DAZN hasn't exactly set the boxing world on fire with their few offerings since Covid-19 arrived, but Friday's card from Mexico City is a solid return with three world titles at stake before a miss at the weigh-in caused one to be shifted to a non-title affair.
The main event features Juan Francisco Estrada defending his WBC junior bantamweight title in a rematch from 2017 against Carlos Cuadras in what at that time was an eliminator for that title, then held by Srisaket Sor Rungvisai.
The first fight was decided by a tenth round knockdown scored by Estrada that made the difference on all three cards (114-113) at a time when Cuadras was the slight favorite after his stern challenge against the then-dominant Chocolatito Gonzalez.
The careers of both men diverged after that as Estrada split two fights with Rungvisai and now is considered for top ten pound for pound listing and Cuadras losing his next fight by decision to McWilliams Arroyo in a surprising loss with three wins against lesser competition following the Arroyo defeat.
This one is important to both men with Estrada risking a lucrative unification fight against Roman Gonzalez and Cuadras needing a strong showing at minimum to show that he is still competitive at the elite level of the sport.
The co-main event is the aforementioned Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez defending his WBA junior bantamweight title for the first time after his title win over Kal Yafai just before the beginning of Covid-19 in February against Israel Gonzalez.
Chocolatito's ninth-round knockout wins over Yafai not only gave him a world title, it returned him to fight fans thoughts of wanting to see him in big fights and a unification fight against Estrada, whom Gonzalez defeated via decision in a flyweight title defense in 2012, would be an anticipated fight for boxing fans.
Gonzalez will be a solid favorite against a fellow Gonzalez, who won a split decision in his last fight over former world title challenger Sho Ishida in Ishida's native Japan to earn this championship challenge.
The other scheduled title fight will take place, but without a title, as Moises Calleros missed weight by over five pounds and will not challenge for the WBC flyweight championship held by Julio Cesar Martinez.
The journeyman Calleros isn't really of world title caliber, but Martinez lost a summer fight in Tulsa for various reasons and accepted the fight anyway to stay active despite the weight advantage that Calleros will hold.
Martinez should still use the fight in the same manner as planned- a match to display his talents in the suddenly packed flyweight division...
Saturday sees the stage shift to Showtime in their version of the 'bubble' in Uncasville, Connecticut with a three-fight card of interest, if not the star power of the DAZN version.
The main event will star Sergei Lipinets against late replacement Custio Clayton for the IBF's "interim" welterweight title.
Why they need an interim champion when the actual champion (Errol Spence) is in action in six weeks is one question and why the IBF, who had been above the fray in this multiple titles per organization and division business, is doing this at all.
Lipinets briefly held the IBF junior welterweight title before dropping it to Mikey Garcia and has won three fights since with an impressive tenth round stoppage of Lamont Peterson that sent the former junior welterweight champion into retirement leading the trio.
The fight was delayed a few weeks due to visa problems with original opponent Kudratillo Abdukakhorov and when those issues couldn't be cleared up, the IBF ruled that Clayton could step in his place.
Clayton is a former Olympian from Canada and is undefeated, but his best two wins were over well past their prime former contenders DeMarcus "Chop Chop" Corley and Johan Perez, so I have plenty of questions about Clayton that will need to be answered.
The other two bouts on the card will pit undefeated fighters from Floyd Mayweather's money team against their toughest foes as professionals.
Xavier Martinez is paired against veteran Claudio Marrero in the co-feature at junior lightweight with the talented Martinez expected to make a move forward in his first test against a solid veteran
Marrero, who seems to be on every PBC card in the featherweight division, will be a tough test as Marrero loses to top ten fighters (Tug Nyambayar and Kid Galahad), but beats almost anyone else and if a prospect isn't up to snuff, Marrero can not only defeat them, he can eliminate them in destructive manner as he did undefeated'prospects Jorge Lara and Carlos Zambrano, both of whom were taken out in one round on national television by Marrero.
Still, Martinez is the naturally larger man and I think that will come into play.
The opener is the most interesting fight of the evening to me with undefeated Mayweather protege Malik Hawkins against once-beaten Subriel Matias in a junior welterweight battle.
Hawkins defeated undefeated Darwin Price in his last fight, when Price, who was leading on the scorecards tore a knee ligament in the fifth round and was unable to continue.
Price was outboxing Hawkins before the injury and I wonder what Hawkins might have as his level of opponent improves.
Matias looked so impressive when he came out of nowhere to upset and stop Maxim Dadashev in the eleventh round as a heavy underdog before Dadashev would pass away from injuries suffered in the bout, but two fights later sleepwalked for ten rounds against Petros Ananyan in losing a unanimous decision.
Matias was knocked down in the seventh round by Ananyan and had that not occurred would have salvaged a majority decision draw but just looked like he was a fighter that didn't want to fight anymore.
Two talented fighters with plenty to prove after a less than impressive outing might make a good match if both are motivated.
In the boxing challenge, I lead Ramon Malpica 131-122
WBC Junior Bantamweight Title. 12 Rds
Juan Francisco Estrada vs Carlos Cuadras
Both: Estrada Unanimous Decision
WBA Junior Bantamweight Title. 12 Rds
Roman Gonzalez vs Israel Gonzalez
R.L: R.Gonzalez KO 9
TRS: R.Gonzalez KO 6
TRS: R.Gonzalez KO 6
Flyweights. 12 Rds
Julio Cesar Martinez vs Moises Calleros
R.L: Martinez KO 10
TRS: Martinez KO 4
TRS: Martinez KO 4
Welterweights. 12 Rds
Sergey Lipinets vs Custio Clayton
Both: Lipinets Unanimous Decision
Junior Lightweights.12 Rds
Xavier Martinez vs Claudio Marrero
R.L: Martinez KO 9
TRS: Martinez Unanimous Decision
Welterweights.10 Rds
Malik Hawkins vs Subriel Matias
R.L: Matias Unanimous Decision
TRS: Hawkins Unanimous Decision
TRS: Hawkins Unanimous Decision
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