After numerous events in Saudi Arabia, newfound boxing catalyst Turki Al-Alshikh makes his first foray into the United States this weekend. He stages the return of the arguable pound-for-pound number one, Terence Crawford, who hopes to become a four-division world champion against Uzbek technician and WBA super-welterweight champion Israil Madrimov, atop a legendary bill.
Full Card Preview
Terence Crawford (40-0) will attempt to reinstate himself as the pound-for-pound king after tremendous displays from Naoya Inoue and Oleksandr Usyk during recent months may well have knocked him off of his pedestal.
Although, many in the United States have been quick to look past Israil Madrimov (10-0-1) as a worthy threat to ‘Bud’ and if the unbeaten 36-year-old has done the same then he could be in for a shock.
Madrimov twice defeated each of Arlen Lopez and Osleys Iglesias as an amateur and has certainly lived up to his amateur pedigree since turning professional in 2018.
In March, he completely outclassed the previously undefeated Magomed Kurbanov to become a world champion in one of the performances of the year and is naturally far bigger than Crawford – who picked up his first world title as a lightweight.
Eddie Hearn remains confident that Madrimov can spring a serious upset on Saturday night and Crawford will have to be on his A-game to come out on top – although it is important to remember that Crawford has been on his A-game for all 18 of his consecutive world title bouts to date and that there is a reason why he in undefeated in 40 contests.
The co-main event of the evening sees Andy Ruiz Jr. (35-2) take to the ring for just the third time since losing his unified heavyweight titles to Anthony Joshua in 2019, ending a 23-month spell of inactivity.
‘The Destroyer’ will go toe-to-toe with the usually loudmouthed and ever-controversial Jarrell Miller (26-1-1) in a ‘do or die’ meeting that will cast the loser aside from possible title contention.
Ruiz has been severely hampered by injuries since losing the heavyweight throne and the Californian will be keen to prove that he still possesses the skill to cause problems for any man in the division.
Meanwhile, Miller suffered a first career defeat against Daniel Dubois on his last appearance and will be hopeful of bouncing back, with both men determined to prove that their time at the top is not quite over yet.
A little over twelve months ago, 24-year-old Jared Anderson (17-0) was considered as the man to watch in the heavyweight division but uninspiring performances against Charles Martin and Ryad Merhy have seen ‘The Real Big Baby’ lose momentum.
The two-time national amateur champion now seeks to prove that he is the future of the sports’ glamour division as he fights Congolese boogeyman Martin Bakole (20-1) in what many perceive to be a dangerous assignment – particularly if Bakole’s well-documented sparring stories of the past are as truthful as he and his trainer Billy Nelson claim them to be.
Isaac Cruz (26-2-1) knocked out Rolando Romero back in March to finally become a world champion, ‘Pitbull’ makes a first defence of his WBA super-lightweight crown against Jose ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela (13-2) in a first all-Mexican 140lb world title contest since Jose Carlos Ramirez outpointed Antonio Orozco in 2018.
After two losses in his last three outings, all of which took place in the lightweight division, eyebrows were raised when Valenzuela was given the shot, although he maintains that a move up in weight will encourage improved performances after difficult weight cuts in the past.
David Morrell (10-0) will make his light-heavyweight debut after moving up from super-middleweight, as he faces Serbian-born former IBF world title challenger Radivoje Kalajdzic (29-2) with the WBA (Regular) title up for grabs. On seven-fight and four-fight knockout streaks respectively, it appears unlikely Morrell and ‘Hot Rod’ will require the full twelve rounds.
Few men enter the professional ranks with more expectation than amateur sensation Andy Cruz (3-0) who has wasted no time in climbing up the rankings in a hotly contested lightweight division, finding himself positioned within the top eight with each of the IBF, WBC and WBO after just three professional outings.
The Cuban will take on the experienced Antonio Moran (30-6-1) on Saturday night with the IBF International title on the line, as Cruz aims to move closer to a world title shot early on in his professional career.
More often than not a bout that is scheduled to be the second of the evening on the running order may not be that impressive, but on this occasion, they don’t come much better than a super-middleweight battle between the undefeated duo of Steve Nelson (19-0) and Marcos Vazquez Rodriguez (20-0-1).
A former WBO NABO champion, 36-year-old Nelson has fought just once since 2022, whilst 34-year-old Rodriguez has appeared once since 2021 and is a former Mexican super-middleweight champion. With both men in similar positions, opportunity knocks for the victor in a bout which is likely to be determined by whichever man feels suffers the least ring rust on the night.
Finally, Saudi favourite Ziyad Almaayouf (5-0) fights on a major card for the sixth consecutive occasion as he kicks off the show against Poland’s Michal Bulik (6-7) in a six-round welterweight affair.
Almaayouf is yet to secure a stoppage win since his debut on the Usyk-Joshua II card in 2022 and although Bulik has been stopped just once in seven defeats, that came against Campbell Hatton down at super-lightweight, giving Almaayouf hope that could have enough to get the 35-year-old southpaw out of there.
How To Watch
Madrimov-Crawford will be available to watch live on DAZN pay-per-view and Discovery Plus for a price of £24.99. Meanwhile, tickets are still available from the price of $126 for the event at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on Saturday night.
Ringwalks
The card gets underway at 4:30 p.m. ET / 9:30 p.m. BST, with the ringwalks for the main event scheduled to take place at 11:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 a.m. BST.
Running Order
- Ziyad Almaayouf (5-0) vs. Michal Bulik (6-7) – Welterweight (6)
- Steve Nelson (19-0) vs. Marcos Ramon Vazquez (20-0-1) – Super-middleweight (10)
- Andy Cruz (3-0) vs. Antonio Moran (30-6-1) – Lightweight (10)
- David Morrell (10-0) vs. Radivoje Kalajdzic (29-2) – Light-heavyweight
- Isaac Cruz (26-2-1) vs. Jose Valenzuela (13-2) – WBA super-lightweight title
- Jared Anderson (17-0) vs. Martin Bakole (20-1) – Heavyweight
- Andy Ruiz (35-2) vs. Jarrell Miller (26-1-1) – Heavyweight
- Israil Madrimov (10-0-1) vs. Terence Crawford (40-0) – WBO interim super-welterweight title & WBA super-welterweight title
Predictions
- Ziyad Almaayouf – KO/TKO Rounds 4-6
- Steve Nelson – Decision
- Andy Cruz – Decision
- David Morrell – KO/TKO Rounds 5-8
- Isaac Cruz – KO/TKO Rounds 5-8
- Martin Bakole – Decision
- Andy Ruiz – Decision
- Terence Crawford – KO/TKO Rounds 10-12
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