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Serhii Bohachuk-Vergil Ortiz Jr. Expected 154-pound clash scheduled for August 10 at Michelob ULTRA Arena

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Serhii Bohachuk and Vergil Ortiz Jr. were not the second’s first choice.

Yet their fight is somehow the best-case scenario for both sides.

Golden Boy Promotions and 360 Promotions have confirmed a tantalizing matchup between top junior middleweights, with Bohachuk risking his interim WBC 154-pound title at the top of the DAZN show on Aug. 10 at the Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.

“Serhii has been through so much,” 360 Promotions founder Tom Loeffler told The Ring. “He endured the invasion of his country, while waiting for a visa to return to the United States. He was given special permission as a professional athlete to continue his boxing career.”

Bohachuck (24-1, 23 knockouts) has won six straight fights since a March 2021 knockout loss to Brandon Adams (24-3, 16 KOs), most notably a March 30 victory over Brian Mendoza that earned him the WBC secondary 154-pound title.

The fight was a compromise made by Bohachuk, No. 4 at 154 according to The Ring, who was originally scheduled to face Sebastian Fundora (21-1-1, 13 KOs). The lineup change resulted in Fundora facing and defeating Tim Tsyzu (24-1, 17 KOs), winning the WBO and vacant full WBC titles.

Bohachuk, a 29-year-old Ukrainian based in Los Angeles, has agreed to fight Mendoza for the interim title. The agreement included a stipulation that he would face the winner, but the WBC has yet to order the fight. Fundora, the No. 1 junior middleweight in The Ring, is reportedly scheduled to face former unified welterweight champion Errol Spence (28-1, 22 KOs) in the fall.

Ironically, Bohachuk got that chance when Tszyu was unable to make his scheduled fight with Ortiz (21-0, 21 KOs). Tszyu-Ortiz was scheduled to appear at the Riyadh Season show on Aug. 3 at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. However, Tszyu was forced to withdraw from the Fundora fight due to an injury that did not heal in time to be cleared by doctors.

That led to Bohachuk risking his second title a week later by fighting Ortiz on a show promoted by Golden Boy.

“We are waiting for a substantial victory for Vergil Ortiz,” said Oscar De La Hoya, head of Golden Boy Promotions. “It’s a tough fight, a tough opponent. But it will be his first official world title fight.”

Ortiz was in line for a second welterweight title fight last summer, but withdrew days before a rescheduled July 8 challenge against WBA “Regular” champion Eimantas Stanionis.

The fallout from that setback kept Ortiz on the sidelines for all of 2023 and would remain inactive until August 2022. The 26-year-old from Grand Prairie, Texas, has made up for lost time by scoring two first-round knockouts this year.

Now comes the part where his team hopes that high risk will bring greater reward.

“I’m looking for Vergil Ortiz to be the next superstar in boxing,” insisted De La Hoya, a former six-division Hall of Fame champion. “He’s 21-0 with 21 knockouts. You don’t get there without the talent and the ability to be the best.”

Bohachuk is just on your doorstep.

“Serhii won the WBC interim title and now he can’t wait to defend it, fighting for Ukraine in the ring,” Loeffler said. “Vergil Ortiz is a very perilous opponent, but nothing will stop Serhiy from winning.”

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Boxing

Cruiserweight’s goal is to “beat up YouTubers” – targeting Paul and Fury

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Cruiserweight Paul Bamba

Jake Paul and Tommy Fury are two of the “YouTubers” targeted by the cruiserweight fighter, who returns to action on October 12.

Paul Bamba will face former world title challenger Francisco Cordero next week at the Prudential Center in Newark. After the victory, Bamba wants to face the most critical names on the YouTuber’s boxing circuit.

Boasting a 16-3 record and 15 major knockouts, Bamba wants to give rivals Paul and Fury all the trouble they need.

“Here’s the idea, beat up some YouTubers and then go straight back to boxing,” Bamba said. “I want to be the best in the cruiserweight division.

“I know it will take a lot more time and practice, but that’s all I do all day long.”

Modern York native Bamba is ranked twelfth in the World Boxing Association rankings and hopes to work his way into a potential title shot. However, he would be more than ready to work with the influencer if the calls came.

“As each fight gets harder and harder, the goal is not just to win, but to win well and look good,” Bamba said. I want to be able to showcase my boxing skills instead of just getting in the ring and knocking someone out.

“It’s about me winning and making sure I can run all 12 rounds as I fight for the world title to show that I’m destined to be up there with the greats,” Bamba said.

