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With the news coming down that HBO is once again interested in a fight between Bernard Hopkins and IBF cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek, you have to wonder if Bernard can afford to wait around until 2010 for the fight to happen. The network, strapped in terms of their budget for 2009, wants the fight to take place in early 2010.
Matthew Hatton, the younger and overlooked brother of superstar Ricky Hatton, is going to face the biggest challenge of his career when he takes on former two-division champion Zab Judah on July 18. The fight takes place on the pay-per-view undercard to Mayweather-Marquez at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
A few months ago, Kermit Cintron was one of the few names being considered to face Miguel Cotto for the WBO welterweight title on June 13 in New York's Madison Square Garden. Top Rank made a decision to pass on Cintron and gave the Cotto fight to another fighter in their stable, Joshua Clottey.
Israel Vazquez is very, very eager to get back in the ring. He awaits a ruling by the California State Athletic Commission to approve his license to fight after recovering from surgery to correct a detached retina. Two big fights are right in Vazquez's face. A fourth meeting with Rafael Marquez and a new superstar has emerged, undefeated Puerto Rican sensation Juan Manuel Lopez.
Lightweight contender Vicente Escobedo (21-1, 13KOs) continues his busy streak, stopping Carlos Hernandez last month in Texas, and returns less than two months later to crush former champion Kevin Kelley (60-10-2, 39KOs) in two rounds at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California. Escobedo fought four times in 2008 and would like to at least fight that many times in 2009.
Carl Thompson, the only fighter to beat David Haye, is giving his former foe a 50-50 chance to beat WBO/IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko on June 20 in Germany. Thompson was stunned early on but came back to stops Haye in their 2004 meeting at Wembley Arena. He, like many others, believes that Haye is too small to beat the much bigger champion.
According to Floyd Mayweather Jr, the career of Ricky Hatton ended when the two of them fought in December of 2007. Mayweather handed Hatton his first loss, a technical knockout in the tenth round. Mayweather returns to the ring on July 18, the first Floyd has seen action since the win over Hatton. He faces Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand in Ls Vegas.
Nobody could be happier than former super middleweight champion Jeff Lacy (25-2, 17 KOs), who secured an August 22 light heavyweight showdown with fellow-Floridian Roy Jones Jr. (53-5, 39 KOs). Lacy will co-promote the pay-per-view event with Jones.
WBC junior flyweight champion Edgar Sosa (35-5, 19KOs) is set to make his second defense of the year against Carlos Melo (19-8, 2KOs) of Colombia. The fight takes place on June 20 at the World Trade Center in Boca del Rio, Veracruz, Mexico.
If people thought Floyd Mayweather Jr. was going to return for a payday or two and then head back into retirement, they are very mistaken. Mayweather returns to the ring on July 18 against Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Floyd has been away from the ring since a December 07 knockout of Ricky Hatton.