Marcos Maidana's next opponent could be Victor Cayo, who recently defeated former lightweight titlist Julio Diaz on ESPN2. (Photo via www.hbo.com)

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We have to lead off with yet another sad note: 20-year old Kazakh fighter Yermek Serikov died in surgery after being shot:

Serikov, 20, was brought to a hospital in the central Kazakh city of Shakhtinsk with a gunshot wound to his leg late on August 11. He died during surgery.

Investigators have said that an unnamed assailant shot Serikov near a gas station. A car with a bullet casing inside was found at the scene of the shooting.

Serikov was a three-time Asian boxing champion as a welterweight.

Several prominent athletes have either been shot or have died in suspicious circumstances in Kazakhstan in recent years.

This has been a long summer.

• From a FanPost by Brickhaus: "According to Domincan newspaper Listin Diario, it looks like Marcos Maidana's next opponent may be Victor Cayo, who became his mandatory with last week's victory over Julio Diaz. The two may face off in November. Could be a very interesting matchup between a forward-moving slugger who knocks everyone out against a quick and shifty opponent who has a bad habit of leaving his hands down."
• Here's an interesting undercard bout for Dawson-Johnson II on November 7: Rick Reeno reports that it's likely we'll see Alfredo Angulo (16-1, 13 KO) take on Harry Joe Yorgey (22-0-1, 10 KO). Yorgey is riding back-to-back upsets of Jason LeHoullier (MD-12, August '08) and Ronald Hearns (KO-9, March '09) and given that Angulo is pretty vulnerable against just about anybody that doesn't let him push them around, this is sort of a semi-eliminator for rising talent at 154. I'd favor Angulo, I think, partially because I don't think Hearns or LeHoullier are wins to get excited about, but Yorgey has earned a TV fight.
• Dave Zirin of TheNation.com did a piece about all the deaths in boxing in the month of July.
• Ricky Hatton says he'll only fight Amir Khan if he's the lead promoter.