WEEK OF FIGHT

Pound-for-pound Kazuto Ioka will face Josber Pérez on the traditional New Year’s Eve card in Japan. Then on Saturday, Vergil Ortiz Jr. will return to the ring after a 17-month hiatus.

KAZUTO IOKA (30-2-1, 15 KOs)vs. Josber Pérez (20-3, 18 KOs)

Kazuto Ioka defeated Joshua Franco in their rematch. Yuichi Tamazaki / AFP via Getty Images

Date: Sunday, December 31 Time: 3 a.m. ET / midnight PT (main event later in the program) Where: Ota City General Gymnasium, Tokyo TV/Streaming: No TV on US Division: Junior bantamweight (115 pounds) On the line: Ioka’s WBA Title Pound for Pound: Ioka, Honorable Mention Odds: NA Also on the card: Yoshimitsu Kimura vs. Kosuke Saka, 12 rounds, junior lightweight; Daigo Higa vs. Navapon Khaikanha, 10 rounds, bantamweight; Hayato Tsutsumi vs. Luis Moncion Ventura, 10 rounds, featherweight Background: Ioka, 34, showed he has plenty left in the tank by outpointing overweight Joshua Franco in their rematch to regain a 115-pound title on June 24, six months after they fought. to a tie. Ioka won his first world title at 108 pounds in 2011 and has worn one belt or another almost continuously since then, making him one of the most consistent boxers in the world. He is undefeated (7-0-1) since he lost a split decision to Donnie Nietes in 2018, a setback he avenged last year. Pérez is a 28-year-old Venezuelan who will make his second attempt to win a major title. He lost a one-sided decision to 112-pound champion Artem Dalakian in 2020. He is 3-0 against officials in his home country since that setback, the last two fights taking place at 115 pounds.

Vergilio Ortiz JR (19-0, 19 KO) vs. FREDRICK LAWSON (30-3, 22 KOs)

Date: Saturday, January 6 Time: 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT (main event later in the show) Where: The Theater at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas TV/Streaming: DAZN Division: Junior Middleweight (154 lbs.) On Play : No major titles Pound for Pound: None Odds: NA Also on the card: Ohara Davies vs. Ismael Barroso, junior welterweight; Arnold Barboza Jr. vs. Xolisani Ndongeni, junior welterweight; Sergiy Derevyanchenko vs. Rowdy Montgomery, super middleweights; Raúl Curiel vs. Elías Díaz, welterweight Prediction: Ortiz KO 6 Background: Ortiz will return to the ring after a 17-month hiatus, the result of illness and fight cancellations. And he will make his debut at 154 pounds. The 25-year-old Dallas native was a top performer at 140 and 147 pounds, stopping 19 of his opponents, but he never got the chance to fight for a major title in those divisions. He was scheduled to face fellow 147-pound contender Eimantas Stanionis in what would have been his biggest fight, but the fight was postponed three times, the last time in July, just days before the event because Ortiz couldn’t. give the weight He last fought in August of last year, when he stopped Michael McKinson in nine rounds. Lawson is a 34-year-old man from Ghana. He is just 3-2 in his last five fights, but won his last two, over fellow journeymen Collinson Korley and Estevan Villalobos in January and April. Oritz is a monumental step up from Lawson’s opposition, although he did once beat former contender Breidis Prescott.

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SATURDAY

Dusty Hernandez-Harrison vs. Norberto González, light heavyweights, Richmond, Virginia (FITE+)