BoxRec

Hearn targets July for Pacheco's return, Cruz-Bell eliminator

Eddie Hearn is lining up two of his fighters for summertime returns with championship implications.

The Matchroom Boxing chief recently discussed the future of Diego Pacheco (25-0, 18 KOs), who fought three times in 2025, going undefeated against Steven Nelson, Trevor McCumby and Kevin Lee Sadjo. He's yet to fight this year but that's expected to change.

“It looks like July 18,” Hearn said. “[Pacheco] will fight in Los Angeles on his own show.”

Hearn didn’t mention an opponent, but The Ring’s No. 6 super middleweight was recently ordered to fight Troy Williamson (22-4-1, 16 KOs) in an IBF eliminator. The winner of that bout would be the mandatory contender for Osleys Iglesias, the IBF champion.

Pacheco, according to Hearn, will have a well-built card to support him, including Andy Cruz vs. Albert Bell.
“You’ll see that on the Pacheco card,” he said. “This Pacheco card is gonna be red hot.”

After weeks of stagnant negotiations, Matchroom won the purse bids to stage the fight, putting up $298,000 to do so. The winner will be mandatory challenger to IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla.

Bell, a 33-year-old who’s ranked No. 3 in the IBF at 135 pounds, is unbeaten in 28 fights, albeit against lower competition. His last appearance came in August where scored a lopsided points win over Keith Hunter.

Cruz (6-1, 3 KOs), a 2020 Olympic gold medalist, lost by majority decision against Muratalla in his first crack at a world title in January.

DIEGO PACHECO TO RETURN VS. ALEEM ON JULY 18, CRUZ-BELL IN CO-MAIN

Super middleweight contender Diego Pacheco is set for another homecoming.

Pacheco (25-0, 18 KOs) will return July 18 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, against Immanuwel Aleem (22-4-3, 14 KOs) to headline a Matchroom Boxing card on DAZN, it was announced on Saturday.

The long-planned IBF lightweight title eliminator bout between Andy Cruz (6-1, 3 KOs) and Albert Bell (28-0, 9 KOs) will be slotted in the co-main event spot.

In a parallel move, Matchroom also announced it signed Pacheco to a long-term extension. Pacheco has been promoted by Matchroom ever since his third pro fight in 2019.

Also set to be featured on the card are Arnold Gonzalez, Leo Atang, and Frank Espinoza.

Pacheco, The Ring’s No. 6-rated fighter at 168 pounds, left plenty to be desired from his 2025 campaign, which featured workmanlike, 12-round unanimous decision wins against Steven Nelson, Trevor McCumby and Kevin Lele Sadjo.

Pacheco was even dropped in his last contest against Sadjo in December, which marked his first fight away from longtime coach Jose Benavidez Sr., the father and trainer of David Benavidez.

Amid lukewarm performances and changes in management and coaching, Pacheco also passed on ordered fights against the likes of Christian Mbilli and Hamzah Sheeraz. Mbilli (WBC) and Sheeraz (WBO) have since both gone on to claim shares of titles in the division in recent months.

Pacheco, a 25-year-old from Los Angeles, will now return home to headline a show in Southern California for a third time, all while seeking to propel his career toward a title path.

Hall of Fame fighter and world-class coach Buddy McGirt will be tasked with getting Pacheco to the promised land in what is a serious step back in competition.
Aleem last fought in March and pushed Lester Martinez, The Ring’s No. 4-ranked super middleweight, to the distance during a lopsided, 12-round unanimous decision defeat, and his resume is devoid of a significant win.

This is a big fight for Pacheco. He can't afford another off performance, especially matching up against a fighter coming off a UD loss to highly-rated Martinez (no shame in that) and in need of his own bounce-back effort.

So, instead of facing Lester Martinez, he is facing guy, who lost 108-120 to him. LOL

Diego Pacheco renews with Matchroom, returns to 'War Grounds' July 18 versus Immanuwel Aleem

Diego Pacheco, the consensus top-10 ranked unbeaten super middleweight, will return to the ring and to Matchroom Boxing July 18, when he meets recent WBC interim title challenger Immanuwel Aleem.

