Notebook: Rocha risks mandatory spot against unbeaten Santillan
Catterall in action vs. Linares; site for Top Rank's Heisman card; new DAZN deal for Jake Paul's MVP; Davies-Barroso ticketed for Ryan Garcia show; Quick hits; Show and tell
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Welterweight contender Alexis Rocha is already the WBO mandatory challenger and stepped aside over the summer to allow Terence Crawford to face Errol Spence Jr. in a four-belt unification fight for the undisputed title.
Crawford stopped Spence in a one-sided fight and a rematch is possible early next year. But whatever Crawford does next, Rocha was not about to sit idle and wait to see what happens with the WBO belt.
So, he will stay active with his third fight of the year and risk his mandatory status against Giovani Santillan, who appears to be his most dangerous opponent, in a 12-round regional title defense in the main event of the Golden Boy card Saturday on DAZN (8 p.m. ET) at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California.
“I want to thank Giovani Santillan and his team taking this fight. We both knew this fight would come one day,” Rocha said at this week’s news conference. “We’re knocking on the door for title contention. He’s ready. I’m ready. We’re going to bring it. This is a fan friendly fight that could potentially end in a knockout either way.”
Rocha (23-1, 15 KOs), 26, a southpaw from Santa Ana, California, has won seven fights in a row since a competitive 12-round decision loss to Rashidi Ellis in October 2020. He seems to be improving and looked sharp in his last fight, a fifth-round knockout of Anthony Young in May.
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For Santillan (31-0, 16 KOs), 31, a southpaw from San Diego, who is with Top Rank, he is facing by far his most dangerous opponent.
“I’ve been working very hard and I’m very excited for this opportunity,” Santillan said. “I’m planning on making the most out of this, and I plan on making a statement. I’m finally getting a chance to show the world who I am as the main event at the Kia Forum. This is something very meaningful for me and it's going to be an exciting night.”
Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya, whose 1992 professional debut was at The Forum, made the deal with Top Rank without much fuss from either side.
“We are proud to keep the promise I made to boxing fans about working with everyone to make the best fights possible,” De La Hoya said.
De La Hoya also said he is loves Rocha’s attitude of not only wanting to remain active but his willingness to fight a legitimate foe even though he is already in a mandatory position.
“We did step aside already and Rocha wanted to stay busy and he wanted to stay active against a tough, undefeated fighter,” De La Hoya told Fight Freaks Unite. “I was very surprised that Rocha chose Santillan, but then again, that’s Rocha for you. He wants to fight the best and he wants to stay active and that’s what a fighter should be doing.
“If you’re in a position when you’re knocking on the door to fight for a world title and you don’t quite yet have that opportunity, you stay busy and you keep your tools sharp. And so this Santillan fight is a perfect example of what a fighter should be, a fighter that knows he has a short window of opportunity and you should take advantage of that. He’s a drawing a crowd, he’s getting better and he’s understanding what it takes to potentially become not only a champion but to become a star.”
In the co-feature, John “Scrappy” Ramirez (12-0, 8 KOs), 27, of Los Angeles, and Panama’s Ronal Bautista (15-3, 9 KOs), 26, square off in a WBA junior bantamweight title eliminator for the right to become the mandatory challenger for Kazuto Ioka.
“We had a plan. The plan was to take the right fights to get to the world title,” Ramirez said. “You see, a lot of people didn't believe in me when I say that I'll get here. But guess what? I wrote it down. I visualized it and made it happen. And I stayed hungry and when you get to this level it is easy. But to stay here is hard. And I’m here to stay.”
Listen to our latest podcast episode, which includes my extensive one-on-one interview with Oscar De La Hoya; thoughts on the end of Showtime boxing; previews of the weekend fights; news of the week and much more.
Catterall focused on Linares
Junior welterweight contender Jack Catterall pines for another shot at the title after what many viewed as one of the most controversial decisions in recent years when he lost a split decision challenging Josh Taylor for the undisputed title on his home turf in Scotland in February 2022.
