Notebook: Talks begin for Feb. 22 showdown between Ortiz and Ennis
Stevenson-Zepeda on hold; Berlanga return date; Kambosos signs with Matchroom; Reynoso joins Teofimo's corner; Quick hits; Show and tell
A note to Fight Freaks Unite readers: I created Fight Freaks Unite in January 2021 and eight months later it also became available for paid subscriptions for additional content — and as a way to help keep this newsletter going and for readers to support independent journalism. If you haven’t upgraded to a paid subscription please consider it. If you have already, I truly appreciate it! Also, consider a gift subscription for the Fight Freak in your life.
When Golden Boy put on its loaded Riyadh Season “Latino Night” card on Nov.16, WBC interim junior middleweight titlist Vergil Ortiz Jr. made the trip to Saudi Arabia, and during an interview on the broadcast he and Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya teased the audience about Ortiz’s next fight that is supposed to take place Feb. 22 in Riyadh.
“In due time I will be able to say who it is,” Ortiz said. “I don’t want to say something and get disappointed but I think we are on a good track getting a good fight for our next fight.”
The so-called short list of opponents: WBA junior middleweight titlist and pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford, WBC/WBO junior middleweight titlist Sebastian Fundora and IBF welterweight titlist Jaron “Boots” Ennis, whose move up in weight is imminent following a lopsided decision win over mandatory challenger Karen Chukhadzhian in a rematch on Nov. 9, after which Ennis spoke about his issues making 147 pounds perhaps being a reason for his less-than-stellar performance.
“It’s one of those three. I like it,” De La Hoya said of the potential foes. “One thing about Vergil Ortiz, he will fight anybody. He’s ready. He’s on that level. The names you mentioned are viable opponents to make great fights and to see who is the best.”
So, who will Ortiz face next? Probably Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs), 27, of Philadelphia, Golden Boy president Eric Gomez told Fight Freaks Unite during a recent interview about the plans for several of the fighters on the company’s roster.
I am in my 25th year of full-time boxing coverage. Take advantage of that experience by upgrading to a paid subscription for full access to all posts and comments — and also support independent journalism.
“We started preliminary talks for a fight with ‘Boots’ Ennis,” Gomez said of discussions with Ennis promoter Matchroom Boxing. “Vergil wants that fight. He’s willing to do it, so we’ve started talks and we’ll know in the next couple of weeks whether we can get it done or not.
“It’s a great fight — two undefeated champions, both American. ‘Boots’ has done great for himself at welterweight. He’s gonna move up now and challenge at 154 and Vergil, since he got through with his illness, he’s been great. Tough fight his last fight but he pulled it off and now he wants to step into these big fights. It’s a win-win for the fans when you have two guys who are undefeated, both champions, fighting each other pretty much in their prime.”
Ortiz (22-0, 21 KOs) 26, a southpaw from Grand Prairie, Texas, won his third fight of 2024 on Aug. 10 when he went to battle with Serhii Bohachuk, survived two knockdowns and won a majority decision and the interim belt in an all-out slugfest that will be in the conversation for fight of the year.
If Ortiz-Ennis is finalized it’s a fight that belongs in the United States, but would take place in Riyadh where there is big money available to be on the major card Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh is putting together for Feb. 22. Regardless of the site, it is just the kind of significant bout Alalshikh has made a staple of the events in Saudi Arabia.
“That’s the great thing about His Excellency. He’s pretty much making these big fights happen because he’s investing in boxing and it’s very, very important to be able to do that so we can get these fights because it grows the sport,” Gomez said. “When people hear about these fights they get very excited, no different than when we were going to do the fight with Tim Tszyu (in August). People were very excited about that fight.
“Unfortunately, we weren’t able to do it because of (Tszyu’s injuries), but this is that type of fight. People get excited for these fights. There’s so much on the line. It’s a win-win for everybody — for the fans, for you guys the media, everybody.”
Stevenson-Zepeda on hold
There won’t be a fight between WBC lightweight titlist Shakur Stevenson and interim titlist and mandatory challenger William Zepeda any time soon.
The fight was being planned for the Riyadh Season card being put together for Feb. 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but Zepeda suffered a left hand injury during his thrilling split victory against Tevin Farmer on the Nov. 16 “Latino Night” card in Riyadh.
Zepeda, who got knocked down in the fourth round by Farmer, has seen a doctor since the fight but with Feb. 22 being somewhat of a quick turnaround, Golden Boy president Eric Gomez told Fight Freaks Unite he won’t be ready by then.
“He’s out. Might be a hairline fracture,” Gomez said, adding that they are waiting for the official medical report.
Zepeda posted a photo of himself with a sling on his left arm and wrote on Instagram, “After our last match we left with an injury to our left hand. This week we were preparing to return to the gym, but for medical evaluation they recommended 6 to 8 weeks rest for better recovery. It is important to have this small break to benefit our career. We know that in 2025 great opportunities are coming and we have to be 100%. After this recovery period we would like to return at the end of March.”
Ironically, Zepeda won the vacant interim title in the fight against Farmer because the WBC made it available due to Stevenson being sidelined by a torn tendon in his right hand that required surgery in September and forced him to withdraw from a defense against Joe Cordina that was scheduled for the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol undercard on Oct. 12 in Riyadh.
The plan was for Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs), 27, of Newark, New Jersey, to fight Cordina and Mexico’s Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs), 28, to face Farmer in supposed tune-up fights and then fight each other in the mandatory bout, which will now be further delayed.
Berlanga plans
Super middleweight contender Edgar Berlanga’s return is in the works to headline a Matchroom Boxing card on DAZN on March 8 in Puerto Rico, sources with knowledge of the plans told Fight Freaks Unite.
There is no opponent set yet but the fight would mark the first fight for Berlanga, a Puerto Rican from Brooklyn, New York, in Puerto Rico, where Matchroom Boxing did card in June and has another one there scheduled on Dec. 7.
The fight will be the first for Berlanga since he challenged unified super middleweight champion and pound-for-pound star Canelo Alvarez in a major Mexico-Puerto Rico showdown that headlined a PBC on Prime Video pay-per-view on Sept.14. Although Alvarez knocked Berlanga down in the third round and handed him his first defeat in a lopsided unanimous decision, Berlanga put up a far better fight than most expected he would.
If Berlanga comes through his return bout perhaps he may end up facing former IBF titlist Caleb Plant, who he has gone back and forth with on social media in the past and that rivalry has ignited again in recent days.
Plant, who Alvarez KO’d to become undisputed champion in 2021, stopped Trevor McCumby in the ninth round on the Alvarez-Berlanga undercard to rebound from a decision loss to David Benavidez in March 2023. Plant and Berlanga exchanged words during the recent promotion.
Berlanga (22-1, 27 KOs) posted a screen shot on social media of his recent direct messages with Plant in which they insulted each other and Berlanga threatened him. Plant (23-2, 14 KOs), 32, of Las Vegas, has also called him out on social media.
Kambosos signs with Matchroom
Former unified lightweight champion George Kambosos has signed a co-promotional deal with Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing to partner with his longtime promoter Lou DiBella.
As expected, Kambosos (21-3, 10 KOs), 31, will move up to junior welterweight and return to action in 2025. He continues to live off his massive upset split decision over Teofimo Lopez to take his unified lightweight title in November 2021 in a fight Matchroom Boxing promoted, having gained the rights via purse bid even though it didn’t promote either fighter.
Since that big win, Kambosos is 1-3, having been dominated twice by Devin Haney in lopsided decisions in undisputed title fights on Kambosos’ turf in Australia in 2022, winning a controversial majority decision over Maxi Hughes in 2023, and getting knocked out in the 11th round, also in Australia, by Vasiliy Lomachenko for the vacant IBF lightweight title in May.
Matchroom sees Kambosos as an eventual challenger for the winner of the Dec. 7 fight between IBF junior welterweight titlist and Australian countryman Liam Paro and mandatory challenger Richardson Hitchins, both of whom Matchroom also promotes.
“I have had great success and history when promoted on Matchroom shows, winning my world title eliminator bout in the U.K. against Lee Selby and most notably and memorably, my victory against Teofimo at Madison Square Garden.”
Said Hearn, “George’s win over Teofimo ripped up the script and showed that George was a man for the big occasion, and he’s proved to be a massive draw in Australia and one of the real driving forces behind boxing’s rapid rise Down Under.
“The 140-pound division is littered with big names and great potential clashes, and adding George to that mix only raises the levels – with a potential fight against Liam Paro a real mouth-watering prospect, if Liam can get the win in a great fight with Richardson.”
Quick hits
Lineal/WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs) had been working informally with trainer Eddie Reynoso but now has officially added him to his corner to work alongside his father and career-long trainer Teofimo Lopez Sr. He posted a photo to social media of the three of them together and wrote, “Trainer of the Year (Eddie Futch) Award winners in my corner!!!!!!!!!” Reynoso, who is best known for training and managing Canelo Alvarez, is a two-time winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Eddie Futch trainer of the year award (2019 and 2021) and Teofimo Lopez Sr. won it in 2020. Reynoso acknowledged the post with the message, “Let’s do it.”
