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.
5. WBA/IBF/IBO World Junior Middleweight Championships: Jarrett Hurd (c) (23-0) vs. Julian Williams (26-1-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 8:00pm, FOX
Competitiveness: 3: At 154lbs, it’s Hurd, Munguia, and, depending on your feelings on Jermell Charlo and Tony Harrison, a pretty sizeable step down.
Excitement: 3
Juice: 1
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 5: With Errol Spence and Shawn Porter having their welterweight unification bout in August on Fox, we’re looking at multiple world titles coming up on network TV, which is incredible.
Total: 17
4. UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship: Rose Namajunas (c) (8-3) vs. Jessica Andrade (19-6)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, Pay-Per-View
Competitiveness: 5: This will be the first time Namajunas has fought for a title with someone different than Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and Andrade is as fine of a challenger as anyone.
Excitement: 5: Andrade isn’t scared of a fight. Four Fights of the Night/Performances of the Night in her nearly six-year UFC career, and Rose never has to prove a thing about her fighting merit after the two beatings she put on Joanna Violence.
Juice: 2
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 3
Total: 20
t2. WBC World Junior Lightweight Championship: Miguel Berchelt (c) (35-1) vs. Francisco Vargas (25-1-2)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, ESPN
Competitiveness: 4: Yes, these two were neck and neck when they fought in January 2017, but Vargas is 35 now and his recent wins over Stephen Smith and Rod Salka isn’t exactly a murderer’s row.
Excitement: 5
Juice: 4: Nearly two and a half years ago, Vargas was the undefeated reigning and defending WBC World Junior Lightweight champion going up against up-and-comer Miguel Berchelt, who had not yet even become a full-fledged world champion. Then, these two went to war over eleven rounds before it was stopped. At the time, the cards were 95-95, 96-94, and 96-94. Now, after two wins, Vargas gets his rematch.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 22
t2. WBO World Junior Featherweight Championship: Emanuel Navarrete (c) (26-1) vs. Isaac Dogboe (20-1)
When/Where: Saturday, 10:00pm, ESPN
Competitiveness: 5
Excitement: 4: Their first fight was damned fun, with the two landing nearly 400 total punches on each other.
Juice: 4: Plenty! Navarrete was a huge underdog (as high at +700 on some books) that upset Dogboe in December at MSG by a close unanimous decision to claim the WBO Junior Featherweight strap, now Dogboe is ready for a rematch after hinting that he had a bad training camp, which Navarrete has shrugged off.
Prestige: 5
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 22
1. Bellator Lightweight Championship: Michael Chandler (c) (19-4) vs. Patricio Freire (28-4)
When/Where: Saturday, 9:00pm, DAZN
Competitiveness: 5
Excitement: 5
Juice: 4: Maybe the two fighters have that defined Bellator in their history going at it, champ vs. champ.
Prestige: 5: The two titles in Bellator that are absolutely bulletproof are lightweight and featherweight. 145 is the only Bellator title I give a 5 to, but lightweight is a solid 4, but with this being a champion vs. champion bout, it notches up.
Viewing Ease: 4
Total: 23
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