March looks like it will begin with a quality Featherweight World Title bout for a vacant Belt and the month will be concluded by PBC's first card being shown on Amazon.
We also have the big crossover fight between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou in between and a few domestic level cards that will be of interest as some of the winners look to press forward towards the World level.
Another solid return from a weekend of Boxing action has just pushed the numbers into a decent position as we get ready to conclude the first two months of the 2024 season.
It could have been better, but it could have been a lot worse and that is important.
Being in front is clearly better than being behind and another strong weekend will put an exclamation point on the first couple of months of the year.
Edgar Berlanga vs Paddy McCrory
There is still a lot of uncertainty about who Canelo Alvarez will pick for his May showcase fight and Edgar Berlanga's promoter Eddie Hearn is hoping his man can produce a massive highlight reel kind of victory that will be followed by a callout of the Mexican.
Sixteen straight wins and all of those inside the First Round built the reputation and the hype around Edgar Berlanga, but the last five victories have all been on the cards.
Like many will state, the feeling is that the Rounds Edgar Berlanga has banked in recent bouts will have grown him as a fighter.
He is showing the power remains, but Berlanga will be looking to make a bigger statement when facing Paddy McCrory.
Any unbeaten opponent has to be respected, and Paddy McCrory is going to know this is a big opportunity for him to gatecrash the top of the Division.
At 35 years old, time is not really on Paddy McCrory's side and this is a considerable step up compared with his usual level of opponent. The expectation is that he will not be hard to find in the ring, but that should only play to Edgar Berlanga's advantage and this looks to be the kind of opponent that can have the favourite looking very good and pressing fans to push for Berlanga to be involved in big fights going forward.
There has been talk about the Paddy McCrory power and he has Stoppages in half of the eighteen wins secured in his unbeaten pro career, but this is a considerable step up from his usual level of opponent. He has spoken about not having the same opportunities as others so this should be a big effort from the underdog, but it may also mean being forced to go out on his shield.
It has been a while, but Edgar Berlanga can finally earn his first Stoppage win since July 2020.
The fighter most may be looking forward to seeing on the undercard is Andy Cruz and he should be able to showcase his talent again. The expectation has to be that he will be fast tracked towards a World Title so look for him to step up competition after this third professional bout with his promoter already calling for an early meeting with Keyshawn Davis.
We also have Shakhram Giyasov looking to keep pushing up the World Rankings in the Welterweight Division.
Terence Crawford still holds the Division together, but is expected to move up in weight class after beating Errol Spence Jr and that will mean a number of World Titles are vacated with Giyasov right up amongst the elite left behind.
Fighting for a potentially vacant WBO World Title or for the full WBA World Title are options that will open up for Shakhram Giyasov and he can make a big statement to others in the Division.
Pablo Cesar Cano will be coming up in weight for this challenge and the veteran will be looking to use all of his experience to test his unbeaten opponent.
However, early Stoppage defeats in recent fights at the weight class below is a concern and this could be another for the Mexican to absorb.
There is a very good card taking place in Japan with a number of the home fighters looking to continue pushing their reputation.
Junto Nakatani is looking to become a three weight World Champion and he is a strong favourite to beat Alexandro Santiago who holds the WBO Bantamweight World Title.
This is a proper test for the home fighter and Santiago has to be respected for beating Nonito Donaire last time out to take the World Title from the future Hall of Fame fighter.
I do think Nakatani will have enough to win, but it will be a good watch to see whether the power has carried up to this weight class. The most likely outcome is a win on the cards, but it will be a watching brief.
Naoya Inoue's brother is also in action on the undercard and Takuma Inoue can just edge the decision to retain his WBA Bantamweight World Title. Perhaps this will lead to a huge Unification in Japan against Junto Nakatani if both are successful, although there is a natural rivalry between Jason Moloney and Nakatani if both are holding World Titles by the end of the first half of the season.
Kosei Tanaka can also win on the loaded card that takes place on Saturday morning for those of us in the United Kingdom.
MY PICKS: Edgar Berlanga to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 2.37 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Shakhram Giyasov to Win Between 1-6 @ 2.87 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Boxing 2024: 10-13, + 9.31 Units (36 Units Staked, + 25.86% Yield)
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