Notebook: Ortiz to fight McKinson rather than Avanesyan as initially planned

BetUS Boxing Show; Joyce foe set; Quick hits; Show and tell

Jun 17, 2022

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Welterweight contender Vergil Ortiz Jr. will meet British southpaw Michael McKinson — not David Avanesyan as was the initial plan — in the 12-round main event on Aug. 6 (DAZN) at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, Golden Boy Promotions announced.

It’s a hometown fight for Ortiz, who is from Grand Prairie, Texas, which is about 20 minutes away.

“I am very happy to be stepping back into the ring again,” Ortiz said. “I’m ready to show the world once again why I’m ready for a world title.”

Ortiz (18-0, 18 KOs), 24, and McKinson (22-0, 2 KOs), 28, were scheduled to headline a March 19 card in Los Angeles, but Ortiz withdrew days before the bout because of a medical condition and McKinson easily outpointed last-minute replacement Alex Martin.

“Vergil Ortiz Jr. is the most exciting welterweight in the world,” Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya said. “We are happy that he is back, healthy, and feels 100 percent Fighting in his home state, I can’t think of a better way for him to make his comeback and put on another great performance for his fans. He is one step away from challenging any world champion and he will prove it on Aug. 6.”

Golden Boy initially was not going to reschedule Ortiz-McKinson and made a deal for Ortiz to fight Avanesyan (29-3-1, 17 KOs), 33, a Russia native based in England, in a WBC final eliminator on Aug. 6.

However, Ortiz manager Rick Mirigian and Golden Boy officials said that after they made a deal with Avanesyan promoter Queensberry Promotions and sent a contract, they sat on it for about two weeks and declined to send it back while asking for additional changes that were a non-starter. With time running short, Golden Boy eventually went back to McKinson promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing and made a deal for McKinson.

“I’m getting what I deserve,” McKinson said. “I was prepared to fight Ortiz Jr. before. Now, I have been given the opportunity again to prove I am the best in this division.”

Said Hearn: “I am delighted that this fight has come back around for Mikey. He suffered disappointment in March when Vergil was forced out of the fight, but thanks to a lot of hard work all round, he was able to fight in L.A. and gathered valuable experience by making his U.S. debut and all that comes with it, so there will be no surprises for him in Fort Worth. Vergil is an exceptional fighter, one of the best rising stars in the sport, but we believe Mikey has the style to cause him a lot of problems, and this could be his breakout night.”

BetUS Boxing Show

If you missed us live on Friday afternoon, please check out the replay of our BetUS Boxing Show (and also subscribe to the YouTube channel). We had full previews with picks and props of Satuday’s Artur Beterbiev-Joe Smith Jr. light heavyweight unification fight and the featherweight co-feature between two-time Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez and Abraham “Super” Nova. Watch it here:

Joyce fight set

Heavyweight contender Joe Joyce has his opponent for July 2 at the OVO Arena, Wembley in London: Christian Hammer at the OVO Arena, Wembley.

Frank Warren of Queensberry Promotions made the announcement on Thursday. Warren didn’t announce the United States broadcaster, but the card will stream live on ESPN+. The card is headlined by the previously announced fight between junior featherweight Jason Cunningham (31-6, 7 KOs) defending the Commonwealth title against former bantamweight and junior bantamweight world titlist Zolani Tete (29-4, 22 KOs).

Joyce (13-0, 12 KOs), 36, of England, the 2016 Olympic super heavyweight silver medalist, is coming off a wrist injury that has kept him sidelined so far this year. In his last fight, he scored a sixth-round knockout of former world title challenger Carlos Takam at the same venue last July.

Warren talked about Joyce facing former world titlist Joseph Parker this summer and then said it wouldn’t happen until the fall, but now it’s off with the announcement earlier this week that Parker has signed with rival British promoter Boxxer and Sky Sports, a rival of Warren broadcaster BT Sport.

“The most important thing is to get Joe active and confident again after injury,” Warren said. “Christian Hammer is an experienced campaigner who will provide a decent test and give him a good fight, but obviously we expect Joe to come through it successfully and then start preparing for a bigger showdown later this year.
“It was well documented that it was our intention to match big Joe with Joseph Parker in September, but Parker has now opted to sign a promotional agreement elsewhere. Joe’s route to a world title shot does not revolve around Parker and we have plans in place for a major fight for him in the autumn.”

Hammer (27-9, 17 KOs), 34, of Germany, is vastly experienced having faced — and lost to — Tyson Fury, Frank Sanchez, Hughie Fury, Tony Yoka, Luis Ortiz and Alexander Povetkin. He owns wins against Erkan Teper and David Price

“I’ve known about Christian Hammer for a while now,” said Joyce, who is training in Las Vegas. “He has fought everybody. It is going to be a good fight. He comes forward and it will be exciting. It is one to get me ready for the next fights coming up. I’ve been out of the ring for a whole year now so it will be good to dust off the gloves and shake off the cobwebs. It is going to be a big year, this year and next, with some great fights and I just need to be in the right place.”

Quick hits

Former lightweight titlists Richard Commey (30-4, 27 KOs), 35, of Ghana, and Puerto Rico’s Jose Pedraza (29-4, 14 KOs), 33, both looking to rebound a loss, will meet in a 10-round junior welterweight bout on top of a Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card Aug. 27 at the Hard Rock in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a source involved in the event told Fight Freaks Unite. The card has not been announced yet but the fight has set for weeks and was originally planned for July 23 but shifted. Heavyweight prospect Jared Anderson (11-0, 11 KOs), 22, of Toledo, Ohio, will face a foe to be named in the co-feature as he comes off a broken hand that has kept him idle since December.

