Shawn Porter vs. Yordenis Ugas

One of boxing's best steps back into ring, as WBC welterweight champion Shawn Porter takes on Yordenis Ugas at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. on Saturday night.

Back in September, Porter (29-2-1, 17 KOs) became a two-time 147-pound champion, as he captured the vacant WBC title by defeating Danny Garcia via unanimous decision in one of the best fights of 2018.

Ugas (23-3, 11 KOs), a 2008 Olympic bronze medalist, comes into the biggest fight of his career on an eight-fight winning streak. To earn the opportunity at Porter, the 32-year-old defeated Cesar Miguel Barrionuevo on the Porter-Garcia undercard.

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The sentiment among some boxing pundits is Ugas is nothing more than a stay-busy fight for Porter to lead to possible clashes with WBA titleholder Keith Thurman, IBF champion Errol Spence Jr., WBO champion Terence Crawford or WBA "regular" champion Manny Pacquiao.

Will Ugas be able to silence the critics and pull off the upset or does Porter get one step closer to a unification bout?

Shawn Porter and Yordenis Ugas will fight at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. Porter will compete at the venue for the second time, while Ugas fights there for the first time.

Shawn Porter record and bio
Name: Shawn Porter
Nationality: American
Born: October 27, 1987
Height: 5-6
Reach: 69 ½"
Total fights: 32
Record: 29-2-1 with 17 knockouts.

Yordenis Ugas record and bio
Name: Yordenis Ugas
Nationality: Cuban
Born: July 14, 1986
Height: 5-9
Reach: 69"
Total fights: 26
Record: 23-3 with 11 knockouts.

Matchup Class Belt
Shawn Porter vs. Yordenis Ugas Welterweight WBC
Abel Ramos vs. Francisco Santana Welterweight ...
Efe Ajagba vs. Amir Mansour Heavyweight ...
Juan Carlos Payano vs. Damien Vazquez Bantamweight ...
Eimantas Stanionis vs. Sammy Figueroa Welterweight ...

https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/sha...195219786.html

Forgot about this one, decent fight. Don’t think of porter anywhere near “one of boxing’s best”, but he’s been a bit less awful to watch in the last couple of years. He probably could have been a dominant UFC fighter. Ugas seems very likeable and is on a decent run, not at top level, but I still expect him to make Porter work hard for a win here. Honestly that might translate to a shit fight, but we’ll see.

Fair enough fight and glad Ugas is getting a well earned title shot. Porter has shown he is more than a run away bull and boxed well against Garcia. He might do well to revert to form and play the physical force with Ugas who I don't think can match his strength in close. And why is Guerrero determined to continue a comeback, I really thought he'd be one to walk away at just the right time and enjoy it.

Shawn Porter blames fighters for hindering boxing's current golden age

As boxing expands and is getting more television and streaming coverage than ever, it is also segmenting. It’s becoming increasingly rare for fighters to cross promotional and network lines to make the most compelling matches.

The long-held narrative is that promoters and network executives are to blame, but the WBC welterweight champion wants to add another group to that list: the fighters.

Shawn Porter, who defends his belt on Saturday against Yordenis Ugas in Carson, California, in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions show on Fox, said he feels boxing is in a golden age but added that he believes his peers need to become more vocal about getting the fights they want.

The walled garden that exists in boxing concerns Porter.

“That will hold the progress of the sport back at a time when so much good is going on,” Porter said. “The No. 1 reason being is that boxing doesn’t have a humongous following. It has a big following, but not a humongous following. Word of mouth is always important in boxing and it’s driving interest. And so if we who are the ones the most into the sport are saying, ‘This big fighter won’t fight that big fighter,’ well then, people who aren’t fight fans, that’s all they’re going to hear.

“That becomes the reputation of boxing, that the best aren’t fighting the best, and that’s a hindrance. The thing about it, though, we as the talent, the fighters, we can influence that. We can say, ‘Hey, I don’t care who so-and-so is with; I want to fight him.’ That’s what really needs to happen. If you want a fight, you need to speak on it and make your case for it.”

