Notebook: Spence vows to knock out Ugas in unification fight, then wants Crawford
Valenzuela-Vargas a passing of the torch?; Big Fight Weekend podcast previews the fights; Benn faces first southpaw; Quick hits; Show and tell
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After Errol Spence Jr. and Yordenis Ugas both easily made weight on Friday they stood and briefly stared directly into each other’s eyes.
There was no trash talk, no pushing or shoving. No nonsense at all. Just two calm, confident, stone-faced champions ready for the biggest fight so far in 2022.
Spence, the WBC/IBF welterweight titlist, and Ugas, who holds the WBA 147-pound title, will meet in a three-belt unification fight Saturday (Showtime PPV and PPV.com, 9 p.m. ET, $74.99) in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions event at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, a home region fight for Spence, who hails from nearby DeSoto, Texas.
Both fighters looked in supreme condition at the outdoor weigh-in. Spence was 146.25 pounds for his sixth title defense (and second as a unified titleholder) and Ugas weighed 146.75 for his second defense, which is coming eight months after outpointing the legendary Manny Pacquiao and sending him into retirement in August.
Spence sounded like a man on a mission following the weigh-in.
“I’m proving the point that I’m the best at 147 pounds,” Spence said. “I’m the best in the division. I’m making a statement come Saturday night. I want the knockout. I’m gonna get the knockout. I’m gonna get his belt and then after that it’s time to be undisputed champion of the world and I’m going after (WBO titleholder) Terence Crawford after I get through Ugas.”
Spence-Crawford has been one of the most demanded fights by boxing fans and media for the past few years but has never come close to being made. Perhaps things will be different if Spence wins because now Crawford is a promotional and broadcast free agent.
During a recent episode of Showtime boxing host Brian Custer’s “The Last Stand” podcast, he interviewed Spence and the subject of a possible Crawford fight came up.
“It’s something that I’m definitely looking forward to and it’s something that I’m willing to work towards,” Spence said. “After I get past Ugas, it could be an easy fight to make. It just depends on stipulations between me and him. I’ll bend but I’m not going to break. I’ll take off my coat but I’m not going to give it to you. So, I think it could happen and I’m looking forward to that fight. I think it’s a legacy fight for him and myself.”
The fight with Ugas is the first for Spence (27-0, 21 KOs), 32, a southpaw, since suffering a detached retina in his left eye and subsequent surgery. It was found during a routine pre-fight medical exam less than two weeks before he was to defend against Pacquiao on Aug. 21 in Las Vegas.
Spence was forced out of the fight and Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs), 35, a Cuban defector fighting out of Miami, who was slated for his first defense in the co-feature but was in need of an opponent when Fabian Maidana was injured around the same time as Spence’s eye problem was discovered, instead moved into the main event to face Pacquiao in a match made on 11 days’ notice.
Not only has Spence dealt with the eye injury, but just three weeks after his action-packed two-belt unification decision win over Shawn Porter in late 2019, he was in a serous one-car accident (and charged with DUI) that left him banged up and hospitalized for weeks. He did not fight again for 14 months and knew he was lucky to be alive.
He has since made lifestyle changes.
“There was the accident and the injuries and it made me understand that boxing is a lifestyle, 365 days (a year) and I gotta keep training, stay focused and I’m doing this more than for myself, for my family,” Spence said. “They help me stay focused and on my grind.”
He also did what many Texans do — he became a farmer and rancher and spends a lot of time working his land and tending to his livestock.
“It gives me stuff to do,” Spence said. “I was fighting two times a year, so I have a lot of time to myself. I’ve got five, six months where I’m not doing nothing. I’m not training, I’m not fighting. So, I have a lot of off time to do whatever I want to do.
“And then a kid with a lot of money, you get in trouble, you start doing different things. So the farm life helped me out. I got chickens, cows, horses. They give me something to do on my off time when I’m not training and give me something besides my kids and boxing.”
If you order Spence vs. Ugas on PPV.COM you will be automatically entered for a chance to win 2 tickets and hotel/airfare to an upcoming PPV event.
Valenzuela statement?
Lightweight Jose Valenzuela, one of boxing’s top prospects, will face former junior lightweight titleholder Francisco Vargas on the Spence-Ugas pay-per-view undercard and hopes to notch an impressive win in his highest-profile fight so far.
