Premier Boxing Champions 2015: Rances Barthelemy vs. Antonio DeMarco TV Schedule
Just hours after Adrien Broner and Shawn Porter headline a Premier Boxing Champions card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night, Rances "Kid Blast" Barthelemy (22-0, 13 KO) will take on Antonio DeMarco (31-4-1, 23 KO) in the featured bout of a Sunday matinee card also presented by PBC.
When: Sunday, June 21 at 4 p.m. ET
Where: MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas
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TV: CBS
Reasons to Watch
Two Former World Champions
It's rare to see two current or former world champions meet while both are still in their 20s. PBC is delivering two such matchups on consecutive days. Barthelemy is an undefeated and highly skilled 28-year-old Cuban with dynamite in both hands.
He held the IBF super featherweight title in 2014 before relinquishing it to move up to junior welterweight. In a Q&A session with ESPN.com, Barthelemy talked about his comfort level at 140 pounds:
"Actually I think it's a huge benefit to my career moving up in weight. I used to struggle to get down to those lower weights. I used to take off 20 pounds to get to 130 pounds, so now being at 140 I figure it's an ideal weight for my career. I'll be a lot stronger and a lot fresher down the stretch.
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Considering how good Barthelemy has looked thus far, the thought of him being stronger is a scary thing for the rest of the division.
DeMarco has already been in the ring with some of the best fighters in his weight range. The former WBC lightweight champion has beaten John Molina Jr. and lost to the late Edwin Valero, Adrien Broner and current WBA super lightweight champion Jessie Vargas.
While neither man is a household name, true fight fans know this is a legitimate bout with two excellent fighters.
Potential Next Opponents
The winner of this bout will be in a good position. PBC has several fighters in this weight region who could be the next opponent for the winner. At one point, Barthelemy was considered a likely opponent for Broner on June 20 before the deal with Porter was struck.
The Sweet Science's Michael Woods referenced a source close to the situation who said "We're looking to get it done."
It obviously didn't get done, but with Barthelemy appearing on a smaller card the day after Broner vs. Porter fight—and in the same building—it's clear he's still in the mix. This spot is the equivalent of fighting on the Broner-Porter undercard. That's often a precursor to a future meeting.
It's possible the winner of Broner vs. Porter could face Barthelemy—should he win. If Porter and DeMarco win, they could meet, but it's unlikely a Broner-DeMarco rematch would happen should they both be the victors this weekend.
Potential Fireworks
Both of these guys are rugged competitors who can punch. Even in the fights DeMarco has lost, the last thing anyone would question about him is his toughness.
He'll bring the action to Barthelemy. And as we've seen in the Cuban's latest fights, he won't back down from DeMarco's challenge. This has the potential to be an explosive bout.
It's Free
While you might not like every PBC event, you have to love free boxing. It seems almost every week NBC, CBS or Spike, and soon ESPN and BET, will have a high- to moderate-level fight on free TV. This has seemingly inspired the likes of Fox Sports and truTV to up the amount of boxing they present.
If you love boxing, you have to love what's happening with the sport in that regard.
Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter.
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