If April showers do indeed bring May flowers, then we’re hopeful for a downpour of pugilistic action the next few weeks.
And we’re off to a pretty good start on the first weekend of spring, with quality fisticuffs rolling out this upcoming Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Advertisement
So from an ice skating rink in Cheshire, England, to Dana White’s shed in Las Vegas, let’s take a look at the best of the boxing action over this weekend.
1. Does Chisora or Wilder have more left in the tank in fight No. 50?
Like two cricketers, Derek Chisora and Deontay Wilder are stuck on 49 waiting to nudge their half century and raise their bats to an adoring crowd. Although if we’re to keep this cricket analogy going, neither “Del Boy” or “The Bronze Bomber” will be aiming to do this via a crafty single.
Both seasoned heavyweights have made a career out of inflicting and saddling punishment, and Saturday night inside London’s O2 Arena is unlikely to veer too far away from that blueprint.
Advertisement
Five hundred thirty-two rounds and 17 losses between the two quadragenarians sets this meeting of personalities up for a nothing-to-lose kind of fight — other than their health, of course, which both men have made it abundantly clear they are at peace with.
Sometimes in boxing you don’t need two fighters at the peak of their powers in order to make an absorbing fight. Chisora and Wilder’s heavyweight downfalls have taken different paths, but they are probably both on the same step for the first time in their careers.
Derek Chisora and Deontay Wilder (right) face off during a press conference at York Hall, London.
(Adam Davy – PA Images via Getty Images)
2. Price is married to the sport
Lauren Price returns to the ring this weekend looking to protect her unified welterweight titles — as well as her unblemished face. Set to marry her fiancé in seven weeks time, Price is taking an evening off the logistics of planning a wedding to accept the challenge Saturday night of Puerto Rico’s Stephanie Pineiro Aquino.
Advertisement
Southpaw Aquino is unbeaten herself, but is fighting outside of her native Puerto Rico for the first time in a 10-fight career.
Price, competing in front of her Cardiff home faithful for just the second time as a pro, has ambitions that sit at the very top of the sport. She’s made no secret in her desire to mix it with WBO champion Mikaela Mayer in what would be an undisputed fight at welterweight, as well as lucrative dreams of luring Claressa Shields or Katie Taylor into combat.
But first, it’s Aquino this weekend inside the Cardiff International Arena, heading up a decent BOXXER card that will be showcasing some promising prospects.
3. Brown continues his cruiserweight climb
You better get some skates on if you want to catch Pat Brown in action this Friday night.
Advertisement
No, literally.
The highly-rated cruiserweight takes on Czechia’s Vasil Ducar inside Altrincham’s Planet Ice for a vacant IBF trinket at the 200-pound limit, looking to continue his ascent up the rankings and into the red zone of the division.
Brown is 5-0 with five stoppages since turning over a year ago, but you get the feeling that Matchroom are looking to move the Moss Side fighter pretty quickly in what could be considered a division in transition.
Ducar is being sold as a credible opponent for Brown, but in truth, he’ll be lucky to see the second half of this fight.
The 36-year-old dropped the latest of his seven defeats to Chev Clarke back in 2023, but has earned this opportunity — on paper — by stringing five wins together across Slovakia and Czechia.
Advertisement
4. Can Scotney register her first KO? And will Dubois-Harper catch fire?
Here comes MVPW!
WBC lightweight champion Caroline Dubois has enjoyed taking on the role as a heel in recent months. “Sweet” Caroline has turned sour in the run-up to her lightweight unification fight with Terri Harper this weekend, pushing the buttons of Yorkshire fighter and doubling down on a new attitude era that could prove lucrative in years to come.
After watching big brother Daniel struggle in front of the cameras, the 25-year-old southpaw has quickly grown into one of the bigger personalities of the women’s code, and a win over the seasoned Harper on the maiden MVPW card will only strengthen this narrative.
Advertisement
Harper has bounced back well after a damaging loss to Sandy Ryan in 2024, jumping back down to 135 pounds and recording handy wins over Rhiannon Dixon and Natalie Zimmermann.
Elsewhere on the card, Ellie Scotney is attempting to go undisputed at super bantamweight against Mayelli Flores Rosquero. If the 28-year-old is victorious, she’ll become Britain’s youngest ever undisputed world champion of the four-belt era, male or female.
The Mexican, Rosquero, brings the WBA title to Scotney’s WBO, IBF and WBC belts inside London’s Olympia events center, and is looking to blow Jake Paul’s plans into smoke — and also stop Scotney from receiving the new car Paul promised the Briton if she wins on Saturday.
Ellie Scotney during a workout at All Stars Boxing Gym, London.
(Ben Whitley – PA Images via Getty Images)
5. Zuffa Boxing 05 might be onto something …
Zuffa Boxing may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but one thing we can surely all agree on is that well-matched fights are good for the viewer.
Advertisement
And that’s exactly what we have this weekend inside the Meta Apex, Las Vegas, with Andres Cortes vs. Eridson Garcia.
This fight was a surprise entry at No. 4 on our breakdown of April’s five best boxing fights, but when you pit two in-form fighters together in a “winner stays on” kind of bout, then more often than not you reap rewards.
Zuffa are marketing this lightweight bout as a chance to contend for its inaugural Zuffa championship at 135 pounds, a weight north of what both Cortes and Garcia have been campaigning at recently.
As the unbeaten fighter and Las Vegas resident, Cortes comes into this contest with the most to lose against an opponent in Garcia who is becoming known for grabbing opportunities with both hands.
Read the full article here