Last seen in a big fight in July of 2018, when he came unstuck in quite spectacular fashion in a fight he was winning with Dereck Chisora, warrior Carlos Takam, 37-5-1(28) will try and put his third victory in a row in his win column on February 28th. Takam, now aged 39 but still hungry for another crack at the world title, will face Brazilian boxer/MMA fighter Fabio Maldonado on promoter Joe DeGuardia’s show in Huntington, New York.
This is the word according to Dan Rafael of ESPN.com. Apparently, DeGuardia had wanted to match Takam with the soon to return Jarrell Miller, on the big Deontay Wilder-Tyson Fury II card in Las Vegas, but Miller will not be fighting on that show, so Takam gets 39 year old Maldonado, 26-3(25).
Last seen being stopped in a couple of rounds by Michael Hunter last May, Maldonado, who has amassed a 25-14 mixed martial arts record, has lost his last three boxing matches. A slugger who can for sure bang, the man from Sao Paulo turned pro in 2002, then taking a break from the boxing ring in late 2010 to early 2016. Winning four on the spin upon his return, Maldonado then ran into a bad streak, losing to Oscar Rivas (pts), Oleksandr Teslenko (pts) and then being halted by Hunter.
Who knows what we can expect to see when Takam and Maldonado rumble at the end of the month. Takam is no spring chicken, but neither is Maldonado. At the same age, it might come down to who has more energy and desire on the night. In terms of boxing skill and sheer experience, Takam should be able to deal with Maldonado quite easily. But, hey, this is heavyweight boxing and anything can happen; especially between two big dudes who can crack.
It would have been interesting to see Takam welcome four-belt cruiserweight champ Oleksandr Usyk to the heavyweight ranks, as was originally the plan only for Usyk to get injured, the fight called off. As it is, it will be good to see Takam back in action. The Frenchman had a low key 2019, with just one fight. Maybe he can put something together here in 2020 and get himself another big fight.