With what is considered the biggest event of the year just around the corner, the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs Terence “Bud” Crawford super middleweight world title fight programmed for Saturday, September 13th in Las Vegas and live on Netflix, not much has been said about the undercard.
There is a reason for that.
With the event being broadcast live around the world to potentially 280 million subscribers on the biggest streaming platform, the consensus would be to feature the best fights available with the biggest names in the sport. Although some of the fights planned seem competitive on paper, they are not close to include the most recognized names in boxing.
Quite possibly the most competitive fight of the night, even more so than the main event, is the super welterweight ten-round showdown between undefeated Irish fighter Callum Walsh (14-0, 11KO) and the also unbeaten Fernando “El Feroz” Vargas Jr (17-0, 15KO).
If the last name of the latter seems familiar, well, because it is. Vargas Jr is the oldest son of former super welterweight world champion Ferando Vargas who is best known for his mega fight battles against the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad and Ike Quartey among others. Now the 47-year-old trains his three sons, all professional boxers.
Despite the world-class pedigree, the European southpaw might be the favorite. Although Feroz Jr’s record is respectable, it more like the wizard behind the curtain. It looks shiny with that “0” but if you look behind the cloth, you get to the truth. Granted Vargas Jr started later than normal in boxing in spite of his famous fighter. It has been a slow burn for Vargas Jr fighting a list of no-hopers while he learns on the job.
As far as Walsh, he has been brought up the right way facing opponents who would make him fight but more importantly make him think. To be fair, Walsh does have a much more extensive amateur background than his next opponent.
The match-up is the classic face-off between two young undefeated fighters looking to catapult to the next step. The winner here will not necessarily be world title challenger material but would more than likely end up ranked in the top 15 of the major organizations.
Many believe the hard-hitting undefeated Christian Mbilli (29-0, 24KO) of France should have been Alvarez’s next opponent but instead he has a tough test against Guatemala’s Lester Martinez (19-0, 16KO). The Central American country is not known for its boxing history but Martinez seems to be making his own with the power in his fists. Mbilli is no slouch in the knockout department so expect a firework filled banger while it lasts.
The fight which leaves you scratching your head the most because of its inclusion in the main streamed portion of the card is the Mohammed Alakel (5-0, 1KO) vs John Ornelas (5-2-1, 2KO) fight. On paper this scheduled bout is nothing but a showcase fight for the undefeated Alakel with the 33-year-old Ornelas looking like a hand-picked opponent for the Saudi Arabian to look good on the biggest stage possible.
Six more fights rounds out the complete fight card with an interesting rematch between Brandon Adams (25-4, 16KO) and Serhii Bohachuk (26-2, 24KO) of Ukraine. In the first meet up back in early 2021, Bohachuk was winning the fight before Adams promptly knocked him out eighth round. Bohachuk’s only other loss is to top contender Vergil Ortiz Jr.
Other Musings
-As it was reported earlier in this column, former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr was deported by the United States government and arrested by Mexico as soon as he set foot in his native country. The charge? Supposed ties to a drug cartel. Now Chavez Jr finds himself out on bail and back to training as he awaits a formal investigation.
-Jake Paul announced his next event, an exhibition vs the much shorter and lighter Gervonta “Tank” Davis broadcast live on Netflix this fall. Why an exhibition? Because no commission in the world would sanction a fight between the 6’1” 200-pound Paul and the 5’6” 135-pound Davis. Davis is the current WBA lightweight champion but word is if he goes through with the exhibition, which more than likely would be his biggest payday to date if not career, and not the ordered rematch vs Lamont Roach Jr, he would be stripped of his title.
-Due to two recent deaths in Japan, Secretary-General of the Japanese Boxing Commission stated if there aren’t major changes to prevent these kind of tragedies, the sport might cease to exist in the land of the rising sun.
