[ad_1]
LAS VEGAS — It’s by no means secure to talk in absolutes, however it’s most likely truthful to say it’s been years since there was a month in fight sports activities that may rival June.
The month is loaded with superstars and large bouts, each in boxing and in combined martial arts.
On the boxing aspect, 4 of the High 10 fighters within the Yahoo Sports pound-for-pound list will compete in June, in addition to Floyd Mayweather Jr., the one-time pound-for-pound king who’s popping out of retirement for an exhibition match on Sunday in opposition to Logan Paul.
Along with Mayweather, No. 3 Naoya Inoue will defend his bantamweight titles in opposition to Michael Dasmarinas in a “High Rank on ESPN” bout on June 19 in Las Vegas.
That very same evening in Miami, No. 5 Teofimo Lopez will defend his undisputed light-weight title in opposition to necessary challenger George Kambosos. No. 6 Vasiliy Lomachenko faces Masayoshi Nakatani on June 26, and No. 9 Shakur Stevenson will face Jeremiah Nakathila on June 12. The month ends with Gervonta Davis going through Mario Barrios in the principle occasion of a pay-per-view card in Atlanta for one more WBA title.
We simply watched the 140-pound unification bout between Josh Taylor and Jose Ramirez on Might 22 in Las Vegas, which Taylor received by unanimous determination to change into undisputed champion. The WBA has opted to declare the Davis-Barrios bout a championship bout. Now, everyone knows it’s probably not for the championship, it’s for a championship. Extra considerably, it retains one of many sport’s rising younger stars lively in what may very well be an intriguing struggle.
That’s not practically the extent of it, however extra on that in a minute.
On the MMA aspect, the month kicks off with a enjoyable heavyweight match on Saturday in Las Vegas between Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Augusto Sakai at Apex in the principle occasion of UFC Vegas 28.
Subsequent week will likely be the place MMA will get actually loopy. On June 10, three-weight boxing champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields will make her MMA debut in opposition to Brittney Elkin within the PFL. The following evening, Bellator 260 in Uncasville, Connecticut, will pit welterweight champion Douglas Lima in opposition to unbeaten Yaroslav Amosov.
After which on June 12, UFC 263 in Glendale, Arizona, will characteristic a pair of title fights and the return of Nate Diaz. Diaz will struggle Leon Edwards in a five-round welterweight bout. Then in a rematch of one in every of 2020’s nice fights, Deiveson Figuieredo will defend his flyweight belt in opposition to Brandon Moreno. In the principle occasion, middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will face Marvin Vettori in one other rematch.
These are the sorts of months that carry the sports activities. The NFL places out its schedule months prematurely and it’s change into so massive, there are prime-time tv exhibits devoted to it.
In fight sports activities, it’s not like that, so when a lot will get packed into one month, it’s price crowing about.
Probably the most legitimate criticism one may degree at boxing is a failure to persistently make the most effective matches that may very well be made. We’re nonetheless ready for the welterweight unification bout between Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford to occur. Because it seems, that is going to go the way in which of Mayweather-Pacquiao and take years to make.
That’s the traditional course of enterprise in boxing, and it screws crucial group within the sport, the followers.
However issues are altering now. The undisputed title was held within the 140-pound division final month and the undisputed light-weight title will likely be held when Lopez defends in opposition to Kambosos on June 19.
However along with all of these, there are different fascinating fights like Jarrett Hurd versus Luis Arias on Sunday, Lewis Ritson versus Jeremias Ponce on June 12, Franchon Crews Dezurn versus Elin Cederroos on June 19, Jermall Charlo versus Juan Macias Montiel on June 19, Mikaela Mayer in opposition to Erica Farias on June 19, Erickson Lubin in opposition to Jeison Rosario, and Batyr Akhmedov going through Argenis Mendez on June 26.
It’s simply as loaded on the MMA aspect. On June 19, UFC has a possible Struggle of the Yr with Dan Ige combating Chan Sung Jung, the Korean Zombie, in the principle occasion. On June 26, an vital heavyweight struggle between Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov will happen at Apex.
The PFL can even have Rory MacDonald in opposition to Gleison Tibau on June 17, and Kayla Harrison in opposition to Cindy Dandois on June 25.
It’s an unimaginable month for the struggle recreation. Nice fighters, great matches and even some legends. I failed to notice that ex-UFC champion Anderson Silva will field Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on June 18, the identical evening as Chavez Sr. faces Hector Camacho Jr.
That is the way it needs to be on a regular basis in fight sports activities.
Hopefully, that is the start of a development.
Extra from Yahoo Sports activities:
Source link
