Andre Ward faces Paul Smith on Saturday in 172lb catch-weight fight

Andre Ward faces Paul Smith on Saturday in 172lb catch-weight fight

Andre Ward (27-0, 14 KOs) will be making his long awaited ring return on Saturday in a catch-weight fight at 172 pounds against Paul Smith (35-5, 20 KOs) in Ward’s hometown in Oakland, California from the Oracle Arena. While some boxing fans think the 32-year-old Smith is unworthy of facing Ward, it’s not really a big deal.

Ward’s WBA super middleweight title won’t be on the line because of the fight taking place at a catch-weight of 172 in the light heavyweight division. Smith is coming into the fight for the payday, and of course with the hope that he can somehow pull off a big upset against the rusty Ward.

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Shawn Porter will beat Broner, says Loeffler

Shawn Porter will beat Broner, says Loeffler

Former IBF 147 pound champion Shawn Porter (25-1-1, 16 KOs) will be fighting at a catch-weight of 144 pounds this Saturday night against former three division world champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner (30-1, 22 KOs) on Premier Boxing Champions on NBC at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Porter’s fighting style is the type that the 25-year-old Broner has struggled with in the past in his 2013 loss to Marcos Maidana.

Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions believes that Porter has a very good chance of winning on Saturday, even with him having to drain down to 144 to make the catch-weight. Loeffler likes Porter’s skills, and he sees him coming out on top in this interesting match-up.

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Deontay Wilder back in action on 9/26, Povetkin fight not likely

Deontay Wilder back in action on 9/26, Povetkin fight not likely

Boxing fans are going to have to wait a little awhile before WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (34-0, 33 KOs) defends his WBC title against his mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin. Wilder’s trainer Jay Deas says the Wilder-Povetkin fight likely won’t take place until 2016. He says it takes a lot of time to negotiate big fights against fighters like Povetkin and Tyson Fury.

In the meantime, Wilder will be looking to fight against in three months on September 26th against the likes of Tony Thompson or Chris Arreola. It’s a voluntary defense for Wilder so he’s not going to be fighting a top five contender like Anthony Joshua, Vyacheslav Glazkov or Bryant Jennings.

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Garcia vs Malignaggi on August 1 – ESPN

Garcia vs Malignaggi on August 1 - ESPN

Undefeated superstar Danny “Swift” Garcia (30-0, 17 KOs) will take on Brooklyn’s own Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi (33-6, 7 KOs) at Barclays Center as Premier Boxing Champions will be live in primetime on ESPN on Saturday, August 1 with coverage beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

“It’s going to be a great fight against Paulie on August 1st,” said Garcia. “I’m looking forward to getting in the ring again, in my fifth appearance at Barclays Center, and putting on a great show for the East Coast fans in attendance and the fans watching all over the world. By the end of the night, I will still be the undefeated Danny ‘Swift’ Garcia. To all of the fans that love me, I love you too. This is for you.”

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Chavez Jr. picks Pacquiao to KO Terence Crawford

Chavez Jr. picks Pacquiao to KO Terence Crawford

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum recently said this past week that if he can’t get a rematch between his fighter Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. next year, Arum will look to match Pacquiao up against Terence Crawford, the WBO light welterweight title holder. Arum promotes both fighters, so it would be an in house fight for him and easy to make.

While some fans think Crawford would be a dangerous opponent for the 36-year-old Pacquiao, former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. believes Pacquiao would have no problems beating the slender Crawford. Chavez Jr. thinks Pacquiao would KO Crawford.

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David Price likes his chances against Deontay Wilder

David Price likes his chances against Deontay Wilder

British heavyweight David Price (19-2, 16 KOs) may have failed in the past in a pair of losses to Tony Thompson, but he feels he’s more than good enough right now to take the strap off WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (34-0, 33 KOs) if the two of them meet up in the near future. Price, 6’8” had the chance to see Wilder’s fight last night against Eric Molina (23-3, 17 KOs), and Price didn’t see too much in Wilder’s performance that impressed him.

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Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez hangs up his gloves

Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez hangs up his gloves

After suffering a bad knee injury that continued to plague him for the past three years, former two division world champion Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez (51-3-2, 28 KOs) has decided to call time on his boxing career and hang up his gloves after 18 years in the game. Martinez, 40, announced the news last Saturday at the IBHOF banquet.

The news from Martinez has been expected for weeks now, as he recently revealed that his right knee, which he has surgeries on, hasn’t responded to rehab. Martinez could have continued fighting, but he would have been fighting with only one good knee.

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Walters dominates Marriaga; Verdejo beats Najera

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Using a big weight advantage of 10 pounds, former WBA featherweight champion Nicholas Walters (26-0, 21 KOs) cruised to a 12 round unanimous decision over Miguel Marriaga (20-1, 18 KOs) at Madison Square Garden in New York. Walters dropped Marriaga in the 9th round with a right hand, and punished him with hard head and body shots throughout. The judges scored the fight 118-109, 117-110 and 119-108.

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