Reigning secondary titlist Daniel Jacobs is on course to next fight on July 30 at the Barclays Center in his home borough of Brooklyn, New York, sources with knowledge of the situation informed BoxingScene.com on Thursday evening.
BoxingScene first mentioned this possibility last month.
An opponent has yet to be named for Jacobs (31-1, 28KOs), whose placement on the card would come in chief support to Leo Santa Cruz’ featherweight title defense versus Carl Frampton, who will move up in weight. Once Jacobs’ status is finalized – and pending a TV-acceptable challenger – both fights will air live on Showtime Championship Boxing.
The most hotly rumored candidate previously believed to land the slot was former titlist Andy Lee. However, sources who’ve informed BoxingScene.com of Jacobs’ placement on the card have also suggested that the Irish southpaw is unlikely to land the assignment for this show, given the cost for such a matchup which could presumably headline its own card down the road.
Jacobs has been out of the ring since his 85-second blitzing of crosstown rival Peter Quillin in their all-Brooklyn matchup last December at Barclays. The venue has played host to three of Jacobs’ last four starts, and five overall since his triumphant ring return in 2012 after overcoming a near-fatal battle with osteosarcoma.
The victory over Quillin was one of three knockout wins on the year for the 29-year old Brooklynite, who opted for some time off before deciding to return to the ring. Assuming his first of 2016 pans out for July 30, sources have informed BoxingScene.com that he hopes to fight twice more on the year.
The interim title belongs to Alfonso Blanco, although his name has not been mentioned (although not dismissed) as a possible future foe. However, the WBA has vowed to consolidate its number of “champions” to one per division and would have to eventually order such a fight.For now, a Golovkin-Jacobs matchup is in the sanctioning body’s on-hold queue, awaiting negotiations between Golovkin and World (lineal) middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. Should those talks fall through and either party elects to move in a different direction, the WBA plans to move forward with its plans to order its title consolidation bout.
Of course, Jacobs – functionally Golovkin’s mandatory challenger – could opt to move in a different direction. The same concession was recently granted to Javier Fortuna in the super featherweight division, requesting a voluntary defense of his “Regular” title in exchange for allowing interim beltholder Jezreel Corrales to challenge longtime – and now dethroned – “Super” champ Takashi Uchiyama.
Whatever comes of the situation, Jacobs will attempt the fourth defense of the belt he won in a 5th round stoppage of Jarrod Fletcher in Aug. ’14, which also took place at Barclays. The lone fight of his current title reign to have taken place outside of Brooklyn came last April, when he stopped Caleb Truax in the 12th round of a Spike TV-televised bout in Chicago, Illinois.
The feat was followed by an off-the-canvas 2nd round injury TKO win over Sergio Mora last August, with their Brooklyn-based title fight airing live in primetime on ESPN.
Article courtesy of Boxing Scene
