Happy (belated) Valentine’s Day. Please take this weird as fuck billboard from Sofia, Bulgaria as a gift (via r/boxing). Nothing says “I love you” like Tyson Fury, after all.
Though there are plenty of fights on the boxing schedule this week, it’s virtually all prospects and journeymen. The sole exception is Russia’s Fedor Chudinov, a legit super middleweight contender, who’s giving Felix Sturm a rematch in Germany on Saturday. It won’t be on American TV. The good news is that this week marks the end of boxing’s de facto winter off season, with high-level fights set to return to television screens in the final weekend of February.
Felix Sturm vs Fedor Chudinov, Saturday, Oberhause Germany. The most noteworthy fight of the week sees Russia’s Chudinov return to Germany to give Sturm a rematch for some super middleweight title or another. Sturm is as old as dirt (or so it would seem) and you’d have to think Chudinov can squeak by him again but you never know.
Alexis Santiago vs Erik Ruiz, Tuesday, Fox Sports 1/Fox Deportes, Las Vegas. Santiago, a bantamweight, has put together a bit of a winning run since his last loss in 2012. He fights tough Oxnard kid Ruiz, who’s never been knocked out.
Adam Lopez vs Mario Munoz, Friday, Showtime, Atlantic City. Boxing in Atlantic City, what a throwback! Lopez is an undefeated Texas junior featherweight prospect, and while Munoz is likewise unbeaten, even a cursory examination of his opponents suggests he mightn’t be as good as his record suggests.
Tony Luis vs Samuel Amaoko, Friday, CBS Sports Net, Sloane IA. Canada’s Luis isn’t going to be able to hang with the top of the lightweight division, but he throws a lot of punches. Ghana’s Amoako, on a three fight losing street since he emigrated from Africa, shouldn’t be too much of a challenge.
Diego De La Hoya vs Arturo Badillo, Friday, Estrella TV, LA. A development fight for highly fancied Golden Boy junior featherweight prospect De La Hoya.
Jessie Magdaleno vs Edward Mansito, Saturday, UniMas, Phoenix. Junior featherweight Magdaleno has been a prospect almost as long as I’ve been writing about the sport and this is not a step-up fight so I’m not going to say any more about it.