Porter insists he’s not looking past Ugas, who has won eight in a row since suffering back-to-back losses in 2014, but he’s already making his interests known.

Assuming he successfully defends the belt, Porter isn’t going to do what so many PBC fighters do and say he’ll talk to manager Al Haymon when asked who he wants next.

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He has a short list and he’s not afraid to share it.

“I only have three targets and I don’t think it’s any surprise who they are,” Porter said. “[IBF champion] Errol Spence; [WBA champion] Keith Thurman; and [WBO champion] Manny Pacquiao. I’m not really looking beyond those three guys. I think those are the three best guys in the division who I have the opportunity to fight, and I don’t think at this stage I should be getting in the ring with anyone other than those guys.”

In the meantime, Porter has to keep his focus on Ugas, who is an aggressive fighter who figures to confront the champion in the center of the ring.

It has the potential to be a fight in the proverbial phone booth, where the two stand in front of each other and punch. But while Porter concedes Ugas will try to close the distance before him, he’s not nearly as confident it’s going to be a toe-to-toe slugfest.

“Ugas is an interesting opponent from the standpoint that, yeah, he’s an aggressive fighter who is going to come to me, but if you look at what he’s done, he’s aggressive without throwing a lot of punches,” Porter said. “He’ll stay in your face and crowd you, but he’s not a guy who is going to be throwing 50, 60, 70 punches a round.

“Everyone knows how I fight, and if Ugas decides he wants to be active and throw punches, yeah, this could turn into a phone-booth fight that everyone loves. But I see myself beating him to the punch, turning him, keeping it that way.”

Porter has an engaging, charismatic personality and is getting his feet wet in broadcasting as a co-host of the PBC’s “Inside Boxing” series on Fox. He said it has been a natural progression that started several years ago when he made the commitment to attend more live fights in person.

He said he intentionally didn’t want to go to scout potential opponents, but as he watched the fights, he learned that he was becoming more knowledgeable about his sport.

“I became more of a student of the game and I’d see things and ask myself, ‘OK, why is his doing this?’ and then I’d see it happen and I could understand why and that really helped me,” Porter said. “I began to pick up on the subtle little things fighters do, and even what they don’t do, and it helps me in what I’m doing now.

“Going on TV as an analyst, it’s fun to do and it’s a great opportunity for me to share my opinion. Of course, I know what is most important. I’m a fighter and that’s where everything begins.”

https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/wbc...200136981.html

Let’s be honest, Porter wants no part of Spence. And he named Spence, Pacquiao, and Thurman as the belt holders he wants to fight. No Crawford? He’s the best one out of them all. Porter has been avoiding the real top fighters in the division for a while now.

Hopefully he demands a fight with Spence next if he really believes what he says.

Porter is a notorious head butter, but a stand up guy outside the ring. Tough tough guy to fight. Aggressive as hell and rough. Strong too. I hope Ugas upsets him, but I’d say an ugly decision win by Porter is the most likely result.

Shawn Porter bizarrely has haircut at weigh-in as desperate last-ditch attempt to make the limit for title defence

Something you don’t see at most boxing weigh-ins

Shawn Porter had a last-minute haircut at the weigh-in for his fight with Yordenis Ugas on Friday.

In an unusual turn of events, the WBC welterweight champion’s team cut the tail ends of his dreadlocks off as a desperate attempt to make the 147lbs (10st 7lbs) limit.

Porter initially came in at 148.8lbs and was given an extra two hours to lose 1.8lbs. Otherwise he would be stripped of his belt.

There was high drama when he returned to the scales having done everything to trim poundage over the course of 120 minutes.

The WBC welterweight king held onto his belt by the skin of his teeth, initially re-weighing at 147.2lbs, before then registering 146.8lbs.

