By Allan Fox: Former WBO light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov (23-3, 16 KO’s) says he plans on returning to the ring later this year against an opponent still to be determined in a fight in Macao, China. Whether that will be on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao’s next fight on November 22nd in Macao is unclear.
It would seem wise for Top Rank to place Provodnikov on Pacquiao’s undercard because it would definitely help boost his sagging pay-per-view numbers. Even if it’s a slight boost in his numbers, it’s still better off than having an undercard of obscure fighters that few casual boxing fans have ever heard of.
Provodnikov, 30, had his chances of Pacquiao big money bout for November imploded after he was beaten by Chris Algieiri last month by a 12 round split decision on June 14th. It was a fight where Provodnikov easily could have won if he had stopped loading up on his shots and focused on throwing speedy combinations instead of loading up on single power shots. But by failing to make any adjustments in the fight, Provodnikov went down to defeat by the scores 114-112, 114-112 for Algieri, and 117-109 for Provodnikov.
For Provodnikov to get a fight against Pacquiao now, he’ll likely need to beat a decent fighter or two. If Top Rank can get him a rematch against Algieri, it would be the ideal way to get back in the Pacquiao picture by beating Algieri to recapture his WBO title. But it’s unclear whether he’ll be getting the Algieri rematch anytime soon.
Algieri is looking for a bigger money fight against Pacquiao or another big name, and a fight against Provodnikov would have to be seen as the lesser option. It would be seen as the fall back plan if he can’t find anyone with a name that will fight him.
Provodnikov said on his social media site, “Dear fans! I am now spending some time with my family.. Have been told by my team that I might be back in the ring in the fall in #Macau!”
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