WBO has officially ordered #1 Sam Noakes to begin negotiations to face #2 Abdullah Mason to receive the vacant lightweight title. The two fighters have a 20-day deal.
This is an important advancement for Noakes (17-0, 15 KO), who has been fighting domestically throughout his six-year career. He ranks number one in the WBO, but his resume is the barrenness of competitors. Noakes’ resume has no competitor.
WBO orders Mason-Noakes lightweight champion battle
On the surface, this is a mismatch in favor of Mason. This fight will make the WBO look bad because it hasn’t proven itself, isn’t ready, limited Noakes rank first. As an organization, you want to make realistic choices for rankings. There is no reason to put Noakes on #1.
The WBO obviously has a reason to rank Noakes first, but the reality is that he is not at half the level of Mason’s past fights. So, Abdullah (19-0, 17 Kos) will win and become the next WBO lightweight champion, a discarded conclusion.
Fans hope WBO orders Abdullah Mason to fight Edwin de Los Santos or Andy Cruz to win the 135-pound vacancy title instead of the Noakes. These two were going to be more worthy of opponents for Mason’s vacant title.
Is Mason too young?
People are worried that Mason, 21, is too young to fight Noakes, 27, and should wait. Some believe that even though Abdullah won the vacant WBO title with victory, he was too young to tie the belt with the wolf that was about to come for him.
Top Mason Conservation Challenge
Once you win the championship, the top rankings can’t protect Mason as they do in a careful docking session. Once he has a WBO title, he has a goal on his back and the lightweight division predators will bring him. Foreseeable, the top rankings will avoid fighters like Andy Cruz, Raymond Muratalla, Shakur Stevenson and Gervonta Davis. Mason was too green to fight any of those four fighters.
The WBO title vacant in the title battle last Friday against De Los Santos. Davis is overweight at 4.3 pounds, and some fans think it’s something he’s deliberately missing, either to gain an advantage or to avoid fighting altogether. Eventually, the match was cancelled after De Los Santos’s management decided not to play.
The road to WBO lightweight title begins. 🥊
#1 Sam Noakes and #2 Abdullah Mason have 20-day deals. Negotiations are officially underway.#WBO #LightWeightDivision #Newera pic.twitter.com/qnjout2gri
– WBO (@worldboxingorg) June 12, 2025
Last updated on June 12, 2012
