Undefeated 168-lb contender Diego Pacheco will face Steven Nelson on January 25 in Las Vegas. Pacheco (22-0, 18 KOs) wants to stay busy in 2025, and the fight against undefeated #13 WBO Nelson (20-0, 16 KOs) is one way to achieve that.
Lance Pugbmire (@pugboxing) reports that Pacheco will next fight Nelson on January 25th in Las Vegas. This is another step forward in the career of the 23-year-old Pacheco.
It’s a decent fight for Paccheco, but not the one he’s interested in. He wants to challenge for a world title, but it may take His Excellency Turki Alalshikh to make it happen.
Pacheco is in a position to challenge unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez for his titles. Still, he might not get a chance to fight the Mexican star if he chooses to serve him. One thing the 6’4″ Pacheco has going for him is that he hasn’t looked unbeatable in his six-year career, and he’s young at 23.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Canelo picks Pacheco if he looks weak in his fight against Nelson. He can’t afford to look good against Nelson because it doesn’t pay
Nelson, 36, is long in the tooth and still hasn’t fought anyone of note during his eight-year professional career. Hardcore fans rate Nelson highly, but he has yet to beat anyone to deserve the praise. He is a cute 36.
Steven Nelson’s Recent Fights:
– Marcos Vazquez
– Rowdy Legend Montgomery
– James Ballard
– DeAndre Ware
– Cem Kilic
Those five fights consumed four years of Nelson’s career until 2024, and he’s too old to fight it out rarely against fighters at that level.
Pacheco is ranked #1 WBO, #3 WBC, and #4 IBF. He is in a position to challenge Canelo’s WBO if the sanctioning body so orders. Nelson is ranked #13 WBO. He would be higher if he was more active and fighting quality opposition fans have heard of.
The Eddie Hearn-promoted Pacheco’s recent wins
– Maciej Sulecki
– Shawn McCalman
– Marcelo Coceres
– Manuel Gallegos
– Jack Cullen
Nelson needs to start to continue his career because he is too old to fight anymore with scrub. He was lucky here with Pacheco picking him, but once this fight is over, he could be back where he started and fight unknown opposition for the rest of his career.
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