Golden Boy is stacking its March 28 card with solid names if not big matchups.
Top welterweight prospect and rising knockout artist Vergil Ortiz Jr will return to action on March 28, facing veteran Samuel Vargas in basically a sideways step, and Golden Boy is stacking the card with solid names if not exactly big matchups.
Here’s a rundown of everyone else who will feature on the card:
Junior welterweight Pablo Cesar Cano (33-7-1, 23 KO) will take on Michael Perez (25-3-2, 11 KO) in a 12-round bout. The 30-year-old Cano stopped Jorge Linares when Linares attempted to move up to 140 in Jan. 2019, and has won three straight overall. Perez, 30, hasn’t fought since a Dec. 2018 TKO loss to Abdiel Ramirez in a fight where he was up on all three cards in the eighth and final round.
122-pound contender Azat Hovhannisyan (18-3, 15 KO) will face Colombia’s Jose Sanmartin (30-5-1, 20 KO) in another 12-round bout. Sanmartin is 0-3 fighting outside of Colombia. Hovhannisyan has won his last four since a 2018 loss to Rey Vargas.
Welterweight Rashidi Ellis (22-0, 14 KO) faces Sergio Ortega (22-2, 16 KO) in a 10-round fight. This is a stay-busy for Ellis; similar to Ortiz, there just aren’t that many interesting options at welterweight if you’re a Golden Boy fighter, even at a lower level. The 26-year-old Ellis won a wide decision in his rematch with Eddie Gomez last November and will look to tread some water here.
Seniesa Estrada (18-0, 7 KO) will defend her interim WBA flyweight title against an opponent to be named. Estrada won a technical decision over rival Marlen Esparza in November in her last fight.
Resurgent middleweight Christopher Pearson (17-2, 12 KO) will be in a 10-round fight. He last fought in May 2019, upsetting Yamaguchi Falcao in Las Vegas. A free agent at the time, he signed a new deal with Golden Boy after the win.
Prospect Raul Curiel (8-0, 6 KO) will be in against Steve Villalobos (11-1-1, 9 KO) in another 10-rounder at welterweight. Curiel, 24, is stepping up a bit here. The 28-year-old Villalobos dropped Blair Cobbs in his last outing on Aug. 22 before being stopped in the ninth round.
154-pound prospect Aaron McKenna (10-0, 6 KO) will be back for his first scheduled eight-round fight.
Chicago middleweight Chris Ousley (12-0, 9 KO) will take on St. Louis’ Jarvis Williams (8-2-1, 5 KO) in another eight-round bout.
The Ortiz-Vargas card will have plenty of competition for attention that evening, as Top Rank have Artur Beterbiev vs Meng Fanlong on ESPN, and Showtime has a tripleheader topped by Luis Nery vs Aaron Alameda, too.
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