Heavyweight Efe Ajagba weighed in at 235 1/4 lbs for his 12 spherical primary occasion combat in opposition to Stephan Shaw for his or her primary occasion combat this Saturday night time on the Turning Stone Resort & On line casino in Verona, New York. Substitute opponent Shaw (18-0, 13 KOs) weighed in at 239.5 lbs. The occasion can be proven at 10:00 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN+.
(Credit score: Mikey Williams/Prime Rank through Getty Pictures)
Like within the closing press convention, the 2016 Olympian Ajagba (16-1, 13 KOs) confirmed contempt for the 30-year-old Shaw, giving him a dismissive have a look at the top of their closing face-off. Shaw the substitute opponent for cruiserweight Oscar Rivas.
Undercard weights:
- Efe Ajagba 235 1/4 vs. Stephan Shaw 239.5
- Guido Vianello 239 lbs vs. Jonnie Rice 274 1/4 lbs
- Abraham Nova 129 lbs vs. Adam Lopez 129 lbs
- Haven Brady Jr. 132 3/4 lbs vs. Ruben Cervera 130 1/4 lbs
- Bryce Mills 143 lbs vs. Margarito Hernandez 144 1/4 lbs
- Floyd Diaz 122 lbs vs. Edwin Rodriguez 121.5 lbs
- Brian Norman Jr. 149 lbs vs. Rodrigo Damian Coria 148 1/4 lbs
- Bruce Carrington 128 lbs vs. Juan Antonio Lopez 127.5 lbs
- Dante Benjamin Jr. 174 lbs vs. Emmanueal Austin 175 lbs
Sadly for Ajagba, Rivas suffered an damage in coaching and needed to be pulled from the cardboard. That was a extra winnable combat for Ajagba than Shaw, and it might need been a greater concept for Prime Rank to seek out a better opponent for the struggling Efe as a result of he’s not on the identical stage as Stephan when it comes to boxing expertise.
You possibly can argue that Ajagba can be making an attempt to avoid wasting his profession on Saturday night time as a result of if he loses to Shaw, it’s truthful to say he’ll be completed as a headliner.
If Ajagba can’t beat Shaw, that tells you he’s not minimize out for primary occasion standing except he’s matched in opposition to mediocre opposition as a result of if he’s put in with somebody good, he’ll absolutely lose.
Yeah, Ajagba may be helpful as an undercard fighter for leisure functions, so long as he’s matched appropriately and never put in with anybody within the high tier.
Given how dangerous the 28-year-old Ajagba regarded in his one-sided 10 spherical unanimous determination to Frank Sanchez in October 2021, he won’t get previous Shaw.
The Cuban Sanchez uncovered Ajagba as a robotic fighter no expertise, poor footwork, and 0 capacity to adapt. Since that combat, Ajagba has fought simply as soon as, beating a Hungarian journeyman Jozsef Darmos by a second spherical knockout final August.
For Prime Rank to have chosen match Ajagba in opposition to Darmos, it’s a purple flag that there may very well be issues on their half about whether or not he’ll pan out within the professional ranks.