.
When the WBO then terminated his suspension early and installed him as mandatory challenger for Sheeraz’s super middleweight belt, the champion erupted.
“I think it’s a joke,” Sheeraz said on Uncrowned. “I think what the WBO have done here is disgraceful to the sport of boxing. What they’re essentially doing is rewarding someone who has [tested positive], so to me, it doesn’t make sense.
“What the WBO have done here — to me, it’s corrupt,” he continued. “And I’ll say it as it is, I feel like it’s all based off relationships. These moves being made are all based off personal relationships or whatever it may be, because it’s come out of nowhere and is extremely not right for the sport of boxing.”
Those comments forced the WBO to move from silence to explanation.
Olivieri: Janibek’s case is different
In a detailed follow-up sent Tuesday, Olivieri laid out the WBO’s reasoning and tried to draw a clear line between Alimkhanuly’s situation and other high-profile doping cases.
“First, Zhanibek never stepped inside the ring in connection with the anti-doping matter,” Olivieri said. “The bout did not proceed. That fact materially distinguishes his case from other circumstances, including Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney, where the contest actually occurred and the anti-doping findings arose in connection with a completed championship bout. These are fundamentally different factual circumstances and should not be treated as interchangeable cases.”
The WBO president then pointed to Alimkhanuly’s status as a first-time offender and the evidence presented in his defense.
“Second, Zhanibek was a first-time offender. During the disciplinary proceedings, he presented mitigating circumstances for the WBO’s consideration, including supporting medical evidence. The WBO nevertheless imposed disciplinary measures that were broader than the suspension imposed by the licensing commission governing his most recent bout in Kazakhstan.”
The Kazakhstan Professional Boxing Federation (KPBF) banned Alimkhanuly for six months. The WBO went further, issuing a suspension twice that length. When it announced that punishment, the organization explicitly reserved the right to modify it later.
According to Olivieri, that is exactly what happened after a full review of the case, which included Alimkhanuly’s cooperation and compliance with the conditions set out by the WBO.
From the WBO’s perspective, once that suspension ended, the matter was closed. The failed test, Olivieri insisted, had no bearing on whether Alimkhanuly could be installed as mandatory challenger at 168 pounds.
A question of precedent, not favoritism
The most contentious part of the ruling is not just the doping cloud, but the fact that Alimkhanuly has never boxed at super middleweight. To Sheeraz and his supporters, that looks like special treatment.
Olivieri countered by pointing to a long-standing WBO policy: recent WBO champions are routinely given preferential consideration when they move up or down in weight, and can even be placed straight in as mandatory challengers in a new division.
Keyshawn Davis was offered as a prime example.
Davis lost his WBO lightweight title in June 2025. He then climbed to super lightweight, boxed twice in non-title fights, and jumped again to welterweight. Without a single bout at 147 pounds, he was ranked No. 1 and later named mandatory challenger for Devin Haney.
Davis’ case, Olivieri argued, shows that the WBO’s approach is not unique to Alimkhanuly and not dependent on a fighter being in pristine standing. It is, in the organization’s view, a consistent application of precedent.
Alimkhanuly’s résumé at 160 pounds — where he unified the WBO and IBF titles — was also used to justify his leapfrogging of the field. Olivieri specifically contrasted him with Jacob Bank, the undefeated 20-0 (11 KOs) contender whose record, he said, does not compare to the Kazakh’s achievements.
A ruling that won’t be walked back
For Sheeraz, the optics remain ugly: a fighter who failed a VADA test, never fought at 168, and still lands the mandatory slot for his belt.
For Olivieri and the WBO, the case is closed. The doping issue, they say, ended with the suspension. The ranking is rooted in past championships and established policy.
The arguments have been laid out. The language has turned sharp. Now the only thing left is the fight itself — if Sheeraz chooses to face the man he believes should never have been in line in the first place.
