NEW YORK -- Junior welterweight world titlist Ivan Baranchyk has reached an agreement with the World Boxing Super Series to rejoin the tournament after withdrawing earlier this year over a variety of issues, manager David McWater told ESPN on Thursday.
Baranchyk will go through with his semifinal fight with Josh Taylor as scheduled on May 18 (DAZN) at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, Taylor's home country, McWater said.
"We just resolved our differences. After a lot of yelling, people started listening and we resolved our differences," said McWater, who is in New York because Teofimo Lopez Jr., one of his fighters, is scheduled to box on the Terence Crawford-Amir Khan ESPN PPV card on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. "The biggest thing was Ivan wanted to fight somebody now. And at this point May 18 was closer than anything we could get scheduled. So he's excited and he thinks he beats Taylor easily."
In January, Baranchyk (19-0, 12 KOs), 26, of Belarus, and McWater made the decision to withdraw from the eight-man tournament over financial issues, including late payments and a lack of communication from tournament officials as well as unhappiness about being forced to fight in Glasgow, where Taylor also got to fight his quarterfinal fight.
The World Boxing Super Series has been beset by financial problems in its second season, which consists of tournaments in three weight classes; the WBSS has had issues paying purses as well as bonus money to fighters and was sometimes weeks late making payments to fighters, managers and promoters. Because of that, the semifinals, which were contractually supposed to take place between January and March, were delayed, also angering Baranchyk and McWater.
In an effort to force Baranchyk's hand, World Boxing Super Series owner Comosa AG was granted an ex parte injunction in a Swiss court earlier this month ordering Baranchyk to remain in the tournament. The sides began talking about a deal and one was eventually reached.
"We wouldn't be in if we weren't," McWater said of the resolution. "It was worth it. We're ready to go. Ivan was ready to fight in February. He could fight tomorrow."
Asked if he had any concerns about getting the money for the fight, and in a timely fashion, after the issues in the quarterfinals, McWater said, "We'll get all of our money, absolutely."
Baranchyk will go into the mandatory defense against Taylor (14-0, 12 KOs), 28, who easily stopped Ryan Martin in the seventh round in the quarterfinals, with a new trainer.
Earlier this year, Baranchyk left trainer Pedro Diaz and their Miami training camp, to be trained by Hall of Famer Freddie Roach at his Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, California. Diaz helped lead Baranchyk to winning a vacant 140-pound world title by seventh-round stoppage of Anthony Yigit in the quarterfinals in October in New Orleans.
"That's nerve-racking for me but not for [Baranchyk]," McWater said of the trainer change so close to the semifinals. "He seems totally fine with it. He did go from one of the greatest trainers in the world to one of the greatest trainers in the world. So it's not like he left Pedro for Joe Blow. I have faith in the kid and he seems non-fazed by it."
The Baranchyk-Taylor winner will advance to the tournament final for a unification bout against the winner of the semifinal between titlist Kiryl Relikh (23-2, 19 KOs), 29, of Belarus, against New Orleans native Regis Prograis (23-0, 19 KOs), 30, which will take place on April 27 at the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana.