While we wait for a potential unification bout between lightweights Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Vasiliy Lomachenko, there are plenty of other fights to watch in this young and talented division, including two standout bouts this week.
On separate broadcasts on Saturday, Shakur Stevenson will defend his WBC title against Artem Harutyunyan and unbeaten challenger William Cepeda will face Giovanni Cabrera. Two top 135-pound prospects, Keyshawn Davis and Abdullah Mason, will also compete in separate bouts.
(We'd also be remiss in our duty if we didn't mention the upcoming junior bantamweight unification bout between Kazuto Ioka and Fernando Martinez taking place in Japan on Sunday, June 7th. Unfortunately, the fight is not yet broadcast on any US or UK network or streaming service. Like you, we're looking for a good, safe livestream, and a hero willing to upload the footage to YouTube quickly.)
Pick It, Part 1: Shakur Stevenson vs. Artem Harutyunyan
Viewing period: Saturday, July 6th.
How to watch: ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+. Pre-broadcast will begin at 6:10 PM ET on ESPN+. The main broadcast will begin at 8:30 PM ET.
Reasons to watch: Stevenson recently became a three-division world titleholder and joined the lightweight division in April 2023, defeating Edwin de los Santos by unanimous decision to win the vacant WBC belt.
This fight is significant for Stevenson for three reasons. First, he wants a big fight against another top 135-pound contender. Second, he is about to become a promotional free agent. And third, he needs to make up for something that gets in the way of the other two reasons. Stevenson give a terrible performance De los Santos match.
Let's add a fourth: He'll be performing in front of a hometown crowd at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) made his big debut in 2016, winning a silver medal at bantamweight at the Olympic Games. He has since won professional world titles at featherweight and junior lightweight, as well as a title at lightweight. The 27-year-old Stevenson has dominated the likes of Jamel Herring and Oscar Valdez. Now at 135 pounds, Stevenson needs to prove he's worth watching, capable of filling arenas and selling pay-per-views.
Harutyunyan, on the other hand, doesn't want to remain a stepping stone to stardom forever. He, too, achieved some good milestones as an amateur. The 33-year-old Armenian-born fighter competed for Germany at the 2016 Olympics, winning a bronze medal in the junior welterweight division. Harutyunyan suffered his first defeat in his last fight, dropping to 12-1 (7 KOs) since losing a narrow unanimous decision to Frank Martin almost a year ago.
Martin then faced Gervonta “Tank” Davis. Stevenson wants a similar opportunity, and a win over Harutyunyan would give him that chance. Harutyunyan, of course, would love to get that fight himself. A loss to Stevenson would see Harutyunyan positioned as a B-side, a measuring stick, and potentially a pay cut.
Davis (WBA) is in negotiations with Vasiliy Lomachenko (IBF) for a unification fight. The other title belongs to Denis Belincik, who beat Emmanuel Navarrete for the vacant WBO belt in May.
The Stevenson-Harutyunyan bout won't be the only title bout on the show, as junior lightweight Oshakie Foster will defend his WBC belt against Robson Conceição in the co-headline slot.
Foster (22-2, 12 KOs) has two close victories to his name: He was trailing by a large margin on the scorecards against Eduardo Hernandez last October before stopping the bout just seconds into the 12th round, and he also defended his title against Abraham Nova in February, scoring a decisive knockdown in the 12th round to win by split decision.
This will be the fourth title shot for Conceição, the 2016 Olympic lightweight gold medalist who is 18-2-1 (9 KOs) as a professional. He lost decisions to Valdez in 2021 and Stevenson in 2022 and had to settle for a draw with Navarrete last November. Conceição made his comeback in April with a seventh-round stoppage win over Jose Ivan Guardado Ortiz.
The main event will kick off with Keyshawn Davis, the 2020 Olympic lightweight silver medalist who defeated Jose Pedraza by sixth-round TKO in February. Davis (10-0, 7 KOs) will face Miguel Madueno (31-2, 28 KOs). Madueno lost to former 130-pound champion Jezreel Corrales (12th round KO in 2022) at lightweight and Steve Clagett (10th round KO in 2023) at junior welterweight.
In the preliminary broadcast, Abdullah Mason (13-0, 11 KOs) with a record of 20-5-1 (13 KOs) The second best LeBron vs. LeBron matchup in 2022.
Pick It, Part 2: William Cepeda vs. Giovanni Cabrera
Viewing period: Saturday, July 6th.
How to watch: DAZN, 8pm ET.
Reasons to watch: Cepeda is ranked No. 1 by all four sanctioning organizations, putting him in prime position to take on any title holder.
In recent years, the 28-year-old Mexican has beaten former titleholders Rene Alvarado and Joseph Diaz by decision, knocked out former challengers Jaime Arboleda and Mercito Gesta, and most recently, stopped Maxi Hughes in four rounds in March. Cepeda's record now stands at 30-0 (26 KOs).
The bout, which will take place at Toyota Arena in Ontario, California, will see Cepeda take on Cabrera, a 29-year-old from Chicago who has a 22-1 record (7 knockouts).
Cabella lost a split decision to Isaac Cruz in July 2023. It was a game that wasn't very aesthetically pleasing..
“William Cepeda is a good puncher. He has good defense, throws a lot of punches and is a very difficult fighter for his opponents. He's not a big, powerful puncher, but he has enough punching power to hurt his opponents and the volume he throws is pretty impressive.” Cabrera said in May.“I'm going to do everything I can to disrupt his rhythm. There are many ways to do that: controlling the distance, making him think he's close when he's far away, changing speeds, changing levels. He's going to have to think differently than when he's fought other fighters.”
If Cabrera tries to get in the way again, it will be up to Cepeda to show he can handle a tough opponent.
“I've sparred with fighters who have the same style as Cabrera. His style is a bit awkward. He sometimes throws punches from unexpected angles.” Cepeda told media members in an interview in May. “We're going to go out there and do our job. … I've worked too hard to ever give anyone else the opportunity to take away what I've got.”
The undercard will feature a flyweight bout between Ricardo Sandoval (24-2, 17 KOs) and former junior flyweight titleholder Angel Acosta (24-4, 22 KOs).
More matches to watch
Tuesday, July 2: Mike Shields vs. Robert Burwell (Triller)
The broadcast will begin at 8pm ET.
The light heavyweight bout will be the main event at the Texas Troubadour Theatre in Nashville. Shields is 27-3 (21 KOs) and has won three straight bouts since being knocked out by Eleider Alvarez in 2020. This will be Shields' first fight since October 2022.
Burwell has 10 wins and 9 losses (3 KOs).
Saturday, July 6: Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal (Fanmio)
The pre-broadcast will begin at 7:30 PM ET. The pay-per-view will begin at 9 PM ET.
Five years after fighting in the Octagon, the two mixed martial arts stars will meet in a boxing match.
Masvidal beat Diaz at UFC 2019 after a doctor stopped the fight after the third round due to a severe cut over Diaz's right eye. They are now scheduled to compete in a Queensberry Rules bout at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Diaz, 39, of Stockton, California, is 0-1 in the boxing ring since losing a decision to Jake Paul last year, while Masvidal, 39, of Miami, has competed in one professional boxing bout in 2005 and is 1-0 with 0 knockouts.
On the undercard, former middleweight titleholder Daniel Jacobs (37-4, 30 KOs) will return to the ring for the first time in nearly two and a half years since losing a split decision to John Ryder in February 2022. Jacobs will face Shane Mosley Jr. (21-4, 12 KOs), who is on a four-fight winning streak since losing a majority decision to Jason Quigley in 2021.
July 6 (Sat.): Johnny Fisher vs. Alen Babich (DAZN)
The preview broadcast will begin at 12:00 Noon Eastern Time (5:00 PM BST). The main broadcast will begin at 2:00 PM Eastern Time (7:00 PM BST).
Fischer is a promising heavyweight from London who is primarily learning on the job. The amateur era was short But he credits his time as Joe Joyce's sparring partner for helping him get through the fight. The 25-year-old Fischer turned pro in 2021 and is 11-0 (10 KOs), including a first-round win over Dmytro Bezus in February.
Babić, too small for a heavyweight, opted to fight at bridgeweight, but was knocked out by Lukas Rozanski in 130 seconds in a bout for the vacant WBC belt in April 2023. The 33-year-old Croatian returned to the heavyweight division in March of this year, defeating Steve Robinson in six rounds to improve to 12-1 (11 KOs).
Fischer Babic will headline the show at London's Copper Box Arena.
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