Pick It: World Champion Artur Beterbiev vs. #6 Anthony Yarde (Saturday, ESPN+, 3:30 PM EST)

38-year old lineal light heavyweight king Artur Beterbiev (18-0, 18 KO) has been a pro for roughly ten years and has never been the most active fighter. What the Russian bruiser does is maximize minutes and he’s on the road this weekend to see if he can maximize some more.

Beterbiev heads to Wembley to accept the challenge of 31-year old Anthony Yarde (23-2, 22 KO) in a clash of big punchers. Yarde has won three in a row, including avenging a loss to Lyndon Arthur by knockout, and has won five of six since a lone knockout loss to Sergey Kovalev. Can the younger man catch an aging fighter with something big before Beterbiev gets the engine rolling? That seems to be the drama of this fight. The undercard will also feature the return of inactive flyweight titlist Artem Dalakian in his first defense of the WBA belt since November 2021.   

Additional Shows to Watch For

Wednesday - Francis vs. Saracho (ProBox TV, 8:00 PM EST)

Promising Jr. lightweights get the main event on this streaming app service. 32-year old Cesar Francis (12-0, 7 KO) is undefeated but the youth is on the other side of the ring. 21-year old Jesus Saracho (12-1, 11 KO) has rebounded from a knockout loss with two stoppage wins in a row. It’s part of a three-fight card with two more preliminary fights starting at 7 PM EST.

Friday - Bohachuk vs. Gallimore (UFC Fight Pass, 10:00 PM EST)   

A couple of solid Jr. middleweights who haven’t quite made it to title opportunities lock horns in this main event. 27-year old Serhii Bohachuk (21-1, 21 KO) has scored three knockouts since suffering a stoppage loss to Brandon Adams. 34-year old Nathaniel Gallimore (22-6-1, 17 KO) has faced a who’s who of the division but lost five of his last seven. 

Saturday - Rocha vs. Ashie (DAZN, 8:00 PM EST)

Welterweight action wraps the televised weekend. Since a 2020 loss to Rashidi Ellis, 25-year old Alexis Rocha (21-1, 13 KO) has won five in a row and gets a streaking opponent here. 38-year old George Ashie (33-5-1, 25 KO) enters with five knockout wins in a row and Ashie has never been stopped.

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, a member of the International Boxing Research Organization, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com