The promotion announced Saturday, with both fighters in attendance before Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez’s WBA bantamweight title fight against champion Antonio Vargas, that the bout will take place at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, streamed by DAZN.

The 25-year-old Pacheco 25-0 (18KOs) last fought December 13 in Stockton, California, defeating Kevin Lele Sadjo by scores of 116-111, 117-110, and 115-112.

But South Central Los Angeles’ Pacheco was knocked down in the eighth round, and his third consecutive unanimous decision inspired wholesale changes.

Pacheco moved to a new manager, Sheer Sports, which counts veteran fight man Robert Diaz on its team, and Pacheco also aligned with a new trainer, the blunt-speaking International Hall of Fame fighter Buddy McGirt.

Pacheco’s earlier contract with promoter Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing was to expire this summer, but was instead renewed.

“I’m looking forward to taking him to the world title,” Diaz told BS of Pacheco, the former WBO top-ranked contender to then-168 lbs champion Canelo Alvarez.

Pacheco’s flat showing in January 2025 versus Steven Nelson, and the other decisions, contributed to his rankings fall, but he remains No. 3 to champion Hamzah Sheeraz in the WBO, No. 4 to IBF champion Osleys Iglesias, No. 4 behind full champion Christian Mbilli and interim champion Lester Martinez in the WBC and No. 7 to new WBA champion Jaime Munguia.

Pacheco returns to Carson’s outdoor venue, where several fights of the year have occurred, after knocking out former middleweight title challenger Maciej Sulecki there in 2004 in a DAZN main event versus IBF No. 3-rated Albert Bell 28-0 (9KOs) of Ohio.

In the 32-year-old Aleem, 22-4-3 (14 KOs), Pacheco meets the WBC’s No.14-ranked contender who was defeated by the unbeaten Martinez by unanimous decision on March 21 in San Bernardino, California.

‘I’m excited [Pacheco] will be back with Matchroom and back fighting in the summer at the ‘War Grounds,’ where we’ll see a star in the making,” Diaz said.

Recent IBF lightweight title challenger and 2021 Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz,6-1 (3 KOs), will fight in the co-main event versus IBF No. 3-rated Albert Bell 28-0 (9 KOs) of Ohio.

CRUZ TO FACE MONTOYA ON JULY 18

Following the withdrawal of Albert Bell, lightweight contender Andy Cruz will now face Abraham Montoya in the July 18 Diego Pacheco-Immanuwel Aleem DAZN co-feature.


https://twitter..com/everythingboxi2/status/2073528772972654814?s=46&t=jVvPzC6vyPZylN7gkMdGbg

Andy Cruz to face Abraham Montoya on July 18

Lightweight contender Andy Cruz has to settle for a replacement opponent for his next contest.

Cruz (6-1, 3 KOs) will face Abraham Montoya (24-7-1, 14 KOs) on July 18 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, on the Matchroom Boxing card headlined by the super middleweight scrap between Diego Pacheco and Immanuwel Aleem.

The matchup against Montoya is a letdown for Cruz, who was preparing for an IBF lightweight title eliminator against Albert Bell over the last few months.

Matchroom secured a $298,000 purse bid in May to stage the bout, but Eddie Hearn and company had to mitigate a crisis when Joe Cordina, a fighter they promote, was unable to secure a visa to challenge WBO lightweight champion Abdullah Mason on Saturday in Ohio. Instead, Bell was summoned for the scrap, which he ultimately lost by a 12-round stoppage. Cruz was left on the outside looking in.

Cruz, a 30-year Olympic gold medal winner from Cuba and The Ring’s No. 4-rated 135-pounder, is coming off a majority decision defeat in his first title shot against IBF champion Raymond Muratalla in January.

Montoya has a record of 6-6 since 2019 but is riding the momentum of scoring a split decision win against previously unbeaten Antonio Perez last time out in April.

