September 8th is a big night for fight fans, including the WBC welterweight title between Danny Garcia and Shawn Porter. Get your fight week coverage here on Bloody Elbow.
If you’re a big fan of combat sports, then Saturday night, September 8th is a treat for you. Not only is there UFC 228 on PPV, you have SuperFly 3 on HBO Boxing, plus a Showtime Championship Boxing card topped with an intriguing fight for the vacant WBC welterweight title between Danny Garcia (34-1, 20 KOs) and Shawn Porter (28-2-1, 17 KOs).
Boxing’s 147 lbs division is exciting and frustrating at the same time. Errol Spence Jr is the IBF champion and looks like an absolute force. Terence Crawford just captured the WBO belt from Jeff Horn in June, and is slated to fight in October. Keith Thurman had the WBA and WBC title, having beaten both Garcia and Porter, but he’s injured and has since vacated the WBC belt, which Garcia and Porter will now contest. If we went by resume, Thurman tops the lot, but his inactivity has really hurt the flow of welterweight.
As for Garcia and Porter, they are definitely among the best in the division, even if they’re slightly below Thurman. Garcia bounced back from his split decision defeat vs. Thurman by knocking out Brandon Rios in January. Porter has fought twice since his own loss to Thurman, stopping Andre Berto in nine rounds before winning a unanimous decision vs. Adrian Granados.
Garcia is the slight favorite at around -150, which seems about right considering Danny is the more technical boxerm but if there’s one thing Porter is known for, it’s relentless pressure and willingness to try and rough his opponents up on the inside. This is one of those fights that is too close to call, and their stylistic tendencies could produce a very entertaining scrap. Ideally, the winner of this one will face Spence in a unification matchup next year.
Bloody Elbow will have full fight week coverage, including preview, a live stream of the undercard, results, post-fight highlights, and more. The Showtime broadcast starts at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Televised card
Danny Garcia (34-1, 20 KOs) vs. Shawn Porter (28-2-1, 17 KOs) – 12 rounds, welterweights
Yordenis Ugas (22-3, 11 KOs) vs. Cesar Miguel Barrionuevo (34-3-2, 24 KOs) – 12 rounds, welterweights