I’m not entirely sure what I had achieved by the age of 26, but it certainly wasn’t anything close to that of Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.
I mean, managing to order a drunken taxi home with one eye closed while juggling one of London’s best Turkish kebabs could be filed under success to some, perhaps.
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Anyway, “Bam” is a bonafide superstar.
The pound-for-pound contender is a two-weight world champion, blasting his way to an unbeaten 23-0 record. He makes a jump up to bantamweight this weekend looking to extend this run and add a third divisional title to his honors board.
And if that was a bit too proper and legitimate for you, former Love Island star and younger brother of Tyson Fury, Tommy Fury, fights former strongman Eddie Hall on a MF-Pro show in Manchester, England.
You see: Something for everyone.
Let’s take a look at the best of the weekend’s action.
1. ‘Bam’ is up at bantamweight and is still must-see TV
“Bam” Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs) is on the move this weekend, up in new waters at 118 pounds and attempting to become a three-weight world champion. To do so, he has to get past a solid, but also limited (elevated) WBA bantamweight champion in Antonio Vargas (19-1-1, 11 KOs) on Saturday night in Glendale, Arizona.
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The truth is the “Bam” train is unlikely to get derailed by the current champion. That’s not to totally overlook the 29-year-old, but Vargas’ career has sort of slogged along in the shadows in recent years, unable to grab that big career-changing promotional push.
Vargas’ last win came in 2024 against Winston Guerrero, and he has since edged a draw on the cards in Yokohama, Japan against Daigo Higa in an all-out war. The fact that Vargas has found himself on the canvas in each of his past three contests will be all the motivation the explosive-hitting Rodriguez needs.
“Bam” is a special, special talent — 118 pounds probably won’t be his ceiling in the sport, but Vargas is the perfect opponent to see how this particular rung on the ladder feels.
2. Jones, Carranza run it back
We’re going to try and clear up some confusing scorecards this weekend, as Oshae Jones (9-0, 3 KOs) and Elia Carranza (11-2, 3 KOs) run back their IBF junior middleweight title fight from last July.
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Two of the three judges felt Jones had done enough to win that first meeting, scoring it 8-2 and 6-4 respectively. The third official, however, saw things very differently, awarding every single round to Carranza.
So we head to Orlando for Most Valuable Promotions’ MVPW-04 show at Caribe Royale Resort on Saturday, and Jones heads to the Sunshine State looking to prove any doubters wrong.
“I definitely didn’t want this fight,” Jones told ESPN. “When I beat her the first time, I wasn’t 100% but I got the job done, and that’s all that should matter. But now it’s a big rematch, and that motivates me to blow her out of the water.”
3. Kiwitt continues his German run
Since losing in the United Kingdom to Luther Clay in 2019, German super welterweight Freddy Kiwitt has decided to ply his trade back on home soil, running up a 12-fight win streak in Germany (with one fight coming in Denmark).
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His ability to do so underlines the boom that boxing is enjoying in Germany at the moment, with heavyweight contender Agit Kabayel leading the charge.
Kiwitt (29-3, 18 KOs) returns to the ring against Venezuela’s Jose Arcon (15-1, 13 KOs) this weekend, headlining a card that — at the time of writing — reads like a UN meeting. Nations including Germany, Czechia, Ukraine, Austria, Venezuela, Romania, Singapore, Kenya, Argentina, Nicaragua, Azerbaijan, Syria and the United Kingdom are all represented by fighters inside the Gorzelniaski Hall, Flensburg.
Kiwitt was supposed to be defending his WBF and WBO Global super welterweight titles, but due to a late change of opponent, it’s just a good old-fashioned dust-up.
4. Love Island’s Tommy Fury is fighting retired strongman Eddie Hall
MF-Pro fights are supposed to be a bit of fun, right? And that’s exactly what to expect when Tommy Fury and Eddie Hall lock horns this weekend in Manchester, England.
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Fury (11-0, 4 KOs) can fight. Just not that well. We saw him struggle against KSI and Jake Paul in similarly viral bouts, and he’s clearly decided to go down the novelty route rather than trying to carve out a more traditional boxing career like the rest of the Fury clan.
As for Eddie Hall? Who knows. The strongman — and the most prolific record-breaker in the history of strength sports — lost his only other boxing bout against Iceland’s Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson in something that I am not going to watch back, and, arguably, the most shocking thing about him is that he is only 37 years old!
It’s billed as “Beauty vs. The Beast” — but don’t be surprised if it turns into “Tangled.”
5. Elif Nur Turhan defends her IBF lightweight title against Gabriela Tellez
Elif Nur Turhan is the new sparkly toy in the women’s game.
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Such was her appeal after going on a four-fight knockout assault of the super featherweight and lightweight divisions, that Matchroom struck and signed her up to a multi-fight deal on its DAZN platform.
The IBF lightweight queen is now 13-0 with eight stoppages and considered one of the fiercest punchers around her weight, but a lackluster display in her most recent outing against Taylah Gentzen in January will need improving on.
The Turkish fighter accepted the challenge of American Gabriela Tellez (7-0, 3 KOs) this weekend, defending her IBF strap on the Rodriguez-Vargas undercard in Glendale, Arizona.
The 31-year-old is tied for No. 9 in Uncrowned’s pound-for-pound rankings and will be eyeing a jump up by the end of 2026 with the likes of Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor winding down their remarkable careers.
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