“This win is going to show everyone that I’m here and that I can compete with the top guys. Francisco Vargas is a strong former champion and I’m excited for the challenge,” Valenzuela said. “I’m always trying to make a statement, but I don’t want to get carried away looking for the knockout and make a mistake. I’m going to stick to the game plan.”
Valenzuela (11-0, 7 KOs), 22, a Seattle-based Mexico native, is heavily favored against Vargas (27-3-2, 19 KOs), 37, of Mexico, who has taken tremendous punishment in many fights, including in the 2015 and 2016 fights of the year, when he won the WBC junior lightweight title by dramatic comeback ninth-round knockout of Takashi Miura and then fought to a draw with Orlando Salido in his first defense.
“I’m hungry, I’m young and I believe that he’s on his way out,” Valenzuela said. “You could definitely call this a passing of the torch.”
But Valenzuela said he is not looking past the veteran Vargas, who is coming off a 10-round decision loss to lightweight contender Isaac Cruz last June and is 2-2 in his last four bouts.
“Vargas is still a great fighter. He gave Isaac Cruz a run for his money and (Cruz) couldn’t get him out of there,” said Valenzuela, who trains in the same camp with former two-time super middleweight titlist David Benavidez. “So my mission is to go in there and out-perform everybody. It’s a dream come true to be on a card like this. The whole card is stacked. I’m very excited and I’m looking to steal the show. This is everything that I’ve worked so hard for.”
Vargas has heard Valenzuela say he’s over the hill and has taken it to heart.
“Of course, it motivates me when I hear Valenzuela say that I am past my prime and on the way out,” Vargas said through an interpreter. “But at the same time, I know how I feel. I feel totally ready. I feel in shape physically and mentally to be up to the challenge. I’m going to prove that to all of you on fight night.
“I know what it feels like to be Jose’s age. I was in his place at one point where I felt like I had all the energy in the world and felt that I was going to take over the world. But what I’m lacking in youth, I gained in experience. I have maturity now. In this fight, you’re going to see how that experience is going to work in my favor.”
If you order Spence vs. Ugas on PPV.COM you will be automatically entered for a chance to win 2 tickets and hotel/airfare to an upcoming PPV event.
Big Fight Weekend podcast
On the Big Fight Weekend podcast TJ Rives and I did a full preview of Spence-Ugas as well as the PPV undercard and the regular Showtime fights. We also discussed Dillian Whyte finally surfacing this week to finally take part in the promotion of his fight next week against heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. And there’s more: TJ interviewed junior welterweight prospect Brandun Lee, who faces Zachary Ochoa to open the Showtime portion of Spence-Ugas and we also previewed the Matchroom Boxing main event on DAZN between welterweight Conor Benn and Chris van Heerden. Get ready for Saturday’s action by giving it a listen here:
Conor Benn back in action
As promoter Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn prepares British welterweight up-and-comer Conor Benn for the big time, he is making sure that Benn faces opponents with varying styles.
So, when Benn, the son of British legend Nigel Benn, faces Chris van Heerden in a regional title defense in the main event of a Matchroom Boxing card on Saturday (DAZN, 2 p.m. ET) at AO Arena in Manchester, England, he will be facing the first southpaw of his career.
Benn said he is ready to face his first left-hander.
“Van Heerden is a good fighter, he’s a tricky fighter, he’s a tough fighter,” Benn said. “He’s a come forward southpaw. He’s been in there with the best. First southpaw opponent. They’re definitely hard work that’s for sure. You have to think a lot more. You have to demonstrate a lot more skill. You can’t just go in there with the same approach as you would with an orthodox fighter.
“He’s wanted this fight for a while. He told me he needed this fight for himself, needed it for closure. We’ve made the fight happen. Hopefully he comes prepared, which I believe he will. He said he doesn’t rate my boxing ability. If you don’t respect me then I’ll make you respect me. Chris van Heerden needs to be ready for a whole lot of firepower. He needs to be ready for someone who fights like he’s got everything to lose.”
Benn (20-0, 13 KOs), 25, is coming off his most explosive and significant victory, a spectacular fourth-round knockout of former junior welterweight world titlist Chris Algieri on Dec. 11.
“It was the most dramatic finish of my career for sure,” Benn said. “It was great that I was able to put in that performance. I just went in there with such confidence. Being confident in the ring... you display it in your defense mechanisms, trust in your reflexes, and trust in your power.”
