by Cliff Rold

Pick It: TBRB #2 Miguel Berchelt vs. Maxwell Awuku (BeIn Espanol, 11 PM EST)

An injury kept the WBC titlist Berchelt (32-1, 28 KO) from what likely would have been a victory over Orlando Salido in December.

Now, the man who impressively bested Francisco Vargas and Takashi Miura gets active against the relatively unknown Awuku (44-3-1, 33 KO).

Awuku has won four in a row since a decision loss to Daud Yordan in 2015. He’s never been stopped and Berchelt tends toward fun fights. On a slower weekend, this is an easy choice.   

Additional Shows to Watch For

Friday – BeIn Sports (9 PM EST): Ximenez vs. Lagos

Featherweight action takes center stage. Ray Ximenez (16-1, 4 KO) looks to make it four in a row since a decision loss to undefeated Christopher Diaz last year. Eugene Lagos (12-4-2, 7 KO) was stopped two fights ago by veteran Cesar Juarez and has fallen short in previous steps up in competition. If Ximenez wants to be a contender someday, he’ll keep that trend going. 

Friday – TyC (8 PM EST): Clavero vs. Araujo

Argentine lightweight hopeful Elias Araujo (17-0, 7 KO) is coming off a tough, split decision win in his last outing. It was his second split decision win in his last four fights. This week, he faces Javier Clavero (22-3, 5 KO). Clavero is making his second start since a loss to Yvan Mendy. There’s no shame in that defeat, Mendy also holding a win over former Olympian Luke Campbell. Clavero will be a good gauge of whether or not Araujo has the chops to be a contender someday.  

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel, the Yahoo Pound for Pound voting panel, and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com