Terence Crawford, Teofimo Lopez, Manny Pacquaio in action

FIGHT WEEK

Terence Crawford will face David Avanesyan, Teofimo Lopez will face Sandor Martin, Josh Warrington will face Luis Alberto Lopez and Manny Pacquiao will take part in an exhibition on a Saturday.

TERENCE CRAWFORD (38-0.29 KO) vs DAVID AVANESYAN (29-3-1, 17 KO)

• When: Saturday, December 10
• Time: 9pm ET / 6pm Pacific Time (main event follows)
• Where: CHI Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska
• television/stream: Pay per view
• Assignment: Middleweight (147 pounds)
• threatened: Crawford’s WBO title
• Pound-for-pound ratings: Crawford No. 1
• the odds: Crawford 10-1 favorite (multi-store average)

• Also on the card: Arnold Khegai vs Eduardo Baez, featherweight; Cris Cyborg vs. Gabrielle Holloway, junior middleweight
• Guess: Crawford KO 8
• Story: Everyone expected Crawford against Errol Spence Jr. to win the undisputed championship, but sadly, the negotiations failed. Instead, Crawford, 35, will face the rugged but restrained Avanesyan in a hectic battle. Crawford is about to have the most important victory of his career, a ten^order-Knockout round ex-champ Shawn Porter last November, it proves he’s still at the peak of his game in his 30s. “Bud” has indicated he still wants to take on Spence next year in one of the matches that will feature. most likely to happen in this sport. Fans have crossed fingers that the parties can come to an agreement. Of course, Avanesyan intended to sabotage the plan. The British-Russian boxer is a capable, gritty boxer who has been a contender for seven or eight years and has a number of notable wins. He retired Shane Mosley by a unanimous decision in 2016, which earned him the title of “interim”. He then lost to Lamont Peterson (UD) and Egidijus Kavaliauskas (TKO 6) in three skirmishes but came back up to score six straight kills against mixed opponents that will enter his biggest challenge yet. him on Saturday.

TEOFIMO LOPEZ (17-1, 13 KOs) vs SANDOR MARTIN (40-2, 13 KOs)

• When: Saturday, December 10
• Time: 9pm ET / 6pm Pacific Time (main event follows)
• Where: Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, New York City
• television/stream: GAME+
• Assignment: Junior weight class (140 pounds)
• threatened: No main header (WBC header removed)
• Pound-for-pound ratings: Not available
• the odds: Lopez 5½-1 favorite (multi-store average)

• Also on the card: Jared Anderson versus Jerry Forrest, heavyweights; Xander Zayas vs. Alexis Salazar, junior middleweight; Keyshawn Davis vs. Juan Carlos Burgos, lightweight
• Guess: López University
• Story: Lopez continued the rebuilding process after he lost his undisputed 135-pound champion to George Kambosos Jr. by a decision to part ways in a stunning disappointment last November. The talented 25-year-old New Yorker has moved to 140 and stop Pedro Campa in seven rounds this past August. He is currently ranked in the Top 7 by all four major sanctioning bodies, a clear recognition of his past achievements. Next up is Martin on Saturday. The sleek 29-year-old Spaniard entered the foretold match two weeks after his original rival Jose Pedraza fell ill. Martin delivered a breakthrough performance when he let Mikey Garcia down with a majority decision last October in Fresno, California, Martin’s first game outside of Europe. He followed that with a unanimous decision victory over Mexico Jose Felix in April in Martin’s hometown of Barcelona. Martin was also ranked by all four alphabet organizations, as high as 5th place by the WBC. Lopez’s annoyance would make him a leading contender for the first major belt. Hot young heavyweight Jared Anderson (12-0, 12 KOs) will be featured on the bottom card. He will face Jerry Forrest (26-5-2, 20 KOs).

JOSH WARRINGTON (31-1-1, 8 KOs) vs LUIS ALBERTO LOPEZ (26-2, 15 KOs)

• When: Saturday, December 10
• Time: 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT (main event follows)
• Where: First Live Arena, Leeds, England
• television/stream: DAZN
• Assignment: Featherweight (126 pounds)
• threatened: Warrington’s IBF title
• Pound-for-pound ratings: Not available
• the odds: Warrington 1½-1 ​​favorite (multi-store average)

• Also on the card: Ebanie Bridges vs Shannon O’Connell, bantamweight (for Bridges IBF title); James Metcalf vs. Courtney Pennington, junior middleweight

• Guess: University of Warrington
• Story: Warrington had a rough year last year, being stopped in the ninth round by Mauricio Lara in a massive loss last February in London and then settled a technical draw after two innings in a rematch after the Mexican suffered a major cut in September in Warrington’s hometown of Leeds. The 32-year-old man has returned with take the title of Spanish veteran Kiko Martinez by knockout in the seventh round in his rematch this past March at Leeds, making him a two-time 126-pound belt holder. He will have his first defense against another Mexican, who is known to England fans. Lopez made headlines when she stopped the previously undefeated Isaac Lowe for seven rounds last December in London. The 29-year-old from Mexicali has won nine matches in a row since being eliminated by Ruben Villa in 2019, including a second-round knock-out defeat of Yeison Vargas in the second round in August. This will be Lopez’s first shot at a major title.

MANNY PACQUIAO vs DK YOO ( EXHIBITION )

• When: Saturday, December 10 (December 11 in Korea)
• Time: 10pm ET / 7pm PT (main event after that)
• Where: Korea International Exhibition Center, Seoul, Korea
• television/stream: Pay Per View ($29.99)
• Format: Exhibition (six two-minute rounds)
• Story: Pacquiao is joining the long list of retired superstars taking part in an exhibition. The 43-year-old future Hall of Famer fought his last fight in a sanctioned match last August, when he lost his welterweight belt to Yordenis Ugas by a unanimous decision. One of the faces of boxing retired soon after. He will be up against 43-year-old boxer and Korean YouTuber Yoo, who will make his boxing debut. Proceeds from the event are expected to go to charity. Pacquiao failed in his bid to become president of his native Philippines in May.

FIGHT THIS WEEK

FRIDAY

• Sam Soliman vs. Joel Camilleri, middleweight, Flemington, Australia (FITE)

SATURDAY

• Michael Conlan vs Karim Guerfi, featherweight, Belfast, Northern Ireland (ESPN+)