Pick It: TBRB #1 Stephen Fulton vs. Naoya Inoue (Tuesday, ESPN+, 9:00 PM EST)
It’s a bit of a cheat but when arguably the two best fights of 2023 are happening days apart, with the first coming in the early hours of Tuesday morning in the States, it’s worth the cheat. The two best fighters in their respective divisions will face off, in their prime, on time, and one of them will leave with their first loss in the ledger.
29-year old Stephen Fulton (21-0, 8 KO) will defend the WBC and WBO titles on the road in Japan against 30-year old recently undisputed bantamweight and three-division champion Naoya Inoue (24-0, 21 KO). It’s everything boxing fans ask for and worth losing sleep. Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez (12-1, 7 KO) defends the WBO featherweight belt against Satoshi Shimizu (11-1, 10 KO) on the undercard.
Additional Shows to Watch For
Saturday – Dickens vs. Sosa (FiteTV, 8;00 AM EST)
Early risers can catch some featherweight action from Dubai. 32-year old Jazza Dickens (32-4, 12 KO) has won two in a row since a stoppage loss to Kid Galahad. 27-year old Hector Sosa (15-2, 8 KO) is 2-2 in his last four scraps but has never been stopped.
Saturday – #7 Kambosos vs. Hughes (ESPN+, 6:10 PM EST)
30-year old former lineal lightweight king George Kambosos (20-2, 10 KO) resumes his career after consecutive defeats to Devin Haney. It will be his first trip to the US since his title-winning upset of Teofimo Lopez in 2021. Kambosos will face 33-year old Maxi Hughes (26-5-2, 2 KO). Hughes has won seven in a row but has been stopped twice.
Saturday – Vidal vs. Rondon (ProBoxTV, 8:00 PM EST)
Middleweights get the main event in this card live from Uruguay. 27-year old Amilcar Vidal Jr. (16-1, 12 KO) was stopped for the first time in his last outing and resumes his career here. Opponent Domicio Rondon (17-5, 11 KO) has been stopped twice but enters with a two-fight win streak.
Saturday – Bohachuk vs. Allotey (UFC Fight Pass, 11:00 PM EST)
28-year old junior middleweight Serhii Bohachuk (22-1, 22 KO) brings the action and enters with four straight stoppage wins after a stoppage defeat to Brandon Adams in 2021. Ghana’s Patrick Allotey (42-4, 32 KO) has won twice since a knockout loss to Jaime Munguia, his most recent of three losses inside the distance.
Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, a member of the International Boxing Research Organization, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com