Brian Norman Jr. could face a dangerous test against Abel Ramos on the December 19 Devin Haney–Liam Paro card, with a loss threatening to undo his progress since surrendering the WBO welterweight title to Haney last November. Boxing journalist Dan Rafael reports that Top Rank is planning Norman vs. Ramos for the card, which is expected to take place in San Francisco. The bout would be the 25-year-old Norman’s second fight since his defeat to Haney. Rafael reports that Top Rank also plans to feature welterweights Tiger Johnson and Rohan Polanco. But Norman has the most to lose if the…

Shakur Stevenson could soon face a tough business call if the WBO installs Raymond Muratalla as his mandatory challenger at 140 pounds. Taking that fight means accepting real physical risk without the massive financial windfall tied to bouts against Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, or Gervonta Davis. Top Rank took the first step by petitioning the sanctioning body to elevate their top-ranked contender. A petition doesn’t make the fight a done deal, yet it instantly forces the question of whether Shakur actually wants the matchup if it gets ordered. Nobody can say Shakur is running just yet. At the same time,…

Super bantamweight Daniel III Cortez (14-1, 9 KOs) edged Joshua “Spotlight” Montoya (8-6-2, 1 KO) by split decision. Two judges scored it 58-56 for Cortez, while the third favored Montoya by the same score. Cortez entered as the favorite but had to work for the victory against an opponent who kept the contest close. Cortez’s busier work helped him in the third round, although Montoya came on toward the end of it. Neither fighter scored a knockdown, leaving the judges to separate them after six competitive rounds. Montoya made a strong case for the decision, with ringside observer Francisco Salazar…

Richardson Hitchins says his proposed fight with Keyshawn Davis is off, claiming Davis demanded $6 million for a bout Hitchins had already agreed to nearly two months ago. If that account is accurate, Davis has put a high price on an opportunity that could help him earn bigger purses. Beating Hitchins would give him something he cannot produce through callouts alone: a quality victory to strengthen his position in future negotiations. “He was asking for 6ms to fight me,” Hitchins said on social media. “I been agreed to the fight going on 2 months. I was wondering what was the…

O’Shaquie Foster isn’t agreeing to a slugfest just because Emanuel Navarrete wants one. With three super featherweight titles available Saturday in San Antonio, Foster intends to make Navarrete fight on terms that suit him. Their comments at Thursday’s press conference supplied an edge to a fight week that has struggled for attention despite the stakes. Navarrete brings the WBO and IBF belts to Frost Bank Center, while Foster puts his WBC title into the unification. “What I don’t want is an entire night where we’re just jabbing each other to see who can land more jabs. I think people want…

Jaron Ennis laughed off Sebastian Fundora’s knockout claims, calling the towering champion “too small” to back up his words. Ennis is eyeing Fundora down the line, but he’s making sure business with Josh Kelly gets handled first. That comment flips the script on Fundora. Opponents usually spend training camp obsessing over his massive reach, but Ennis seems far more eager to exploit openings than worry about incoming fire. “He too small. He not big enough,” Ennis said to YSM Sports Media when told about Fundora’s knockout comments. “But we focused on Josh Kelly, and that’s the main focus, main target…

Some inside Zuffa Boxing actually welcomed Shakur Stevenson walking away. When the planned Devin Haney matchup collapsed, the company found itself staring down massive financial obligations with zero marquee headliner to show for it. Dan Rafael noted that parting ways worked out for both camps, despite the optics sting of Zuffa dropping a prized marquee acquisition right out of the gate. “There are some people that are sort of relieved that they’re not going to, you know, go down that pit of that money,” Rafael said to Total Boxing. The broadcast setup explains plenty about why Zuffa executives felt that…

Shakur Stevenson wanted $15 million per fight from Zuffa Boxing regardless of who stood across from him, according to reporter Sean Zittel. The reported figures explain why Stevenson parted ways with the promotion without stepping into their ring. Zittel reports that Zuffa explored a January date against Jose ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela in Newark that would have paid Stevenson roughly $7 million, with an alternative December slot against an undetermined opponent carrying similar money. Stevenson turned both options down, holding out for top-tier compensation. Zittel added that Stevenson initially accepted $15 million to fight Haney before raising his demands even higher. The…

David Benavidez is mapping out an ambitious three-fight wishlist once he handles Michal Cieslak on December 5. Benavidez laid out three massive targets: Jai Opetaia, Artur Beterbiev, plus Oleksandr Usyk. That roadmap keeps him focused on cruiserweight, along with an eventual leap to heavyweight for Usyk. It also leaves Dmitry Bivol completely on the sidelines for the foreseeable future. “We’re talking about Opetaia. We’re talking about Beterbiev. And then we’re maybe talking about Usyk,” Benavidez said to Brian Custer’s channel. Opetaia sits at the top of the queue. If Benavidez gets past Cieslak, he wants the Australian champion on Cinco…

Eddie Hearn is talking up a fight that would finally give Teremoana Teremoana a serious professional test, backing his unbeaten heavyweight to beat Bakhodir Jalolov despite two amateur defeats against the Uzbek southpaw. After Jalolov’s decision win over Solomon Dacres on Saturday’s Daniel Dubois–Fabio Wardley rematch card, Hearn posted a blunt verdict on his Instagram story: “@TEREMOANA_REP WOULD EAT UP JALOLOV” That is a bold claim about a fighter who has already beaten Teremoana at the 2023 World Championships and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Jalolov won their Olympic quarterfinal 5–0 before going on to collect his second gold medal. Hearn…