This result was celebrated like a victory, however Shawn Porter must now defeat clever Cuban Yordenis Ugas in order to retain his status as champion.

https://talksport.com/wp-content/upl...20&quality=100

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/5...rcut-weigh-in/

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Originally Posted by Master

Shawn Porter bizarrely has haircut at weigh-in as desperate last-ditch attempt to make the limit for title defence

Something you don’t see at most boxing weigh-ins

Shawn Porter had a last-minute haircut at the weigh-in for his fight with Yordenis Ugas on Friday.

In an unusual turn of events, the WBC welterweight champion’s team cut the tail ends of his dreadlocks off as a desperate attempt to make the 147lbs (10st 7lbs) limit.

Porter initially came in at 148.8lbs and was given an extra two hours to lose 1.8lbs. Otherwise he would be stripped of his belt.

There was high drama when he returned to the scales having done everything to trim poundage over the course of 120 minutes.

The WBC welterweight king held onto his belt by the skin of his teeth, initially re-weighing at 147.2lbs, before then registering 146.8lbs.

This result was celebrated like a victory, however Shawn Porter must now defeat clever Cuban Yordenis Ugas in order to retain his status as champion.

https://talksport.com/wp-content/upl...20&quality=100

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/5...rcut-weigh-in/

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He needed that mess cut anyway. Porter doesn't strike me as one to blow off making weight and not a good sign. Assuming he'll still unofficially outweigh Ugas when the bell rings though.

Until he fights Spence/Crawford he is exactly the problem with the sport

Ugas has a 3" height advantage over Porter but has a shorter reach??

That would've been one of his few bullets against the hard-charging, head-butting Porter.

As it is, it appears the little Tasmanian devil will make his usual ugly fight against Ugas.

This Efe Ajagba could be interesting as he goes along. Amir Mansour pretty much battered at will and opts out on his stool after 2nd.

Mikey sounds very conscious of not losing speed v Spence. Smart. It's also fair to say his hair still adds 2 inches to his height.

Tons of hype and build for Spence v Garcia. The event is really building steam. Thurman interviewing Spence..asks him if beating Mikey makes him the 2nd best welterweight :D. Probably the closest Keith will get to him ;D. Porter and Ugas about to ring walk

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Tons of hype and build for Spence v Garcia. The event is really building steam. Thurman interviewing Spence..asks him if beating Mikey makes him the 2nd best welterweight :D. Probably the closest Keith will get to him ;D. Porter and Ugas about to ring walk

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I wanted Spence to call Thurman our for ducking him

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Originally Posted by powerpuncher

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Tons of hype and build for Spence v Garcia. The event is really building steam. Thurman interviewing Spence..asks him if beating Mikey makes him the 2nd best welterweight :D. Probably the closest Keith will get to him ;D. Porter and Ugas about to ring walk

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I wanted Spence to call Thurman our for ducking him

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Exactly ;D. Spence has to be one of the most low key nonchalant guys going. Hope Ugas can make this entertaining

Have it 1-1. Porter missing big in first and trying to match jabs with taller man, lots of that stutter stepping to get in and out. Couple of well timed counter rights from Porter in second and initiated some exchanges. He needs to rough Ugas up close gaps. Double hard jab would settle the spastic feet of Porter down.

I have Ugas ahead, have to start wondering “is he willing to fight Spence”

I have Ugas comfortably ahead at this point.

Yeh aside from some wild wind up shots Porter looks like a guy trying to live outside his skin if that makes sense. You're not some master class boxer..stick to what got you here because Ugas has zero respect for him and he's starting to get in follow up left hooks. Needs to let his hands go too.

Make it ugly Shawn thats what we expect ;D

Ugas 7th clear as day. I was off about the strength, so far Ugas looks much sterner walking him down and Porter looks like he's trying to preserve something.

8th void of action so far with Porter doing a lot of watching and posing. Really a sparse snore round but Ugas landing cleaner, big over hand right by Ugas at the bell leaves Porter stock still. These cards are going to be so scrambled. Ugas round

Meh, better round based on the jabs from Porter. Ugas has the counter right down when Porter jumps in. Tough round to score. Toss those 'punch stats' out the window.Porter trying to be too damn cute. Lennox calling a fight wrapped in a blanket ;D.

