Jermall Charlo out of mental health fog, back in the ring on Saturday
First fight in 29 months will come against Jose Benavidez Jr.
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Out of the ring for nearly 2½ years, WBC middleweight titleholder Jermall Charlo, who says he has his mental health issues under control, is at last set to return.
Charlo will face Jose Benavidez Jr. in a 10-round nontitle fight at 163 pounds — three over the middleweight limit — in the co-feature of David Benavidez’s WBC interim super middleweight title defense against Demetrius Andrade on a Premier Boxing Champions card on Saturday (Showtime PPV, 8 p.m. ET, $74.99) at Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
Charlo has defended his title four times but not since a lopsided decision over Juan Macias Montiel, who nonetheless gave Charlo some problems, in June 2021.
A defense against Maciej Sulecki the following June was canceled due to a Charlo back injury but there was more than just a physical problem that ultimately kept him out of the ring for so long.
Charlo said he has been dealing with mental health issues among his various problems outside of the ring that left him in no position to box.
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