The championship fight. The pinnacle of achievement across combat sports for centuries. A premiere attraction that draws millions every year. But not all title bouts are created equally.
So which title bouts every week are the ones to watch? We’ll look over every title fight from across the combat sports landscape and give you the five best based on five criteria:
- Competitiveness: Is this an even matchup? Or just a warm body to throw at a champion? It’s a title fight, so we want the best possible at that division in that promotion.
- Excitement: How exciting will this fight be? A clash of two elite talents throwing everything they have at each other in an attempt to win the gold? Or a half-dead plod-fest devoid of action or risk?
- Juice: A sort of catch-all term for all the factors behind the matchup. Is there a story leading up to the match? A true rivalry? Anticipated rematch? Do the fighters dislike each other? Were the circumstances leading to the fight extraordinary, or was it just a promoter putting two names against each other? Is there a lot of excitement or hype going into it?
- Prestige: Applies to the belt itself, but also to the fighter wearing it. Is this a long-tenured champion defending? Is this an interim title or one that was vacated? Has the champion increased the prestige of the title or is this a fight that will increase the prestige of it?
- Viewing Ease: We all don’t mind suffering for our art (or hobbies), but sometimes paying twenty dollars for a choppy stream, or searching your cable plan for a channel you’re pretty sure was just invented three days ago in the 6000s isn’t the best of times. How easy, affordable, and stress-free is this bout to watch?
So here are your five best gold options for the weekend.
t1. IBF/WBC World Lightweight Championship: Mikey Garcia (c) (38-0) vs. Robert Easter Jr. (c) (21-0)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, Showtime
Competitiveness: 5: Can’t get any better than champion vs. champion.
Excitement: 4
Juice: 3: The hotness this summer in boxing? Title unifications! Yes, between the World Boxing Super Series, Garcia-Easter, the ongoing Joshua-Wilder situation, and the new WBSS tournament, title unifications are all the rage, and we have a damned good one, here.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 20
t1. Vacant WBO World Junior Lightweight Championship: Christopher Diaz (23-0) vs. Masayuki Ito (23-1-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 9:30pm, ESPN+
Competitiveness: 5
Excitement: 5
Juice: 3: It’s a little high, but I like the idea of two hungry young bucks both fighting for their very first world title. It might never happen again, so go get ’em, gents.
Prestige: 4: It’s a legit world title, but it’s vacant, and neither of these two have ever fought for a world title before.
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 20
3. OneFC Interim Bantamweight Championship: Kevin Belingon (18-5) vs. Martin Nguyen (11-2)
When/Where: Friday, 7:00am, OneFC App
Competitiveness: 5
Excitement: 4
Juice: 1
Prestige: 2: Winner gets fed to OneFC Bantamweight Overlord Bibiano Fernandes.
Viewing Ease: 5: Get your damned OneFC App. It’s free!
Total: 17
4. WBC Silver Heavyweight Championship/Vacant WBO International Heavyweight Championship: Dillian Whyte (c) (23-1) vs. Joseph Parker (24-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 5:00pm, SKY Pay-Per-View
Competitiveness: 4
Excitement: 3
Juice: 2
Prestige: 4: It’s a four because it’s not for a world title, but these two are about as high as you can get in the heavyweight division without being world-title level. They’ve both lost to world title fighters, but they’re well-above secondary. It’s Bret Hart-Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental title-level here.
Viewing Ease: 2: So far, there’s no U.S. stream, so time to get nefarious.
Total: 15
5. LFA Welterweight Championship: James Nakashima (c) (8-0) vs. Kyle Stewart (10-0)
When/Where: Friday, 9:00pm, AXS
Competitiveness: 5: These two are so evenly-matched that Tapology has them as the #112 and #113 welterweights in the world.
Excitement: 2: Nakashima has won all of his pro fights by decision, including his last one, which was murky and dirty and strange.
Juice: 1
Prestige: 3
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 14
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