The New Year gets underway nicely with several fan favorite fighters returning to the ring, highlighted by a future Hall-of-Famer facing off against one of boxing’s most controversial characters. For a more detailed insight into January and the 2019 boxing forecast, check out our Updated Schedule.
Jose Uzcategui vs. Caleb Plant (Fox Sports 1 / Deportes)
January 13, Los Angeles, California
Jose Uzcategui is yet to become a truly recognized name in boxing, and may never become one. But, actually, that might be a compliment of sorts, since a handful of top fighters have allegedly avoided him. Uzcategui isn’t an obvious standout, true, but he is a gnarly fighter with game, vaunted power and a formidable presence.
Then we have Caleb Plant. He’s unbeaten and technically sound, but there’s no way of measuring his ceiling, simply because he’s yet to face a real test. Plant’s most notable win came against Rogelio Medina, a lively yet beatable blood-and-guts battler, so naturally IBF 168-pound champ Uzcategui represents a big step up.
If Plant can pull off the upset here, he’ll enter the deep end of the Super Middleweight Top 10, sitting alongside Callum Smith, George Groves, Gilberto Ramirez and David Benavidez.
Uzcategui vs. Akavov: Notable Undercard
- Brandon Figueroa vs. Moises Flores | Featherweight
- Guillermo Rigondeaux vs. Giovani Delgado | Junior Featherweight
Demetrius Andrade vs. Artur Akavov (DAZN)
January 18, New York, US
Demetrius Andrade has been hearing high praise for some time now. And I think he’s worthy of it, even though he lacks a career-defining fight against a genuine threat. Thus far, Andrade has mixed it up with some decent/tough fringe contenders, lifting the WBA and WBO straps at 154-pounds before capturing the WBO variety at 160 in November.
As for this second defense versus Artur Akavov, there’s not a great deal to get excited about. Akavov is determined, sure, but he’s a soft touch for Andrade, a slick, refined, powerful operator. Akovaov’s most notable outing came against Billy Joe Saunders in 2016, with Akavov losing a close decision. However, the real story seemed to be a mixture of Saunders being unprepared and just having an awful night.
With this being Andrade’s DAZN boxing debut – akin to Canelo Alvarez (vs. Rocky Fielding) in December – I guess that’s one way to justify this lackluster mismatch. Anyway, it is what it is. Moving on.
Andrade vs. Akavov: Notable Undercard
- Jorge Linares vs. Pablo Cesar Cano | Junior Welterweight
- Amanda Serrano vs. Eva Voraberger | vacant Women’s Junior Bantamweight title
- Chris Algieri vs. Danny Gonzalez | Welterweight
Manny Pacquiao vs. Adrien Broner (Showtime PPV)
January 19, Las Vegas, Nevada
I’ve mixed feelings about this matchup, but it contains the right ingredients to be memorable. Stylistically, this pair brings the action and have polar opposite personalities outside the ring. Manny Pacquiao, an active legend of the sport currently wearing the WBA’s ‘Regular’ Welterweight belt, is the happy-go-lucky, globally celebrated boxing icon.
Then there’s the brash, trash-talking Adrien Broner, a talented, gutsy boxer-puncher who’s incredibly difficult to pigeon-hole. Broner was showered with praise on the way up but has been inconsistent at top-level. So he’s either a supreme talent who squandered his gifts or an overhyped prospect who hit his ceiling a while back – maybe a bit of both.
Boxing Legend vs. Legend Beater
Pacquiao-Broner isn’t a battle of top Welters, but it’s still interesting. For Pacquiao, now 40, this fight seems like a win-win situation. If he’s victorious, he’ll be revered for beating a strong, prime 29-year-old. And if he loses, then, well, most folks will probably just respect the aging veteran for taking on the challenge.
As for Broner, depending on the nature of the fight, it feels like a lose-lose deal. If he wins, there’ll be some respect, but not the elusive kind Broner still craves – again, because of Pacquiao’s age. And should Broner lose, those same folks will likely sink their teeth in, stating that Broner will never beat a top Welter if he can’t beat a fading Pacquiao.
Fair? Well, it’s just the story of this fight. While it’s an interesting one, it’s just not very meaningful for boxing. So does fairness matter when, more ideally, Pacquiao should be facing a Top 5 Welter, and Broner rebuilding against a solid contender – especially after working hard for a Draw versus Jessie Vargas in his previous fight.
But I digress. Let’s just hope Pacquiao-Broner is a good fight and not work ourselves into a headache overanalyzing what it means in the bigger picture.
Pacquiao vs. Broner: Notable Undercard
- Badou Jack vs. Marcus Browne | vacant WBA ‘Interim’ Light Heavyweight title
- Nordine Oubaali vs. Rau’shee Warren | vacant WBC Bantamweight title
- Jhack Tepora vs. Hugo Ruiz | Tepora’s ‘Interim’ Featherweight title
Keith Thurman vs. Josesito Lopez (FOX / Deportes)
January 26, New York, US
Keith Thurman, who’s been inactive due to injury since March 2017, makes his long-awaited return, here defending his WBA Welterweight strap. Josesito Lopez has been a consistently gritty, tough-as-nails contender over the years, but has never gotten over the hump to lift a world title. He’s a bona fide tune-up opponent, which was to be expected.
Naturally, given the fact Thurman has been out of the ring for close to two years, some ring rust is likely. The main headline, however, is that Thurman should win and look impressive doing so. Lopez is a likeable grafter, but has never been physically big/strong at Welter. So, realistically, even a 70% fit Thurman should be able to get the job done handily.
Thurman vs. Lopez: Notable Undercard
- Adam Kownacki vs. Gerald Washington | Heavyweight
Jamie Munguia vs. Takeshi Inoue (DAZN)
January 26, Houston, Texas
Reigning WBO Junior Middleweight titlist Jamie Munguia defends against Takeshi Inoue, a relatively unknown contender just 14 fights under him. Munguia must be considered a lofty favorite in this one and for good reason. Standing at 6’ 0”, with serious firepower and more momentum and experience on the world scene, it’s hard to envision an upset.
Munguia firmly landed on the boxing radar in 2018, blasting away respected operator Sadam Ali (TKO 4) with relative ease, out-banging fan-friendly slugger Liam Smith (UD 12), and wiping the floor with Brandon Cook (TKO 3) to end the year.
As for the 5’ 8” Inoue, besides sharing a surname with P4P favorite Nayoa Inoue, he doesn’t seem to have done much to get here. A quick glance at his BoxRec slate suggests he’s beaten some fairly average opposition thus far, and really, that’s all I’ve got to go on. He’s certainly an unknown outside of his native Japan, let’s put it that way.
Munguia vs. Inoue: Notable Undercard
- Jesus Rojas vs. Xu Can | Featherweight | Rojas’ WBA ‘Regular’ title
- Lucas Fernandez vs. Joshua Franco II | Bantamweight
Boxing in January: Best of the Rest
Devin Haney vs. Xolisani Ndongeni (DAZN, Boxnation)
January 11, Shreveport, Louisiana; Lightweight
Bryant Jennings vs. Oscar Rivas (ESPN+)
January 18, Verona, New York; Heavyweight
Dina Thorsland vs. Alesia Graf
January 19, Struer, Denmark; Junior Featherweight
Aston Palicte vs. Jose Martinez
January 31, Alpine, California; WBO Junior Bantamweight title eliminator
Chime in with your own predictions for this January’s Top 5 Fights, folks. How are you calling Pacquiao-Broner? Does the veteran have enough left in the tank to deal with a strong, fresh challenger? And what of the other boxing showdowns headed our way? Upsets lurking, or an A-side landslide?