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn announced Monday that he has signed 2024 British Olympian Pat Brown, 25, who is from Manchester, to “a long-term promotional deal” and that he will make his pro debut at cruiserweight next year. Brown, who was eliminated in his opening bout at the Paris Games, will be managed by Sam Jones and trained by Jamie Moore and Nigel Travis alongside Matchroom stablemate Jack Catterall. “Matchroom were always my first choice, but you have to weigh up all of your options. After really exciting discussions about the future, it was a no brainer to go with them,” Brown said. “They are at the pinnacle of boxing and have a great stable of fighters, and I am excited to be the next generation to dominate over the next decade.” Said Hearn: “All of us at Matchroom truly believe that Pat Brown has it in him to become a star of British boxing.”
Former junior flyweight titlist Elwin Soto (21-3-1, 13 KOs), 27, appeared lucky to escape with a split draw against Moises Caro (11-3-4, 5 KOs), 26, in the all-action main event of the Zanfer Boxing card that streamed on Saturday night from the Plaza de Toros Calafia in Mexicali, Mexico, the hometown of both fighters. Scores were 97-93 for Soto, 96-94 Caro and 95-95. Soto, who held the WBO 108-pound belt from 2019 to 2021, ended a one-year layoff.
In an action fight, junior middleweight Andreas Katzourakis (15-0, 10 KOs), 27, a Los Angele-based Greece native, won a split decision over former world title challenger Brandon Adams (25-4, 16 KOs), 35, of Whittier, California, in the final of Overtime’s OTX 154-pound tournament on Friday night at the Corey Studios in Atlanta. Scores were 97-93 and 96-94 for Katzourakis and 97-93 for Adams. Katzourakis earned a $100,000 bonus for winning the tournament and an OTX promotional contract. Katzourakis’ extreme pressure on Adams appeared to be the difference.
Show and tell
Hall of Famers and all-time rivals Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales are among the greatest boxers ever from Mexico. They won titles in multiple weight classes and engaged in many thrilling fights, but they are best remembered for their legendary trilogy. Their first fight, which was to unify junior featherweight world titles, is one of the greatest fights in boxing history, an all-out slugfest of the highest order that resulted in a controversial split decision victory for Morales. A little over two years later I was thrilled to be ringside to cover the hugely hyped rematch, this time for Morales’ WBC featherweight crown, and Barrera exacted revenge via close unanimous decision.
A trilogy battle was inevitable and they met for the third time 2½ years later in another much-anticipated HBO PPV fight, this time for Morales’ WBC junior lightweight title. I was ringside to cover the event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and it was another fantastic fight filled with skill and action. It delivered everything fans could have possibly wanted as Barrera won yet another extremely close fight, this one via majority decision (115-114, 115-113 and 114-114). How good was it? Round 11 was the round of the year and the unforgettable bout was the fight of the year. To many it is just as good as their first classic fight even though it doesn’t typically get that level of love. Fight No. 3 took place on Nov. 27, 2004 — 20 years ago on Wednesday. Here is an extraordinarily rare site duratran in my collection that originally hung in an MGM Grand light box during fight week and my ringside media credential.
A note to subscribers
I sincerely appreciate your readership. If you’re reading, it means you love boxing just like I do. If you’ve been reading you also know the quality and quantity of what I produce. It’s one-stop shopping. Read the newsletters and there is no need to search multiple websites or click a multitude of links to get the latest news, opinion and detailed fight schedule. Everything you need is in one spot and delivered directly to your inbox (or via phone alert if you download for free the superb Substack app). You don’t have to hunt for the news; it comes to you.
I believe that is worth something, so while I will continue providing stories, notes and the schedule for free, I encourage you to upgrade to a paid subscription for the most content. A paid subscription is your way of keeping this reader-supported newsletter going and supporting independent journalism. I am beholden to no network, promoter, manager, sanctioning body or fighter. If you have read my work at all during the past 24 years I’ve covered professional boxing you know that I keep it real and that will not change.
To upgrade your subscription please go here:
Thank you so much for your support of Fight Freaks Unite!
Photos: Ortiz: Golden Boy; Ennis: Showtime; Zepeda: Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy; Berlanga: Ryan Hafey/PBC; Kambosos: Melina Pizano/Matchroom Boxing; Lopez/Reynoso: Teofimo Lopez
Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danrafael1/
Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanRafael1
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DanRafaelBoxing
I’d put the over/under on how long Eddy Reynoso works with Teófimo at about 0.5 fights. No way will he put up with the drama long-term.
Kambosos is a one fight wonder he has done nothing since he beat Lopez he has been out classed by Haney and loma and beat Hughes when most thought he lost he is over the hill