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.
1. Glory Light Heavyweight Championship: Artem Vakhitov (c) (19-5) vs. Danyo Ilunga (58-13)
When/Where: Saturday, 12:00am, ESPN2
Competitiveness: 4: Vakhitov has already defeated Ilunga once, granted by decision, but that was at the height of Ilunga’s powers.
Excitement: 5: I think Ilunga goes into the wayback machine and tries to outstrike Vakhitov’s lethal hands.
Juice: 3: The story here is Illunga, who, unrelated, is one of my favorite fighters in the world. He’s been fighting for Glory since Glory 2, when he was a relatively unknown dangerous 25-year old violence wholesaler. He fell short of a title shot first to Tyrone Sprong, then rebounded and lost another title shot to Saulo Cavalari. After that, he suffered a whopping seven-fight losing streak, starting with champion Artem Vakhitov, four in Glory, before finally climbing out of it, winning a rubber match with Michael Duut, defeating Fraser Weightman, and now here he is, on the wrong side of 30, with another big losing streak pushing him into irrelevancy, with maybe his last chance to be a world champion. This is the good stuff that’s what makes fighting great, right here.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 21
2. WBA World Featherweight Championship: Jesus M Rojas (c) (26-1-2) vs. Joseph Diaz (26-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, Facebook
Competitiveness: 5
Excitement: 3
Juice: 2
Prestige: 4: I despise you, WBA and your “regular” world titles. Fight me.
Viewing Ease: 5: From drunkenly hitting up your high-school girlfriend to carrying world title fights. What a time to be alive.
Total: 19
3. Glory Women’s Bantamweight Championship: Anissa Meksen (c) (96-3) vs. Jady Menezes (12-2)
When/Where: Saturday, 12:00am, ESPN2
Competitiveness: 2: Kudos to Glory for at least getting some new blood in the mix, but yeah, no, Meksen should roll.
Excitement: 2
Juice: 3
Prestige: 4: Maybe once Bellator Kickboxing really gets going it’ll change, but until then, this belt still holds the most cache in women’s kickboxing.
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 15
4. Vacant IBF World Women’s Junior Featherweight Championship: Laura Soledad Griffa (16-1) vs. Marcela Eliana Acuna (46-7-1)
When/Where: Friday, Argentine TV
Competitiveness: 5: This is probably the closest boxing title fight of the weekend, both are top-5 fighters at super bantamweight.
Excitement: 1: Griffa is a fine technical boxer, but yeesh, one solitary KO, and couldn’t even muster any against debuting fighters.
Juice: 2: Acuna was the former champ who lost her crown in her last bout, now that the title is up again, the 41-year old veteran goes up against the younger challenger gunning for her first-ever world title.
Prestige: 3
Viewing Ease: 1
Total: 12
5. WBC World Female Bantamweight Championship: Mariana Juarez (c) (49-9-4) vs. Terumi Nuki (10-3)
When/Where: Saturday, 11:00pm. beIN Sports
Competitiveness: 2: Nobody’s in Barbie’s atmosphere at bantamweight right now. Nuki is a decent fighter, but no.
Excitement: 3
Juice: 1
Prestige: 3
Viewing Ease: 2: beIN is sloooowly, yet surely making inroads in the live fight sports game.
Total: 11
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