A rematch was planned but postponed multiple times for a variety of reasons and then canceled altogether when Taylor was ordered to make his WBO mandatory defense against Teofimo Lopez, who handily outpointed him to take lone remaining belt.
England’s Catterall, meantime, wound up being out of the ring for 15 months until signing with Matchroom Boxing and returning in May, when he won a lopsided 10-round decision over Darragh Foley in a forgettable fight.
Now, Catterall is hoping to get some momentum going and set himself up for a title fight, perhaps against the winner of the Dec. 9 Regis Prograis-Devin Haney WBC title bout, when he fights faded former three-division titlist Jorge Linares in the 12-round the main event of the Matchroom Boxing card on Saturday (DAZN, 2 p.m. ET) at M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England.
Linares has lost three fights in a row, all at lightweight, and four of his last six, including the one time he competed at junior welterweight. In that fight he got knocked out in the first round by Cesar Pablo Cano in 2019.
But Linares has also had success fighting in England, going 3-0, all in lightweight title bouts: a 10th-round knockout of Kevin Mitchell in 2015 and back-to-back unanimous decisions over Anthony Crolla in 2016 and 2017.
Even though most view Linares as way past his best days, Catterall (27-1, 13 KOs), 30, a southpaw, claims he is treating him as a hungry, dangerous opponent, going so far as to say he considers Linares Hall of Fame material, which is a stretch.
“When I got the call and was told it was Jorge next, it kicked me into action,” Catterall said. “It’s an exciting name who has been there. He’s had his time in the sun and now it’s my time.
“I put pressure on myself. He’s been a three-time world Champion. I would never look past this fight or disrespect Jorge. I think he understands that the winner of this fight puts themselves in the picture for much bigger fights. I set out in this sport to be world champion. We haven’t achieved that yet but I do believe I have the ability to do it. We’ve had conversations about a number of fights in the future but all of that means nothing without beating Jorge on Saturday.”
Linares (47-8, 29 KOs), 38, a Venezuela native, is showing similar respect to Catterall as one of those who believe he deserved the win over Taylor.
“I feel I am fighting an undefeated fighter,” Linares said. “For me, Catterall is a world champion. He didn’t lose the fight against Josh Taylor. So, this is a big night for me. I am close to retirement. I’m coming in great shape, better than the other times I’ve come to England. I feel like a 20 year old.
“I’m coming off three losses but I don’t think about that. I know I’m in with a great fighter, but I’ve been here before and have had a great camp.”
Site for Heisman card
Top Rank’s annual ESPN card immediately following the presentation of college football’s Heisman Trophy, also on the network, will this year for the first time not take place in New York, where the trophy is presented. Usually, the card takes place at Madison Square Garden (the main arena or Theater).
This year’s Dec. 9 show will take place at the 3,200-seat Charles F. Dodge City Center in Pembroke Pines, Florida, a source with knowledge of the plans told Fight Freaks Unite.
The card has not been formally announced yet but, as previously reported by Fight Freaks Unite, per sources, it will be headlined by WBO featherweight titlist Robeisy Ramirez (13-1, 8 KOs), 29, the two-time Cuban Olympic gold medalist, making his second title defense against Rafael Espinoza (21-0, 18 KOs), 29, of Mexico.
Two of boxing’s top prospects are also ticketed for the card: lightweight and 2020 Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn Davis (10-0, 6 KOs), 24, of Norfolk, Virginia, who last week outpointed Nahir Albright, and junior middleweight Xander Zayas (17-0, 11 KOs), 21, a Puerto Rican from nearby Sunrise, Florida. It will be Zayas’ first pro fight in his home region.