10th I have no Earthly idea. Felt like Porter on activity but I was so convinced he would try to at least force the fight v Ugas, at least once. Ugas needs to go for broke. Physically he moves Porter when he puts it on. Porter gets tripped in 11th and looks to the ref to help him up..ref says, get up ;D

Good finish to 11th for Porter, Porter down in 12th ruled a slip by ref. Porter thinks he's De La Hoya in the second half with Tito here :-X. If the judges aren't drunk already they deserve to be after this one.

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

I get that Porter is altering his style and getting away from his mugging and bull-rushing, but he got away from it way too much tonight.

I figured he would have mixed it in as he did with Garcia. Had Porter rushed him earlier, he would have gotten inside and landed some good shots....and would it have set a completely different tone for the remainder of the fight.

Just a bad game plan by Porter....win or lose.

I had it 115-112 for Porter. So many rounds were close. I knew it would be a split decision. Neither guy winning would have been a problem. A fight like this showed me that Spence would whoop him badly.

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

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That is a crazy wide score. What was going on?

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Originally Posted by Master

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

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That is a crazy wide score. What was going on?

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Porter boxed a little more than usual. He didn’t just bull rush his way in, but he was the aggressor. Ugas boxed more and generally had the more precise punches. It was one of those fights where a lot of rounds were close and the scoring mostly depended on which style you liked better. This was one of the few fights IMO that I don’t think either wide score was bad.

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Originally Posted by Master

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

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That is a crazy wide score. What was going on?

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And where were you ;D. Not going over that again read back through it ;D.

Basically we've discovered that Porter is hard to watch in two completely different styles now :-X.

I haven't seen this fight, since I paid for DAZN I watched that full fight card and didn't stream this one, and I can't find a video of the fight yet.

But those scorecards look kind of crazy. Some are saying it was a robbery, others are saying it was a fair decision.

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Originally Posted by powerpuncher

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Originally Posted by Master

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

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That is a crazy wide score. What was going on?

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Porter boxed a little more than usual. He didn’t just bull rush his way in, but he was the aggressor. Ugas boxed more and generally had the more precise punches. It was one of those fights where a lot of rounds were close and the scoring mostly depended on which style you liked better. This was one of the few fights IMO that I don’t think either wide score was bad.

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I didn’t see Porter as the aggressor at all. I thought Ugas wanted the fire fight and Porter moved away. Porter did throw more punches but not all punches are aggressive. I’m not upset about the score. If anything I would be bothered that I somehow convinced myself that a Porter fight would be watchable because 1 was. Shame on me.

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Originally Posted by Ron Swanson

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Originally Posted by powerpuncher

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Originally Posted by Master

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Originally Posted by Spicoli

Scores 116-112 Porter...117-111 Ugas...115-113 Porter wins S. Talk about split opinion

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That is a crazy wide score. What was going on?

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Porter boxed a little more than usual. He didn’t just bull rush his way in, but he was the aggressor. Ugas boxed more and generally had the more precise punches. It was one of those fights where a lot of rounds were close and the scoring mostly depended on which style you liked better. This was one of the few fights IMO that I don’t think either wide score was bad.

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I didn’t see Porter as the aggressor at all. I thought Ugas wanted the fire fight and Porter moved away. Porter did throw more punches but not all punches are aggressive. I’m not upset about the score. If anything I would be bothered that I somehow convinced myself that a Porter fight would be watchable because 1 was. Shame on me.

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Porter wasn’t near as aggressive as normal, but I would definitely say that he was more the aggressor. Ugas went forward a little bit but overall he stayed back. But I agree, Porter isn’t that enjoyable to watch. For being a strong fighter, he isn’t that hard of hitter. He never stops anybody.

Minor robbery, more on the line of petty theft!

Weird. You could literally score damn near every round for either guy. I had Ugas winning comfortably.

The few articles I've read stated Porter wanted to box. Seams most labeled it a pose-down.