Pick It: TBRB #2 Vasyl Lomachenko vs. #6 Richard Commey (Saturday, ESPN, 9:00 PM EST)
33-year old former three-division titlist Vasyl Lomachenko (15-2, 11 KO) makes his second start since an upset loss to Teofimo Lopez. 34-year old former lightweight titlist Richard Commey (30-3, 27 KO) is doing the same thing in the red hot lightweight division.
It is the fourth fight between consensus top ten lightweights in the last three weeks and the comparisons to every fight that has finished will be inevitable. Lomachenko and Commey are aging at a time when the division is vibrant and young so the winner won’t have any easy tasks ahead. Heavyweight Jared Anderson and Jr. middleweight Xander Zayas, both promising hopefuls, will also be in action. Undercard action starts on ESPN+ at 5:25 EST.
Additional Shows to Watch For
Saturday - Kunkabayev vs. Ward (ESPN+, 9:00 AM EST)
A full day of boxing kicks off with action at cruiserweight. 30-year old Kamshybek Kunkabayev (3-0, 3 KO), a bronze medalist at the last Olympics, is making a quick move. He will face the UK’s Steven Ward (13-1, 4 KO) with an eye on titles sooner than later.
Saturday - #2 Edwards vs. Mama (AXS, 11:00 AM EST)
The flyweights get the spotlight in this main event. 25-year old Sunny Edwards (16-0, 4 KO) makes his first IBF defense against 24-year old Jayson Mama (16-0, 9 KO). Ageless four-division titlist Donnie Nietes will also be in action at Jr. bantamweight along with a bantamweight clash between former titlist Paul Butler and Joseph Agbeko.
Saturday - #1 Bivol vs. Salamov (ESPN+, 11:00 AM EST)
30-year old WBA light heavyweight titlist Dmitry Bivol (18-0, 11 KO) has one of the deeper resumes in the division right now but his career has stalled for most of the last couple years. 27-year old Umar Salamov (26-1, 19 KO) is a capable challenger and may provide the sort of challenge that gets people talking about Bivol more again. A match of TBRB top ten Jr. middleweights will also be on the show. 31-year old former titlist Patrick Teixeira (31-2, 22 KO, #7) faces 26-year old Magomed Kurbanov (22-0, 13 KO, #9) in an intriguing match.
Saturday - Benn vs. Algieri (DAZN, 1:00 PM EST)
Here’s one we won’t see every day: DAZN is counter-programming itself tomorrow with overlapping cards. The son of one of the most exciting fighters of all time, Nigel Benn, continues his attempted ascent. 25-year old Conor Benn (19-0, 12 KO) has a tricky test here in the former of 37-year old former Jr. welterweight titlist Chris Algieri (25-3, 9 KO). 35-year old lightweight queen Katie Taylor (19-0, 6 KO) is also in action defending against 27-year old Firuza Sharipova (14-1, 8 KO). Sharipova’s only loss came by decision in her pro debut.
Saturday - #2 Donaire vs. Gaballo (Showtime, 10 PM EST)
39-year old WBC bantamweight titlist Nonito Donaire (41-6, 27 KO) isn’t ready to leave the stage just yet. He showed that to Nordine Oubaali earlier this year and has another younger, undefeated man ahead here. 25-year old Reymart Gabllo (24-0, 20 KO) arrives off a debated decision win over former titlist Emanuel Rodriguez. It will be, including his dramatic loss to Naoya Inoue, Donaire’s third straight foe without a loss. Rising stars at Jr. welterweight (Brandun Lee) and welterweight (Kudratillo Abdukakhorov) will also be in action.
Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, a member of the International Boxing Research Organization, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com
