Photos: Richard Commey, Ray Beltran - Go Face To Face

The road to lightweight supremacy continues Friday at Pechanga Resort Casino when IBF world lightweight champion Richard Commey (28-2, 25 KOs) makes the first defense of his title against former lightweight world champion Ray Beltran (36-8-1, 22 KOs). (photos by Mikey Williams)

The winner of Commey-Beltran is expected to fight the winner of the July 19 IBF title eliminator featuring unbeaten sensation Teofimo Lopez and Japanese veteran Masayoshi Nakatani. The winner of this de facto tournament could conceivably face unified champion Vasiliy Lomachenko for all four lightweight belts in early 2020.

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Beltran lost his WBO lightweight title to Jose Pedraza last August, but rebounded to stop unbeaten super lightweight contender Hiroki Okada in February.

Commey knocked out Isa Chaniev in two rounds Feb. 2 in Frisco, Texas, to pick up the vacant title.

In the co-feature, 154-pound slugger Carlos Adames (17-0, 14 KOs) will defend his NABO and NABF belts in a 10-rounder versus upstart Patrick Day (17-2-1, 6 KOs).

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