Boxing
Amanda Serrano will defend her featherweight titles vs. Erika Cruz
Published
5 months agoon
Amanda Serrano will return to the ring to defend her WBO and WBA featherweight titles against Erica Cruz in front of her hometown fans at Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico on January 3, 2026, and will be broadcast worldwide on DAZN, ESPN confirmed on Tuesday.
The fight will be a rematch of the invigorating and bloody 2023 fight, which Serrano won by unanimous decision and became the first undisputed champion of Puerto Rico in the four-belt era. However, the rematch will be played under different rules, as Serrano-Cruz 2 will be played under the same rules as the men, over 10 three-minute rounds.
“Every time I step into the ring, I fight for all women, for equality and for Puerto Rico,” Serrano said in a statement. “Fighting three-minute rounds in a unified world title defense in front of my people will be one of the greatest moments of my career. When I got injured last March, I promised I would come back to fight in Puerto Rico, and now that moment has finally come.”
Serrano (47-4-1, 31 KO) will enter the ring for the first time since a July defeat to undisputed junior welterweight champion Katie Taylor, who headlined the women’s fight gala on Netflix. Although she lost to Taylor 0-3, their rivalry played a key role in women’s boxing’s current prosperity. Now Serrano, 37, is looking forward to competing in front of her hometown after being forced to withdraw from her December 2023 fight with Nina Meinke in Puerto Rico just minutes before the fight due to an eye injury.
“I want to thank Erica Cruz for choosing to face me in the 10 x 3:00 (minute rounds) format and for joining me in making a statement for equality in women’s boxing,” Serrano said. “Together we are showing all juvenile girls that they can do anything they want and that female boxers deserve the same opportunities as men.”
Cruz (18-2-1, 4 KO) has a 3-0-1 record since the loss to Serrano. Fighting out of Mexico, he is looking forward to the resumption of the renowned boxing rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico and hopes to avenge his loss to Serrano.
“I am very elated and excited for this great opportunity to once again face the great champion of Puerto Rico, Amanda Serrano,” Cruz said in a statement. “I am grateful to my promoter, Universal Promotions, and MVP for making this rematch a reality. This is the most invigorating rivalry in world boxing. Mexico vs. Puerto Rico means a guaranteed war. If our first fight was colossal, you cannot miss what will happen on January 3. Viva Mexico!”
Serrano recently signed a lifetime contract with Most Valuable Promotions, where she will retire from boxing before becoming the chairwoman of MVP’s women’s boxing initiatives. She will lead efforts to identify, sign, develop and promote the promotion’s growing list of female athletes. While there has been speculation that Serrano’s 16-year boxing career is coming to an end, “The Real Deal” has at least one more fight left.
“We are honored to support [Serrano’s] will return to her natural weight class of 126 pounds when she fights in front of her home fans in Puerto Rico on Saturday, January 3,” Most Valuable Promotions co-founders Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian announced in a statement. “Amanda is one of the most influential athletes in the world and a true symbol of equality in sports, and MVP is proud to stand by her during her second unified defense of the world title in three-minute rounds, alongside Erika Cruz. This event will celebrate the pride and heritage of both Puerto Rican and women’s boxing, and we look forward to sharing more details about this historic event in the coming weeks.
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Boxing
Tyson Fury eyes September fight as Joshua returns uncertain
Published
1 hour agoon
March 11, 2026
His promoter Frank Warren says Fury’s return is intended to restart Fury’s run towards another major fight before the end of the summer.
“Tyson has his finger on the pulse and knows what he wants to do,” Warren told DAZN, discussing Fury’s plans for the rest of the year. “I can’t feel it [Anthony Joshua] he will be ready, but if he is there and wants it, Tyson is there. If he doesn’t, Tyson will want to fight a substantial fight in August or September. That’s what he wants.”
The most discussed option remains a meeting with Anthony Joshua. Fans have waited years for the all-British heavyweight clash that once seemed inevitable when both men held world titles at the same time. Saudi boxing boss Turki Alalshikh had previously considered the possibility of staging the fight this summer, but Joshua’s involvement in a stern car crash in Nigeria tardy last year caused uncertainty over the timetable for his return to the ring.
Warren said Fury’s focus is firmly on competition this year after spending most of last year on outside projects.
“The past year has been about his TV series, other commitments and the documentary,” Warren said. “This year it’s about getting the number one position and that’s where his head is.”
If Joshua isn’t ready by tardy summer, other options may become available. WBO heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley has already expressed interest in fighting Fury if he successfully defends his belt against Daniel Dubois on May 9.
