Pick it: Alexis Rocha vs. Raul Curiel II
When to Watch: Friday, January 16 at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (1 a.m. GMT). A free preliminary undercard will start at 4:30 p.m. ET (9:30 p.m. GMT).
How to watch: DAZN
Why to Watch: This show features two rematches – and the two welterweights in the main event previously combined for a Fight of the Year candidate in December 2024.
Alexis Rocha and Raul Curiel battled to a draw in their first meeting. Beyond the entertainment value, there’s the fact that the landscape at 147lbs is wide open, so the result could have some bearing on who competes for a world title in the future.
Rocha, 25-2-1 (16 KOs), is a 28-year-old from Irvine, California, who is ranked 15th at welterweight by the WBC. He suffered his first defeat to Rashidi Ellis via unanimous decision in late 2020, then put together a seven-fight winning streak that included giving Blair Cobbs his sole loss.
Rocha’s run of victories came to an end in October 2023, when he was dropped three times and stopped in the sixth round by Giovani Santillan. Rocha then notched two more wins before entering the ring with Curiel. He hasn’t fought since; it remains to be seen whether these 13 months brought recovery, rust or a combination of both.
Curiel, 16-0-1 (14 KOs), is a 30-year-old from Guadalajara, Mexico. He is ranked by all four sanctioning bodies: No. 3 with the WBA, No. 5 with the WBC, No. 7 with the IBF and No. 12 with the WBO.
In 2025, Curiel switched trainers from Freddie Roach to Robert Garcia. Curiel competed just once this past year – which is still one more time than Rocha did. Curiel’s sole appearance was in June, when he put away the 16-0-1 Victor Ezequiel Rodriguez in the fourth round.
Neither Rocha nor Curiel should be considered a top-tier fighter. But you don’t need to be top tier to contend right now at welterweight. While the winner of Rocha-Curiel II will likely want to stay away from the highly skilled WBO titleholder Devin Haney, they could target Lewis Crocker (IBF), Rolando Romero (WBA) and the winner of Mario Barrios (WBC) vs. Ryan Garcia.
The co-feature at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California, is a sequel featuring junior featherweights Manuel Flores and Jorge Chavez. As with the main event, Flores, 20-1-1 (16 KOs), and Chavez, 14-0-1 (8 KOs), fought to a draw when they first met in July. This will be the first bout back for both.
More Fights to Watch
Friday, January 16: Nikita Tszyu vs. Michael Zerafa (Kayo Sports)
The broadcast begins at 6 p.m. AEDT (2 a.m. ET / 7 a.m. GMT).
Tszyu, 11-0 (9 KOs), is a 27-year-old junior middleweight prospect from Sydney, Australia, the younger brother of former 154-pound titleholder Tim and another fighting son of Hall of Famer Kostya.
Nikita Tszyu is ranked sixth by the IBF and 12th by the WBO at 154lbs, though he will be moving up to middleweight for this battle with countryman Michael Zerafa at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
Tszyu returned this past August after nearly a year away due to a hand injury and multiple surgeries. But he didn’t have much time to shake off rust that night; his opponent, the 12-0 Lulzim Ismaili, remained in his corner after the first round.
Zerafa, 34-5 (22 KOs), has seemingly been around forever given that his introduction to many of us came in 2015, when he was the victim of a fifth-round knockout at the hands of Peter Quillin. But the native of Melbourne, Australia, is only 33 years old. His ring age may be different, however, given wear and tear as well as the defeats he suffered against Kell Brook (UD12 in 2018), Jeff Horn (MD10 in their 2019 rematch) and Erislandy Lara (KO2 in 2024).
Zerafa has put together three consecutive wins, all by TKO, putting away the 45-8-2 Tommy Browne in one round, the 19-1 Besir Ay in seven rounds and, this past August, the 18-1 Mikey Dahlman in two minutes. He is ranked fourth with the WBA at 160lbs, eighth with the WBO and 13th with the IBF.
Saturday, January 17: Freddy Kiwitt vs. Suleiman Jafaru (DAZN)
The broadcast begins at 1 p.m. Eastern Time (6 p.m. GMT).
Kiwitt, 28-3 (18 KOs), is a 35-year-old junior middleweight from Germany. He is also listed on BoxRec as the promoter and matchmaker for this card at GP Joule Arena in Flensburg. Kiwitt has won 11 straight since dropping a unanimous decision to the 12-1 Luther Clay in 2019.
Jafaru, 17-1 (14 KOs), is a 31-year-old from Nigeria. In early 2024, he traveled to hostile territory for the first time and was knocked out in two rounds by the 21-1 Milan Prat. Two wins have followed back at home for Jafaru, both by knockout: one against a foe with a record of 1-6, the other whose record was 18-3.
Saturday, January 17: Dainier Pero vs. Mario Aguilar (BXNG TV)
The broadcast begins at 6 p.m. Eastern Time (11 p.m. GMT).
Pero, 11-0 (8 KOs), is a 6-foot-5 heavyweight prospect from Cuba who competed in the Olympics in 2021. He made it to the quarterfinals of the super heavyweight tournament, losing a decision to eventual silver medalist Richard Torrez Jnr. Pero is now a resident of Florida, as is his older brother, fellow heavyweight prospect and Olympian Lenier Pero. The 26-year-old Dainier is ranked seventh by the WBA. He fought just once in 2025, going 10 rounds for the first time with a decision victory over the 13-2 Cesar Navarro.
Aguilar, 23-10 (19 KOs), a 35-year-old from Mexico, is likely here to be cannon fodder. He is undersized at 6-foot and used to compete as low as super middleweight and light heavyweight. Seven of his 10 defeats have been within the distance.
This show is being held at 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Saturday, January 17: Albert Gonzalez vs. Franklin Gonzalez (BASH TV)
The broadcast begins at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (1 a.m. GMT).
Albert Gonzalez, 15-0 (8 KOs), is a 23-year-old featherweight prospect. He hails from Riverside, California, and will be headlining about 40 minutes away at Soboba Casino Resort in San Jacinto. Albert Gonzalez picked up three victories in 2025, including a fourth-round TKO of the 21-6 Leonardo Baez in October.
Franklin Gonzalez, 25-4 (25 KOs), is a 29-year-old Venezuelan now living in New Jersey. His record shows he had too much power for low-level opponents, but he met his limit as he stepped up. Franklin Gonzalez has lost four in a row, dropping split decisions to the 16-3-1 Jorge Orozco and the 14-0 Manuel Flores, getting taken out in six rounds by the 18-2 Saul Sanchez, and then – after 27 months away – getting nearly shut out last September by the 16-1 Danny Barrios Flores.
Saturday, January 17: Gabriel Jimenez vs. Daniel Sanchez (ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes)
The broadcast begins at 10 p.m. Eastern Time (3 a.m. GMT).
Jimenez, 12-1-1 (8 KOs), is a 29-year-old junior welterweight. Sanchez is 13-11-1 (10 KOs). On the undercard, former title challenger Eduardo "Rocky" Hernandez, 37-2 (32 KOs), is looking to make it four in a row since his dramatic final-round TKO loss to O'Shaquie Foster in 2023. He'll face designated opponent Gerson Escobar, 9-14-3 (5 KOs).
Saturday, January 17: Sukru Altay vs. Albi Sorra (DAZN)
The broadcast begins at 11 a.m. Eastern Time (4 p.m. GMT).
This show in Seydikemer, Turkiye, is headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Altay, 17-4 (16 KOs), who is perhaps best known for his two losses to Felix Sturm in 2023, against Sorra, 10-2 (1 KO).
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
