On January 23 at The Forum in Horsens, Denmark, the two will meet. If Bank wins, Denmark would have its first world champion since Mikkel Kessler in 2013.

Alimkhanuly would begin his second title reign in as many weight classes with a victory. He previously held the IBF and WBO middleweight titles. That reign, however, came to an end abruptly.

Heading into his December 2025 middleweight unification against WBA champion Erislandy Lara, Alimkhanuly (17-0, 12 KOs) failed a pre-fight drug test, leading to a one-year suspension and the IBF stripping him. The WBO allowed the Kazakhstan native to remain champion while he served his suspension.

Alimkhanuly would eventually drop his WBO title in early July after announcing that he was moving up in weight. The sanctioning body declared that his suspension was cut short due to being a first-time offender and “fulfilling all of the necessary requirements,” including random drug tests.

The hard-hitting southpaw was then inserted as the No. 1 contender for now former WBO super middleweight beltholder Hamzah Sheeraz. The Ring’s No. 9 super middleweight was initially acrimonious but later warmed up to facing Alimkhanuly pending the purse.

However, Queensberry, his promoter, submitted a winning bid of $1,001,809. Sheeraz was entitled to 75% of that, totaling $751,357. Unsatisfied with his cut, Sheeraz vacated his title.

Bank, ranked No. 8 by The Ring and No. 3 by the WBO, is happy for his first chance at a major world title. Originally, Bank (20-0, 11 KOs) petitioned the WBO for a shot at Sheeraz. It was considered, but the shot went to Alimkhuanly instead.

Bank has been active in 2026. He's 3-0, with two stoppages. He secured the biggest win of his career against former IBF super middleweight champion William Scull on January 31. Bank dominated before stopping him in the 12th round.