BetUS Boxing Show
If you missed the BetUS Boxing Show live at 1 p.m. ET on Friday on YouTube, please check out the replay (and also subscribe to the YouTube channel). We previewed and picked the main events of Saturday’s most notable cards: the junior welterweight bout between top contender Jack Catterall and Jorge Linares and the showdown between welterweight contenders Alexis Rocha and Giovani Santillan. We also took viewer questions and comments and discussed the latest boxing news! Please check out the show here:
Jake Paul-DAZN expand deal
Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions and DAZN have extended and expanded their deal for the “Most Valuable Prospects” series. The deal, which was for four events in 2023, has been extended to 2024, when the company will put on six events, MVP and DAZN announced.
MVP also announced that it has extended its partnership with BoxLab Promotions, which is the official licensed promoter of the series, whose events take place at the Caribe Royale resort in Orlando, Florida.
The next card is on Oct. 27 and pairs the prospect bouts with undisputed women’s featherweight champion Amanda Serrano defending against Danila Ramos.
“Following the incredible ongoing success of our 2023 series, we could not be more excited to renew ‘Most Valuable Prospects’ for 2024 alongside our dedicated distribution partner DAZN to bring more events and more exhilarating matchups to fans around the world,” MVP co-founders Nakisa Bidarian and Jake Paul said in a joint statement. “Boxing is going through a transformational period and we want to spearhead the change that drives value to fighters first. We look forward to an exceptional 2024 with 10 events already in place and an expansion of the MVP roster.”
Paul’s next bout will also be on DAZN on Dec. 15 and the streaming service said it is pleased to continue the relationship.
“We look forward to another year of showcasing more ‘Most Valuable Prospects’ fight nights. DAZN and MVP have had great success thus far and extending this partnership only makes sense to continue putting together even more thrilling fights for boxing fans,” said Joe Markowski, the CEO of DAZN North America. “Jake Paul and MVP have an incredible impact in growing the sport of boxing and we can’t wait to take part in this impact further.”
Boxing Social appearance
I joined my friends at Boxing Social to discuss the latest in boxing: Showtime leaving boxing; where PBC may wind up now that Showtime is done; Boxxer’s American TV deal with NBC; the possibility of Chris Eubank Jr.-Conor Benn and Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk both being on Dec. 23; and the Devin Haney-Regis Prograis kickoff press conference. Check out the video here:
Quick hits
Weights from Inglewood, California, for the Golden Boy show Saturday (DAZN): Alexis Rocha 147 pounds, Giovani Santillan 146; John “Scrappy” Ramirez 115, Ronal Batista 114.2 (WBA junior bantamweight eliminator); Ricardo Sandoval 111.8, Victor Sandoval 111.2; Arely Mucino 111.8, Gabriela Fundora 110.8 (for Mucino’s IBF women’s flyweight title); David Stevens 167, Joeshon James 166.8; Iyana Verduzco 132.2, Clarice Morales 132.2; Fabian Guzman 154.2, Rueben Johnson 154.
Per California State Athletic Commission, official contract purses for the Golden Boy card on DAZN on Saturday: Alexis Rocha $400,000, Giovani Santillan $190,000; John “Scrappy” Ramirez $75,000, Ronal Batista $25,000; Ricardo Sandoval $30,000, Victor Sandoval $20,000; Arely Mucino $50,000, Gabriela Fundora $35,000; David Stevens $20,000, Joeshon James $12,000; Iyana Verduzco $2,500, Clarice Morales $3,500; Fabian Guzman $2,500, Rueben Johnson $2,000.
Weights from Liverpool, England, for the Matchroom Boxing card Saturday (DAZN): Jack Catterall 140 pounds, Jorge Linares 140; Peter McGrail 121.4, Fran Mendoza 119.8; Jack Turner 117.3, Adam Yahaya 116.6; Aqib Fiaz 130, Reece Bellotti 128.9 (for vacant Commonwealth junior lightweight title); Shabaz Masoud 121.8, Jose Sanmartin 122; Khaleel Majid 141.3, Tom Farrell 141.9; Campbell Hatton 142.9, Jamie Sampson 141.1; Paddy Lacey 163.1, Owen Kirk 163.6; Muhammad Mustafa Ali 123.9, Giulio Commerso 123.6; William Crolla 153.9, Martin Shaw 153.1.
