- The IBF has officially ordered Bakhram Murtazaliev vs Brandon Adams as a final eliminator at junior middleweight, with a purse bid hearing scheduled for May 27.
- Murtazaliev is the recently-deposed IBF champion, having lost a majority decision to Josh Kelly at Newcastle Arena in January. Adams steps in after Caoimhin Agyarko declined.
- Winner becomes mandatory challenger to Kelly. Make no mistake — Murtazaliev wants this back, and he wants it badly.
Right Then — The Road Back For Murtazaliev Has A Date
Right then. The IBF has finally pulled the trigger and ordered Bakhram Murtazaliev against Brandon Adams as a final eliminator at junior middleweight. Purse bid hearing is set for May 27. Winner becomes mandatory to IBF champion Josh Kelly — the same Josh Kelly who, on January 31 at Newcastle Arena, took a majority-decision twelve from Murtazaliev and lifted the belt off him in front of a partisan crowd.
Let's not beat around the bush. That fight was close, that fight was good, and Murtazaliev did not take it well. From the moment the cards were read out he has been making it perfectly clear, in three different languages, that he wants it back. The IBF order today is the first concrete step on that path.
Adams Is Not A Token Opponent
Make no mistake about Brandon Adams. The Californian was on The Contender, has been around the 160-pound and 154-pound divisions for the best part of a decade, and is one of those fighters who is always closer to a title than people remember. He's 35, he's been to a Charlo, he's been to a Demetrius Andrade, and he's still upright. He will not be coming to roll over for Murtazaliev. This is not a coronation fight.
Adams's path here is partly luck and partly graft. Caoimhin Agyarko was offered this slot first and either declined or did not respond inside the IBF's window, and Adams was next in line. He is not the fighter Murtazaliev's camp would have circled on the board, and that's exactly the kind of detail that makes a "comfortable" return fight quietly dangerous.
The Purse Bid Question
Purse bid for May 27 is not a small detail. Murtazaliev is signed in the Eddie Hearn ecosystem and would normally land on a DAZN card. Adams's representation is American, which opens the door for a PBC counter-offer. The smart money is on Matchroom carrying it, but the IBF has surprised everyone before — and a PBC bid would push this fight to a US neutral venue and make a much more interesting purse split.
Hearn does not lose many purse bids he wants to win, so the most likely scenario remains Murtazaliev getting his comeback in the UK at the back end of summer. But this is the kind of fight where the venue genuinely matters — Adams thrives on lower expectation, neutral judges, and a quiet crowd.
What This Means For Josh Kelly
For the new champion, today's news is mixed. Kelly will want to enjoy that belt for at least one defence before having to look at a Murtazaliev rematch — and the IBF clock now starts ticking. Realistically, Kelly gets a summer voluntary, the eliminator happens around September, and the mandatory falls due early 2027. That is roughly the window every promoter would like in this position. Kelly's team will not lose any sleep over an Adams or Murtazaliev fight a year out. They will be slightly more nervous than they were yesterday.
Luke's Pick — If It Lands
If Murtazaliev–Adams happens in the autumn, I have Murtazaliev by stoppage inside ten. The technique levels are not the same. Murtazaliev's pressure and his right hand to the body are levels above what Adams has shown in his last three fights, and the motivation for the Russian to look brilliant on the comeback is doubled by the loss to Kelly. He will not want to win this on the cards.
The genuine subplot is Murtazaliev–Kelly II. Newcastle in January was a proper fight that could very easily have gone either way, and the rematch — if Murtazaliev does his job here — is one of the better 154-pound fights you could make in 2027. Today is the first paving stone on that road. Class little story to keep an eye on.