Julio Chavez Jr. will have a mandatory defense of his WBC middleweight title, so will Sergio Martinez the WBC Diamond belt champion. The WBC has ordered a mandatory for Chavez, more important then, Martinez defending the not so well known Diamond Belt.
Martinez and Chaves will proceed with fights before getting in the ring together for a possible March clash. Recently the WBC gave consent for Chavez to defend against Marco Antonio Rubio on February 4th. Martinez and his promoter, Lou DiBella, will hold a press conference in New York City Wednesday of next week announcing his next fight against Matthew Macklin on March 17th from the Theatre at Madison Square Garden.
Both fights will be broadcast on HBO, ruling out all the speculation that Showtime has secured the next Martinez fight. However, with Showtime as a projected major player in boxing this year, DiBella has hinted that Martinez, if indeed successful with Macklin, could take a Martinez-Chavez fight into a bid with HBO and Showtime.
There is some clarity as to how Showtime will be a major player with boxing and UFC programming this year. A comment by Stephen Espinoza, the new Executive Vice President and General Manager of Showtime Sports mentions a consolidation of programming, and in the business that means a major commitment.
Six to eight events this year of UFC programming enables the network to cross promote boxing events, as well as generating more revenue to put in their commitment to televise boxing. There has been no word from Espinoza, who succeeded Ken Hirschman, now at HBO, as to upcoming pay-per-view plans.
However, with DiBella looking at Martinez possibly working a venture with Showtime, and with the February Showtime telecast of Andre Berto and Victor Ortiz, there is increasing reason to believe that Espinoza will pursue pay per view ventures. He is also tied in with Golden Boy Promotions, as a former employee, which makes it more credible to do business with Richard Schaefer, their CEO and Oscar De La Hoya….
Not ruling out a fourth fight between Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, Arum has made constant reference to the fight, while the WBA has stripped Marquez of his lightweight title, “Super” as it is known. The WBA said due to their bylaws, Marquez failed to defend during the mandatory 18- months which vacates the title…
And with the Mayweather buzz again on Friday, Timothy Bradley, another Top Rank fighter, was looking at options for his next fight. Sources say if he stays at 140, Bradley would want the fight with Amir Khan. However, due to the controversial outcome of the Khan loss to Lamont Peterson, Bradley may have to wait as a return bout with Khan and Peterson is more likely.
And there is word that Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero could be the opponent for Mayweather is this May 5th date stays. He has been looking at Mayweather the past year. According to Schaefer, in his latest statement, there are other plans if it is not Pacquiao. “Guerrero or Canal Alvarez,” he said. Either way, neither opponent should be considered a mega-fight for Mayweather.
Not on the calendar, but heard more in the past few days, is a return bout between Chad Dawson and Bernard Hopkins for the light heavyweight title still held by Hopkins. The Hopkins camp will not confirm a date, while Dawson could not be reached for comment. Jean Pascal has been advocating a third meeting with Hopkins.
This post is sponsored in part by Nassau County Rentals & Five Towns Real Estate
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