“There is potential to utilize this title as leverage to make the fight with Tommy Fury actually take place as it was supposed to happen a few years ago at Floyd Mayweather vs. Deji in Dubai two years ago, and maybe even Jake Paul will want to try it, he added.

The Bamba vs. Cordero fight is part of the “Brick City Fight Night Series” presented by Rising Star Promotions and Prudential Center in association with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing.

Next week’s event is the USBA welterweight title fight between Michael “Slick” Anderson and Daniel “El Gallo” Gonzalez.

Bamba, whose manager is R&B star Ne-Yo, hatched a bold plan to fight 15 times in one year, mirroring the tight schedule established by Mike Tyson in 1986 en route to the heavyweight title.

“He helped me develop a lot. I’m much more skilled defensively than I used to be. My boxing IQ is the same as night and day. I don’t sit there and try to fight myself. He has plans for every fight. Thanks to him, I also gained more self-confidence,” concluded the Puerto Rican.

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Sebastian Fundora is the fighter to beat at 154, says Tim Tszyu

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Seven months after losing to Sebastian Fundora, Tim Tszyu described the unified WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion as a man he can beat at 154.

Twenty-nine-year-old Tszyu from Australia lost a split decision to replacement Fundora at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, surrendering his WBO belt in the process. The 26-year-old Fundora took advantage of Tszyu’s devastating second-round injury to claim a 115-113, 116-112 and 116-112 split decision victory.

Talking about his wealth of talent at the age of 154, Tszyu refused to acknowledge Fundora as the best junior middleweight, but believes he currently holds the titles needed to be considered the best.

“Man, the 154-pound division is heated right now,” Tszyu said in an interview with BoxingScene. “Names are popping up everywhere. There are belts all over the place, so it’s good to be in this division now.”

In addition to Tszyu, the junior middleweight division is currently loaded with plenty of talent, including Terence Crawford, Fundora, Israil Madrimov, Vergil Ortiz, Serhii Bohachuk, Brian Mendoza and Erickson Lubin, among others.

When asked who in the talent pool he wanted to face, Tszyu said he was open to fighting anyone at 154 pounds, but chose Fundora as the first option on his list. Tszyu also has plans to gain weight in the future.

“If everything presents itself and everything falls into place, then yes, of course. Why not? It all depends on the current situation. Changes in boxing. It’s like a fighter losing and then being next in line. That’s all. You can’t really predict the future much. It’s arduous.

“It’s very heated at 154 at the moment, so I’ll stay here. Fundora already has the belts at the moment, but no, I don’t think he’s the best.”

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Stephen Fulton is a mandatory WBA fighter for Nick Ball

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Image: Stephen Fulton is Nick Ball's WBA mandatory

WBA featherweight champion Nick Ball (21-0-1, 12 KOs) has a tough mandatory challenger in Stephen Fulton next for him after a grueling tenth-round knockout victory Saturday night over Ronny Rios (34-5, 17 KO) at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool.

Former WBC and WBO super bantamweight champion Fulton’s boxing skills will be a gigantic problem for the 5’2″ Ball if this fight comes next, as he has skills the 27-year-old has not seen before.

It was Ball’s first defense of his newly won WBA 126-pound title, but he may have to face the mandatory Fulton (22-1, 8 KO) next if the World Boxing Association orders the fight. Ball said tonight that he wants to have a unification fight with one of the 126-pound champions next, but we’ll see if the WBA allows it.

Fulton lost to Naoya Inoue last July by eighth-round knockout in Tokyo, Japan. It was too much firepower for Fulton at the time, and he fought too cautiously against the Japanese star in front of his fans at the Ariake Arena. Against Ball, Fulton would be able to handle the style much easier because he’s not a marksman with Inoue’s speed and power.

WBA No. 1 Fulton looked spectacular last month, defeating Carlos Castro with a breathtaking 10-round split decision victory on the Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga on September 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

If the WBA allows Ball to place Fulton in a fight against one of the other featherweight champions, the logical fight would be against WBO champion Rafael Espinoza (25-0, 21 KO).

“I always want to eliminate them, no matter what. If I feel the pace, they will feel the pace ten times worse. Keep going until the bell rings and the fight is over,” Nick Ball said Social boxing.

“In boxing, it all comes down to who wants it the most. When you’re there, it’s just you and him. He is the one who wants it the most.”

Last update: 10/05/2024

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