Anthony Cacace focuses on Nick Ball as WBA mandatory awaits winner

Anthony Cacace said on 9 October that he is focused on his 19 December WBA super-featherweight title defence against Nick Ball at O2 Belfast, despite reported interest in a future fight from Vasiliy Lomachenko. The distinction matters because the WBA has already directed the winner of Cacace-Ball to face Elnur Samedov in a mandatory bout.

The Belfast fight will be Cacace’s first defence of the WBA title. Ball, a former WBA featherweight champion, is moving up to super-featherweight for the first time and has the chance to win a title in a second weight division, according to BBC Sport. Cacace, 37, will be fighting in his home city; Ball is 29 and from Liverpool.

What Cacace said about Lomachenko

Cacace told BBC Sport he was surprised by the talk of Lomachenko’s interest but would keep his attention on Ball. ‘I’m not really thinking about that just now, I just kind of want to focus fully on Nick Ball and this fight coming up,’ he said. He recalled calling out Lomachenko publicly in 2012 and said he would welcome the opportunity if a fight materialised.

BBC Sport attributed the reported interest to ESPN’s Brian Custer. It did not report an agreement for Cacace to fight Lomachenko. For now, the December contest is the scheduled bout, and the WBA’s published resolution sets out a different next title obligation for its winner.

Why the WBA requires the winner to face Elnur Samedov

The WBA says the winner must confirm participation in the Samedov mandatory within 12 days of Cacace’s voluntary bout. It calls for the mandatory fight to take place in neutral territory at a venue approved by all parties. The WBA will determine its date and said a separate resolution would set further terms, including any purse split if the fight goes to a purse bid.

The governing body also said it would grant no further special permission until the mandatory fight had taken place or the parties had reached an agreement. Its resolution bars a title unification bout while the division does not have a single champion. Those provisions leave a possible Lomachenko fight unconfirmed and subject to the WBA title route, regardless of the reported interest.

How the Cacace-Samedov bout was delayed

The WBA ordered Cacace to face Samedov on 2 June and gave their camps 30 days, through 2 July, to negotiate. Its June announcement said the mandatory defence was due by 14 July under the rule it cited. The September resolution describes why the governing body later allowed Cacace to take a voluntary defence first.

According to the WBA, Queensberry Promotions, representing Cacace, and Titov Boxing Promotions, representing Samedov, did not reach a definitive agreement. Contracts submitted by Queensberry contemplated a fight in Northern Ireland. The WBA says the British Boxing Board of Control rejected Samedov’s request to compete in the UK and upheld that decision after reviewing citizenship and residency documents. Negotiations were suspended, the WBA said. That account comes from the WBA’s resolution; the regulator’s ruling is not included in the cited material.

Queensberry sought permission in August for Cacace to make a voluntary defence while the mandatory issue was resolved. The WBA says Samedov’s promoter challenged the British board’s decision and asked it to avoid an undue delay to his fighter’s title opportunity. The WBA’s eventual permission gives Cacace a Belfast defence while preserving the mandatory claim it has assigned to Samedov.

What Ball brings to the Belfast title fight

Ball told BBC Sport that Cacace’s height and reach advantage did not concern him because he had faced bigger opponents throughout his career. His first world title challenge, against Rey Vargas, ended in a draw. He then beat Raymond Ford to win the WBA featherweight belt and made three successful defences before losing to Brandon Figueroa in February 2026.

Figueroa dropped Ball twice and stopped him in the final round, Ball’s first defeat as a professional. Ball described that contest to BBC Sport as a close fight in which a counter left caught him. Cacace said he expected Ball to press forward aggressively and believed he could handle that approach.

Cacace called the chance to headline a world-title defence in Belfast ‘a dream come true’. He has fought in the city five times across a 26-fight career, according to BBC Sport. The December result will decide who holds the WBA obligation to meet Samedov; the date, venue and final terms of that mandatory fight remain to be settled by the governing body.