David Morrell Jr vs Mario Cazares announced for June 27 on FOX

WBA secondary (“world”) super middleweight champion David Morrell Jr will defend his title against Mario Abel Cazares on Sunday, June 27th in Minneapolis.

Morrell (4-0, 3 KO) was last seen in December when he destroyed both Mike Gavronski and a scale, weighing in two pounds heavy before battering Gavronski for three rounds. Morrell won an interim WBA title in just his third professional fight back in August of 2020, then earned a promotion to the WBA’s “World” belt in January. That came alongside an order to fight John Ryder, a matchup that as recently as last month was rumored for the same weekend as this Cazares fight.

Cazares (12-0, 5 KO) took a tremendous leap in profile and marketability after a technical decision victory over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr last September. It was just his second victory over an opponent with a winning record, but it was enough for the WBA to rank him the #15 super middleweight in the world.

Cazares is definitely a step down from the challenge of John Ryder, but we’ve seen worse matchups on Sunday PBC cards. Cazares showed a lot of heart and aggression against Chavez Jr., and his upset victory was as entertaining as any other fight in Chavez’s ongoing end-stage degradation tour.

Morrell is a promising young champion headlining a TV card in just his fifth professional fight. Cazares is a guy in his 30s with a chance at a new career trajectory, and has already shown he’s willing to bring pressure and fight aggressively against a higher profile opponent. Hopefully, we’re in for a lively fight.