A big weekend, and more than just Mayweather vs Ortiz on the slate. We'll have live coverage on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
Thursday, September 15
Sky Sports 1 (U.K.), 3:00 p.m. EDT, Prizefighter: Junior Middleweights. Not a notable lineup on paper, but Prizefighter is Prizefighter and usually turns out to be a good time. Mehrdud Takaloo, Peter Vaughan, JJ Bird, Wayne Goddard, Nick Quigley, Jeff Thomas, Steve Harkin and Kris Agyei-Dua are in the field for this one. Bad Left Hook will have live round-by-round coverage.
ESPN3 / ESPN Deportes / Televisa (Mexico), 8:30 p.m. EDT, Jhonny Gonzalez vs Rogers Mtagwa. I don't know how much of this card will be televised on ESPN3 but given the early start time, I figure at least two fights. As you can see from the banner, Antonio Escalante and Mickey Roman are also on the card, though unfortunately not fighting each other again. They're probably saving that one for another El Paso main event, where the fight will draw some fans for a backyard brawl rematch. Bad Left Hook will have live round-by-round coverage.
Azteca (Mexico), 11:30 p.m. EDT, Giovani Segura vs Luis Carlos Leon, Julio Cesar Miranda vs Devis Perez. The time here is inexact, but these fights will be on at some point. It could take forever, as these things will during the Mexican Independence celebrations on TV. Note: Segura pulled out of the fight with an injury.
Friday, September 16
FOX Sports 1 (Australia), 6 a.m. EDT, Tyrone Tongia vs James J Giltrow.
TopRank.com, 9 p.m. EDT, Mike Lee vs Jacob Stiers. Full card will be streamed, the first-ever pro boxing card from Notre Dame. Glen Tapia will also be in action. Bad Left Hook will have live round-by-round coverage.
Telefutura, 11:30 p.m. EDT, Seth Mitchell vs Hector Ferreyro, Felix Diaz vs Larry Smith. Solo Boxeo Tecate features hard-pushed Seth "Mayhem" Mitchell, the former Michigan State football player looking to make his mark in today's depleted heavyweight division. Diaz just signed with Golden Boy and GYM, and won gold at the 2008 Olympics for the Dominican Republic. Despite that background, he has nothing close to an amateur style, and can be incredibly reckless. For a gold medalist, he's not much of a prospect, but he can and will fight.
Saturday, September 17
Channel 5 (U.K.), 3:45 p.m. EDT, Tyson Fury vs Nicolai Firtha. This is a non-title fight for the British/Commonwealth heavyweight champion Fury, and shouldn't be any challenge at all. Firtha is a club fighter from Ohio and was signed up on pretty short notice when many potential Fury opponents fell through, notably popular brawler Martin Rogan, which might not have been any more competitive but would have probably been more fun.
Sky Sports 1 (U.K.), 5:00 p.m. EDT, Stephen Smith vs Lee Selby. Smith defends his British and Commonwealth featherweight belts after a pair of close, debated, and fun fights with John Simpson. Selby has no power and this is a big step up in class for him.
TyC Sports (Argentina), 8:00 p.m. EDT, Gonzalo Basile vs Manuel Pucheta II. A couple of old Argentine heavyweights.
HBO PPV (U.S., $59.99-69.99) / Primetime (U.K. £14.95), 9:00 p.m. EDT, Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Victor Ortiz, Saul "Canelo" Alvarez vs Alfonso Gomez, Erik Morales vs Pablo Cesar Cano, Josesito Lopez vs Jessie Vargas. We will of course have much, much more in the coming days on this show. It's a huge fight for Ortiz and kind of the chance of a lifetime for a fighter many were counting out no less than nine months ago. Canelo Alvarez is also back in action, as well as Erik Morales, and the opener between Lopez and Mayweather prospect Jessie Vargas could be the best fight on the show. Bad Left Hook will have live round-by-round coverage.
FSN / Fox Deportes, 10:00 p.m. EDT, Mercito Gesta vs Manuel Perez, Jose Benavidez Jr vs Angel Rios. Top Rank has no interest in the HBO/Golden Boy pay-per-view, so they're going business as usual and putting on Top Rank Live with a couple of notable prospects at 140 pounds. Gesta is the more advanced pro, but Benavidez is the blue chipper.