Notebook: PBC, Showtime announce lackluster PPV undercard for Canelo-Plant

Berlanga to have surgery; Shields, Marshall plan; TR signs teen

Oct 19, 2021

While the Canelo Alvarez-Caleb Plant fight to crown the first undisputed super middleweight champion in division history is must-see for most boxing fans, the same can’t be said for the pay-per-view undercard that Premier Boxing Champions and Showtime announced on Monday.

They announced three 10-round bouts for the televised undercard on Nov. 6 (Showtime PPV, 9 p.m. ET) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and none of them are of any significance.

In the co-feature, former two-time super middleweight titlist Anthony Dirrell (33-2-2, 24 KOs), 37, of Flint, Michigan, who is 0-1-1 in his past two fights, will face journeyman Marcos Hernandez (15-4-2, 3 KOs), 28, of Fresno, California, who is 1-2-1 in his last four bouts and has no wins of serious note.

“I’m very ready for this fight,” Dirrell said. “I know Hernandez is a tough competitor and I’m sure he’ll have a lot of fans there since we’re fighting on the same card as Canelo. But I know I’m ready to fight on the big stage and on a card of this magnitude. I fought on the Errol Spence Jr. versus Shawn Porter undercard and I think this fight night is going to have a similar feel. I’m just prepared to do whatever I have to do to get the victory. The fans should expect fireworks. I’m not shying away from the action and hopefully I can get the winner of Canelo versus Plant if I perform well.”

While it was not announced, Dirrell is likely on the card just in case something happens to Plant and Alvarez needs a new opponent on short notice.

Former junior featherweight titlist Rey Vargas (34-0, 22 KOs), 30, will face Mexican countryman Leonardo Baez (21-4, 12 KOs), 26.

Vargas has been idle since retaining his title for the fifth time in a unanimous decision over Tomoki Kameda in July 2019. He later vacated the title and has been sidelined by injuries. This will be his first fight since signing with PBC.

“You are going to see a renewed Rey Vargas,” Vargas said. “My opponent is a good fighter with speed who throws a lot of combinations. It will be a tough fight, but I know I have what it takes to win. I couldn’t be happier to be on the big stage on Canelo’s undercard. I know that I have to shine on fight night, take advantage of this showcase, and deliver a great fight for the fans.”

Baez has won three fights in a row but has lost when he has stepped up his opposition, including knockouts to Carlos Caraballo, Jason Moloney and Julio Cesar Martinez.

In the opener, junior welterweight Elvis Rodriguez (11-1-1, 10 KOs), 25, a southpaw from the Dominican Republic, will face Juan Pablo Romero (14-0, 9 KOs), 31, of Mexico. Rodriguez was a heavily hyped prospect until he lost in May and was released by Top Rank. He was subsequently signed by PBC and this will be his first fight since the eight-round majority decision loss to Kenneth Sims Jr.

Rodriguez was initially due to make his PBC debut on Oct. 9 on the Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder III undercard, but his bout fell out.

Berlanga set for surgery

Heavy-hitting super middleweight prospect Edgar Berlanga is scheduled to undergo surgery on Wednesday to repair the tear he suffered in his left biceps in a 10-round decision victory over former world title challenger Marcelo Esteban Coceres on the Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder III undercard on Oct. 9 in Las Vegas, manager Keith Connolly told Fight Freaks Unite.

Dr. Paul Sethi will perform the surgery in Stamford, Connecticut, according to Connolly. Berlanga had an MRI last week indicating that he had torn the biceps and would need surgery.

“If everything goes right he can start boxing in three months but it depends on how the surgery and rehab goes,” Connolly said. “There’s a good chance he could he fight in March. That’s what we’re aiming for. If it doesn’t work out we’ll just go to June (in New York) on the Puerto Rican Day parade weekend.”

The injury has bumped Berlanga from boxing in Vasiliy Lomachenko’s co-feature on Dec.9 at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Berlanga (18-0, 16 KOs), 24, a Puerto Rican from Brooklyn, New York, suffered the injury during the third round against Coceres, who lost 96-93 on all three scorecards but dropped Berlanga for the first time on a counter right hand in the ninth round.

