A cut, not one that I personally think was done deliberately, has just postponed matters until mid-May and that fight should go ahead with all of the financial penalties that have been set up around the bout.
The postponement has left this weekend a little more open than most thought and that is why we have a couple of fight nights being shown on Friday rather than attempting to clash with the Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk bout.
One card will be taking place in the United States and one in Mexico and both are headlined by fighters or fights who truly gave the fans a lot to be excited about the last time they were out on the ring.
A World Title is being defended in New York City and a big rematch will headline in Mexico.
The previous couple of fight nights had not been very effective for the Boxing Picks, but last Saturday was much better thanks to Hamzah Sheeraz' big win over Liam Williams.
It is a big performance that should have Sheeraz pushing on towards World level once Ramadan is over. The next step up is going to be crucial and Hamzah Sheeraz has given himself options by naming the likes of Chris Eubank Jr and Nathan Heaney as well as the current Middleweight World Champions in what is a weaker Division than we have been used to seeing in recent years.
Others that impressed and will be looking to move forward are Masood Abdulah and Sam Noakes who had strong showings on the undercard in London.
Frank Warren has to be happy and especially ahead of his Magnificent Seven card set for Birmingham in a month's time. It just shows that Queensberry are building up a solid roster of fighters, although the key for them, and Matchroom, is finding the next wave of stars that can lead British Boxing going forward.
O'Shaquie Foster vs Abraham Nova
A late rally saw O'Shaquie Foster retain the World Titles in a really good fight against Rocky Hernandez- he was down in the cards, but Foster came out and earned the Stoppage with just 22 seconds left in that contest.
It was a fight on a different platform, but the options to further the deal did not impress and O'Shaquie Foster is now in a multi-fight deal with Top Rank.
First up on the current deal is the chance of O'Shaquie Foster to headline an event in New York City against Abraham Nova.
Unifications are likely to be next up for Foster, but he will know that he cannot overlook any opponent, while promoter Bob Arum will likely be encouraging the Champion to try and impress after some of the bigger names under his promotional banner have failed to do that in 2024.
Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevenson underperformed and they will say the same themselves, but O'Shaquie Foster has shown he can get on the front foot when he has needed to.
Whether that is going to be the case on Friday is another matter though- the feeling is that Foster can box and keep Abraham Nova at a relatively comfortable distance.
However, there will be some who will point out the fact that Nova was Stopped by Robeisy Ramirez at a lower weight Division and O'Shaquie Foster should be much more comfortable at the Super Featherweight limit. He has shown he hits hard enough and the feeling is that Foster may feel he needs to do a bit more to make sure he is making positive headlines.
I can see a situation where O'Shaquie Foster is very much in control of this fight and breaking down Abraham Nova.
This should see him just feel a little more comfortable to turn the screw late on and backing O'Shaquie Foster to find a Stoppage in the second half of the bout looks a decent way to approach this one.
The chief support on the undercard looks like it could be something of a firefight when Andres Cortes faces Bryan Chevalier.
The latter comes in with a huge Knock Out record, but he was Stopped in the sole defeat suffered by either man.
Andres Cortes is the home fighter, but this is an opportunity to really try and steal the show and he has spoken about giving the fans what they would want to see.
Bryan Chevalier will be dangerous and will feel he can put a dent in Cortes, but the latter may find the bigger shots against someone who knows what it is like to be Stopped.
Over the last couple of days, there has been a definite surge of money trending towards the Champion and the fighter looking to repeat his success from the first bout.
Not many had given Adrian Curiel much of a chance of the upset, and even fewer would have predicted it would come in the manner it did. A highlight reel KO will always grab the headlines and Curiel turned the Jr Flyweight Division on its head.
He has home advantage this time and the prices are vastly different compared to the first fight with Adrian Curiel hardening into a relatively strong favourite.
However, Sivenathi Nontshinga has a chance to prove that the defeat was nothing more than a blip in his career.
So much hype had been built around the South African who won the IBF World Title in Mexico in a Split Decision.
Winning here will not be easy, but revenge can be earned as long as Nontshinga avoids the kind of punch that ended the first fight. It really was a surprise when you think of the relative lack of KO success that Adrian Curiel has had in his career, while Sivenathi Nontshinga will feel he was in control of the tempo of the fight before things turned badly.
Seeing the drift in prices is a concern and earning a Decision here will not be easy, but a small price on the underdog is the play as Nontshinga looks to get his career back on track.
The chief support in Mexico features the return of Bronco Mauricio Lara who feels a lot older than his 25 years of age.
There is already a lot of miles on the clock thanks to tough bouts in the United Kingdom against Josh Warrington and Leigh Wood, while Lara lost his World Title on the scales before the Decision defeat to Wood.
He has moved up to Super Featherweight and Mauricio Lara is making it clear that his career is far from over.
It is unlikely that Daniel Lugo will be too hard to find and this is a considerable step up for the underdog, one that he tried to take before and was Stopped in a Sixth Round defeat.
Even with that in mind, this is the toughest fight that Lugo will have faced and Mauricio Lara can announce his return with a big, early win.
There are some very interesting fights that can be made in this Division if Mauricio Lara can get back into the mix and that will be what he will be looking to do by stealing some of the headlines with a big performance.
MY PICKS: O'Shaquie Foster to Win Between 7-12 @ 4.33 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Andres Cortes to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 4.75 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Sivenathi Nontshinga @ 3.00 Sky Bet (1 Unit)
Mauricio Lara to Win Between 1-5 @ 2.37 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Boxing 2024: 8-11, + 6.56 Units (31 Units Staked, + 21.16% Yield)
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