What to Know
- Zuffa Boxing’s latest signings include former world champion Jason Moloney, and standout Irish amateur Dylan Eagleson
- Making bigger news are the rumored signings of world and Ring Magazine champions Shakur Stevenson and Oleksandr Usyk
- Zuffa Boxing’s signings of big names will make a splash, but not change the value of titles for some time
Zuffa Boxing has expanded its promotional roster with announced signings of former bantamweight world champion Jason Moloney and amateur standout Dylan Eagleson.
These signings, following this spring’s roster additions of Chris Billam-Smith, Richardson Hitchins and Edgar Berlanga, reflect the company’s strategy to build a competitive stable of fighters as it establishes its position in the professional boxing market.
Fronted by UFC president Dana White and backed by Saudi Arabian funding, the promotion is moving forward with a distinct operational framework, seeking to recognize its own champions rather than relying entirely on traditional sanctioning-body belts.
Recent Boxing Zuffa Signings: Moloney and Eagleson
Jason “Mayhem” Moloney of Melbourne, Australia (29-4, 20 KOs) has signed a multi-fight promotional contract with Zuffa. Moloney has fought at bantamweight since 2017 and remains ranked among the top contenders in the division.
Moloney won a world title in May 2023 by defeating Vincent Astrolabio by majority decision. After defending the title in a Fight of the Year bout against Saul Sanchez, he lost the belt to Yoshiki Takei in a competitive 12-round decision. Moloney enters the Zuffa stable coming off two consecutive victories. In April, he won a unanimous decision over Andre Donovan of Ulrichsville, Ohio, whose resume was thin to say the least.
Moloney’s twin brother, Andrew, currently holds a junior bantamweight world title, making them one of only five pairs of twins in boxing history to both win world championships.
“I love what Zuffa is doing, giving the fans great fights every time and matching the best against the best,” said Moloney. “And that’s what I’m all about, fighting the best and becoming the best.”
In addition to veteran talent, Zuffa Boxing announced a long-term promotional agreement with featherweight southpaw Dylan Eagleson of Bangor, Northern Ireland. Bangor is scheduled to make his pro debut in a six-round bout at Zuffa Boxing 10 on Saturday, August 8, at Dublin’s 3Arena.
The card is the first for Zuffa in Ireland, featuring Irish boxing talent and headlined by a middleweight doubleheader featuring Aaron McKenna against Etinosa Oliha and Callum Walsh against Tyler Denny.
Eagleson is a top Irish amateur whose accomplishments include gold medals at the following events:
- 2018 and 2019 Irish Senior Cadet Championships
- 2020 Irish U18 Championships
- 2022 Irish U22 Championships
- 2022 Commonwealth Games
- 2023 Irish National Championships
He also secured a silver medal at the 2022 European Championships in his first senior international competition.
Speculation About Future Zuffa Signing Plans Of Shakur Stevenson and Oleksandr Usyk
Speculation continues about Zuffa Boxing signings of two pound-for-pound champions at different points of their careers. While Zuffa hasn’t confirmed either signing, other boxing industry insiders are fueling the discussion.
Rival promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Sport recently claimed Shakur Stevenson of Newark had agreed to a contract with Zuffa Boxing. The undefeated Stevenson is 25-0 with 11 knockouts and a four-division and Ring Magazine champion.
Stevenson and Hearn briefly worked together after Stevenson signed a two-fight deal in 2024. However, Stevenson opted out of the second fight and worked briefly with Lou DiBella for his title fight against Teofimo Lopez.
Zuffa has yet to announce the Stevenson signing as official.
Zuffa Boxing is also reportedly in active negotiations with lineal and Ring Magazine heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk. The 39-year-old Ukrainian recently escaped a career disaster in a competitive fight against former kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven, secured with an 11th-round TKO.
Rather than face his IBF mandatory challenger Agit Kabayel, Usyk relinquished his remaining three titles. Nevertheless, he remains the lineal champion and the Ring Magazine champion, which still carries a lot of prestige.
Usyk has made no secret of his career timeline coming to a close. He is now apparently pursuing a final big money, high-profile bout. He has also expressed his desire to stage his last big fight in the United States. While former UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ name has surfaced, the more realistic opponent is former WBC champion Deontay Wilder.