Cruiserweight champion Mairis Breidis (28-1, 20 KOs), 37, of Latvia, and Australian contender Jai Opetaia (21-0, 17 KOs), a 26-year-old southpaw, will meet in a rescheduled IBF title bout on July 2 at the Gold Coast Convention Center in Broadbeach, Australia. The card will stream on ESPN+ in the United States beginning at 5 a.m. ET. The fight has been postponed twice. They were scheduled to meet April 6 but it was postponed until May 11 because Briedis, who will be making the second defense of his second title reign, tested positive for Covid-19. Then Opetaia suffered a rib injury, causing another postponement.

Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn announced that Dalton Smith (11-0, 9 KOs), 25, will face southpaw Sam O’maison (17-3-1, 7 KOs) for the vacant British junior welterweight title Aug. 6 (DAZN) at Utilita Arena Sheffield, England, their hometown. Among the undercard participants will be lightweight Campbell Hatton (7-0, 2 KOs), 21, the son of British legend Ricky Hatton. “It’s Sheffield versus Sheffield and a chance for one of the most exciting talents in world boxing, Dalton Smith, to headline his first ever show in his home city,” Hearn said. “Dalton has been flawless so far in the professional ranks and I truly believe that he is a world champion in waiting. He has a tough assignment against Sam O’maison and the arena is sure to be bouncing for an all-Sheffield main event.”

Hearn was in Australia on Friday to announce the first Matchroom Boxing event will take place there on a September date to be determined. It will be headlined by a 12-round all-Australian showdown between junior welterweight contenders Liam Paro (22-0, 13 KOs), 26, and Brock Jarvis (20-0, 18 KOs), 24. “I am so excited to kick off this new era for Matchroom in Australia,” Hearn said. “Australian fans are so passionate about sport and boxing is on the rise here, so I have no doubt that they will embrace the fight nights that we put on and join us in creating unforgettable nights that showcase this country as one of the key players for the sport globally. In order to put on great nights, you need to make exciting fights, and our first main event Down Under promises to be explosive stuff. Liam and Brock are only ever in thrilling bouts and the winner will be in prime position to hunt for a world title fight later in the year.”

Brooklyn, New York-based Panamanian junior welterweight Cesar Francis (10-0, 6 KOs), 31, will face former lightweight titlist Ray Beltran (37-9-1, 23 KOs), 40, of Phoenix, in a 10-rounder on July 9 (ProBox TV) at the ProBox Events Center in Plant City, Florida. “Beltran is a great veteran, and I am not overlooking him,” Francis said. “I helped Richard Commey get ready for his fight against him and this time Commey will be my sparring partner.” Although Beltran is near the end of his career, he represents Francis’ most notable opponent. “Francis is an undefeated fighter who has a lot of confidence, and this is the kind of fight I need to put myself back on the map,” Beltran said. “I think my experience will help a lot because I’ve been in there with high-level fighters.”

Longtime flyweight and junior bantamweight contender Luis Concepcion (39-9, 28 KOs), 36, of Panama, who won interim belts in both divisions, will face Juan Lopez (15-9-1,14 KOs), 39, of Venezuela, in a 10-rounder on Friday (ProBox TV, 9 p.m. ET) in Panama City, Panama. Concepcion is seeking to rebound from a ninth-round knockout loss challenging WBA flyweight titlist Artem Dalakian in November.

Boxxer announced that the card headlined by the WBA heavyweight title eliminator between Hughie Fury and Michael Hunter on July 2 in Manchester, England has been postponed because Fury has been ill and unable to train. “On behalf of myself and my son, we apologize to the fans but most of all to Hunter and his team because like us they’ve gone through a hard camp and this news is the last thing anyone in boxing wants to hear,” Peter Fury, Hughie’s father and trainer, said. “Hughie struggled on through the illness but physically broke down. We look forward to this fight being rescheduled.”

Japanese lightweight contender Masayoshi Nakatani (20-2, 14 KOs), 33, demolished Harmonito Dela Torre (22-4, 14 KOs), 28, of the Philippines, knocking him down twice in a first-round knockout win on Monday at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo. Nakatani was fighting for the first time since being stopped former lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko in the ninth-round of a one-sided fight last June in Las Vegas. Nakatani’s other loss came by decision to Teofimo Lopez in a 2019 title eliminator.

Show and tell

After Jermain Taylor defeated Bernard Hopkins to become the four-belt undisputed middleweight champion and then outpointed him again in an immediate rematch, Taylor did not go for a soft defense. Instead, he made an ultra-difficult mandatory defense against former undisputed junior middleweight champion Winky Wright, who was No. 2 on many pound-for-pound lists and had earned a shot at the title with his domination of Felix Trinidad.

The fight was set for the FedEx Forum in Memphis, where Taylor was the overwhelming crowd favorite boxing only about two hours from his Little Rock, Arkansas home. The fight, which I covered at ringside, packed more action than most expected but it was tight all the way with many close rounds that could have gone either way. In the end the judges could not decide. Taylor won 115-113 on one card, Wright was ahead 115-113 on one and the third card was 114-114 for a split draw, allowing Taylor, in his first fight with trainer Emanuel Steward, to keep the title and for Wright to complain bitterly about the result. I also had the fight a draw. It took place on June 17, 2006 — 16 years ago on Friday. It was such a big fight at the time that HBO, which televised it live, created two ad campaigns, one featuring Taylor and one with Wright. Here are both of the extremely limited network posters for the bout in my collection.

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