Pick It: Jack Catterall vs. Regis Prograis
When to Watch: Saturday, October 26 at 2 p.m. Eastern Time (7 p.m. BST)
How to watch: DAZN
Why to Watch: A couple years ago, Catterall was deprived of his coronation as the new king of the junior welterweight division. He thought he’d done enough to defeat Josh Taylor and become the new undisputed champion. Instead, Catterall heard Taylor’s name announced as the winner via split decision.
Catterall (29-1, 13 KOs) has won three in a row since that night in February 2022, including a unanimous decision over Taylor in their May 2024 rematch. But by the time the rematch took place, Taylor had been stripped of most of his belts and lost the last one — and the lineal championship — to Teofimo Lopez in June 2023.
That means Catterall, a 31-year-old from Chorley, England, has no world titles around his waist. He’s in a division full of talent that’s trying to stand out among the pack. His trainer thinks Catterall only has a few fights left at 140 before he has to move up to 147.
This fight with Prograis, then, stands between Catterall and those matches against the upper tier of junior welterweights. It will headline at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, not far from Catterall’s hometown.
Among those top names at 140 are titleholders Teofimo Lopez (WBO), Liam Paro (IBF), Alberto Puello (WBC) and Jose Valenzuela (WBA).
Paro will defend against Richardson Hitchins in December. Puello is expected to face Sandor Martin next. Valenzuela is likely to have a rematch with the man he dethroned, Isaac Cruz.
Undefeated contender Arnold Barboza Jr. will face former unified titleholder Jose Ramirez in November. Subriel Matias is seeking to rebuild from his loss to Paro. Devin Haney, if he chooses to remain at 140, will need to bounce back from his performance against Ryan Garcia, a defeat nullified in the record books after Garcia tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug. Gary Antuanne Russell will try to return to the mix following his loss to Puello. Andy Hiraoka is on the rise. And several other prospects are on their way up.
Prograis, meanwhile, is a two-time former titleholder who needs this win in order to prevent himself from becoming cannon fodder, someone whose past glory makes him marketable but whose recent performances suggest he’s vulnerable.
Prograis — originally from New Orleans and now living in Houston — won the WBA junior welterweight title in April 2019 with a sixth-round technical knockout of Kiryl Relikh as part of a World Boxing Super Series tournament. But he lost it six months later to Taylor via majority decision.
Then came five straight victories, including an 11th-round knockout of Jose Zepeda in November 2022 for the vacant WBC belt. Alas, Prograis lost the title in his second defense, dropped and shut out by Haney in December 2023. He’s now 29-2 (24 KOs).
Both of Prograis’ losses have come against good fighters. A defeat to Catterall would be the same. But it would be another setback, and it would potentially signify that Prograis’ best days are behind him.
More Fights to Watch
Wednesday, October 23: Miyo Yoshida vs. Shurretta Metcalf (ProBoxTV.com)
The broadcast begins at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (1 a.m. BST).
Yoshida — a 36-year-old from Japan now fighting out of New York City — will be making her first defense of the IBF bantamweight title she won last year with a unanimous decision over Ebanie Bridges.
And for that first defense, Yoshida (17-4, 0 KOs) will be facing someone who gave her one of those four losses. Metcalf (13-4-1, 2 KOs) is a 39-year-old from Dallas whose last fight was that bout with Yoshida in November 2023, which Metcalf won via unanimous decision.
On the undercard at The Theater at Madison Square Garden: junior lightweight Edward Vazquez (16-2, 3 KOs) fights for the second time since his November 2023 majority decision loss to titleholder Joe Cordina. Vazquez will face Kenneth Taylor (14-3-2, 6 KOs), who dropped a majority decision in April to the 9-0 Victor Hernandez.
Also on this show: At heavyweight, Jerry Forrest (27-6-2, 20 KOs) will face Earl Newman (10-3-1, 7 KOs). And at junior welterweight, Mykquan Williams (21-0-2, 10 KOs) will meet Lavisas Williams (10-1-1, 3 KOs).
(Note: BoxingScene.com is owned by ProBox.)
Thursday, October 24: Manuel Flores vs. Victor Olivo (DAZN)
The broadcast begins at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (2 a.m. BST).
Flores (18-1, 14 KOs) is a bantamweight/juniior featherweight who suffered his first defeat 16 months ago, dropping a wide decision to the 11-2 Walter Santibanes. Since then he’s won three straight, all via second-round knockout. The 26-year-old hails from Coachella, California, not far from where this fight is taking place at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio.
Six of Flores’ last eight appearances have come at Fantasy Springs.
