Are We in the Best Stretch of Televised Fights in History?
By Travis Fleming
Boxing fans are in for, perhaps, the best stretch of high level televised cards I can remember. For the four weekends leading up to, and the three weekends preceding, Mayweather vs Pacquiao, we will be spoiled with Saturday after Saturday filled with championship fights. Eight straight weeks! And that’s just the top tier cards, there are many other televised cards featuring talented fighters not quite at the championship level. In fact, looking back, last weekend we had championship cards and the rest of March was pretty solid as well. It’s a great time to be a boxing fan, I can’t recall ever having such a stacked schedule! This year is on its way to being the best year in recent boxing history.
Here’s what’s on the way to look forward to:
2015-04-04
Knockout artist Adonis Stevenson defends his light heavyweight championship against Sakio Bika on CBS for free at 3:30 pm EST. The fight is live from the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City as part of the Premiere Boxing Champions Series. The undercard for this is more intriguing than the headliner featuring the best prospect in boxing in Artur Beterbiev vs former champ Gabriel Campillo. Beterbiev has only had seven pro fights, he’s won all seven by KO, and he’s already KO’d former champ Tavoris Cloud. He was an outstanding amateur who twice beat Sergey Kovalev in the amateurs and wants to try it a third time in the pro ranks, after KO’ing his second former champ in just eight fights!
2015-04-11
On NBC from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, as part of the Premiere Boxing Champions series, is the long anticipated fight between junior welterweight king Danny Garcia and Lamont Peterson. This fight is guaranteed fireworks until the likely KO from Garcia. The undercard is an evenly matched middleweight championship fight between big punchers in Peter Quillin vs Andy Lee. An excellent, can’t miss card starting at 9 pm EST.
2015-04-18
HBO will feature a fight that most are predicting to be the fight of the year when brutal power punching warriors Lucas Matthysse and Ruslan Provodnikov square off in a junior welterweight war in Verona, New York. The undercard features one of boxing’s most skilled fighters, and 2014’s fighter of the year, Terrance Crawford moving up to fight for a title in his second weight division against Thomas Dulorme. Card starts at 9 pm EST.
2015-04-18
Also at 9 pm EST, on Showtime, as part of the Premiere Boxing Champions series, Julio Cesar Chavez, JR. fights polish tough guy Andrzej Fonfara at the Stubhub Center in Carson, California. High chance for an upset in this fight.
2015-04-25
Heavyweight kingpin Wladimir Klitschko makes his return to the USA against undefeated American Bryant Jennings at the fight mecca of Madison Square Garden, New York. The fight airs on HBO at 9 pm EST
2015-04-25
Same day, same time as the Klitschko fight on HBO, Spike TV will be airing two championship fights. Super middleweight champ Anthony Dirrell defends his title against Badou Jack and middleweight champ Daniel Jacobs defends against Caleb Truax. Live from UIC Pavilion in Chicago at 9 pm EST.
2015-05-02
The big one, the fight of the century, no need to explain this one. Mayweather vs Pacquiao. MGM Grand, Las Vegas, live on Pay Per View at 9 pm EST. $95 for the PPV. Undercard featuring amateur great Vasyl Lomachenko defending his first pro championship against Gamalier Rodriguez.
2015-05-09
Mexican star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez takes on the hard hitting James Kirkland at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. Fight starts at 9 pm EST on HBO.
2015-05-16
Boxing’s favorite new action hero, the devastating Gennady ” GGG” Golovkin defends his championship against southpaw Willie Monroe live from Inglewood, California at 10 pm EST on HBO. This should be an easy KO for GGG but that’s OK because the undercard features the ultra talented Roman Gonzales defending his world flyweight championship against Edgar Sosa. The undefeated Gonzales is one of the top five pound for pound fighters in the sport, some lists have him as high as number two. Finally he’s getting some American TV shine that isn’t usually afforded to the flyweight division.
2015-05-23
The highly skilled Andre Dirrell finally returns to the championship level to try and win his first world title against British Olympic Gold Medalist James Degale. This is an excellent fight between two very skilled fighters. The winner will have a legitimate claim to being the best super middleweight in the world behind Andre Ward. The fight goes down at Agganis Arena in Boston and will be aired for free on NBC as part of The Premiere Boxing Champions series.
