First opponent of 2025 for Abdullah Mason unveiled
Dec 10, 2024 • 4:22 PM ET
Lightweight Abdullah Mason, a hot prospect for Top Rank, will return in February.
Mason, who was dropped twice in a stunning two-round bout with Yohan Vasquez (who was down twice himself), in Norfolk, Virginia, in November, is one of the brightest stars in the sport.
Now 16-0 (14 KOs), Mason has been matched with Stockton’s Manuel Jaimes, who is 16-2-1 (11 KOs), and who went 10 rounds in a losing effort with Rolando "Rolly" Romero in his previous fight in September.
The 24-year-old Jaimes turned pro in 2018 and will fight Mason on February 14 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Mason is a 20-year-old southpaw, and while some might contend he showed flaws against Vasquez, others will say climbing off the floor was an invaluable part of his education.
That is how Mason saw it when he spoke to BoxingScene the week after.
Tris Dixon covered his first amateur boxing fight in 1996. The former editor of Boxing News, he has written for a number of international publications and newspapers, including GQ and Men’s Health, and is a board member for the Ringside Charitable Trust and the Ring of Brotherhood. He has been a broadcaster for TNT Sports and hosts the popular “Boxing Life Stories” podcast. Dixon is a British Boxing Hall of Famer, an International Boxing Hall of Fame elector, a BWAA award winner, and is the author of five boxing books, including “Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing” (shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year), “Warrior: A Champion’s Search for His Identity” (shortlisted for the Sunday Times International Sportsbook of the Year) and “The Road to Nowhere: A Journey Through Boxing’s Wastelands.” You can reach him @trisdixon on X and Instagram.
