Fight Week Preview (2/5-2/11):
It's a sneaky good week for fight fans There is one mega card in the fight capital of the world and then two prospect-heavy cards in England.
The action kicks off in Las Vegas, Nevada, as two-weight division world champion and current WBO 140-pound world champion Teofimo Lopez, 19-1 (13), looks to take over as he battles Jamine Ortiz 17-1-1 (8) of Worcester, Massachusetts, who lone defeat is a hotly debated points loss to future Hall of Famer Vasyl Lomachenko in October od 2022. The loss came sandwiched in between his two best wins, one over Jamel Herring and another over Antonio Moran in his most recent bout. Lopez moved up to 140 in 2022, picked up wins over Pedro Campa, and then got up off the canvas to beat the pesky Sandor Martin of Spain. He then captured his WBO belt by outpointing long-reigning champion Josh Taylor this past June.
Also on the card is 2023 Prospect of the Year Abdullah Mason, 11-0 (9), who takes the biggest challenge of his career and takes on Benjamin Gurment 8-0-3 (5), of Fort Worth, Texas, in a battle of undefeated prospects. Olympic Silver Medalist Keyshawn Davis, 9-0 (6), battles former world title holder Jose Pedraza, 29-5-1 (14), who is coming off a loss to Arnold Barboza. In a do-or-die type of fight, California native George Acosta, 17-1 (3) battles Rene Tellez Giron, 18-2-3 (12) of Mexico.
The action skips across the pond to the UK for the Weekend action for an intriguing fight between undefeated Super Featherweight Liam Dillion, 13-0-1 (3), who is coming off his big win over Qais Ashfaq in July, will take on Reece Bellotti, 17-5 (14) the formidable opponent from Hertfordshire, UK. The card also features the return of Craig Richards, 17-3-1 (10), who looks to rebound from his points loss to Joshua Buatsi and battles Boris Crighton, 12-4 (7) of Glasgow, Scotland.
In the final card of the weekend, 6 foot 3-inch undefeated Middleweight blue-chip prospect Hamzah Sheeraz 18-0 (13), looks to take a step closer to a world title by taking a step up against Liam Williams 25-4-1 (20). Williams has two straight wins since his 2022 loss to Chris Eubank Jr. Most recently he stopped Florin Cardos in one round, about 10 weeks ago. Sheeraz has won 12 straight inside the distance including his most recent win against Dmytro Mytrofanov, via a second-round TKO. The card also features the 12-0 (12) seek-and-destroy fan favorite KO artist Sam Noakes who battles Lewis Sylvester 13-0 (4), in a must-win battle of unbeaten the 9-0 (6) Masood Abdullah and looks to make in 10 in a row against Qais Ashfaq, 12-2 (5), who looks to stay relevant following his points loss to Liam Dillon. Fan favorite former world title challenger Anthony Yarde also returns on this card and takes on Marko Nikolic Belgrade, Serbia.
