By Jake Donovan
Veteran ring official Tony Weeks gets the call as third man for this weekend’s 140 lb. title fight between Mike Alvarado and Ruslan Provodnikov. The bout takes place at 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado and will air live on HBO.
The announcement marks the second straight time Alvarado (34-1, 23KO) will fight with Weeks serving as referee. The same combination was in place when the 140 lb. titlist avenged the lone defeat of his career, scoring a 12-round decision over Brandon Rios in their rematch this past March.
Weeks has never served as third man for any of Provodnikov’s previous ring appearances.
The three judges for the bout will be Denny Nelson, Robert Hoyle and Levi Martinez, all of whom are based in the United States.
Hoyle has served as a ringside scorer for two previous bouts featuring Alvarado, including his last trip to his home state of Colorado when he outpointed Gabriel Martinez in July ’11. The other–and most recent–occasion came last April, when Hoyle featured the widest score among the three judges in Alvarado’s 10-round decision win over Maurico Herrara in Las Vegas.
Nelson and Martinez are not officially credited with having previously served as ringside officials in bouts featuring either Alvarado or Provodnikov.
Alvarado will make the first defense of the belt he was initially given in interim capacity following his aforementioned win over Rios. His status was upgraded to full champion once its previous owner¬, Juan Manuel Marquez confirmed he would not likely ever return to the 140 lb. division.
Provodnikov (22-2, 15KO) fights for the second straight time on HBO, his stock soaring in defeat as he nearly dethroned reigning welterweight titlist this past March. Saturday’s contest marks the fourth straight time Provodnikov–born and raised in Russia but now training in Hollywood, California–fights in his opponent’s home state.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America.
Twitter: @JakeNDaBox