This choice may disappoint fans who would rather see Usyk in a rematch against Verhoeven, a fight that now carries massive intrigue after the first fight was blown off as a novelty for a big payday, a mistake on everyone’s part except the Dutch kickboxer who bet on himself and nearly won.
Usyk’s team has discussed a fight with Wilder in the past. Now, the timing appears to be better. Wilder has managed a credible return with his defeat of Derek Chisora. Usyk’s manager Sergey Lapin has confirmed with multiple sources that negotiations have resumed.
“We are in direct discussions with Zuffa Boxing at the highest level,” said Lapin to the BBC. “At this stage, no agreements have been signed. Zuffa Boxing is being considered as one of the potential partners for a major international event.”
Wilder’s longtime manager Shelly Finkel also confirmed the interest from their side. “If Deontay is offered a fight with Usyk, he would take it,” said Finkel to BBC Sport.
Implications for the Zuffa Boxing Model
Should Stevenson and Usyk both be signed by Zuffa – and assuming Wilder is also signed – it may be received as a massive accomplishment for the Zuffa Boxing business model. By securing or negotiating with pound-for-pound champions, Zuffa Boxing can claim it as validation of its alternative approach to boxing, bypassing the traditional sanctioning bodies.
But is it really? Usyk had already dropped his three sanctioning body titles. Stevenson was stripped of his WBC junior lightweight title when he moved up to fight Teofimo Lopez for the WBO and Ring titles in January. Now Stevenson has been ordered to fight mandatory challenger Keyshawn Davis for his WBO title.
Say what you like about whether Davis deserves the opportunity, it’s not likely a fight Stevenson wants. By signing for a big-money fight with Zuffa, Stevenson can avoid the mandatory, keep his Ring title, and still fight for a substantial purse whoever Zuffa puts in front of him.
Note the similarity in circumstances between Usyk and Stevenson. They both maintain their status as the Ring Magazine champion, and open up the opportunity to become the first Zuffa Boxing champion in their weight divisions for darn good money.
Both fighters have already racked up significant career accomplishments, more than enough to get into the Boxing Hall of Fame. I would certainly cast a first ballot vote for both of them when the day comes, even if they both retired today.
Choosing to sign with an organization like Zuffa reflects their focus on maximizing compensation and administrative simplicity. They will not be required to pay sanctioning fees to multiple governing organizations or defend titles against mandatory challengers with limited commercial appeal. Let me state clearly there is no shame in this.
Zuffa’s substantial financial backing through the Saudi General Entertainment Authority allows it to offer purses that other promoters, who must make a profit, struggle to match.
For a younger champion like Stevenson, he secures financial security at the peak of his career. For an older champion like Usyk, he secures a big-money retirement bout without navigating the political obstacles or mandatory delays imposed by sanctioning organizations.
How Fans Should View Zuffa Signings
For boxing fans, both rumored and confirmed signings present a mixture of opportunities and questions.
The involvement of a well-capitalized promotional entity means that highly anticipated, difficult-to-negotiate fights can be organized more efficiently. Zuffa’s financial backing blows up stalemates that prevent top-tier fighters from facing one another.
Meanwhile, signing prospects like Eagleson along with some established stars ensures a steady progression of competitive cards while Zuffa builds its model and stable to support it.
Meanwhile, fans should consider the long-term impact of the independent boxing model (known as a universal boxing organization or UBO) on the sport. It’s a model most fans know from the UFC in mixed martial arts.
As more elite boxers move to a single promotion that does not recognize traditional sanctioning bodies, it could lead to further fragmentation of world titles in the short term. But fans won’t care if Zuffa can consistently make solid matchups.
The absence of traditional belts may become less important to the viewing public. But they do still matter to the boxers themselves. Fighters often discuss the importance of winning one of the belts their own heroes earned before them, and carrying on their legacy of excellence. Seeing a boxer drop to his or her knees in tears after hearing those magic words “And the new” validates years of sacrifice and hard work.
It will be several years yet before we can evaluate the success of these signings. Stay tuned.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.