Alberto Machado vs. Andrew Cancio - February 9, 2019

[Ruthless-RKO]

Two world title fights will head to the Coachella Valley in February as Golden Boy Promotions presents another exciting night of boxing on DAZN. In the main event, Alberto "Explosivo" Machado (21-0, 17 KOs) will defend his WBA Super Featherweight World Title against Andrew "El Chango" Cancio (19-4-2, 14 KOs) in a 12-round clash. In the co-main event, Rey Vargas (32-0, 22 KOs) will put his WBC Super Bantamweight World Championship on the line against Franklin Manzanilla (18-4, 17 KOs) in a 12-round battle. The event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019 at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif. and will be streamed live on DAZN.

"Golden Boy Promotions has promised to bring exciting fights every month on DAZN," said Oscar De La Hoya, CEO and Chairman of Golden Boy Promotions. "We're keeping our promise by bringing two world title fights featuring a world champion from Puerto Rico in Alberto Machado and one from Mexico in Rey Vargas. The best talent from these two countries, which have a rich history in the sport of boxing, will be on display for fans to watch at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino or from home on DAZN."

Machado, a 28-year-old of San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a big man for his division and boasts explosive power in both hands. After unifying two regional titles with a dominant unanimous decision victory against Carlos "The Solution" Morales, Machado defeated Jezreel "El Invisible" Corrales by way of eighth-round knockout to capture WBA Super Featherweight World Title in Oct. 2017. The hard-hitting southpaw has retained his title against the likes of Rafael "Sweet Pea" Mensah and Yuandale "Money Shot" Evans and will look to make a third defense against Cancio.

"I am very hungry to go to Los Angeles and start camp for Andrew Cancio," said Alberto Machado."Cancio is a great warrior with good experience and will come very hungry, but I will prepare myself responsibly as he is a great challenge for my career. A victory over him will take me further to what I want to achieve in this sport. This will be the third defense of my title, and now I am going in with more experience. I look forward to retaining my championship and returning to Puerto Rico as a world champion."

Cancio is a 30-year-old contender who recently re-signed with Golden Boy Promotions after scoring a sensational technical knockout victory against then-undefeated prospect Aida Sharibayev. The native of Blythe, Calif. has victories against the likes of Rocky Juarez, Jerry "The Corpus Christi Kid" Belmontes and Rene "Gemelo" Alvarado, and he's also been in tough fights against Joseph "JoJo" Diaz Jr. and Ronny Rios in a professional career that started over 12 years ago. Needless to say, Cancio has worked hard for his title shot.

"I'm very excited and grateful for this opportunity to fight for a world title," said Andrew Cancio. "Thanks very much to my manager Ray Chaparro and the Golden Boy Promotions Team, along with DAZN. I've watched many of Alberto Machado's fights and know how great of a fighter he is. However, I've already started training and will be well prepared on February 9 to win the world title in front of my fans at Fantasy Springs who have always been so very supportive."

"We are excited to start 2019 with a great fight for Alberto Machado on DAZN," said Miguel Cotto, President of Miguel Cotto Promotions."We are committed together with Golden Boy Promotions to bringing the best fights with the best fighters in the world. We know what Machado he is capable of doing. He will enter the ring as a champion and leave the ring as a champion on February 9."
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The undercard of this event will be filled with contenders and prospects from the exclusive Golden Boy Promotions stable.

Joseph "JoJo" Diaz Jr. (27-1, 14 KOs) of South El Monte, Calif. will return in a 10-round super featherweight battle against Charles Huerta (20-5, 12 KOs) of Paramount, Calif.

Genaro "El Conde" Gamez (8-0, 5 KOs) will battle against Ivan "Striker" Delgado (13-1-2, 6 KOs) in an eight-round lightweight battle between a current Golden Boy prospect and an ex-Golden Boy fighter.

Oscar Duarte (15-0-1, 10 KOs) of Parral, Mexico will participate in a 10-round fight in the lightweight division.

Azat "Crazy A" Hovhannisyan (15-3, 12 KOs) of Los Angeles, Calif. will compete in a 10-round super bantamweight fight.

Ferdinand "Lucky Boy" Kerobyan (11-0, 6 KOs) of North Hollywood, Calif. will return in an eight-round super welterweight battle.

Hometown hero Rommel Caballero (4-0, 3 KOs) of Coachella, Calif. will open the night of action in a six-round super featherweight battle.

Opponents for the undercard fighters will be announced shortly.

[Ruthless-RKO]

[Ruthless-RKO]

[Ruthless-RKO]

Anyone watching this on DAZN? Or is everyone tuning into Showtime?

[caldo2025]

That was pretty awesome. Good for this kid.

[diddy]

Machado one of those guys who seems to have trouble with opponents that, ya know, punch back and stuff.

[jamamb]

he won the belt himself in a fight where he came back from a kd

[Cent0089]

Cherrypicking goes wrong again

[oogiebe]

Cherrypicking goes wrong again

LOL! Yes! Gotta love it!

[Ruthless-RKO]

he won the belt himself in a fight where he came back from a kd

That’s true as well. He was never gonna be the best in his division.

[SenorPipino]

Cherrypicking goes wrong again

I don't think that Machado was ever established enough to be labeled a "cherry picker."

That's a tag that should only be reserved for the true top guys.

Machado might have held some belt, but in terms of development, he was an advanced prospect.

Cancio was regarded as a tough guy and a nice test for the still climbing Machado.

Fighters get pushed too quickly these days and disaster often awaits.

[oogiebe]

Cherrypicking goes wrong again

I don't think that Machado was ever established enough to be labeled a "cherry picker."

That's a tag that should only be reserved for the true top guys.

Machado might have held some belt, but in terms of development, he was an advanced prospect.

Cancio was regarded as a tough guy and a nice test for the still climbing Machado.

Fighters get pushed too quickly these days and disaster often awaits.

Disagree. Any fighter at whatever level can cherrypick opponents.

[oogiebe]

Machado says he felt "weak" in the ring and needs to move up in weight.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Machado says he felt "weak" in the ring and needs to move up in weight.

I read that. He’d Like a rematch to at the higher weight.

Machado does look quite big.

[oogiebe]

Machado says he felt "weak" in the ring and needs to move up in weight.

I read that. He’d Like a rematch to at the higher weight.

Machado does look quite big.

He did look big, but feeling "weak" in the ring is more about conditioning in this case, it's an excuse.

[Luckybattles]

Good. They wanted machado vs Davis. What a waste of time that would have been

[chuck9788]

I don't understand why Machado took this fight at "The Fantasy Springs Casino" where Cancio had previously fought 9 times. The contest should have been held at a more neutral location. I'm not saying it would have changed the outcome, but the world champion deserved better managing.

Is there a rematch clause? Maybe that rematch could be held on the Cinco De Mayo Alvarez vs Jacobs undercard here in Las Vegas?

[Ruthless-RKO]

I don't understand why Machado took this fight at "The Fantasy Springs Casino" where Cancio had previously fought 9 times. The contest should have been held at a more neutral location. I'm not saying it would have changed the outcome, but the world champion deserved better managing.

Is there a rematch clause? Maybe that rematch could be held on the Cinco De Mayo Alvarez vs Jacobs undercard here in Las Vegas?

Majority of Golden Boy ‘B’ level cards always take place at Fantasy Springs Casino.