After Bermane Stiverne of Canada won the vacant WBC heavyweight title, he was required by the WBC rules to make two mandatory title defenses.
The first, against No. 1 ranked Deontay Wilder of the United States, was held on January 17. Wilder won the title by unanimous decision over twelve.
The second mandatory challenger was Bryant Jennings, but he took another fight instead against Wladimir Klitschko, so the WBC approved a final eliminator between No. 2 ranked Alexander Povetkin of Russia and No. 4 ranked Mike Perez of Cuba/Ireland to determine the second mandatory challenger.
Povetkin knocked out Perez in 1 round on May 22, 2015 in Russia, becoming the WBC mandatory contender of the division. Povetkin is also the WBC's silver champion of the division.
Wilder's fight with Eric Molina has been sanctioned as a voluntary defense for Saturday night in Alabama.
The free negotiations period for the next mandatory, between Wilder (should he win with Molina) and Povetkin, will be ordered in the month of October. If the two sides are unable to reach an agreement, a purse bid will be ordered.