Andrew Moloney pushes to enforce mandatory bout with Kal Yafai, overrule planned Gonzalez fight

Matchroom’s plan to pit WBA super flyweight champ Kal Yafai against Roman Gonzalez on the February 29th Mikey Garcia-Jessie Vargas card has hit a snag in the form of mandatory challenger Andrew Moloney. The unbeaten Aussie technically has a guaranteed crack at Yafai “no later than March 22nd,” and Dan Rafael reports that he’s enlisted attorney Pat English in order to push his case.

Moloney (21-0, 14 KO) claimed his shot last March 22nd with a TKO of Miguel Gonzalez, whom you may recall as the guy Jerwin Ancajas brutalized last month. He’d previously stopped veteran Luis Concepcion, from whom Yafai (26-0, 15 KO) took his title, and went on to become interim champion in a war with Elton Dharry.

I’m expecting Moloney to receive some step-aside money and assurance that the fight will take place later this year. Yafai doesn’t have a single standout victory besides beating Concepcion; A matchup with the storied Gonzalez (48-2, 40 KO) or, should this not go his way, a matchup with someone who’d just beaten him would be far larger.