Avila Perspective, Chap. 193: A Heavyweight Rumble in London and More

Believe it or not, the heavyweight division belongs to European prizefighters.

Britain’s perennial foe Derek Chisora (32-12, 23 KOs) meets Bulgaria’s Kubrat Pulev (29-2, 14 KOs) in the main event mid-day Saturday, July 9, at O2 Arena in London. DAZN will stream the Matchroom Boxing card live.

Though Chisora has three consecutive losses, all were against former or current world titlists. His foe Pulev has two losses against then world champions Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko.

This is their second fight against each other.

“My whole point right now is just bringing big fights, entertaining the fans and just doing what I like to do,” said Chisora who lost to Pulev six years ago by split decision.

Whoever wins returns to relevancy.

Heavyweights have always sold big money. Even the casual fan knows that heavyweights pack the most power and can end a fight with a single blow. And that sells tickets. It was the formula used by American promoter Don King for decades to maintain selling boatloads of tickets at major fights.

Just a few weeks ago, King’s only tie to the heavyweight championship was snapped when Great Britain’s Daniel Dubois knocked out Trevor Bryan for a version of the WBA heavyweight title in Miami.

All of the many heavyweight titles are now held by Europeans such as Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury and now Dubois.

Whoever wins between Chisora and Pulev gets a shot at one of the heavyweight titles.

“He’s a stronger opponent than before. For me it’s very important and I think for him it’s also very important,” said Pulev. “That’s why we give everything and that’s why I’m sure he will give everything. It’s going to be a great fight.”

San Antonio on Showtime

One of the more recent discoveries in prizefighting has been promoters willing to stage more fights near the Alamo.

This time WBC featherweight world titlist Mark Magsayo (24-0, 16 KOs) defends against Mexico’s Rey Vargas (35-0, 22 KOs) on Saturday July 9, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Showtime will televise the PBC card.

Magsayo staged one of the bigger upsets in the year in January when he defeated Gary Russell Jr. to take the WBC title by majority decision in Atlantic City. No one other than Vasyl Lomachenko had ever come close to beating Russell.

It wasn’t a pretty fight but the Filipino slugger kept the pressure on and was able to defeat Russell who was not at his best for various reasons. Still, Magsayo did what 31 others could not. Now he faces the much taller Vargas, a former super bantamweight world titlist.

Vargas, a gangly boa constrictor type of fighter has never lost a fight as a pro. But he’s not very popular because of his penchant for grabbing and holding. He has never been a fan favorite for those reasons.

Still, he has a large height advantage over Magsayo who is making his first title defense.

“I’ve worked on a lot of different things with Freddie Roach to make sure that we’re ready for anything Vargas brings. If he wants to come toe-to-toe like he said, then I’m ready to end this fight with a knockout,” said Magsayo.

Vargas has never lost and doesn’t expect to lose.

“Magsayo says that I haven’t faced anyone like him before, but in reality, he has actually never faced anyone like me.

“Magsayo may want to exchange blows so badly because that may be the only thing he knows how to do,” said Vargas. “He doesn’t know how to fight otherwise. We will dominate him and take the belt.”

Also on the card is former super bantamweight titlist Brandon Figueroa (22-1-1, 17 KOs) who is moving up to featherweight and meets Arizona’s Carlos Castro (27-1, 12 KOs) in a 12-round fight.

Will the extra weight be too much for Figueroa?

Next Week

Top Rank returns to Pechanga Casino in Temecula, California with a battle between super lightweight contenders.

A battle of the undefeated showcases Southern California’s Arnold Barboza (26-0, 10 KOs) against Puerto Rico’s Danielito Zorrilla (16-0, 12 KOs) in the main event on Friday July 15. ESPN will televise.

Each has impressive victims on their resumes.

On Saturday, Golden Boy Promotions presents Ryan Garcia defending a regional title against Dominican Republic bomber Javier Fortuna in a lightweight clash at the Crypto.com Arena formerly known as the Staples Center in Los Angeles. DAZN will stream the fight.

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