The 31-year-old Mexican also has a split decision win against Joseph Diaz Jr. in November 2024 and has lost to the likes of Tsendbaatar Erdenebat, Marc Castro, Andres Cortes and Gabriel Flores Jr. Montoya has never suffered a stoppage loss in his career.

Fight Week!

Looks like a make good fight
Pacheco don't want anything heavy

Evander wrote: ↑15 Jul 2026, 02:40 Looks like a make good fight
Pacheco don't want anything heavy

Agreed. As was noted earlier by Cent0089, Pacheco avoided a fight with Martinez to fight someone Martinez dominated (120-108, 118-110, and 119-109) four months ago. Instead, he will compare his performance against Aleem to that of Martinez and go from there. Oh, boy ...

CRUZ TO MOVE DOWN TO SUPER FEATHER

Andy Cruz has confirmed that he will officially be moving down to the super featherweight division after his return on Saturday against Abraham Montoya.

Matchroom also represents Ray Ford and Sugar Nunez at 130 pounds.

Press Release

Diego Pacheco vs Immanuwel Aleem weigh-in results:

Diego Pacheco - 167.8 lbs
Immanuwel Aleem - 167 lbs

Fight Night!!

Diego Pacheco will earn a guaranteed minimum of $500,000 tonight for his fight against Immanuwel Aleem, who's set to earn $100,000.

Andy Cruz will make $200,000 vs. Abraham Montoya, who'll earn $45,000.

Here are the rest of the purses for the #PachecoAleem card, per the CSAC.

Date: Saturday July 18, 2026
Location: Dignity Health Sports Park - Carson, CA
TV/Stream: DAZN

Start Times
YouTube: 6 pm ET | 3 pm PT | 11 pm BST (Preliminary Card)
DAZN: 8 pm ET | 5 pm PT | 1 am BST (Main Card)

Promoted by:

Fight Card

WBC Silver & WBO International Super Middleweight Championship
Diego Pacheco (25-0, 18 KOs) vs. Immanuwel Aleem (22-4-3, 14 KOs)

10 Round Featherweight Bout
Albert Gonzalez (17-0, 10 KOs) vs. Aaron Alameda (30-3, 17 KOs)

10 Round Lightweight Bout
Andy Cruz (6-1, 3 KOs) vs. Abraham Montoya (24-7-1, 14 KOs)

10 Round Bantamweight Bout
Saul Sanchez (21-4-1, 12 KOs) vs. Bruno Rios Jr. (8-0, 7 KOs)

6 Round Heavyweight Bout
Leo Atang (7-0, 6 KOs) vs. Glen Williams (2-1, 1 KO)

6 Round Middleweight Bout
Frank Espinoza (4-0, 4 KOs) vs. Luis Caraballo Ramos (8-8-1, 8 KOs)

6 Round Lightweight Bout
Samuel Contreras (7-0, 3 KOs) vs. Jorge Alberto Ayala Lopez (2-2)

6 Round Heavyweight Bout
Federico Pacheco Jr (10-0, 7 KOs) vs. Nick Jones (9-5, 6 KOs)

Prelims

A very brave ref in the main event. Terrible

I agree should have stopped the fight earlier..

A Mexican American fighting in a half empty stadium in his home town.

That's terrible.

Hopefully his team told him he needs to start stepping up a bit as 2 KO's since 2023 ain't getting local fans excited enough.

By the way his brother Frederico, a Heavyweight, fought on the undercard.

Did anyone see that? How did he look? Thanks.

Pacheco vs Martinez? Or both just finding safe way to Canelo payday ?

Taansend wrote: ↑19 Jul 2026, 00:42 By the way his brother Frederico, a Heavyweight, fought on the undercard.

Did anyone see that? How did he look? Thanks.

didnt see this one but every time ive seen him before he looks awful. in team boxing league - where he actually fights decent opponents - he hasnt won a fight (admittedly theyre all 1 round )