By Chris Williams: In massive news, WBA president Gilberto Mendoza says the World Boxing Association has approved a unification fight between IBF & WBC welterweight champion Errol ‘The Truth’ Spence Jr. and WBA champion Yordenis Ugas for it to happen NEXT!
Spence vs. Yordenis Ugas will occur in the first quarter of 2022 with three belts on the line for the fight.
Also, Ugas’ WBA mandatory challenger Eimantas Stanionis has agreed to step aside to allow the Spence-Ugas unification clash to take place next. It’s unknown how much money Stanionis is getting for him to step aside so that the Spence vs. Ugas fight can take place.
Now that Stanionis (13-0, 9 KOs) has agreed to step aside, Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs) and the undefeated Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) can meet. This is the fight that Spence and the boxing public have wanted.
Ugas is coming off a massive 12 round unanimous decision victory over Manny Pacquiao on August 21st last summer. Brought in as a replacement for the injured Spence, Ugas outboxed and outslugged Pacquiao to send the Filipino star into retirement.
It’s not slight on WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford, but Spence vs. Ugas is an easier fight to make, and it might attract more interest.
The talented Cuban Ugas, 35, was previously supposed to participate in the WBA’s four-fighter tournament with him fighting Eimantas Stanionis and WBA ‘regular’ 147-lb champion Jamal James battling Radzhab Butaev.
That fight already took place on October 30th, with Butaev stopping James in the ninth round to eliminate him.
The previously ordered winner between WBA ‘Super World’ welterweight champion Ugas and Stanionis was then supposed to fight. The winner would take on Butaev in a move to reduce the WBA’s champions at 147 from two to one.
WBO welterweight champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford likely won’t react well to the news of the Spence vs. Ugas fight being approved by the WBA, as he’s been pushing hard for a match between him and Errol to take place next.
Spence, 31, obviously was aware that his management was working on getting Stanionis to step aside, which is why he’s not agreed to fight Crawford.
It’s unknown if Spence will try to fight with Crawford should he defeat Ugas in 2022. Spence doesn’t need a fight with Crawford to make money because the PBC stable is a deep one.
Crawford may get a shot against the winner of the Spence vs. Ugas fight in 2022, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that happening.
Crawford is a great fighter, but the promoters might not want to stick their necks out by paying a bunch of money to put on a Crawford-Spence Jr.
It’s excellent that Crawford is talented, unbeaten, holds the WBO belt, and is on the pound-for-pound lists. But what’s more important is that Crawford isn’t a PPV draw.
Looking at it from a business angle, it doesn’t make sense for the promoters to put together a Spence vs. Crawford fight because they might take a large bath if the bout fails to make money.
👀 Spence-Ugás & Butaev- Stanionis 🔥 #WBABoxing https://t.co/5LPe2CVTzX
— WBA Boxing (@WBABoxing) December 19, 2021