Crawford-Madrimov collide on Saturday
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Photo: Mark Robinson / Matchroom Boxing

Zhang-Wilder Fight Week

Today is Media Day ahead of the history-making 5 vs 5 collision between promotional rivals Queensberry and Matchroom, a $69.99 PPV event taking place Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arebia.
Heavyweight: “Big Bang” Zhilei Zhang vs. “Bronze Bomber” Deontay Wilder
Heavyweight: IBF #1 contender Filip Hrgovic vs. Daniel Dubois
Featherweight: WBA world champion Ray Ford vs. Nick Ball
Middleweight: Hamzah Sheeraz vs. Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams
Light heavyweight: Willy Hutchinson vs. Craig ‘Spider’ Richards
In addition, WBA light heavyweight champion Dimitry Bivol will defend against Malik Zinad.

Sebastian Fundora is the unified WBC World Super Welter & WBO World Super Welter Champion after defeating Tim Tszyu in March. He is out with injuries until later this year.

Errol Spence Jr. is the WBC #1 & entered the ring after the Fundora vs Tszyu fight, so it seems the PBC are pushing a fight between Fundora & Spence next.

Israil Madrimov is the WBA World Super Welter Champion & will be fighting Terence Crawford on August 3rd in defence of his WBA title, with the WBO Interim World Super Welter also on the line.

Bakhram Murtazaliev is the IBF World Super Welter Champion. He has some minor injuries but expects to be back in the ring around September/ October. Current IBF #3 Erickson Lubin is the likely opponent at this stage. Given the timeline I could see the PBC doing a championship doubleheader & putting this on the undercard of Fundora vs Spence.

Fundora will probably be stripped of the WBO title as they ordered him to fight Terence Crawford within 180 days after the Fundora vs Tszyu bout. With Fundora out injured that probably won’t happen. Madrimov vs Crawford will probably be upgraded to full unification with the WBO interim title being elevated to full title status before the bout.

Sebastian Fundora’s manager had said they would honour a verbal rematch agreement with WBO #1 Tim Tszyu. With Tszyu now set to fight WBA #1 Vergil Ortiz Jr. for the WBA Interim World Super Welter title on the Madrimov vs Crawford August 3rd undercard that verbal agreement no longer seems necessary.

Serhii Bohachuk is the WBC Interim Champion, but I can see PBC pushing Spence to the front of the line.

Jermell Charlo is Champion in recess with the WBC & the WBA. He didn’t request his full status back with the WBC, which further seems to support PBC wanting Spence to get in there first. He did request his full status back with the WBA. That could mean he fights the winner of the Madrimov vs Crawford bout for the WBA & WBO Championships. Jermell Charlo vs Terence Crawford would be fire.

The division could soon be back to three interim titles at 154 & also two champion in recess titles.

Let’s see how 154 plays out.

The IBF has order Canelo Alvarez to face their mandatory challenger William Scull. The deadline for negotiations is June 8th.

The fight I want to see most next in the lightweight division is Lomachenko vs Davis.

I can see Top Rank steering Loma towards the Emanuel Navarrete vs Denys Berinchyk winner instead, especially if Shakur Stevenson doesn't resign with them. The Navarrete vs Berinchyk fight is only a week after Loma's & they are close to the same schedule, where as Shakur & Tank have fights still upcoming in June & July. There'll also be a nice little revenge story attached should Navarrete defeat Loma's fellow Ukrainian countryman Berinchyk.

Stevenson might also have a mandatory to fulfil shortly. 

Tank has said he wants to fight Loma after his bout with Frank Martin but that fight has already been talk about for 7 years so who knows if it actually happens next.

William Zepeda is in the drivers seat & can basically decide what belt he wants a shot at.

Lightweight is currently in a healthy state with fighters like Raymond Muratalla, Andy Cruz, Keyshawn Davis, Albert Batyrgaziev & Edwin De Los Santos waiting in the wings. There is also the possibility of fighters like Joe Cordina & O’Shaquie Foster moving up in the near future.

Let's see how 135 plays out.

Canelo a 6:1 favorite over Munguia


Undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Álvarez opened as a 6:1 favorite over Jaime Munguía and the odds haven’t changed much since then. Álvarez remains around -600 at most sportsbooks.
If you want to see the featured fighters in person for this Saturday’s big Canelo-Munguia card in Las Vegas, the grand arrivals are open to the public and will take place at 2PM tomorrow (Tuesday) in the MGM Grand Lobby.

• 2:30 PM – Eimantas Stanionis / Gabriel Maestre
  
• 2:45 PM – Brandon Figueroa / Jessie Magdaleno
  
• 3:00 PM – Mario Barrios / Fabian Maidana
  
• 3:15 PM – Jaime Munguía
  
• 3:30 PM – Canelo Álvarez
  

I got the mega-fight on December 24 (NZ time) and they said that for the $28 plus $2 for a monthly one time fee, I could get the fight and cancel anytime. So I did, and when I cancelled after 28 days, they said that there was a surcharge of $15. We went back and forth and the next time I contacted them they said, "yes, it is monthly, and you can cancel anytime, but there is NO REFUND and you have to pay for the WHOLE YEAR. They said, " read the fine print," which they have never shown me and I've never seen. Anyway, I contacted my bank to stop payment. When I told them, they said, "but look what DAZN offers you for a WHOLE YEAR!

Anyway, buyer beware!

Of course, it'll be March 9th in NZ. JP on the undercard v Zhang.

https://www.boxing247.com/boxing-news/ca...rsy/272991

We have a lot of exciting fighters vying for belts in NZ. And Parker did the business on Wilder and is ready for 2024.
Here's hoping all the posters and viewers on here have a great 2024.