Errol Spence Jr. and Yordenis Ugas meet in the ring tonight to unify three of the four main belts. A matchup made for fireworks, who walks out of the ring tonight with a chance to unify the division?
Date: April 16 | Location: AT&T Stadium — Arlington, Texas | Start time: 9 p.m. ET
After almost a year and half layoff, caused by a detached retina in his preparation for Pacquiao, Errol Spence Jr. makes his return to the ring to face Yordenis Ugas in a welterweight unification bout. Spence comes into the fight undefeated (27-0, 21 KOs) but hasn’t been in the ring since Danny Garcia at the end of 2020. Two of the main questions looming in this fight are, how will Spence look coming off such a long layoff and will Ugas be able to keep up with the aggression of Spence.
On paper this matchup between the two belt holders looks to be one sided in favor of Errol Spence. The decorated and unified welterweight champion has been a force in the sport since his arrival on the scene. Tallying up 27 victories without a loss, 21 of those coming by way of knockout. Spence is hyper aggressive and is not lacking in power by any means. When he smells blood in the water he isn’t afraid to pounce and seal the deal. It just so happens his opponents last match was against someone with a similar style.
While Ugas was far from an unknown he only recently became a household name. Stepping into fight Manny Pacquiao after Errol Spence suffered an eye injury nobody really gave him a chance. The journeymen boxer hadn’t been overly impressive in his pro career, with four losses to the likes of Amir Imam and Emmanuel Robles. That all changed with a stunning defeat of an all time great in Pac Man. Ugas is a stylistic problem for aggressive fighters, using his quickness and movement to bait his opponent into making brash decisions. He is not a volume puncher, but he makes every blow count.
| Favorite | Underdog | Weight Class |
| Errol Spence, Jr. (c) -550 | Yordenis Ugas (c) +380 | Welterweight Unification |
| Isaac Cruz -1500 | Yuriokis Gamboa +850 | Lightweight |
| Jose Valenzuela -1100 | Francisco Vargas +700 | Lightweight |
| Cody Crowley -450 | Josesito Lopez +350 | Welterweight |
| Eimantas Stanionis -120 | Radzhab Butaev +100 | Welterweight |
| Brandun Lee -3000 | Zachary Ochoa +1300 | Junior Welterweight |
Prediction:
Tim Bertrand: Spence should win this fight and has the skillset to do so, prior to the twelfth round. Ugas may be considered more technically advanced in comparison to the man standing across from him but it isn’t a big enough gap to ignore the power and chin of Spence. If this turns into a grit and grind fight, Spence is going to have a chance to end it early. If it doesn’t, Spence will win on the cards.
Joe Casey: A closer fight than what many will see on the card, I think Ugas has a chance to really challenge Spence. Spence will want to lead the dance and Ugas will have no problem following as it plays into both of their styles. Allowing Spence to lead is a bit of a double edged sword if he gets into a rhythm but with how smooth and Ugas has been, especially in his recent fights, I don’t think he is planning on getting picked apart. A ton of the fight for the Ugas camp is going to rely on counter punching and making sure Spence knows he is going to get hurt when he is aggressive. A fight that probably goes the distance, a fast start to cushion the cards leans towards the bell to bell aggression of Spence, for that reason I believe it is going to be Spence on the cards.
Shawn Palumbo: Tonight is going to be a war of attrition. Spence is the favorite for a reason and even with his long layoff he holds the most gold and should be respected as the top player in the division. However, Ugas is a stylistic nightmare for Spence. Spence is aggressive, loves to be the ring general, controlling the pace of the fight and forcing fighters to bend to his ways. This type of aggression plays to the slick and smooth style of Ugas. A back and forth fight, Spence to win on points in a split decision.