Boxing Coverage on Sherdog.comBoxing: Abner Mares to Meet Fernando Montiel on Thurman-Porter Undercard
If the main event wasn’t enough to satiate the demands of boxing
fans the world over, Premier Boxing Champions and CBS announced
late Wednesday the addition of a potential thriller as the chief
support bout to the welterweight championship between Keith Thurman
and Shawn Porter.
Powerful enough to headline a major card in its own right, the March 12 edition of Showtime Championship Boxing on CBS will see a massive featherweight showdown between two of the best smaller-weight fighters of this generation: Abner Mares and Fernando Montiel.
Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs) has won world titles in three different
weight classes. The 2004 Mexican Olympian captured the IBF
bantamweight title in 2011 via decision after a rematch with Joseph
Agbeko. Mares added the WBC super bantamweight strap by dominating
former world champ Eric Morel over 12 rounds the following year and
then captured the WBC featherweight crown in 2013 when he stopped
Daniel Ponce de Leon in the ninth.
The only losses of Mares’ career came to Jhonny Gonzalez in 2013 via shocking first-round knockout and last August when he narrowly lost a majority decision to Leo Santa Cruz for the WBA 126-pound belt. The fight was a candidate for the fight of the year by most outlets, but now he sets his sights on Montiel, another in a long line of great Mexican warriors he’ll have faced.
Montiel (54-5-2, 37 KOs) is arguably the most accomplished fighter that Mares will have faced up to this point in his career. An instant Hall of Famer once he is eligible, Montiel captured his first world title in December 2000 when he knocked out Isidro Garcia in the seventh for the WBO flyweight belt. A year later he took out Pedro Alcazar in the sixth for the WBO super flyweight crown, though Alcazar tragically passed away from injuries sustained in the battle.
After losing the belt to Mark Johnson in 2003, “Cochulito” regained it two years later by knocking out Ivan Hernandez in the seventh. Montiel defended the throne seven times before moving up to bantamweight, where he eventually snatched up the WBO version of the title in 2010 by starching Ciso Morales in the first. He added the WBC bantamweight belt in his next fight but lost them both when Nonito Donaire destroyed him within two.
A win over Mares would instantly drop him into the thick of things at featherweight, where he is looking to redeem himself after losing to Lee Selby in October for the Welshman’s IBF 126-pound crown via unanimous decision.
“I have been wanting to fight Abner Mares for many years,” said Montiel. “They say that styles make fights and Abner Mares' style is tailor made for me. My last fight was a close decision against one of the best featherweights in the world in Lee Selby. I need to make every fight count and on March 12 Abner Mares will be my next step to another world title.”
Showtime Championship Boxing on CBS will be televised live starting at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT. A full undercard will be revealed soon.
Powerful enough to headline a major card in its own right, the March 12 edition of Showtime Championship Boxing on CBS will see a massive featherweight showdown between two of the best smaller-weight fighters of this generation: Abner Mares and Fernando Montiel.
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The only losses of Mares’ career came to Jhonny Gonzalez in 2013 via shocking first-round knockout and last August when he narrowly lost a majority decision to Leo Santa Cruz for the WBA 126-pound belt. The fight was a candidate for the fight of the year by most outlets, but now he sets his sights on Montiel, another in a long line of great Mexican warriors he’ll have faced.
“I'm ready to get back in the ring and have the boxing world see
the monster that the Mares and Robert Garcia partnership is
creating,” said Mares. “I'm a tough fighter. I've made some
adjustments and I will show my warrior spirit and skill on March
12. It's time to go to work.”
Montiel (54-5-2, 37 KOs) is arguably the most accomplished fighter that Mares will have faced up to this point in his career. An instant Hall of Famer once he is eligible, Montiel captured his first world title in December 2000 when he knocked out Isidro Garcia in the seventh for the WBO flyweight belt. A year later he took out Pedro Alcazar in the sixth for the WBO super flyweight crown, though Alcazar tragically passed away from injuries sustained in the battle.
After losing the belt to Mark Johnson in 2003, “Cochulito” regained it two years later by knocking out Ivan Hernandez in the seventh. Montiel defended the throne seven times before moving up to bantamweight, where he eventually snatched up the WBO version of the title in 2010 by starching Ciso Morales in the first. He added the WBC bantamweight belt in his next fight but lost them both when Nonito Donaire destroyed him within two.
A win over Mares would instantly drop him into the thick of things at featherweight, where he is looking to redeem himself after losing to Lee Selby in October for the Welshman’s IBF 126-pound crown via unanimous decision.
“I have been wanting to fight Abner Mares for many years,” said Montiel. “They say that styles make fights and Abner Mares' style is tailor made for me. My last fight was a close decision against one of the best featherweights in the world in Lee Selby. I need to make every fight count and on March 12 Abner Mares will be my next step to another world title.”
Showtime Championship Boxing on CBS will be televised live starting at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT. A full undercard will be revealed soon.
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