The great boxer Antonio Tarver is out of a scheduled fight with former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir.
Tarver was set to meet Mir in the knockout of the boxing event headed by Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren on April 17 in Atlanta. But Tarver, 52, did not meet the requirements for competition presented by the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, according to committee executive director Matt Woodruff.
Mir’s proposed new opponent is former IBF cruiserweight champion Steve “USS” Cunningham, but this fight is pending medical examination by Woodruff. Mir’s team confirmed Cunningham as the proposed replacement.
Woodruff told ESPN that Tarver was not approved for a license based on a state statute related to his age. The Georgia code states that anyone 50 years of age or older must have participated in at least 10 professional fights in the immediately preceding 10 years, “including at least four professional fights or boxing competitions in the immediately preceding four years”.
Tarver, a multiple-time light heavyweight champion, has fought only five times in the past decade and hasn’t fought in six years.
Mir, 41, will make his professional boxing debut on April 17 if Cunningham’s fight passes. He most recently fought in MMA for Bellator in October 2019, a win over Roy Nelson.
Mir was the UFC heavyweight champion in 2004. Cunningham, 44, has not fought since 2017 and has only one victory in his last five professional boxing matches.