Unbeaten junior welterweight Brandon Rios will face fellow top-10 contender Mike Alvarado in a March 30 rematch of their bloody brawl that ended with Rios winning a seventh-round stoppage last October.
A Saturday press conference is in the works for smack-talkers Adrien Broner and Paulie Malignaggi.
Rios-Alvarado II slated for March 30
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Top Rank CEO Bob Arum has confirmed reports that a deal has been reached for a return bout between former lightweight titleholder Brandon Rios and junior welterweight standout Mike Alvarado. The HBO-televised rematch is set for March 30 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Rios (30-0-1, 23 knockouts) scored a seventh-round knockout over the previously unbeaten Alvarado (33-1, 23 KOs) in a bloody Fight-of-The-Year-caliber clash in October. Rios made his 140-pound debut against Alvarado after scoring a controversial split decision over Richard Abril in April. "We're looking forward to another big, action-filled fight at the Mandalay Bay," said Arum. "And we're going to be able to, hopefully, by the end of the week, confirm two additional fights that we're doing." Rios-Alvardo II is for the interim WBO 140-pound belt owned by Juan Manuel Marquez, who campaigned as a welterweight for December's sixth-round stoppage of Manny Pacquiao. Marquez could yet vacate the title, meaning Rios-Alvarado would be for the full belt, in favor of a fifth bout with Pacquiao. A possible co-feature to Rios-Alvardo, according to BoxingScene.com, would match Nigerian-born Wale "Lucky Boy" Omotoso (23-0, 19 KOs), of Australia, against Jessie Vargas (21-0, 9 KOs), of Las Vegas.
Photo by Naoki Fukuda Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com |