Abdullah Mason feels he’s ready now to fight for a world title against any of the champions in the lightweight division. Mason (16-0, 14 KOs) is fighting Manuel Jaimes (16-2-1, 11 KOs) in an eight-round bout this Friday, February 14th, at Madison Square Garden Theater in New York.
(Credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank Boxing)
Mason’s Ambition
Mason, 20, has a chance to upstage the main event between WBO lightweight champion Denys Berinchyk and Keyshawn Davis. That would be impressive if he could do that because Keyshawn has gotten most of the attention during the build-up to Friday’s event with his trash-talking and Top Rank putting him in the spotlight, hoping he’ll be their next big star.
Mason did not perform well in his last fight against Yohan Vasquez on November 8th. Fighting on Keyshawn’s undercard in Norfolk, Virginia, Mason was dropped twice in the first round but came back to knockout Vasquez in the second round.
Friday’s event will be shown live on ESPN and ESPN+, starting at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
Title Dreams
“I see myself up there with the guys who hold the titles. Skill-wise, I feel like I can hold my own in one of those fights and come out on top,” said Abdullah Mason. “But we’re proving ourselves, and we’ll keep taking those steps forward. Hopefully, we grab a smaller title later this year.”
“He’s coming to fight. He’ll let his hands go, and he’s going to be bringing it,” said Abdullah Mason to Fighthype about his opponent for Friday, Manuel Jaimes. “I’m here to do my job, and that’s to make him look like everybody else.
“We’re going to make it look easy. That’s what I’m in here for. Doing the same thing I’ve been doing to everybody else, whoever I get in front of. If they put me in front of champions, they’re going to see what’s going on,” said Abdullah.
Top Rank isn’t likely to move Mason into a world title anytime soon due to his age and his last performance. He’s too young and inexperienced to take on any of the champions at lightweight. Top Rank will likely wait until Mason is 24 or 25 before they put him in a world title situation.
“Absolutely. That’s the division I’m in, so why not?” said Mason when asked if he sees himself fighting Keyshawn Davis at some point. Whoever I go up against, you’re going to see all the flaws. If they give me the opportunity, why not?” said Abdullah when asked if he’d like to fight Gervonta Davis.
“When I get the opportunity, we’re going to go everything, and we’re going to take the best route,” said Mason.
Last Updated on 02/12/2025
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