Hopkins vs Dawson Undercard: Holt vs Matthysse, Linares vs DeMarco Rumored

by Scott Christ on Jul 21, 2011 11:57 AM EDT in Boxing News Analysis

Jorge Linares could be part of the Hopkins vs Dawson card. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Corey Erdman reports at BoxingScene.com that two solid fights are being seriously discussed for the October 15 HBO pay-per-view undercard of the Bernard Hopkins vs Chad Dawson show.

The first is a fight that was previously reported as being in talks, between 140-pound contenders Lucas Matthysse and Kendall Holt. Both fighters have a history of being plenty exciting, and it's good to see Matthysse in line for another worthwhile fight after getting the short end of the scorecards against Zab Judah and Devon Alexander, both in very arguably fashion. Matthysse (28-2, 26 KO) is realistically one of the best junior welterweights in the world, and Holt (27-4, 15 KO) has that kind of talent when he's on his game. He looked explosive when knocking out Julio Diaz on a monster left hook on May 13.

The vacant WBC lightweight title could also be up for grabs if Golden Boy and Gary Shaw Productions can finalize a third co-promoted fight on the card between Antonio DeMarco (25-2-1, 18 KO) and Jorge Linares (31-1, 20 KO). That's a very intriguing fight on paper, as DeMarco didn't look so great beating Reyes Sanchez in February, but Linares still hasn't broken through with a big win despite his obvious talent. He'll also be under question when it comes to his chin until he gets that breakout win, and DeMarco, while no world-beater, would be a nice fight for him.

All in all, it could turn into a card that at least would look like the promoters really tried. Whether or not it sells, I still doubt, but this would be a nice trio of fights, plus whatever else they add for the fourth bout.

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This is going to be HBO PPV?

Good luck trying to get 200k buys for this thing. No way I would buy it, would have been a nice HBO after dark card but not a PPV.

by DL3 on Jul 21, 2011 2:32 PM EDT reply actions

holt v matthysse

hell of a fight here

by nickfoxx on Jul 21, 2011 3:02 PM EDT reply actions

Matthysse vs Holt is a very solid fight. Big things for the winner.

Chad Dawson on PPV? Say it ain’t so. Good fighter and all that, but damn is he boring.

by Lee Payton on Jul 21, 2011 5:36 PM EDT reply actions

If Holt isn't shot

I missed his last one, but the last time he’s looked ‘good’ was against Ricardo Torres, and that was YEARS ago.

I echo DL3’s sentiment – these undercard fights just aren’t good enough to get me to spend money, especially when the main event will probably be a stinker. A second fight involving a semi-star, or a true 50/50 fight would help this card go a long way.

Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."

by Brickhaus on Jul 21, 2011 8:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Or maybe just a crazy idea

Buy the rights to a good fight that’s coming to purse bid soon where neither fighter has anything to do with GBP or Gary Shaw, and stick it on here. Kessler-Stieglitz probably is too expensive to do that, but maybe there’s something else? Argenis Mendez vs. Juan Carlos Salgado doesn’t have name recognition (other than perhaps with the Mexican community) but probably will be a hell of a fight. Same goes for Pongsaklek-Sosa, for which a purse bid was just ordered.

And heck, if he can get into the country, maybe Gary Shaw can stick Perro Angulo vs. Vanes Martirosyan on the card, which was just ordered as a title eliminator. That would be another one with guaranteed fireworks, plus it attracts a couple of target demographic groups.

Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."

by Brickhaus on Jul 21, 2011 9:04 PM EDT up reply actions