He is the former WBC cruiserweight champion, having lost the title when he was unable to defend it due to injury and was subsequently stripped.
(meta data) TITLE: Grigory Drozd will exercise right to face Tony Bellew later this year - Boxing News News | Jun 02 2016 # Grigory Drozd will exercise right to face Tony Bellew later this year Grigory Drozd has begun training for a fight with new champion Bellew Add CommentGeorge Gigney2 Min Read FORMER WBC world cruiserweight champion Grigory Drozd has announced he will exercise his right to face new champion Tony Bellew later this year. Drozd was relieved of the belt after being unable to defend it enough due to injury, and Bellew picked up the vacant strap by hammering Ilunga Makabu in three rounds at the weekend. The WBC made Drozd their 'champion in recess' which gave him the right to face the winner of Bellew-Makabu once he has recovered from injury. "First of all, I'd like to congratulate Tony Bellew on his big win. Ilunga Makabu is a very strong fighter and defeating him is a great achievement," Drozd said. "I'm happy that while I was out with the injury, the WBC belt wasn't put on a shelf and was contested in such a spectacular fight between two worthy contenders. That's exactly what I wanted after I was injured and had to postpone my next fight. "The Champion in Recess title gives me the right to fight for the WBC belt when I completely recover from the injury. And I'm going to take advantage of this right. "I started training again last week and I'll be ready to fight Tony Bellew in autumn or in winter. "I want to congratulate Tony Bellew on his victory once again and… see you in the ring!" The Russian won the title with an impressive points win over Krzysztof Wlodarczyk in 2014, before stopping Lukasz Janik in May 2015 in what was his first and only defence. Bellew's team are aware of Drozd's intentions, and will discuss their options once the new champion has enjoyed a well-deserved holiday. Former unified cruiserweight champion David Haye has been involved in a war of words since Tony following Bellew's emotional interview after beating Makabu, and has stated he could get to 210lbs to fight Bellew at a catchweight. Tagsdavid haye grigory drozd Ilunga Makabu tony bellew GET 10% OFF TOTAL PURCHASE* USE PROMO CODE: SUMMER10 *SALE ENDS 31 AUGUST # You may also like News | Aug 01 2019 ## David Haye wants critics to give Dillian Whyte a break BN Investigates | Premium | May 18 2019 ## The Dangers of a Boxer's Weight Cut Archives | Premium | Mar 04 2019 ## On this day Tony Bellew first upset David Haye Feature | Jan 30 2019 ## EXCLUSIVE 'Tony Bellew changed my life' # Current issue Anthony Joshua and the sport of boxing put their reputations on the line What Anthony Joshua can expect in Saudi Arabia Zab Judah: 'They thought they were just going to have a boxing match and they never made it home. My heart goes out to those guys' Richard Williams: 'When you're in a real fight, in a proper fight, it gets dark' Cannabis in boxing » AND MUCH MORE... You need to be a subscriber to access the digital edition. If you have a subscription please sign in here. If you're not a subscriber, take out a subscription to access issue content online, in print and as a digital edition. #### Most popular ## Zab Judah says he would have "accepted" a draw against Floyd Mayweather ## Boxing News at Five: Anthony Joshua calls Lennox Lewis a "clown", Joshua Buatsi fights Ryan Ford on August 31 ## Anthony Joshua downplays Andy Ruiz Jr's perfect punch as a 'lucky punch' ## Boxing News at Five: Sulaiman says the WBC have not suspended Whyte, Spong lets his cougar run amok ## My Night: Darren Barker scores one of the greatest feel-good victories in British boxing history # Newsletters Don't miss any action. Sign up for the free Boxing News newsletter(s) here
train24393
Grigory Drozd
Abstract.
Grigory Anatolyevich Drozd (Russian: Григорий Анатольевич Дрозд; born 26 August 26, 1979) is a Russian former professional boxer.