[ad_1]
WBO welterweight champion Terrence Crawford recently signed a rich multi-year contract to stay with Top Rank, who earlier announced an extension of his exclusive network contract with ESPN.
Meanwhile, Premier Boxing Champions has signed deals with Showtime and Fox, while Barclays Center has entered into an exclusive alliance with PBC on the East Coast, ensuring a number of fights over a number of years.
Judging by the above events, the boxing business is good these days and the welterweight division is ready to profit. Top Rank Inc., led by Bob Arum, has blocked Crawford, while PBC is ready at Barclays Center, where former champions Danny Garcia of Philadelphia and Shawn "Showtime" Porter of Akron, Ohio, meet for the belt coveted WBC at 147 pounds.
Garcia (34-1, 20 KOs) is looking to regain the title he had lost in a tight decision against Keith Thurman last year. Porter (280-2-1, 17 KO's) is a former IBF welterweight champion. In a division that also includes the current IBF champion, Errol Spence Jr., Crawford, Manny Pacquiao and finally Mikey Garcia, there is a lot of money to be won with the right games.
"The welterweight division has always been a deep division," said Garcia. "You had Ray Leonard, [Felix] Trinidad, [Pernell] Whitaker [Oscar] De La Hoya, and now I am blessed to be able to fight the best of this era. I have to dig deep. I am in good physical condition. I feel strong I just have to go and run.
Showtime will release the 30th boxing card since Barclays Center opened in 2012. The alliance with PBC guarantees a minimum of eight bouts a year at Barclays Center. A large number of PBC fighters will be on Saturday including Thurman, Spence, Adrien Broner, Andre Berto and WBC Heavyweight Champion Deontay Wilder.
It makes sense that the winner of Garcia-Porter faces PBC fighters, Thurman or Spence, in a unification fight in the fall.
"Obviously, I want to win this belt and dictate what I do next," Porter said. "But it's a sport where, no matter how much you feel you control, there's always something that slows you down or makes you go faster than you want. First of all, you have to win Saturday and have fun doing it.
It's a great match on paper. Porter likes to apply constant pressure and force his opponent to fight or climb along the ropes. He is a volume puncher who will trigger a constant blur of power shots to the body and head. Garcia, meanwhile, is an excellent counter-striker, who holds the power in both hands.
"I know I'm the best full fighter," Garcia said. "I can only do more in the ring than Shawn Porter. I will prove it Saturday. I am a seasoned champion and it is a chance to find something that was mine. This is one of the times when I have to go prove myself and prove myself. "
Yordenis Ugas faces Cesar Barrionuevo in a WBC welterweight eliminator; Adam Kownacki challenges former heavyweight champion Charles Martin in a 10-round bout; and Amanda Serrano facing Yamila Esther Reynoso for the vacant WBO title for women. It would be a record sixth division title for Serrano, who lives in Brooklyn.
"It means everything," Serrano said. "It's an honor to have the opportunity to fight for a sixth division World Title and to be in the same sentence as boxers like Oscar De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao. It means a lot to my team. It's like a dream come true. "
Kownacki (17-0, 14 KOs) can engage in the conversation with a heavyweight with a win over Martin (25-1-1, 23 KOs), who has won twice since losing the IBF title facing Anthony Joshua in April 2016.
Prediction: Garcia by unanimous decision. Serrano and Kownacki by late KO.
Source link
