Erislandy Lara (21-2-2, 12 KOs) defends his 154-pound world title against Jan Zaveck (35-3, 19 KOs) in a Thanksgiving Holiday-worthy Premier Boxing Champions event on ESPN.
In the primary undercard, Emmanuel Rodriguez (13-0, 9 KOs) faces a real test in Eliecer Aquino (17-1-1, 11 KOs) for the WBA Fedalatin bantamweight title and the interim WBC Latino bantamweight title.
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Here’s the preview from PBC’s website.
It would’ve been difficult to blame Erislandy Lara if he’d have gone into funk last summer following his razor-thin loss to Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in Las Vegas.
After all, Lara gave one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world all he could handle in a 12-round classic—so much so that many objective observers sitting ringside thought Lara did enough to earn a career-defining victory.
Then came the scores: One judge had it 115-113 for Lara, another had it 115-113 for Alvarez and the third had it—inexplicably—117-111 for Alvarez.
It was the kind of gut-wrenching result that would’ve sent lesser men searching for a bottle of his favorite adult beverage and a dark room. Instead, Lara quickly processed the defeat, jumped back in the gym and went title-hunting once again.
Five months to day that he fell to Alvarez, Lara picked apart Ishe Smith en route to a one-sided, 12-round unanimous-decision victory, and with it a 154-pound championship. Then in June, Lara successfully defended the crown with another unanimous decision, this one a 12-round shutout of Delvin Rodriguez.
Now the hyper-focused Lara (21-2-2, 12 KOs) has his sights set on a third straight victory—and second straight title defense—when he battles former 147-pound champion Jan Zaveck (35-3, 19 KOs) on November 25 at Hialeah Park and Racing Casino in Miami. The scheduled 12-round showdown headlines a Premier Boxing Champions card on ESPN (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).
The Thanksgiving Eve fight carries extra special meaning for Lara, a Cuban native who made his way to America and settled in Miami after a prolific amateur career in his homeland.
Renowned for his technical boxing skills, Lara put on a clinic in his last two fights. Prior to whitewashing Rodriguez, the 32-year-old southpaw dismantled Smith, winning 11 of 12 rounds on two cards and nine rounds on the third card.
Going back to June 2013, Lara has won four of his last five fights, the only misstep coming against Alvarez. Included in this run is a convincing 12-round unanimous decision over top 154-pound contender Austin Trout in December 2013.
While Zaveck might not be able to match Lara in terms of pure skill, he definitely has an edge in experience. The Slovenia-born, Germany-based boxer is in his 12th year as a pro with 271 rounds under his belt (compared with 156 for Lara).
And like Lara, the 39-year-old Zaveck is on a bit of a roll, having dominated his past three opponents: Sebastien Allais (eight-round unanimous decision in October 2013); Ferenc Hafner (seventh-round TKO in October 2014) and Sasha Yengoyan (12-round unanimous decision in April).
In the latter fight, Zaveck weighed in at 151 pounds, which is notable in that it was the first time since mid-2009—and just the second time in his career—that he had checked in heavier than 147 pounds.
Not only did Zaveck once own a 147-pound world title (which he successfully defended three times), but he’s fought two of the biggest names in that division: Andre Berto and Keith Thurman. He came up short in both contests, and understands he’ll need to be at his best to get the best of Lara.
The show is on ESPN at 8 p.m. Let’s give thanks by watching men beat each other senseless.
