Xander Zayas will reportedly face undefeated Slava Spomer in the co-main event in a WBO 154lb title eliminator on the Keyshawn Davis vs. Denys Berinchyk card on Valentine’s Day, February 14 on ESPN at the Hula Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
A win for 22-year-old Xander Zayas, born in Puerto Rico, would make him mandatory for WBO junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora.
The promoters for Zayas, Top Rank, are targeting him to possibly pick up the WBO belt if it is vacated or if Fundora loses it in his next fight in 2025. They are trying to quickly turn Zayas into a star like they are doing with Keyshawn. Matching Zayas against a beatable Spomer is one way to make him look great.
Xander Zayas vs. Slava Spomer
Keith Idec rreports that Zayas vs. Spomer (20-0, 11 KOs) for the co-main event on the Davis vs. Berinchyk card is designated.
The unknown 32-year-old German Spomer fought in near obscurity in his native Germany against second-tier opposition throughout his six-year professional career. His opponents were largely unknown, and why the World Boxing Organization ranked him #11 is unclear.
Zayas (20-0, 11 KOs) had hoped to fight on the February 22 card in Riyadh after Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis turned down a fight against WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. However, Israil Madrimov will be Ortiz Jr’s opponent. as Zayas.
In the main event, #1 WBO ranked lightweight contender Keyshawn Davis (12-0, 8 KOs) will challenge undefeated WBO 135-lb champion Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs) on the ESPN card.