Arthur Biyarslanov hits out at Lindolfo Delgado over Riyadh no-show as team waits on IBF ruling

Arthur Biyarslanov is not letting Lindolfo Delgado's withdrawal from their vacant IBF super lightweight title fight go quietly. While the Riyadh card he was supposed to fight on went ahead on Saturday, October 31, the unbeaten 140-pound contender took to X to question why his opponent faced so little criticism for staying home.

Biyarslanov vs Delgado had been booked for the Canelo Alvarez vs Christian Mbilli undercard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the vacant IBF belt on the line. The fight was called off fight week after Delgado chose not to travel.

'I trained 12 hard weeks'

The Russian-born Canadian, 21-0 (17 KOs), posted during the event: "I wonder what the narrative would have been like if it was me that did not show up to the fight…I trained 12 hard weeks away from friends/family and 'risked' as they say…. 19/20 boxers showed up. I waited a full week but no mentions of my name or explanation from Delgados team…"

In a follow-up post he added: "Its okay… Sooner or later i will take whats meant for me and nobody will get a chance to take it away from me. #140 #worldchampion #unified."

Why the fight fell through

Delgado's trainer Robert Garcia publicly blamed safety. Riyadh had been dealing with missile threats in the weeks before the show, and Garcia also pointed to travel plans that would have meant flying into Bahrain and then driving for hours. "Why would we risk ourselves going over there without being safe?" Garcia said on ProBoxTV's "BoxingScene Today", according to BoxingScene.

There may have been more to it. Reporter Dan Rafael, citing a source involved with the event, reported that Delgado's passport had expired or was close to expiring. According to Rafael, Delgado renewed it the week before, and his Saudi visa was due to be issued on the Sunday he pulled out. Rafael also said Biyarslanov would not get a replacement opponent on the night.

Biyarslanov's trainer, Samuel Decarie-Drolet, told Fights Around The World that promoter Camille Estephan had offered to pay for extra security out of his own pocket, but Team Delgado still would not come. Decarie-Drolet said he respected the decision but felt it came too late: "They could have told us weeks ago."

Kambosos: the shoe on the other foot

Jimmy Kambosos, described by World Boxing News as Biyarslanov's manager, said on October 30 that the fighter was heading home to Chechnya after the search for a late replacement ran out of time. He insisted Biyarslanov "will not be denied" a shot at the vacant title, and listed security, an expired passport, visa delays, management and trainer advice, and a communication breakdown as possible reasons for the no-show.

After the card, Kambosos said that if the roles had been reversed, Team Delgado would have asked the IBF to strip Biyarslanov of his ranking and move on to the next highest-ranked fighter. "Team Biyarslanov has remained patient and will now wait on how the IBF responds," he wrote.

What's next

Delgado, 24-0 (16 KOs), has not publicly answered Biyarslanov's posts. No new date has been announced, and the IBF has not said whether the fight will be rescheduled or the vacant title will go to someone else. BoxingScene notes that Delgado is ranked No. 1 by the WBC at 140 pounds, with Biyarslanov No. 3.

The rest of the card went ahead as planned, with 19 of the 20 scheduled fighters in Riyadh, and Canelo Alvarez beat Christian Mbilli by unanimous decision to win the WBC super middleweight title.