By Jason Kim: An interesting fight between junior middleweight contender Alfredo Angulo (20-1, 17 KO’s) and James Kirkland (29-1. 26 KO’s) is almost a reality for November 5th, according to the latest boxing news. The only thing the fight needs right now is Kirkland’s signature on the contract and then the fight is good to go on HBO for Cancun, Quintana, Mexico.

Kirkland will have to travel to Mexico for this fight, because Angulo still can’t fight in the U.S due to visa problems. And hopefully Kirkland will be allowed to travel to Mexico to make this fight happen, because he really needs a big win to reignite his career.

This fight is about three years late, however, as there was a great deal of interest from boxing fans in seeing Angulo and Kirkland fight in 2008. But in early 2009, Kirkland was sent to prison in Texas for a weapons violation. He then spent a year in prison and didn’t fight against until March 2011. Kirkland hasn’t looked like the same fighter he was three years ago in his four fights since making his comeback. Kirkland was stopped by Nobuhiro Ishida in the 1st round last April in a fight where Kirkland hit the canvas three separate times before referee Joe Cortz dove on Kirkland to prevent him from getting up.

Angulo, 29, lost a year of his career from July 2010 to August 2011 through inactivity. He still looks as good as he was before, but he really needs to start fighting more often if he wants to get the most out of his career. The good news is that Angulo is ranked #2 by the World Boxing Council, and should get a title shot sooner or later. The bad news is it’s unclear whether Angulo has the boxing skills needed to beat WBC champion Saul Alvarez once he does get a title shot.