UPDATE (8:56pm EDT): This fight is going live on ESPN3.com at 9pm EDT, apparently, so in just a few moments. We're going to go ahead and have live coverage starting immediately. We apologize for not having more notice of this, but I myself just learned about the development, as the fight was not listed on ESPN3.com's web site earlier this week.
Tonight at 11pm EDT on ESPN2, undefeated middleweight contender David Lemieux puts his spotless record on the line against Mexican veteran Marco Antonio Rubio at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
Lemieux (25-0, 24 KO) is one of the most exciting young fighters in the sport. At 22, he exhibits poise beyond his years, and combined with his brutal power and nice accuracy, he's become a hot property at 160 pounds. Rubio (49-5-1, 42 KO) has good power, but probably not as good as his KO rate would lead one to believe. His last major fight came in February 2009 against then-middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik, and Rubio presented no challenge for the Youngstown star. Pavlik won every round before Rubio finally pulled out of the fight after nine rounds.
Since then, Rubio has won six in a row, five by stoppage. The wins haven't been great, but they've been wins. He's better than he looked against Pavlik, but still should be a huge underdog on the road against such a good puncher.
In the co-feature on Friday Night Fights, Adonis Stevenson (13-1, 10 KO) takes on Derek Edwards (25-1, 13 KO) in super middleweight action. Stevenson may look like a prospect on paper, but he's 33 years old and was dumped in two by Darnell Boone in his last fight. Edwards, 31, lost wide in his last fight to Marcus Johnson, who main events ShoBox tonight. Neither co-feature fighter here has much upside.