Wardley previously said he offered Fury the fight earlier in the year, before both men moved on to other fights.
“I said, ‘Listen, if you want to go straight away, we can go straight away, no problem,’” Wardley told Sky Sports. “But if he wants a little warm-up and wants to go through it and see how he feels, then frosty. I’ll still be ready and I’ll be waiting when I’m done with Daniel for a substantial fight.”
For now, Fury’s main goal remains an April return against Makhmudov. If Warren gets through this fight injury-free, Warren expects the former champion to compete in a major event later in the year, and Joshua’s fight is still something most fans want to see.
Olly Campbell is a boxing journalist covering this sport since 2014, providing reports from the ring and technical analyzes of the most vital fights. His work focuses on fighter tendencies, tactical adjustments and the details that shape high-level competition.
Boxing
Mike Tyson assesses Terence Crawford’s chances against Four Kings Leonard, Duran, Hagler and Hearns
Published
3 hours agoon
March 11, 2026
Mike Tyson assessed Terence Crawford’s chances against the Four Kings, determining how successful “Bud” would be in such a competitive era.
WITH Crawford is dedicating time to his decorated career Last December, when he became the five-division world champion, many wondered how he would fare against the likes of Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Roberto Duran.
During this iconic era, all four champions competed at the highest level for many years, with Leonard, Hearns and Duran fighting in multiple weight classes.
Meanwhile, Hagler weighed 160 pounds throughout his career, making 12 successful world title defenses before losing to Leonard in 1987 by controversial split decision.
However, during his nearly seven-year reign, “Marvelous” scored a unanimous decision victory over Duran and stopped Hearns in the third round of a shootout that many consider to be the greatest of all time in its own right.
As for the other Four Kings, who also fought at welterweight, super middleweight and super middleweight, it could be said that their careers are more similar to Crawford’s.
Regardless of the weight class, former heavyweight champion Tyson he told Ring magazine that Crawford shone brightly in the era of the Four Kings.
“It would be a handsome fight. There were people back then who weren’t as good as.” [Crawford] was, [but they] they were champions.
– He would do well [in that era]”
Even though Crawford had never fought at super middleweight before, he was able to dethrone Canelo Alvarez to become the undisputed three-division champion last September.
But his greatest success arguably came at 147 pounds, when the American stopped seven opponents before engineering a devastating ninth-round finish over Errol Spence Jr. in 2023.
Itauma (13-0, 11 KO) turned professional with the ambition to break Tyson’s record as the youngest heavyweight champion in history. Tyson established this goal in November 1986 when he defeated Trevor Berbick for the WBC title.
While Itauma’s early rise has generated excitement, his professional resume remains confined. The 20-year-old went just 26 rounds in 13 fights, averaging just over two rounds per fight. Two of his fights ended the distance during six-round fights scheduled at the beginning of his career. Since then, none of his opponents have heard the bell to start the third round.
These quick finishes highlight Itauma’s two-handed strength, but also leave unanswered questions about how he performs in longer fights against an experienced opponent.
Franklin (24-2, 15 KO) enters as the most established opponent of Itauma’s career. The American has already gone the distance with top heavyweights and has the stamina to extend fights into deeper rounds.
The fight was originally scheduled to take place in January, but was postponed due to Itauma’s biceps injury. Changing the date of the gala to March 28 brings the heavyweight candidate back into action.
For Itauma, this fight will be the next step in a career that has developed dynamically since his professional debut. For Franklin, it’s a chance to stop the momentum of one of boxing’s fastest-rising heavyweights.
Comparisons to Tyson continue to follow Itauma as he builds his record. The upcoming fight could provide a clearer picture for the juvenile heavyweight as he continues to climb the division.
Is Moses Itauma really the fresh Iron Mike Tyson?
This release Rummy Corner will attempt to answer this question by examining in detail the numbers, styles and schedules of both men. We compare Tyson’s legendary 1985-1986 career, during which he fought 28 times in just 565 days, with Itauma’s up-to-date trajectory. We also look at the enormous differences in their physical characteristics and fighting styles, leaving aside the “hype” to see the technical reality. Please watch and enjoy the video. This is Rummy’s Corner (produced and narrated by Geoffrey Ciani).
Geoffrey Ciani has been involved in boxing since 2000 and is the creator and host of the popular YouTube channel Rummy Cornerwhere he provides in-depth analysis, storytelling and comparisons of classic and up-to-date fights.
Tyson Fury eyes September fight as Joshua returns uncertain
Mike Tyson assesses Terence Crawford’s chances against Four Kings Leonard, Duran, Hagler and Hearns
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