Whether Benn can finish van Heerden (28-2-1, 12 KOs), 34, a South Africa native fighting out of Santa Monica, California, in similar fashion remains to be seen, but Benn is confident. The only time van Heerden has been stopped came in the eighth round against Errol Spence Jr. in 2015.
"I knocked out Algieri out like no one else has,” Benn said. “I’m going to knock van Heerden out like no one else has. I believe that passion and hard work can get you anywhere.”
Quick hits
Weights from Arlington, Texas, for Saturday’s PBC Showtime PPV card: Errol Spence Jr. 146.25 pounds, Yordenis Ugas 146.75 (WBC/IBF/WBA welterweight unification); Isaac Cruz 134.74, Yuriorkis Gamboa 134.25; Jose Valenzuela 134.75, Francisco Vargas 134.5; Cody Crowley 144.5, Josesito Lopez 146.5. Here are the weights for the bouts that air on regular Showtime (7 p.m. ET) prior to the PPV: Radzhab Butaev 146.5, Eimantas Stanionis 146.5 (for Butaev’s WBA regular welterweight title); Brandun Lee 142.5, Zachary Ochoa 141.25.
Former junior flyweight titlist Angel “Tito” Acosta (22-3-1, 21 KOs), 31, of Puerto Rico, will face countryman Janel Rivera (18-8-3, 11 KOs), 30, in a 10-round junior bantamweight bout that will headline the second edition of “Golden Boy Fight Night” on May 12 (DAZN, 9 p.m. ET) at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California, Golden Boy announced on Friday. Victor Morales (15-0-1, 8 KOs), 24, of Vancouver, Washington, will fight Alberto Torres (11-4-3, 4 KOs), 35, of Sacramento, California, in the 10-round featherweight co-feature.
Top Rank was scheduled to provide ESPN+ with Friday’s MTK Global card from London headlined by the Gavin Gwynne-Luke Willis Commonwealth and British lightweight title fight, but the coverage was canceled earlier in the week, according to Top Rank. The company has cut ties with MTK Global in the wake of the United States government’s decision this week to sanction Dubai-based Irish national Daniel Kinahan, among others, and offer a $5 million reward that will lead to the “financial destruction” of the Kinahan Organized Crime Group. Kinahan co-founded management and promotional company MTK Global and although MTK insists Kinahan is no longer involved with the company after selling his share in 2017, many believe he remains the one calling the shots.
Show and tell
If you have followed my writing for even a little while you should know that the late, great Hall of Fame junior lightweight and junior welterweight titleholder Arturo Gatti is my all-time favorite fighter. I even named one of our late cats “Thunder” in his honor. Gatti was the greatest action fighter of his time and one of the greatest action fighters in boxing history. He brought drama and passion to every one of his fights and had as much heart as any fighter who ever lived. He moved people. He made people into boxing fans. He always gave everything he had win or lose. I was fortunate to get to know him a bit and cover many of his fights. Beyond just as a fighter, I liked him personally. Gatti, who died in 2009, was born on April 15, 1972 and Friday would have been his 50th birthday.
Here is one of the most prized items in my vast collection. It is a fight-used jacket that one of his cornermen wore during Gatti’s 2001 loss to Oscar De La Hoya, which was the second of the 12 Gatti fights I covered at ringside. The jacket, which still has blood on one of the pockets, was signed to me by Gatti and gifted to me long after the fight.
Spence-Ugas and Valenzuela-Vargas photos: Amanda Westcott/Showtime; Benn-van Heereden photo: Ian Walton/Matchroom Boxing
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Spence is quoted as saying...
“There was the accident and the injuries and it made me understand that boxing is a lifestyle, 365 days (a year) and I gotta keep training, stay focused..."
and....
“It (his ranch) gives me stuff to do,” Spence said. “I was fighting two times a year, so I have a lot of time to myself. I’ve got five, six months where I’m not doing nothing. I’m not training, I’m not fighting. So, I have a lot of off time to do whatever I want to do."
However both of these statements can't be true as they contradict each other. If Spence wants to have any hope of beating Crawford his first statement is the one that better be true.
Good fight but Hearn's given Benn a pretty easy fight against Van Heerden, whose record since Spence schooled + ko'd him has been an A to Z of guys who've been picked to give him wins usually smaller guys. The one elite guy Van Heerden has fought since the Spence loss 7 years ago was his last fight which ended in a N/C after a head butt in the first round vs Jaron Ennis who was expected to win that fight so hes now being fed to Benn.