Which card should you watch? Ranking the four shows on Saturday
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Fans know by now that this Saturday will be packed with big fights, although one fell off the calendar Tuesday.
Four notable cards are now scheduled for that day, all in different locations. And three of them will overlap, which means you’ll have to make choices unless you watch on multiple TVs or devices.
Jermall Charlo defends his middleweight title against Juan Montiel Macias, Naoya Inoue defends his bantamweight belts against Michael Dasmarinas and Jaime Munguia faces Kamil Szeremeta in a middleweight bout. Also, in an exhibition, Julio Cesar Chavez takes on Hector Camacho Jr.
Teofimo Lopez’s defense of his lightweight championship against George Kambosos Jr. — originally scheduled for Saturday — was postponed to Aug. 14 after Lopez tested positive for COVID-19.
To help you, here is a ranking of the cards in terms of the magnitude of the matchups and watchability.
A quick note: None of the sanctioned main events is even close to the ideal 50-50 matchup. In other words, quantity doesn’t necessarily mean quality.
Here’s the list:
No. 1 Jermall Charlo vs. Juan Macias Montiel
Site: Houston
Time: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
TV: Showtime
Summary: Charlo, like Lopez and Inoue, is much-watch TV for boxing fans. The middleweight half of the remarkable Charlo Twins is one of the best in the business, as he demonstrated with a convincing victory over Sergiy Derevyanchenko in his most-recent fight. Montiel is around a 20-1 underdog, which makes this a mismatch on paper. And, yes, Charlo almost certainly will win handily. However, Montiel isn’t a complete pushover. We like the fact all his victories have come by knockout. And he has some experience in high-level fights. Also, there’s a can’t-miss war on the undercard: Isaac Cruz vs. Francisco Vargas. This is worth watching.
Grade: C+
No. 2 Jaime Munguia vs. Kamil Szeremeta
Site: El Paso, Texas
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
TV: DAZN
Summary: The Munguia-Szeremeta matchup isn’t the best but this fight and card has an advantage over the others: It takes place in the afternoon in the U.S., which means it will have no direct competition. And while this might sound like faint praise the main event could be worse, particularly in light of the fact Szeremeta is a last-minute opponent. The Pole was overwhelmed by Gennadiy Golovkin in his last outing but he’s not a bad fighter. Munguia, only 24, is a rising star with improving ability and world-class power. Szeremeta will probably test him for a while and then fade. Bektemir Melikuziev fights Gabriel Rosado on the undercard.
Grade: C
No. 3 Naoya Inoue vs. Michael Dasmarinas
Site: Las Vegas
Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
TV: ESPN, ESPN+
Summary: Inoue, the complete package, is the best boxer in action on Saturday – and always worth watching — but that doesn’t mean this fight is particularly compelling. It isn’t. This is how bizarre the matchup is: Dasmarinas is ranked No. 1 by the IBF but is around a 30-1 underdog, meaning he has almost no chance of winning. The Filipino hasn’t lost since 2014 but you haven’t heard of any of his victims, the only possible exception being Karim Guerfi in 2018. He’s done nothing to demonstrate that he compete with a thoroughbred like Inoue. This one won’t last long. The undercard – featuring Mikaela Mayer – is solid.
Grade: C-
No. 4 Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Hector Camacho Jr.
Site: Guadalajara, Mexico
Time: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
TV: Pay-per-view
Summary: Fans of the great Mexican champion who want one more trip down memory lane might be interested in this event, which also features a sanctioned cruiserweight matchup between Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and former MMA star Anderson Silva. Silva, 46, took part in two boxing matches, one in 1998 and the other in 2005. Chavez Sr., 58, easily outpointed fellow Hall of Famer Hector Camacho Sr. in 1998. That’s a storyline the organizers are using to sell the fight. Camacho Jr., a capable fighter in his day, is 42.
Grade: D
