The Avila Perspective, Chap 66: Can Spence-Porter equal De La Hoya-Mosley?

The Avila Perspective, Chap 66: Can Spence-Porter equal De La Hoya-Mosley?

LOS ANGELES-Nearly 20 years ago one of the best welterweight world title fights and pay-per-view cards ever held in Los Angeles took place at the Staples Center.

Can this Saturday’s fight card be even better?

When IBF titlist Errol Spence Jr. (25-0, 21 KOs) steps in the boxing ring against WBC titlist Shawn Porter (30-2-1, 17 KOs) in a welterweight unification match on Saturday Sept. 28, can they rival one of the great welterweight cards ever held in Los Angeles?

It’s going to be difficult to equal what many consider the best welterweight clash in the history of Los Angeles.

Back on June 17, 2000, welterweight kingpins Oscar De La Hoya and Shane Mosley lit up Staples Center in a crosstown L.A. rivalry that has never been equaled. It was the first championship fight ever held in that arena and though the supporting pay-per-view card featured a young Diego Corrales and Erik Morales, it was heavily reliant on the two local stars.

Celebrities like Muhammad Ali, Halle Berry and Jack Nicholson clamored for tickets to see “the Golden Boy” De La Hoya and “Sugar Shane” Mosley. For fans in attendance, half of the enjoyment was watching the stars stroll in one by one.

Even after the fights, people on the streets or at West L.A.’s Fatburger wanted to know who won the fight.

It’s a different scenario this Saturday.

PBC

Both Spence and Porter come from other states, but they are not alone on this mega boxing card that flaunts several 50/50 matchups.

Premier Boxing Champion has an army of talented prizefighters and for years seemed to keep them from fighting each other. Well, now the gloves are off and within the past 12 months PBC, as it’s known, has presented several strong pay-per-view cards. This is possibly the best of them all.

Spence recently defeated fellow pound-for-pound fighter Mikey Garcia in a welterweight world title fight last March in Dallas, Texas. It was his first pay-per-view fight and sparked interest in the left-handed welterweight kingpin.

“I feel like all of my fights prepared me for this moment. Porter is not like Mikey Garcia. They have different styles and different mentalities,” said Spence at the press conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

Porter captured the WBC title with a withering battle against former titleholder Danny “Swift” Garcia a year ago in Brooklyn. The always punching and moving fighter has been tabbed a major 8-1 underdog against Spence.

“Being in the underdog position is literally where I come from. Northeast Ohio is always an underdog. Everybody works where I come from. We always do the best we can,” said Porter who hails from Akron, Ohio but now lives in Las Vegas.

The undefeated Spence feels he cannot be beaten.

“I’m going to win and do it in dominating fashion,” said Spence, 29, whose last fight was six months ago.

Porter doesn’t think so.

“Everyone has seen everything what I’ve done in my career. Everyone knows I can take a punch and I’ll be there from the first round to the last round,” said Porter, 31. “We’ll see what happens to Errol as the fight goes on.”

It’s the main event but several other fights on the pay-per-view card deserve mention.

Dirrell Family vs Benavidez Family

Both Anthony Dirrell and David Benavidez come from strong fighting families.

Dirrell hails from Flint, Michigan. He and his brother Andre Dirrell have been ranked contenders for more than a decade.

Benavidez comes from Phoenix, Arizona and he and his older brother Jose Benavidez are part of the reason the city has become a burgeoning location for boxing talent.

On Saturday both boxing families meet head to head with the WBC super middleweight world title the prize.

Ironically, Benavidez held the title but was stripped of the belt when he failed a PED test. Now he gets the opportunity to reclaim it from Dirrell who grabbed it with a technical decision win over Turkey’s Avni Yildirim this past February. An accidental clash of heads forced the fight to be cut short and Dirrell was ruled the winner according to the score cards.

Both see each other as pretender champions.

“It’s an honor to be in this position. It’s a dream to be on a card like this defending my title,” said Dirrell who is making the first defense of the WBC title. “Experience is definitely a big key in this fight. I think that he has holes in his game and I’m going to expose it on Saturday night.”

Benavidez, 22, first won the WBC super middleweight title in September 2017 when he was still 20 years old. He was stripped of the title when he was found with traces of an illegal substance by VADA.

“I have another opportunity to not just get a title, but take it from a champion. I’ve worked very hard for this fight. Dirrell has never been knocked out and I’m taking the challenge to be the man who does it,” said Benavidez.

Super Lightweight Title

San Antonio’s Mario Barrios (24-0) has been ruining opponents so far and finally gets a shot at the vacant WBA super lightweight world title. Standing in his way will be Batyr Akhmedov (7-0, 6 KOs), a Russian fighter with plenty of weapons.

Up until now the tall Barrios has defeated solid competition including wins over Jose Roman and Juan Jose Velasco. But this time he’s got a very strong opponent worthy of fighting for the world title.

Akhmedov trains in Indio, California with Joel and Antonio Diaz. Out in the Coachella desert area, the Russian fighter has been sparring with tough opposition and has been waiting for an opportunity just like this.

Expect a solid war between the two.

Trainer Joel Diaz says Akhmedov has outstanding talent.

Josesito, Molina and Ghost return

The welterweight clash between Josesito Lopez and John Molina could be the fight of the night. Also on the card will be Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, a former top pound for pound fighter who seems ready to return to the forefront.

Guerrero (35-6-1, 20 KOs) meets Kansas welterweight Gerald Thomas (14-1-1, 8 KOs) in a bout set for 10 rounds. It’s a match designed to see if Guerrero has returned to championship form.

“He needed a little time off,” said Ruben Guerrero, father of Robert Guerrero. “He looks really good and strong. You will see.”

It’s a lengthy fight card featuring plenty of prospects, contenders and world champions. It’s probably the best pay-per-view card of the year.

Can it match De La Hoya-Mosley for best welterweight pay-per-view fight card ever staged in Los Angeles? We shall see on Saturday.

Suggested price for Fox PPV: $74.99

Doors open at 1 p.m. Tickets range from $61 to $659.

Photo credit: Al Applerose

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