Bakary Samake (19-0, 11 KOs) will face Ermal Hadribeaj (22-0-1, 8 KOs) on May 23 at Willy-Jürissen-Halle in Oberhausen, Germany.

The fight was originally supposed to take place on an April 25 show headlined by Tony Yoka and Lawrence Okolie, but the entire card was canceled four days prior when Okolie tested positive for a banned substance. With Queensberry no longer able to fulfill obligations to feature the fight, the WBC organized a purse bid April 29. Arena Box Promotions, which handles Hadribeaj, secured a purse bid of $339,817, besting a $281,800 offer from Samake’s side.

Samake is ranked No. 10 by The Ring and No. 1 in the WBC at 154 pounds. Hadribeaj is rated No. 3 by the sanctioning body.

Samake is a 22-year-old from France who turned pro in 2021 and has stopped his last three opponents. Samake last fought in October and knocked out previously unbeaten Alejandro Ortiz in five rounds.

Hadribeaj is a 32-year-old southpaw from Albania who built his record in the United States before continuing his career across Europe in recent years. He last fought at home in November and secured a shutout 10-round decision win against Placido Ramirez.

Samake and Hadribeaj are looking to secure a signature win for a shot at Fundora, who in recent weeks has been linked to a title unification bout against IBF champion Josh Kelly.

Vergil Ortiz is the WBC interim champion but has been sidelined in recent months due to a legal dispute with Golden Boy Promotions.

Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram: @ManoukAkopyan