“I’m excited to headline in my hometown again,” Flores was quoted as saying in a press release. “To show and redeem myself from the last time I was able to headline at home. My opponent is a durable guy, I know he is going to be in front of me all night, and we will be prepared for all that. The fans will get a new and improved fighter. It’s going to be all fireworks as always!”
Olivo is a 28-year-old from Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, with a record of 21-4-1 (9 KOs). His most recent appearance was in January in the 115-pound weight class, dropping a unanimous decision to the 25-4-2 Argi Cortes, whose name may be familiar to those who recall Cortes’ losses to Juan Francisco Estrada and Junto Nakatani.
Thursday, October 24: Oscar Trujillo vs. Niguy Simms (TrillerTV.com)
The broadcast begins at 10 p.m. Eastern Time (3 a.m. BST).
Trujillo (1-0, 1 KO) is a welterweight who just turned pro last month. The 18-year-old was born in Mexico and now lives in Riverside, California. He knocked out another debuting fighter, Jesse Zuniga, in two rounds in September.
This fight will also come against someone who’s never fought in the paid ranks before. Simms is a 25-year-old from Compton, California.
Friday, October 25: Rashidi Ellis vs. Brian Chaves (DAZN)
The broadcast begins at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (midnight BST).
Ellis was an up-and-coming welterweight prospect who gave Alexis Rocha his first loss in October 2020. He frustratingly sat on the shelf for 20 months afterward, parted ways with Golden Boy Promotions and tried to get back on track.
But then Ellis took his first defeat in January 2023, dropping a majority decision to Roiman Villa on the undercard of Gervonta Davis vs. Hector Garcia, and he hasn’t been back in the ring since. The 31-year-old from Lynn, Massachusetts, is 24-1 (15 KOs).
He’ll headline this show at OceanSide, a venue in nearby Revere. Ellis faces Chaves (14-5, 5 KOs), a 32-year-old from the Buenos Aires area.
Chaves stepped away from the sport following a first-round knockout loss to Jeremias Ponce in 2017. He came back in 2021, notched three wins and then dropped four in a row to Abass Baraou (TKO6), Vadim Tukov (KO6), Vaughn Alexander (KO1) and Chordale Booker (TKO3).
Saturday, October 26: Omar Trinidad vs. Hector Sosa (UFC Fight Pass)
The broadcast begins at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (2 a.m. BST).
Trinidad is a 28-year-old featherweight prospect from Los Angeles who has been a staple of these 360 Promotions shows, most of which take place in the Los Angeles area. (This event is at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, California.)
Since 2022, Trinidad has fought in 10 of their cards, including a 10th-round TKO of the 15-2-1 Viktor Slavinskyi in July. That victory brought Trinidad’s record to 16-0-1 (13 KOs).
Sosa (17-2, 9 KOs) is a 29-year-old from a few hours outside of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Both of his defeats came in 2022 down at junior featherweight, decisions dropped to the 12-0 Rafael Pedroza and the 19-1 Cristian Carto. He’s since moved up to the 126-pound weight class and won three in a row, outpointing the 11-0 Laureano Ubiedo, knocking the 32-4 James “Jazza” Dickens out in 10 rounds, and winning a wide decision over the 25-3-1 Keenan Carbajal in June.
On the undercard, welterweight Gor Yeritsyan (18-1, 14 KOs) returns from his first pro defeat, the short end of a split decision against the 15-0-1 Aram Amirkhanyan in July. Yeritsyan, a 29-year-old originally from Armenia and now fighting out of Los Angeles, will face Oliver Quintana (21-3, 16 KOs). Quintana is a 27-year-old from Mexicali, Mexico, who is also coming off a loss, stopped in five rounds in August by the 22-1-2 Julio Luna Avila.
There will also be a free preliminary broadcast featuring three bouts available on the UFC Fight Pass YouTube page beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (midnight BST).
Saturday, October 26: Nimal Farmer vs. Ghandi Romain (BXNG TV)
The broadcast begins at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (midnight BST).
This show at Harrah’s Philadelphia spotlights some of the region’s prospects, including Farmer (6-0, 4 KOs), a 24-year-old welterweight from nearby Lindenwold, New Jersey.
In August, Farmer outpointed the 3-6 Maurice Clemons. For this fight, Farmer will be facing only his second opponent with more wins than losses. Romain (5-1, 4 KOs) is a 27-year-old from outside of New York City in Irvington, New Jersey. He lost in his pro debut in July 2023, stopped by the 2-1 Anthony Dill. Since then, Romain has rattled off five wins against foes with a combined record of 5-16.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2 and @UnitedBoxingPod. He is the co-host of the United Boxing Podcast. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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