Although their pre-fight guarantees remain different only in terms of the potential method of victory, welterweight champions Errol Spence Jr. and Yordenis Ugas have both promised fireworks ahead of Saturday’s massive unification bout from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
“I’m the type of guy that if I have to go toe-to-toe, I will,” Spence said at Thursday’s final press conference. “If I have to stay there and fight, I will. If we get in the clinch and start fighting, I don’t think it’s going 12 rounds.”
All Ugas has done since then is win, with the exception of a split-decision 2019 title loss to Shawn Porter, which most failed to even recognize as a defeat. Not only do some observers believe Ugas should’ve been given the nod on the scorecards, he was outright robbed of a 12th-round knockdown by referee Jack Reiss that would’ve altered the result.
Two years later, Ugas filled in on late notice to replace an injured Spence against Manny Pacquiao and authored his most impressive performance to date last fall when he upset the Filipino legend to claim the WBA belt.
“Spence promises a knockout. I promise a win,” Ugas said. “Don’t miss it!”
Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) will snap a 17-month layoff following surgery on a detached retina when he defends his WBC and IBF titles at 147 pounds against Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs), the WBA titleholder, in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions event set to air on Showtime PPV (9 p.m. ET). The fight will not only provide further clarity on the road toward a possible undisputed championship fight for the winner against unbeaten WBO champion Terence Crawford, it’s expected to crown a new power broker within the division.
The fact that the 35-year-old Ugas is in this position at all remains one of boxing’s best human interest stories. The former Cuban amateur star has endured everything from a dangerous defection of his home country to back-to-back losses in 2014 that appeared, at the time, to label him as a failed prospect.
The winner will hold three of the welterweight titles and potentially set up a full unification bout with Terence Crawford. However, the undercard could feature a spoiler. Eimantas Stanionis stepped aside so Ugás could face Spence in this bout. Stanionis is challenging Radzhab Butaev for the regular version of the WBA welterweight title. The winner would be a potential option against the winner of the main event.
The 11-bout card will get started at 9 p.m. ET and the PPV will air on Showtime in the U.S. and TBC in the UK. Spence will be putting up his WBC and IBF welterweight titles while Ugás will have the WBA (super) welterweight title on the line. Ringwalks for the main event are expected to take place just after midnight, but that is subject to change depending on the length of the bouts before it.
Full Card for Errol Spence Jr. vs. Yordenis Ugás
Main event: Errol Spence Jr. vs. Yordenis Ugás, 12 rounds, WBC, IBF, WBA World Welterweight Titles
Isaac Cruz vs. Yuriorkis Gamboa, 12 rounds, lightweight
Francisco Vargas vs. Jose Valenzuela, 10 rounds, lightweight
Josesito Lopez vs. Cody Crowley, 10 rounds, welterweight
Radzhab Butaev vs. Eimantas Stanionis, 12 rounds, WBA (Regular) Welterweight Title
Brandun Lee UD-10 over Zachary Ochoa
Angel Barrientes MD-6 over Fernando Garcia
Samuel Arnold TKO-1 over Darryl Jones
Darius Fulghum TKO-4 over Nosa Divine Nehikhare