A few weeks ago, this weekend was slated to be one of the heaviest stacked title fight weekends in boxing history. 8 title fights with 5 on US TV. I was pleasantly worried that I will not have enough space left in my DVR. Yet, hand infection, hand injury, tooth infection and blood ailment later, title fights scheduled were cut in half. Ironically, all injuries were endured by the title holders which cancels or postpones the championship bout.
Kelly Pavlik’s staph infection on his hand prevented him from defending his WBC, WBO and Ring magazine middleweight titles against Sergio Mora. There are of course conspiracy theories which are related to Pavlik’s contract extension with Top Rank. In the planned undercard of the Pavlik fight, Fernando Montiel was suppose to defend his WBO bantamweight title against Eric Morel until he injured his hand while on training. There are no new dates yet announced for both with Pavlik-Mora not very likely to be rescheduled. There have been reports that a unification bout against either Arthur Abraham or Felix Sturm is in the works.
Andreas Kotelnik had a reported tooth infection that postponed his WBA super lightweight title fight against Amir Khan to July 18. The postponement also moved the venue from London to Manchester. Then only a couple of days ago, Chris John fell ill to what was reported to be some kind of a blood-related ailment. His much anticipated WBA featherweight title rematch against Rocky Juarez is in limbo until they find out more about his condition.
So here are the remaining 4 title fights this weekend.
June 26 (Friday) - Buenos Aires, Argentina
Argentina's Omar Andres Narvaez [29(18)-0(0)-2] vs. Mexico's Omar Soto [17(11)-4(2)-1]
Narvaez’s WBO Flyweight (112 lbs.) title
Narvaez, the longest reigning titleholder will defend for the 16th time since dethroning Adonis Rivas seven years ago. When healthy and home I don’t see any reason Narvaez will lose his title to Soto. Nevertheless, Narvaez is the least regarded flyweight titleholder because he rarely takes risk and is contented on defending at home. Add to that the quality of his opponents or lack thereof. This is Soto’s second try for a world title. Muhammad Rachman knocked him out three years ago for the IBF Mini Flyweight title. Prediction: Narvaez by late stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Berlin, Germany
Armenia's Arthur Abraham [29(23)-0(0)-0] vs. Germany's Mahir Oral [25(10)-1(0)-2]
Abraham’s IBF Middleweight (160 lbs.) title
Showtime 9 pm ET
There are two possible reasons Oral will upset Abraham. One, Abraham’s struggles in meeting the 160-lb. limit will affect his conditioning in the fight where Oral will take advantage of as it gets to the later rounds. Two, having been a long-time sparring partner, Oral is very familiar with Abraham. These are possibilities where Abraham might end up losing the fight and eventually, missing the opportunity to fight Pavlik. Yet, the likelihood of it happening will still be, in my opinion, improbable. Abraham and his shell-like defense is still one of the best in the 160-lb. class. After Oral and hopefully Pavlik (win or loss), he will very likely move up to 168 lbs. Prediction: Abraham by mid-fight stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Atlantic City, NJ
Puerto Rico's Juan Manuel Lopez [25(23)-0(0)-0] vs. Cameroon's Olivier Lontchi [18(8)-0(0)-2]
Lopez’s WBO Junior Featherweight (122 lbs.) title
Top Rank PPV 9 pm ET
JuanMa proved that he can maintain his power and speed after going past the 6th round in his last fight against the ageless Gerry Penalosa. That will come in handy against the undefeated Lontchi. The Montreal-based Lontchi was born and raised in Cameroon and fought for his homeland as an amateur until 2001. Together with fellow boxer Herman Ngoudjo, they migrated to Canada to pursue their pro careers. Lontchi is a tough challenge but I expect Lopez to continue his knock out streak. Lontchi will just be another stepping stone for big fights ahead possibly against Israel Vazquez, Rafael Marquez or Celestino Caballero. Prediction: Lopez by mid-fight stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Venezuela's Jorge Linares [26(17)-0(0)-0] vs. Mexico's Josafat Perez [12(7)-1(0)-0]
Linares’ WBA Super Featherweight (130 lbs.) title
Linares’ last reported ring action got a lot of media exposure and was featured in Ring magazine yet it was just a sparring session. It was more intense than his last two fights against Gamaliel Diaz and Whyber Garcia. That is because it was against pound for pound champ Manny Pacquiao. If Linares can mix it up with the PacMan even at a weight disadvantage, can Perez stand a chance? He does however slim it may be. Perez is lucky to get this title shot having lost his last fight against an unheralded fighter. This will be an easy night for Linares inspite of the expected hostile crowd against him. Prediction: Linares by late stoppage.
