In the sport of boxing, an action-packed fight is labeled as being a fan-friendly type of bout, and on the David Benavidez – Demetrius Andrade undercard, a potential show-stealing fan-friendly type of matchup will take place as Subriel Matias will defend his IBF junior-welterweight title against Shohjahon Ergashev.
The 140-pound division is stacked with talented fighters, and both Subriel Matias and Shohjahon Ergashev are prepared to use Saturday night’s platform as an opportunity to make a statement to their opponent and the rest of the division. Both boxers are confident, and both fighters are hard-hitting knockout artists.
A native of Fajardo, Puerto Rico, Subriel Matias started his career with fifteen straight victories before his 2020 loss to Petros Ananyan. Matias would bounce back, and then he became a major player in the division nine months ago when he stepped inside the ring to fight for the vacant IBF junior-welterweight world title.
His opponent Jeremias Ponce got off to a fast start as he hit Matias with multiple combinations in the opening round of the bout. Fast forward to the fifth round of the contest, and Matias stopped his opponent and won the vacant IBF junior-welterweight world title when he landed a hard left-hand body shot.
Now Subriel Matias (19-1, 19 KOs) is on the verge of making his first world title defense. Fuel was added to the fire of the IBF junior welterweight champion when his mandatory challenger decided to send text messages stating that he was going to put Matias to sleep.
The challenger, Shohjahon Ergashev (23-0, 20 KOs), is well aware of the fact that the champion, Subriel Matias, is very dangerous, but Ergashev feels that he has the boxing skill set required to come out victorious on the night of November 25th.
The last time the 31-year-old Uzbekistan native Shohjahon Ergashev competed inside the squared circle was back in August 2022. In his bout against Angel Martinez Hernandez, the southpaw Ergashev scored a knockdown in the fifth when he landed a sharp left-hand shot.
Hernandez was able to get up and continue, but Ergashev proceeded to hit his wounded opponent with a flurry of shots that forced the referee to step in and put a halt to the contest. Now, the undefeated 140-pound contender Shohjahon Ergashev is ready to capitalize on his opportunity to become a world champion.
The 12-round world championship bout between Subriel Matias and Shohjahon Ergashev has the promise of being an instant classic. Matias is an aggressive fighter who constantly comes forward, and Ergashev is an in-and-out type of boxer who fights well off the back foot.
Subriel Matias is definitely a player in the 140-pound division, but he’s not well-known to the boxing public. If Matias can successfully defend his IBF world title on Saturday night, November 25th, live on Showtime pay-per-view, he could increase his notoriety and also put himself in position for a future unification bout.