With a December fight out for Berlanga, Top Rank was next planning for him to headline in Puerto Rico in March followed by a main event at Madison Square Garden in June on the weekend of the annual Puerto Rican Day parade.

Shields, Marshall collision course

One of boxing’s worst-kept secrets is a reality. After England’s Savannah Marshall (11-0, 9 KOs), 30, of England, knocked out Lolita Muzeya (16-1, 8 KOs), 30, of Zambia, in the second round to retain her WBO middleweight title on Saturday in the main event of the Boxxer card on Sky Sports at Utilita Arena in Newcastle, England, it was announced that Marshall and Claressa Shields would fight on the same card on Dec. 11 in Birmingham, England. If they both win they will meet in one of the most significant female fights that can be made.

Shields-Marshall is a grudge match a long time coming. Shields went 77-1 as an amateur and won two Olympic gold medals. Her lone loss was to Marshall in 2012 and they’ve exchanged words repeatedly since. After Marshall’s win, Shields joined the broadcast via satellite to talk up their collision course.

“Congrats! See you next year, girlie,” Shields said to Marshall. “Show you what a real fighter and real champion fights like.”

Marshall’s response: “Claressa couldn't last two minutes with me, never mind two rounds.”

On the Dec. 11 card, the women will face opponents to be named. Shields will box in the main event, according to her manager, Mark Taffet, and defend her WBC/IBF/WBA middleweight titles. Shields (11-0, 2 KOs), 26, of Flint, Michigan, is also the reigning undisputed junior middleweight champion. Marshall, who is trained by Peter Fury (Tyson Fury’s father), will defend her WBO belt, which she won after Shields vacated it.

On Saturday’s undercard:

Heavyweight Hughie Fury (26-3, 15 KOs), 27, of England, stopped journeyman Christian Hammer (26-8, 16 KOs), 34, of Germany, in the fifth round when Hammer retired due a torn right biceps.

Middleweight contender Chris Eubank Jr. (31-2, 23 KOs), 32, of England, stopped Wanik Awdijan (28-2, 11 KOs), 26, of Germany, when Awdijan retired on his stool after the fifth round due to a suspected broken rib that made his breathing labored.

Top Rank signs 17-year-old

Top Rank announced Monday it has signed 17-year-old Cleveland lightweight Abdullah Mason.

He will make his professional debut in a four-rounder against an opponent to be named on the Mikaela Mayer-Maiva Hamadouche undercard at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas on Nov. 5 (ESPN+).

Mason, who is managed by James Prince and co-promoted by Antonio Leonard, won the National Junior Olympics in 2017, the Eastern Regional Open in 2017 and 2018, and the Junior Open in 2018 and 2019. In April, he won a USA Boxing Youth National title. Overall as an amateur, his record was roughly 65-15.

“Abdullah Mason is one of the most electrifying young fighters I’ve ever seen, a 17-year-old who is ready to be a sensational professional,” Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said. “He’s held his own in sparring against the best pros in the world, and everybody I’ve spoken to raves about his talent and work ethic. It takes a special type of kid to turn pro this young, and I have no doubt he’ll live up to the billing.”

Mason, who recently relocated to Las Vegas with his family, has sparred with Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson, and Darwin Price. He is trained by his father, Valiant Mason and has four brothers, all of whom box: Amir, 24; Adel, 22; Abdurrahman, 19; and Ibrahim, 15.

“My father and I believed it was the right time to take the next step,” Mason said. “My family is one big team. It keeps us on track. We’re always in the gym. We all have fun with it, but we push each other to the limit.

“Vegas is the boxing capital, so we wanted to come here and follow in the footsteps of all the world champions before us. We came here to train with the best fighters in the world. Being in an environment like this breeds champions. And with the team I have behind me, I know I will be a world champion one day."

Quick hits

Weekend result: Cruiserweight world champion Mairis Briedis (28-1, 20 KOs), 36, of Latvia, retained the title by third-round knockout of Artur Mann (17-2, 9 KOs), 31, of Germany, on Saturday at the Arena Riga in Latvia. The fight was Briedis’ first since a majority decision over Yunier Dorticos in 13 months ago to win the IBF title (he had been stripped of the WBO belt) and the World Boxing Super Series tournament. Briedis knocked Mann down with a right hand late in the second round and twice more in the third round before referee Joerg Milke stopped it at 2 minutes, 59 seconds. Promoter Kalle Sauerland on what might be next for Briedis: “There are a lot of big fights out there for him. A unification with Lawrence Okolie, a mandatory defense against Jai Opetaia or a move up to heavyweight. Mairis has already proven he is the No. 1 in the division and now it’s about securing legacy defining fights.”

