The boxing challenge will feature three intriguing fights from Matchroom/DAZN, as well as the first event from newcomer Zuffa Boxing on Paramount+.
Las Vegas will host the only world title bout of the weekend as Raymond Muratalla defends his IBF lightweight title against Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz.
Muratalla won the vacant title last May with a unanimous decision win over Zair Abdullaev, while Cruz last fought only six times as a pro, his most recent win a fifth-round knockout of Hironori Mishiro last June.
Muratalla has met the better competition of the two, but that's balanced by Cruz's extensive amateur experience at the highest level.
Cruz has the better skills, but he also has questions about his chin, having never faced a puncher as a professional.
I think this is a close fight, and I lean slightly toward Cruz, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Muratalla grab the win.
The co-feature will see the middleweight debut of former WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov.
Madrimov has lost his two recent fights by close decisions to Terence Crawford and Vergil Ortiz, so he has no shame in those defeats.
Madrimov's opponent is 20-1 Luis David Salazar, who is untested and has only seven KO's in his twenty wins and was stopped in his only loss, in which he was dropped four times.
The other challenge event from Las Vegas is an interesting light heavyweight match between prospect Khalil Coe and former super middleweight contender Jesse Hart.
Coe avenged his only loss when he knocked out Manuel Gallegos in six rounds last summer, while Hart has won five straight against lower competition since his 2020 split decision defeat to Joe Smith.
This one could be very entertaining.
The Friday action is also in Las Vegas with Zuffa Boxing's first show on Paramount as unbeaten junior middleweight Callum Walsh meets former world title challenger Carlos Ocampo.
Walsh trudged to a dull unanimous decision over then-unbeaten Fernando Vargas Jr. on the Crawford-Canelo undercard in his last win.
Ocampo has lost each of his three attempts at the world-class level, losing to Errol Spence, Sebastian Fundora, and Tim Tszyu.
Boxing Challenge
TRS: Walsh KO 4
TRS and V.S: Cruz Unanimous Decision
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