Jarrett Hurd may have one more good fight in him.
Hurd will face Jeison Rosario Wednesday night at the Whitesands (also known as ProBox TV) Events Center in Plant City, Florida. The 10-round middleweight bout will headline a four-bout card that will stream live on the ProBox TV application and YouTube page (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT).
The clash between Hurd and Rosario is a compelling crossroads bout between former world unified titleholders at 154 pounds. Chris Glover of ProBox TV believes the fight will produce fireworks, considering both are in the latter stages of the career, with the winner moving on to more-lucrative opportunities.
“It’s the kind of fight where the loser likely retires,” Glover told The Ring early Tuesday morning. “It’s who has more left. It’s a good fight. Thanks once again to (promoter) Sampson (Lewkowicz) for always being helpful and who represents Jeison Rosario.
“It’s going to be a shootout. It’s going to be two guys going for it. They’re going to try and prove that they can challenge again. The middleweight division is wide open. There’s a lot of opportunities to challenge (for a world title). The loser may not look in a position that they should continue fighting. That’s what it is.”
Hurd (25-3, 17 knockouts), who resides in Accokeek, Maryland, is best known for his thrilling split-decision victory against Erislandy Lara in April 2018. Hurd successfully defended his IBF title and won the WBA title from Lara.
After a world title defense, Hurd would lose by unanimous decision to Julian Williams in May 2019. After defeating Francisco Santana over six months later, Hurd would not fight for over a year, losing by split decision to Luis Arias.
The 33-year-old Hurd would return to the ring on March 4 of last year, losing by knockout in round 10 to Jose Resendiz in an action fight. The fight was stopped on the advice of the ringside physician due to Hurd suffering from a severe laceration to his lip. Entering the final round, Hurd was down on the scorecards, 87-84, 87-84, and 89-82.
In his last bout on December 8, Hurd stopped Tyi Edmonds after round 4. Glover believes an impressive win by Hurd, despite recent setbacks, could elevate him to a fight amongst the best at 160 pounds.
“If Jarrett could come back and look good against Rosario, it obviously puts him right there for a big fight at 160 pounds,” said Glover. “I’m very excited for that possibility. And it’s exciting to have someone like Jarrett Hurd on ProBox TV. He’s all-action (and) he’s never in a bad fight. These two unified world champions are going to war and show they have something left. It’s a great fight.”
Rosario (24-4-1, 18 KOs), who is originally from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic and now resides in Miami, Florida, also notched a win in his last fight, stopping Israel Valerio Nina in round two on November 10. In his previous fight in November 2022, Rosario was stopped by Brian Mendoza in round five.
After winning the unified world title belt from Williams in January 2020, Rosario would lose back to back fights, both by knockout, to Jermell Charlo and Erickson Lubin.
In the co-main event, unbeaten bantamweight prospect Michael Angeletti (11-0, 7 KOs) of Spring, Texas will square off against the Dominican Republic’s Gerardo Valdez (16-1, 11 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
“There are two young hungry fighters in a real 50-50 fight,” said Glover. “It’s a great fight.”
In junior lightweight action, Dominic Valle (9-0, 7 KOs) of Lutz, Florida will face Colombia’s Kevin Piedrahita (9-2, 8 KOs) in an eight-round bout.
“It’s an excellent fight,” said Glover. “An eight-round war. I’m really excited for that fight.”
In the opening bout of the card, heavyweight Ivan Dychko (13-0, 12 KOs), who is originally from Kazakhstan and now resides in nearby Kissimmee, will square off against Craig Lewis (15-7-1, 8 KOs) of Detroit, Michigan in an eight-round bout.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com
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