Wales’ Cordina was slated to challenge Mason for the WBO lightweight title in Cleveland, in the main event of a DAZN-streamed fight that was also to be the first fight of a simulcast deal with TNT.
But the show will go on, with Albert Bell stepping in to challenge Mason. Bell had been in training for an IBF lightweight eliminator against Andy Cruz on July 18, and now has an even better opportunity.
The 33-year-old Bell (28-0, 9 KO) will also be fighting close to home, as he’s a Toledo native, and realistically, he couldn’t have asked for a better break to come his way.
Bell is a former Top Rank fighter who never really broke through on their roster despite winning his fights. He does not have a fan-friendly sort of style, he is not a great bet to make for “good TV,” and Top Rank just didn’t see a lot of upside in him.
Top Rank, like any promoter, has been wrong on these calls before, though, and now one of their key young stars, Mason (20-0, 17 KO), is taking a pretty short-notice challenge from a fighter who can be tricky and awkward to fight, and who is a much different stylistic matchup from Cordina.
In other words, this could be a dangerous opponent switch for the 22-year-old Mason, but it’s also still a chance for him so show out, and in a tougher situation than was anticipated by most with the 34-year-old Cordina, against whom Mason was a considerable favorite.
