Top-Tier Main Event

(ESPN & ESPN Deportes, 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT)

Andrew Moloney 114.6 lbs ??vs. Joshua Franco 115 lbs ??
(WBA Super Flyweight World Title — 12 Rounds)

Andrew Moloney (21-0, 14KOs) is amassing a very good resume, silently, well until now, and his first U.S. opponent is against a very tough challenge in the Robert Garcia-trained Joshua Franco (16-1-2, 8KOs), of Texas as Maloney looks to win his first definitive world, as the WBA interim world champion Moloney will face the former WBA international bantamweight champ, Franco, who is coming down in weight to fight for a world title.

Moloney, an Australian who signed with Top Rank recently along with his twin brother Jason and managed by Australian power broker Tony Tolj, is a fighter who has defeated all of the fighters put in front of him up until this point enter the Luis Concepcion, Ryohei Takahashi, both of whom he decisively beat, in fact stopping Concepcion. Moloney in his last bout won the interim WBA super flyweight title against Ghana’s Elton Dharry, and now in the middle of June will fight for the full-fledged world title in his debut in North America, as The Moloney Brothers have spent most of their career in Oceania, namely Australia, but spent the pandemic in America for the opportunity to fight with their newly signed promoter.  

Franco, is a former blue-chip prospect, who took a jarring loss to Lucas Emanuel Fernandez Leone in Puerto Rico, in a bout that felt as though it was stopped too soon. Franco went on to beat Oscar Negrete once and have two draws with the tough Golden Boy Promotions fighter, but having a trilogy with Negrete that a lot of fans overlooked seemed to stifle his forward momentum of his career as he fell into the mix rather than standout. 

I can’t emphasize enough how competitive and even this bout is, as both fighters have a lot of unanswered questions, and this bout will answer a lot of those questions, and if doesn’t at least build a roadmap for the next part of their career.

Diaz vs. Sanchez

Christopher Diaz 124.9 lbs ?? vs.  Jason Sanchez 126 lbs ??
(Featherweight — 10 Rounds)

Christopher “Pitufo” Diaz (25-2, 16KOs), had a perfect opportunity to win a world title against Masayuki Ito in 2018, but Diaz’s inability to slip straight punches cost him a world title as he was dropped and beaten by a fighter who appears to be slightly below the world-class level in Ito. Diaz picked up a win only to get a shutout loss handed to him by Shakur Stevenson as he simply looked lost against the young fighter. 

Diaz, on the way up, was a big puncher with good head movement, but since his loss, to Ito, he has lacked at times that same confidence that made him dangerous, as Diaz has become far more tentative in his fights as of late. 

Jason Sanchez (15-1, 8KOs), is the classic overachiever. Sanchez upset Jean Carlos Rivera, and two fights later saw himself as a late replacement for the then-WBO featherweight world champion, Oscar Valdez, whom he went 12-rounds with.  

The mutual opponent they have both faced Adeilson Dos Santos saw the same result, a win with a different method to the victory, as Diaz went 8-rounds as opposed to Sanchez who stopped him in four rounds. 

Sanchez to me appears to be the favorite, but this fight feels like a win or go home bout as the loser will more than likely not have a promoter after this bout. 

Joseph Adorno Looks To Rebound

Joseph Adorno 136 lbs ??vs. Alexis del Bosque 134.2 lbs ??
(Lightweight — 8 Rounds)

Joseph Adorno (14-0-1, 12KOs) had some buzz with a Puerto Rican following and solid power, but the ugly underbelly of the Adorno equation is he loses rounds in development bouts. This was shown as he fought to a draw with Hector Garcia in his last fight, a bout many felt could have gone to his opponent. Adorno’s opponent is similar to his last opponent, Garcia, as Alexis del Bosque has mostly split decision or majority decision losses and is taller than Adorno. 

The big question is, can Alexis del Bosque withstand Adorno’s power, and/or if Adorno moving up to lightweight last July affected his power amongst his peers.

In a climate in which fighters are getting cut because of economic measures, and a new wave of Olympians that will sign next year, with some signing this year. Adorno needs to win first and foremost, but Adorno also needs to prove that his last performance didn’t define him as the second half of his last fight saw him looking befuddled without an answer. 

The People’s Main Event

Rolando Vargas 137 lbs ?? vs. Miguel Contreras 137.4 lbs ??
(Junior Welterweight — 6 Rounds)

Rolando Vargas (5-0, 5KOs) is a Milwaukee raised power-puncher who will fight on his first major card, Miguel Contreras is a hard-working pro boxer from Bakersfield, Ca, who had a solid amateur career. 

Vargas is the favorite based on his amateur success and obvious power, but Vargas has at times hit walls with his concretion and focus in the ring, and Contreras is a fighter who is able to adjust well. This might just be the most interesting bout of the evening as this fight will create the roadmap for both of these fighters careers for the next two years.

The Great Unknown

Helaman Olguin 290 lbs ?? vs. Adam Stewart 232.1 lbs ??
(Heavyweight — 6 Rounds)

Adam Stewart is a big heavyweight from Arizona, who is a white guy, who wears the America flag on his trunks and already has a draw on his record in seven fights. His opponent, Helaman Olguin is a developmental guy, who has won all the fights on the local scene and lost all of his step-up bouts. This should be a assessment of Stewart’s baseline to entertainer the viewers at home and see if he could potentially be a Sonny Conto or Jared Anderson opponent down the line.