Devin Haney vs Yuriorkis Gamboa, Daniel Jacobs vs Gabriel Rosado officially announced

DAZN have officially announced two main events for November, both of them fights that had been expected for weeks or even months at this point.

On Saturday, Nov. 7, Devin Haney will defend the WBC lightweight title against veteran Yuriorkis Gamboa, and on Friday, Nov. 27, Daniel Jacobs will face Gabriel Rosado in a super middleweight bout.

Both card will take place at Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., and will of course stream live on DAZN.

Haney (24-0, 15 KO) hasn’t fought since Nov. 2019, when he easily beat Alfredo Santiago but also injured his shoulder, undergoing surgery shortly after. There was a bunch of drama about the WBC belt after that, but ultimately it stayed with Haney, and the 21-year-old rising star will defend for a second time next month.

The 38-year-old Gamboa (30-3, 18 KO) was a weak lightweight opponent for Gervonta Davis last December, and given that he lost almost every round of that fight and was stopped in the 12th round, he’s not really much of an opponent for a “champion” 11 months later, either. The Cuban, once a would-be star before a series of terrible career decisions derailed him, was a featherweight titlist once upon a time, but that ended in 2011. Gamboa also tore his Achilles in the fight with Davis last year, but says he’s 100 percent now.

“Yuriokis Gamboa is a dangerous and experienced fighter,” said Haney. “He’s a former unified world champion, and he has been in the ring with some of the best. He hurt Terence Crawford with a big shot, so his power is not to be ignored. He beat Orlando Salido who beat Vasiliy Lomachenko. Less than a year ago he took Gervonta Davis into the 12th round, something no one has ever been able to do. Gamboa is a true warrior and I’m not taking him lightly. I’ve called out all the top names, and I finally got someone who will challenge me for my title. I intend on making a statement in this fight. My hunger is on another level. It’s time to show the world who the best fighter in boxing is and that’s me!”

“I’ve been dreaming and wishing of fighting for the WBC green belt ever since I was an amateur in Cuba,” Gamboa said. “I’m ready and determined to win this title for my fans and to prove those who wrote me off as a washed up fighter wrong. I came up short against Davis because of my Achilles in the second round, but I fought the rest of the fight on one foot, hurting him in the middle rounds. You are going to see a healthy Gamboa fight with both of my legs, fists and warrior heart of mine.”

Here’s a look at the Haney-Gamboa card:

• Heavyweight prospect Filip Hrgovic (11-0, 9 KO) will face Rydell Booker (26-3, 13 KO)
• Another heavyweight, but not prospect, Zhilei Zhang (21-0, 8 KO) will face Devin Vargas (22-6, 9 KO)
• Prospects Reshat Mati (7-0, 5 KO), Raymond Ford (6-0, 2 KO), and Arthur Biyarslanov (6-0, 5 KO) will be in action, as well as recent Matchroom signee Souleymane Cissokho (11-0, 7 KO)

Photo by Tom Hogan/Golden Boy/Golden Boy/Getty Images

Jacobs (36-3, 30 KO) is a former middleweight titlist who moved up in weight late last year, and we didn’t get to learn a lot in his win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, because Chavez didn’t have any particular interest in being there. With 168 being a somewhat wide open division, the 33-year-old Jacobs could become a real player quickly.

Rosado (25-12-1, 14 KO) has called Jacobs out for months, they’ve had a lot of media and social media back-and-forth, and now he has the fight. The 34-year-old from Philadelphia always comes to fight, but has a long-established level, and realistically will be expected to serve as a tune-up for Jacobs.

“Gabe talked his way into this fight and now it’s time to see if he can back it up,” said Jacobs. “He’s got a big mouth and he’s been bringing up my name constantly for over a yea, but on Nov. 27 the talking stops and I can’t wait to shut him up. My aim is to become a two-weight division world champion in 2021 and that starts with a big win in Florida. After that, I’m ready to step up and fight one of the world champions at 168 pounds.”

“I’m really excited for the fight,” said Rosado. “There’s been a lot of back and forth between me and Jacobs, and for the fight to finally happen, I’m more than ready. I’ve started training camp with Freddie Roach in LA at Wild Card Boxing, and I’m just looking to put on one hell of a show for the fans. I’m definitely going to bring the fight to Danny and it’s going to be great.”

On the Jacobs-Rosado undercard:

• Marc Castro will make his pro debut, which was delayed due to a positive COVID test in August
• Former amateur stars Daniyar Yeleussinov (9-0, 5 KO) and Magomedrasul Majidov (2-0, 2 KO) will be in action
• Young Matchroom fighters Nikita Ababiy (9-0, 6 KO) and Alexis Espino (6-0, 4 KO) will also fight

There has been prior talk of Demetrius Andrade also being on this card — possibly in a non-title fight — but that wasn’t part of today’s announcement.