Hamzah Sheeraz could be set for a difficult next defence of his WBO super-middleweight title.

After being held to a draw in a WBC title bid against Carlos Adames at middleweight in February 2025, Sheeraz has emerged as one of the key players at 168lbs, beginning when he moved up in weight and knocked out Edgar Berlanga.

He claimed the vacant WBO title back in May with a stoppage win over the overmatched Alem Begic, before a defence against Simon Zachenhuber followed in July, with some fans criticising Sheeraz’s performance as he earned a majority decision win.

The 27-year-old may now need a much-improved showing next time around, after it was announced by the WBO that former unified world middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly has been installed as the mandatory challenger for Sheeraz’s title.

Janibek has an unbeaten record of 17-0 with 12 knockouts which led to him becoming unified IBF and WBO middleweight champion, but he hasn’t competed since his stoppage win over Anauel Ngamissengue back in April 2025.

That was due to testing positive for banned substance meldonium ahead of a planned fight with WBA middleweight champion Erislandy Lara in December, leading him to be stripped of his IBF title.

The WBO took a more lenient approach, as the Kazakh fighter instead vacated his belt and was installed as the number two contender at 168lbs following his suspension, leading to his position as mandatory challenger.

The WBO has ordered Sheeraz and Janibek to enter immediate negotiations, with a 20-day window in place to reach an agreement before it is put to purse bids.

We had a bit of a news dump in the NFL ahead of the three preseason games that kicked off Friday night. The league suspended four players at the start of the season for various violations, headlined by Atlanta Falcons pass rusher James Pearce Jr., who was issued an eight-game suspension following his offseason arrest.

All four suspensions begin on Aug. 30, meaning the players can participate in preseason activities, including preseason games. Two notable players who did not receive suspensions on Friday are Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs and Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua. However, the NFL is looking into these situations. Jacobs was arrested this offseason on charges related to domestic violence, but the case remains open. As for Nacua, a woman filed a civil lawsuit against him in March on allegations of gender violence, along with assault and battery.

EDGE James Pearce Jr.: 8 games

The NFL suspended James Pearce Jr. eight games without pay for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. He is eligible for reinstatement on Monday, Nov. 2.

The Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist was arrested on Feb. 7 after he chased his then-girlfriend in an SUV and rammed her vehicle. Pearce fled from police before eventually being apprehended. He was initially charged with three felonies: Aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding police and resisting an officer with violence to his or her person.

Pearce struck an agreement where if he completed a pre-trial intervention program and stayed out of trouble for six months, all charges would be dismissed. The victim and the police officers involved in the case agreed to this resolution. 

The loss of Pearce is a massive one for Atlanta, especially when you consider that fellow second-year pass rusher Jalon Walker suffered a torn ACL in training camp. In his first NFL season, Pearce set a Falcons rookie record by racking up 10.5 sacks in addition to 26 tackles. On the Falcons’ initial depth chart, Cameron Thomas and Brandon Dorlus are listed as their starting pass rushers.

DT Phidarian Mathis: 3 games

Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis was suspended for the first three games of the season after he violated the NFL’s substance abuse policy. He is eligible for reinstatement on Monday, Sept. 28.

The former second-round pick of the Washington Commanders played six games for the Bills last year and made 13 tackles. He re-signed with Buffalo on a one-year deal this offseason. 

On the Bills’ initial depth chart, Mathis was listed as a second-string defensive lineman behind Ed Oliver, Deone Walker and T.J. Sanders.

CB Nazeeh Johnson: 6 games

Tennessee Titans cornerback Nazeeh Johnson was suspended six games for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing substances policy. He is eligible for reinstatement on Monday, Oct. 19. 

Johnson spent his first four NFL seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs before signing with the Titans last month. In 29 career games played with six starts, he’s recorded 66 tackles, three passes defensed and one sack. 

Johnson was listed as a third-string cornerback on Tennessee’s initial depth chart. In the Titans’ 19-13 preseason victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night, he tied for the team lead in tackles with five. 

EDGE Dorance Armstrong Jr.: 1 game

Commanders pass rusher Dorance Armstrong was suspended one game for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Armstrong was arrested in Texas last year on misdemeanor charges of assault causing bodily injury and resisting arrest/search or transport, according to ESPN.

Armstrong got off to a productive start for Washington last season, recording 5.5 sacks in the first seven games. However, he then tore his ACL.

Armstrong is still recovering from his knee injury, and was listed as a second-string pass rusher on Washington’s first depth chart behind free-agent additions Odafe Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson. 

The Washington Nationals have been surprisingly solid this season, and CJ Abrams has been one of the stars of the show. The infielder is batting .284 with 29 home runs and 91 RBIs, and his fine performances earned him his second All-Star selection.

Primarily a shortstop, recent reports have suggested the Nats are considering playing Abrams at second base. Popular content page “Talkin’ Baseball” informed fans of the development, posting to X on Friday.

“Nationals are starting to move CJ Abrams from shortstop to second base,” the post was captioned.

Several fans appeared to be quite skeptical of the decision, citing CJ Abrams’ defensive limitations.

“He really should be DH he’s so bad defensively,” a fan wrote.

“Worth trying to keep him on the dirt and very interested to see how it goes but my hunch is that Abrams ends up in the outfield,” another fan commented.

“He’s the worst defender in the mlb and it’s not close,” another fan stated.

“This is a bad idea, but I said that about Lu Gar (Luis Garcia Jr.) moving to first. What do I know,” another fan replied.

“Shocked they’re doing this now instead of riding out the season,” another fan posted.

“They are so, so stupid,” another fan shared.

Washington Nationals manager talks about CJ Abrams’ transition into new role

Speaking to The Athletic’s Spencer Nusbaum on Friday, Washington Nationals manager Blake Butera talked about CJ Abrams’ transition into his new role, and what prompted the organization to make this decision.

“There is no perfect time to do this,” Butera said. “I think you can make an argument like, ‘Why didn’t we do it coming out of spring training?’ It’s like, well, then we’re not giving him a chance to show if he can do it or not. We think now is probably the best time because, one, we wanted CJ to be able to play shortstop.

“Especially with new coaches here and have some run to do that. But then also I think doing it now allows him a chance to, like, get some real feedback before the offseason to know what this looks like and what he’s going to have to really hone in on during the offseason to make 2027 better.”

Nasim Nunez is set to replace Abrams at shortstop.