Exciting heavyweight brawler “The Savage” Alen Babic (8-0, 8 KOs), 30, of Croatia, will face former two-time world title challenger Eric Molina (28-7, 20 KOs), 39, of Raymondville, Texas, in a step-up fight scheduled for eight rounds on the Dillian Whyte-Otto Wallin undercard on Oct. 30 (DAZN) at the O2 Arena in London, Matchroom Boxing announced Monday. Molina is vastly experienced, having face (but lost to) Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder in title fights as well as Chris Arreola, Dominic Breazeale and Filip Hrgovic. “Pain is on the menu that night,” Babic said. “Let us embrace it. I don't want a normal fight. I want a painful one. Eric Molina — I hope you are ready because it is going to be a painful fight. Happy Halloween, Eric.”

Artem Dalakian will defend his WBA flyweight title against mandatory challenger Luis Concepcion (39-8, 28 KOs), 35, of Panama, who was one of the 11 interim titleholder the WBA recently stripped as part of its promise to reduce the number of titles it sanctions, on Nov. 20 in Kyiv, Ukraine, Dalakian’s hometown, Union Boxing Promotions announced. UBP, Dalakian’s promoter, won a purse bid for $310,000 for the right to stage the bout. Dalakian (20-0, 14 KOs), 34, won the title by lopsided decision over Brian Viloria in 2018 in Los Angeles and will be making his fifth defense. Dalakian gets $165,550 (55 percent of the winning bid) and Concepcion gets $135,450 (45 percent).

Junior featherweights Tomoki Kameda (37-3, 20 KOs), 30, a former bantamweight world titlist from Japan based in Mexico, and Yonfrez Parejo (24-4-1, 12 KOs), 35, a former interim bantamweight titlist from Venezuela, will meet in a WBA junior featherweight title eliminator on Dec. 4, in Hermosillo, Mexico, the WBA announced. The winner would become one of the mandatory challengers for the winner of the Nov. 19 bout between unified titlist Murodjon Akhmadaliev and Ronny Rios.

The WBO has scheduled a purse bid for the fight between strawweight titlist Wilfredo “Bimbito” Mendez (16-1, 6 KOs), 24, of Puerto Rico, and mandatory challenger and fellow southpaw Masataka Taniguchi (14-3, 9 KOs), 27, of Japan, for Wednesday. Participants can attend in person at the sanctioning body’s headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico, or via video conference. Minimum bid is $80,000. The split is 75-25 in favor of Mendez but could increase to 80-20 if the bout takes place in Japan. Mendez has made two defenses. Taniguchi will be getting his second title shot, having lost a decision to Vic Saludar for the same belt in February 2019.

Per the California State Athletic Commission, these are the official contract purses for the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN+ card on Saturday night in San Diego: Emanuel Navarrete $550,000, Joet Gonzalez $185,000; Giovani Santillan $40,000, Angel Ruiz $30,000; Henry Lebron $15,000, Manuel Rey Rojas $10,000; Lindolfo Delgado $15,000, Tloxing Garcia Mendez $10,000; Javier Martinez $6,000, Darryl Jones $4,500; Floyd Diaz $4,000, Jose Ramirez $3,500; Antonio Mireles $4,000, Demonte Randall $3,000.

Show and tell

Last week in this space I displayed a full ticket from the instant classic Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder III heavyweight championship fight in Las Vegas, where I was pleased to have been to cover the great fight. I also was fortunate to have covered their first two memorable fights and, of course, I also have full tickets from each of them. Here are tickets in my collection from their first fight, the December 2018 draw in Los Angeles — two different versions — and a ticket from Fury’s seventh-round knockout in their rematch in February 2020 in Las Vegas.

Berlanga photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank; Marshall photo: Boxxer

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