It’s an exciting time to be a boxing fan, with several high-profile fights set to take place over the coming weeks and months.
Arguably, the biggest of those is the heavyweight unification bout between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury on May 18.
The matchup was initially set to take place in February, but Fury picked up an injury in training and the fight had to be rescheduled.
Those comparing the Fury vs Usyk odds will find that there is very little to separate the two in the betting market, with the ‘Gypsy King’ 5/6 and the Ukrainian 1/1.
With that Saudi showdown having the potential to be the fight of the year, let’s take a look at it and some of the other upcoming standout bouts more in-depth.
May 4, Las Vegas: Canelo Alvarez vs Jaime Munguia
Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (60-2-2) has made it a habit to fight on Cinco de Mayo weekend, and this year he will take on a fellow Mexican, Jaime Munguia (43-0), at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
It’s the second time Canelo has faced a fellow countryman on the celebrated date after he beat Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. at the same Sin City venue in 2017.
Former WBO junior middleweight champion Munguia is 3-0 in the super-middleweight division, but Canelo is heavily expected to retain his undisputed IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO titles on May 4.
May 6, Tokyo: Naoya Inoue vs Luis Nery
Widely regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world right now, Naoya Inoue will defend his undisputed super-bantamweight belts against Luis Nery in Tokyo on May 6.
Inoue has won multiple titles in four different weight classes and is just the second boxer in history to be crowned an undisputed champion in two separate divisions.
The 30-year-old, 26-0 with 23 KOs, will face a formidable opponent in former WBC super-bantamweight champion Nery (35-1), but Inoue should come out on top.
May 11, Perth: Vasiliy Lomachenko vs George Kambosos Jr
Another great of the modern era, Vasiliy Lomachenko (17-3) has the chance to regain the vacant IBF lightweight title when he heads Down Under to face George Kambosos (21-2) in Perth on May 11.
Lomachenko suffered a third career defeat at the hands of Devin Haney last May, in what many felt were controversial circumstances at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Vegas.
However, the American’s move to super-lightweight has left the 135lb IBF belt vacant and Lomachenko is desperate to add it to his glittering CV with a win over former unified champion Kambosos, whose two career defeats came against Haney in 2022.
May 18, Riyadh: Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk
Rounding off this incredible fortnight of boxing is the already-mentioned blockbuster showdown between Fury and Usyk to become the unified heavyweight champion.
Many doubted Usyk when he made the step up in class to the Blue Riband division due to his size and stature, but the Ukrainian has thus far dominated everyone put on his path to the top.
His two wins over Anthony Joshua reaffirmed his class and, while Fury is a very different opponent to ‘AJ’, you cannot discount Usyk in the boxing betting.
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The all-British bout between Josh Taylor and Jack Catteral in Leeds on May 25, the undisputed light heavyweight matchup between Dmitry Bivol and Arthur Beterbiev on June 1, and Juan Francisco Estrada vs Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriquez for the WBC junior bantamweight title on June 29 are also worth noting.
