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This week, we are joined by Gayle Falkenthal of NYFights.com, as she gives her thoughts on Ryan Garcia-Rolando Romero, Devin Haney-Jose Ramirez, and Teofimo Lopez-Arnold Barboza Jr.
That is followed by featherweight Malikai Johnson, fresh off his new broadcasting gig on Westside Promotions, as he breaks down Canelo Alvarez-William Scull and what you should know about the undercard.
We concluded with my good friend Abraham Gonzalez of FightsATW.com breaking down Naoya Inoue-Ramon Cardenas.
Ryan Garcia-Rolando Romero
Info: Friday, DAZN PPV, time has yet to be announced.
The headline bout for the DAZN PPV taking place in Times Square will see Ryan Garcia end his year-long suspension from the sport, facing Romero. The two sparred roughly seven or eight years ago, and Romero got the best of Garcia in two sparring sessions. The videos went viral and raised the initial celebrity of Romero early in his career. They are now in different spots in their career, but the fight is based on the initial rivalry.
undercard:
Devin Haney-Jose Ramirez
Haney will also return after his no-contest to Garcia, which was originally a loss. The two have sparred in the past. On paper, Haney has a lot of athletic advantages heading into this one, but has also been out of the ring for some time. Ramirez, trained by Robert Garcia, has a high work rate and is a quality pressure fighter who fought in the 2012 Olympics for Team USA.
Teofimo Lopez-Arnold Barboza Jr
A true 50-50 fight. Lopez has the dynamic x-factors and at times looks to be a generational star. Lopez is also inconsistent fight-to-fight. Barboza started on the club circuit and, through hard work and determination, made it to title fights. The two are spiritual opposites, as this looks to be the fight of the weekend.
Reito Tsutsumi-Levale Whittington
Junior lightweight Tsutsumi makes his pro debut on this card.
Saturday
Canelo Alvarez-William Scull
Info: Saturday on DAZN PPV, start time not yet listed
Canelo aims to become a two-time undisputed super middleweight titleholder, facing Scull, who a lot of people thought lost to Vladimir Shishkin. The fight lacks a sizzle that Canelo-David Benavidez or a rematch with Dmitry Bivol would have had, but it will show where Canelo stands at a world-class level.
undercard:
Bruno Surace-Jaime Munguia
Surace came out of nowhere and knocked out Munguia. Does Surace become a major player at super middleweight, or does Munguia get redemption?
Efe Ajagba-Martin Bakole
The most interesting fight on the card is Ajagba has beaten a lot of top contenders, and Bakole was the boogeyman until he was knocked out by Joseph Parker when he took the fight on a few days’ notice. The winner should be in line for a title shot.
Badou Jack vs. Noel Mikaelian
Jack was going to fight Ryan Rozicki, but he had to withdraw. Mikaelian will step in. Jack is the WBC cruiserweight titelholder. He has a fun come-forward style and Mikaelian is much younger.
Marco Verde-Michel Polina
Verde was one of my favorite fighters at the 2024 Olympics. He turns pro on this card.
Sunday
Naoya Inoue-Ramon Cardenas
Info: Sunday, first bell 3:15 PM PST (on ESPN+), main card 7 PM PST on ESPN
Inoue will fight in Las Vegas. Cardenas is a puncher who has some of the traits of Luis Nery. Cardenas was also hurt in his last fight against Bryan Acosta. Inoue is a future hall-of-famer, fighting in the U.S., which I doubt will happen many more times after this. If Cardenas lands, this fight could get interesting.
undercard:
Rafael Espinoza-Edward Vazquez
WBO featherweight champion Espinoza will face one of the best spoilers in the division, Vazquez. Espinoza is over six feet tall in his weight class. Something note, Vazquez starts slow, but picks it up late in fights and has had close fights with Joe Cordina and Raymond Ford.
Rohan Polanco vs. Fabian Maidana
Welterweight Polanco will face Maidana, who recently fought WBC titleholder Mario Barrios. Polanco will look to announce himself in a fairly wide-open division.
Emiliano Vargas-Juan Leon
Vargas, the son of Fernando Vargas, is extremely promising and staying active after a knockout victory.
Art Barrera Jr.-Juan Carlos Guerra
Barrera Jr is a good volume puncher out of Robert Garcia’s gym. One to keep an eye on if you watch the whole card.
Ra’eese Aleem-Rudy Garcia
My favorite fight deep on the undercard, as Aleem is a fighter who could challenge for a title, Garcia is better than people will give him credit for.
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