By Allan Fox: Patrick Teixeira will be making his long-awaited maiden title defense of his WBO junior middleweight belt against mandatory Brian Carlos Castano (16-0-1, 12 KOs) this Saturday, February 13th, on DAZN at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. The card kicks off at 8:00 p.m. ET live on DAZN.
Teixeira vs. Castano is the chief support or the title fight between IBF super featherweight champion Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz Jr (31-1, 15 KOs) and his mandatory Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (15-0, 12 KOs).
Teixeira (31-1, 22 KOs) wanted to satisfy this mandatory against Castano, 31, last year in April 2020, but the pandemic got in the way of the fight.
Interestingly, both fighters haven’t fought since November 2019, which means we could see some ring rust from the two warriors. Teixeira vs. Castano is a 50-50 type of match-up in which it could go either way.
Although they have impressive records, neither guy has cut their teeth on the upper echelon-level opposition during their respective professional careers.
Teixeira’s best opposition:
- Curtis Stevens – KO 2 defeat
- Carlos Adames
- Nathanial Gallimore
- Patrick Allotey
Castano’s toughest opponents:
- Wale Omotoso
- Erislandy Lara – draw 12
- Cedric Vitu
- Michael Soro
The Argentinian Teixeira, 30, is hoping to beat Castano and then move forward to face IBF/WBA/WBC 154-pound champion Jermell Charlo for the undisputed championship in 2021.
That would be a big fight for both of them, but it could prove difficult to negotiate. Charlo (34-1, 18 KOs) is with Premier Boxing Champions, and he fights on Showtime.
If there’s interest on Charlo’s part, the fight will happen. If not, he’ll have to be satisfied with only being the three-belt junior middleweight champion.
Teixeira is also interested in taking on Terence Crawford if he’s willing to move up to 147 to make the fight happen. Given how empty Crawford’s career resume is in terms of quality opposition, he should be willing to take the fight.
It’s questionable whether Crawford will, though, as it would involve risk on his part, and we hadn’t seen him take many risks during his career other than when he fought an aging Yuriorkis Gamboa in 2014.
“Castano is a tough opponent,” Teixeira said to RingTV. “I already had the opportunity to do sparring with him. I know him very well.
“Jermell ‘Little Kitten’ Charlo cannot run this time. After my mandatory defense, Charlo and Crawford are in our plans. Crawford is a super fighter, but if he is not able to fight in his category, could he go up?
“I’m sure I can beat him. He wants to be a superstar like (Manny) Pacquiao. So, get up and try to beat me and try to get one more title,” said Teixeira.
In Teixeira’s last fight against Carlos Adames in 2019, he took a lot of punishment, suffering bad cuts underneath his eyes. Hopefully, Teixeira doesn’t have problems with cuts against Castano, as the contest may end up getting stopped.
“On Saturday in the ring, there will be a lot of evil. After the fight, the friendship continues,” said Teixeira. “I know that I have the power to knock him out. The fight will really be a war and I’m ready for it.”
Castano’s performance against Erislandy Lara in March 2019 was an impressive one, with both guys going to war for 12 rounds in a fight that was ruled a draw. If Castano can fight at that same level, it’s going to be hard for Teixeira to keep up with him.
Castano isn’t the hugest puncher, but he’s got enough power to stop Teixeira if he’s able to land enough of his shots. If nothing else, Castano might get a cut stoppage if Teixeira’s scar tissue around his eyes opens up.
The winner of the Teixeira – Castano match will be in a good position to make a big fight happen this year, be it against Jermell Charlo, Crawford, or Tony Harrison.