Kelly Pavlik’s staph infection on his hand prevented him from defending his WBC, WBO and Ring magazine middleweight titles against Sergio Mora. There are of course conspiracy theories which are related to Pavlik’s contract extension with Top Rank. In the planned undercard of the Pavlik fight, Fernando Montiel was suppose to defend his WBO bantamweight title against Eric Morel until he injured his hand while on training. There are no new dates yet announced for both with Pavlik-Mora not very likely to be rescheduled. There have been reports that a unification bout against either Arthur Abraham or Felix Sturm is in the works.
Andreas Kotelnik had a reported tooth infection that postponed his WBA super lightweight title fight against Amir Khan to July 18. The postponement also moved the venue from London to Manchester. Then only a couple of days ago, Chris John fell ill to what was reported to be some kind of a blood-related ailment. His much anticipated WBA featherweight title rematch against Rocky Juarez is in limbo until they find out more about his condition.
So here are the remaining 4 title fights this weekend.
June 26 (Friday) - Buenos Aires, Argentina
Argentina's Omar Andres Narvaez [29(18)-0(0)-2] vs. Mexico's Omar Soto [17(11)-4(2)-1]
Narvaez’s WBO Flyweight (112 lbs.) title
Narvaez, the longest reigning titleholder will defend for the 16th time since dethroning Adonis Rivas seven years ago. When healthy and home I don’t see any reason Narvaez will lose his title to Soto. Nevertheless, Narvaez is the least regarded flyweight titleholder because he rarely takes risk and is contented on defending at home. Add to that the quality of his opponents or lack thereof. This is Soto’s second try for a world title. Muhammad Rachman knocked him out three years ago for the IBF Mini Flyweight title. Prediction: Narvaez by late stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Berlin, Germany
Armenia's Arthur Abraham [29(23)-0(0)-0] vs. Germany's Mahir Oral [25(10)-1(0)-2]
Abraham’s IBF Middleweight (160 lbs.) title
Showtime 9 pm ET
There are two possible reasons Oral will upset Abraham. One, Abraham’s struggles in meeting the 160-lb. limit will affect his conditioning in the fight where Oral will take advantage of as it gets to the later rounds. Two, having been a long-time sparring partner, Oral is very familiar with Abraham. These are possibilities where Abraham might end up losing the fight and eventually, missing the opportunity to fight Pavlik. Yet, the likelihood of it happening will still be, in my opinion, improbable. Abraham and his shell-like defense is still one of the best in the 160-lb. class. After Oral and hopefully Pavlik (win or loss), he will very likely move up to 168 lbs. Prediction: Abraham by mid-fight stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Atlantic City, NJ
Puerto Rico's Juan Manuel Lopez [25(23)-0(0)-0] vs. Cameroon's Olivier Lontchi [18(8)-0(0)-2]
Lopez’s WBO Junior Featherweight (122 lbs.) title
Top Rank PPV 9 pm ET
JuanMa proved that he can maintain his power and speed after going past the 6th round in his last fight against the ageless Gerry Penalosa. That will come in handy against the undefeated Lontchi. The Montreal-based Lontchi was born and raised in Cameroon and fought for his homeland as an amateur until 2001. Together with fellow boxer Herman Ngoudjo, they migrated to Canada to pursue their pro careers. Lontchi is a tough challenge but I expect Lopez to continue his knock out streak. Lontchi will just be another stepping stone for big fights ahead possibly against Israel Vazquez, Rafael Marquez or Celestino Caballero. Prediction: Lopez by mid-fight stoppage.
June 27 (Saturday) - Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Venezuela's Jorge Linares [26(17)-0(0)-0] vs. Mexico's Josafat Perez [12(7)-1(0)-0]
Linares’ WBA Super Featherweight (130 lbs.) title
Linares’ last reported ring action got a lot of media exposure and was featured in Ring magazine yet it was just a sparring session. It was more intense than his last two fights against Gamaliel Diaz and Whyber Garcia. That is because it was against pound for pound champ Manny Pacquiao. If Linares can mix it up with the PacMan even at a weight disadvantage, can Perez stand a chance? He does however slim it may be. Perez is lucky to get this title shot having lost his last fight against an unheralded fighter. This will be an easy night for Linares inspite of the expected hostile crowd against him. Prediction: Linares by late stoppage.
Damn!
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