Joe Cordina’s trip halfway around the world will become even more important soon enough.

Eddie Hearn, Cordina’s promoter, stated during the most recent episode of Matchroom Boxing’s podcast that the upcoming bout between Wales’ Cordina and American Gabriel Flores Jr. will determine the WBO’s next mandatory challenger for the sanctioning body’s vacant lightweight title. The WBO could confirm Cordina-Flores as a 135-pound championship elimination match during its 38th annual convention, scheduled for Monday through Friday in Bogota, Colombia.

Cordina (18-1, 9 KOs), a former IBF junior lightweight champ, and Flores (27-2, 8 KOs) are set to square off in a 12-rounder December 13 at Adventist Health Arena in Flores’ hometown of Stockton, California. DAZN will stream the Cordina-Flores fight as the streaming service’s co-feature the night super middleweight contenders Diego Pacheco (24-0, 18 KOs) and Kevin Lele Sadjo (26-0, 23 KOs) are set to meet in the 12-round main event.

Flores, 24, is ranked fourth in the WBO’s top 15. Cordina, 33, is rated sixth.

Neither Flores nor Cordina are among The Ring’s top 10 lightweight contenders.

Cordina will fight for the second time since he moved up to the lightweight division following his eighth-round, technical-knockout loss to Anthony Cacace in May 2024. Northern Ireland’s Cacace (24-1, 9 KOs) took the IBF 130-pound crown from the heavily favored Cordina.

The WBO lightweight title is vacant because it was stripped from Keyshawn Davis after he failed to make weight for an optional title defense against Edwin De Los Santos four months ago. Davis (13-0, 9 KOs, 1 NC) came in 4.3 pounds overweight June 6, which led Sampson Lewkowicz, De Los Santos’ former promoter, to pull De Los Santos (16-2, 14 KOs) out of their June 7 bout in Norfolk, Virginia, Davis’ hometown, because he was worried Davis’ weight advantage made their fight unsafe for the Dominican southpaw.

Undefeated contenders Abdullah Mason and Sam Noakes will fight for the unclaimed WBO lightweight crown November 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Their 12-round fight will open The Ring’s four-fight “Night of Champions” pay-per-view show from ANB Arena ($59.99 in the United States; £24.99 in the UK).

Cleveland’s Mason (19-0, 17 KOs) is the WBO’s No. 1 contender. Noakes (17-0, 15 KOs), of Maidstone, England, is ranked second by the WBO.