FIGHT WEEK
Jake Paul is scheduled to return to the ring against former UFC star Nate Diaz on Saturday in Dallas, the social media star’s first fight since Tommy Fury handed him his first loss. Also, Amanda Serrano will face Hearth Hardy in a rematch.
JORDAN WHITE (14-1, 10 KOs) VS. ERIDSON GARCIA (17-0, 11 KOs)
- Date: Friday, Aug. 4
- Time: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
- Where: Wind Creek Events Center, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
- TV/Stream: Showtime
- Division: Junior lightweight (130 pounds)
- At stake: No major titles
- Odds: NA
- Pound-for-pound: None
- Also on the card: Paul Kroll vs. Guido Schramm, junior middleweights
- Prediction: White UD
- Background: ShoBox: The New Generation features two 130-pound prospects. White, 25, is a slick boxer-puncher from Washington, D.C. He has won 10 consecutive fights since losing a unanimous decision to future title contender Adam Lopez in a six-rounder in 2017. White last fought in August, when he defeated journeyman Derrick Murray by a unanimous decision. Garcia is a 29-year-old southpaw from the Dominican Republic. He’s coming off a seventh-round knockout of another journeyman, Gabriel Smith, a week after White beat Murray. Also, Paul Kroll (10-0-1, 6 KO) will face Guido Schramm (16-1-1, 9 KO) in a 154-pound bout.
JAKE PAUL (6-1, 4 KOs) VS. NATE DIAZ (DEBUT)
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 5
- Time: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
- Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas
- TV/Stream: Pay-per-view
- Division: Cruiserweight (185-pound catch weight)
- At stake: No major titles
- Odds: Diaz 3-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
- Pound-for-pound: None
- Also on the card: Amanda Serrano vs. Heather Hardy, featherweights (for Serrano’s IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO titles); Shadasia Green vs. Olivia Curry, super middleweight
- Prediction: Paul KO 4
- Background: YouTuber-turned-boxer and promoter Jake Paul will return to the ring for the first time since Tommy Fury handed him his first loss, a split-decision in an eight-round bout on Feb. 26 in Saudi Arabia. The bout will be the 26-year-old Cleveland native’s first scheduled 10-rounder. Diaz, a former UFC star, is making his boxing debut. The 38-year-old from Stockton, California, is 22-13 (5 KOs) in mixed martial arts. He’s a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu but his striking improved throughout his MMA career. He’s not a power puncher, relying instead on volume punching to wear down his opponents and win fights. Diaz last fought this past September, when he defeated Tony Ferguson by submission. Also on the card, Amanda Serrano (44-2-1, 30 KOs) will defend her undisputed 126-pound championship in a rematch with Heather Hardy (24-2, 4 KOs). Serrano defeated Hardy by a one-sided decision in a featherweight title-unification bout in 2019. The 34-year-old native of Puerto Rico has won two consecutive fights – one-sided decisions over Sarah Mahfoud and Erika Cruz – since losing a close decision to 135-pound champ Katie Taylor in April of last year. Hardy, 41, is 2-0 since back-to-back losses against Serrano and Jessica Camara.
ALSO FIGHTING THIS WEEK
FRIDAY
- Padraig McCrory vs. Steed Woodall, super middleweights, Belfast, Northern Ireland (ESPN+)
- Derrieck Cuevas vs. Alberto Mosquera, welterweights, Panama City, Panama (ESPN+)
- Elijah Pierce vs. Mike Plania, junior featherweights, Atlanta (DAZN)
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