Lemieux vs Stevens: Fighters make weight for HBO main event

David Lemieux and Curtis Stevens are set for Saturday night’s HBO Boxing After Dark main event, a middleweight contest set for 12 rounds but not expected by most to see the final bell.

Lemieux (36-3, 32 KO) came in at 159 pounds, one under the middleweight limit, with Stevens (29-5, 21 KO) at 158¼.

There’s been a lot of bad blood between the two leading up to the fight, largely stemming from Stevens getting under Lemieux’s skin with trash talk.

The fight will have minor WBC and WBO titles on the line, meaning that standing within those two organizations is going to improve for the winner, potentially leading to a title shot. Right now, Gennady Golovkin holds the WBC (and WBA and IBF) title, while Billy Joe Saunders has the WBO belt.

In the co-feature, Yuriorkis Gamboa (25-1, 17 KO) weighed in at 131 pounds for his fight with Rene Alvarado (24-7, 16 KO), who came in at 130¼ for the catchweight fight, which is set for 10 rounds. Gamboa will hope to be able to make super featherweight (130) going forward, as he’s simply too small for lightweight, though he’s been good enough to be competitive at 135, at the least.

Notably on the untelevised undercard, unbeaten prospects Zachary Ochoa (16-0, 7 KO) and Yves Ulysse (12-0, 8 KO) will meet in a fight set for either 8 or 10 rounds. Ochoa weighed in at 139½, with Ulysse at 139¼.

For a full preview of the two fights, click here.