Golden Boy and PBC are finalizing a deal that would see junior welterweight Ohara Davies (25-2, 18 KOs), 31, the WBA mandatory challenger from England, who recently signed with Golden Boy, and Ismael Barroso (24-4-2, 22 KOs), 40, a southpaw from Venezuela, meet for the WBA interim title on the undercard of Ryan Garcia-Oscar Duarte on Dec. 2 (DAZN) at the Toyota Center in Houston, a source with knowledge of the discussions told Fight Freaks Unite. The WBA ordered Davies-Barroso for the interim title because titlist Rolando Romero is sidelined for several months due to a torn disc in his back. Barroso was handling Romero with relative ease and ahead on all three scorecards in their bout for the vacant 140-pound belt on May 13 only to have referee Tony Weeks make a universally criticized and inexplicable ninth-round stoppage in the Showtime main event at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
Former junior lightweight titlist Joseph Diaz Jr. (33-4-1, 15 KOs), 30, of Downey, California, who came down with flu-like symptoms in recent days, has withdraw from a 10-round lightweight bout against Richard Medina (15-1, 8 KOs), 22, of San Antonio, that was supposed to be on the undercard of the Alexis Rocha-Giovani Santillan welterweight bout that headlines the Golden Boy card on Saturday night (DAZN) at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California. A source involved also told Fight Freaks Unite that Diaz was dramatically overweight — at least eight pounds — and wasn’t going to come close to making the 135-pound limit. Diaz has missed weight for his past three fights.
Featherweights Lee McGregor (12-1-1, 9 KOs), 26, and Isaac Lowe (23-2-3, 7 KOs), 29, will meet in an all-British 10-round regional title bout Dec. 1 at Toughsheet Community Stadium in Bolton, England, Wasserman Boxing announced. The fight will headline a card on free-to-air Channel 5 in the United Kingdom. McGregor will look to rebound from a 12-round decision loss to Erik Robles in July. “I will out-box and out-fight him,” McGregor said. “I’m moving up to featherweight and I am going to be so strong. In my last fight against Robles, I was nowhere near 100 percent and the people close to me know the reasons for that.” Lowe, who is part of Tyson Fury’s camp, has won two fights in a row since back-to-back losses to Luis Alberto Lopez via seventh-round knockout in an IBF world title eliminator in 2021 followed by a sixth-round knockout to Nick Ball in 2022. “We are going to punch the living daylights out of each other for 30 minutes — that’s if Lee can last the 10 rounds,” Lowe said.
Show and tell
When the $1 billion Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, opened in 2012 the then-owners vowed to make it a hotbed for boxing, and for most of its first decade it was exactly that. It was one of the busiest boxing arenas in the country and hosted dozens of major fights, mostly put on by Premier Boxing Champions and televised on Showtime. In the main event of the inaugural card, the prime Danny Garcia retained the WBC/WBA junior welterweight title with a spectacular one-punch, left-hook knockout of Erik Morales in the fourth round of their rematch, a victory that sent Morales, a Hall of Famer, into retirement. Morales had controversially been allowed to participate in the bout on a technicality after having twice tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol.
Also on the world title quadrupleheader, Brooklyn’s Paulie Malignaggi outpointed Pablo Cesar Cano to retain the WBA welterweight title; “Kid Chocolate” Peter Quillin, also of Brooklyn, outpointed Hassan N'Dam to win the WBO middleweight title; and Devon Alexander outpointed Randall Bailey to win the IBF welterweight title. I was ringside to cover the card (as well most of the boxing events held at the arena, whose new owners have largely ignored boxing post pandemic), which took place on Oct. 20, 2012 — 11 years ago on Friday. Here is a thin cardboard site poster, which is double sided and features Spanish on the other side, in my collection.
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Photos: Rocha-Santillan: Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy; Catterall-Linares: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing; Ramirez: Mikey Williams/Top Rank
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