*For Immediate Release to Publish
Roselle, Park, NJ ( December 6th, 2025)– Welcome to the Real Combat Media Boxing & MMA Fights of the Week, where we discuss the week’s most significant news and the most notable fights in the sports of boxing and MMA, so you can save time by getting your best combat sports news expeditiously.
In boxing news, this past weekend, Ben Whittaker (10-0-1, 7 KOs) stopped Ben Gavazi (19-1, 13 KOs) of Germany by a first-round TKO after knocking him down twice in his Matchroom Debut to win the WBC Silver Light Heavyweight Title. Unfortunately, as the fight was going on, Whittaker’s home was robbed. Expect Ben to be in many notable future fights for 2026 and 2027, after this outstanding performance. You can read Robert Brizel’s recap, press conference, and video highlights here.
Manny Pacquiao’s son, Jimuel Pacquiao, made his pro debut in Temecula, CA, an event which was promoted by his father, and he fought to a draw. You can read Robert Brizel’s recap and watch the fight here.
Teofimo Lopez, 28, (21-1, 13 Kos) fighting out of Las Vegas has officially signed a fight to face Shakur Stevenson, 28, (24-0, 11 Kos) from Newark, NJ, to fight on January 31st on the Ring 6. You can view Robert Brizel’s article and view the opening betting odds here.
Terence Crawford was stripped of his WBC super-middleweight title for failing to pay the sanctioning body’s fees after his last two fights against Israil Madrimov and Canelo Alvarez. According to the WBC, they had a reduced cost of $300,000, which is 0.6% of his estimated $50 million purse from the Alvarez fight; however, Crawford failed to pay despite multiple attempts to collect the money. The WBC ordered Christian Mbilli’s next fight to be against Hamzah Sheeraz for the vacant WBC super-middleweight title.
Janibek Alimkhanuly, 32, (17-0, 12 Kos) was pulled from his Middleweight Championship fight this weekend against 42-year-old Erislandy Lara, (32-3-3, 19 Kos) for testing positive for a supplement designed to enhance his endurance called Meldonium. Johan Gonzalez, 34, (36-4, 32 Kos) from Venezuela, will be the replacement opponent on 4 days’ notice. You can read Robert Brizel’s article here.
In addition to Lara vs. Gonzalez, the other notable fights this weekend will see Mexican star and former world champion swarmer style fighter, Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, 27, (28-3-1, 18 Kos) step into the ring against reigning WBA Super Featherweight World Champion Lamont Roach Jr., 30, (25-1-2, 10 Kos), who is known as a counter puncher boxer style, will fight for the Interim WBC Super Lightweight Title, headlining a loaded PBC Pay-Per-View event on Prime Video taking place Saturday, December 6, from Frost Bank Center in San Antonio. Both fighters gave Gervonta Davis the hardest fights of his career. Many fans felt Roach and Cruz both defeated Davis. Gervonta Davis refused a rematch offer to fight Roach Jr.
The PBC pay-per-view will see two-division world champion Stephen Fulton Jr., 31,(23-1, 8 Kos) the reigning WBC Featherweight World Champion, moving up to take on WBC Super Featherweight World Champion O’Shaquie Foster, 32, (23-3, 12 Kos), a native of Orange, Texas, in a 130-pound world title fight that will now serve as the co-main event.
The other notable fight on this card will include Jesus Ramos Jr., 24, (23-1, 19 Kos) vs. Shane Mosley Jr., 34, (22-4, 12 Kos)
for the Middleweight Interim WBC middleweight title. Ramos Jr. lost against Erickson Lubin in 2023 and has since won three straight, all via knockout. The son of Hall of Famer Shane Mosley, Shane Jr., lost to Jason Quigley in 2021. Since then, he has won five straight; his last win was an upset against former world champion, Daniel Jacobs, in July 2024.
Further down the card in a must-win fight at Super Lightweight, when Frank Martin, 30, (18-1, 12 Kos) faces Rances Barthelemy, 39, (30-3-1, 15 Kos).”The Ghost” last fought in June 2024, where he got knocked out against Gervonta Davis. A Cuban Junior National Champion, Barthelemy (15-0), is a former IBF lightweight champion. Rances is 2-2 in his last four fights, his last win being in 2023.
You can view the Amazon PBC PPV preview, fighter predictions, press conference, weigh-in, and the full card betting odds here.
American heavyweight contender Michael “Bounty” Hunter, 37, (24-1-2, 17 Kos) will try to regain relevance as a contender and will face unbeaten British prospect Eli Frankham, 32, (3-0, 0 Kos) in a high-stakes clash at York Hall, Bethnal Green, on Friday, December 2025. You can read about this fight here.
Jai Opetaia, 30, (28-0, 22 Kos) will face Huseyin Cinkara, 40, (23-0, 19 Kos) weigh-in in Surfers Paradise, Australia, for their IBF/Ring Cruiserweight title fight on December 6th. You can view the weigh-in and press conference here.
On DAZN this weekend, Matchroom Promotions will be promoting MONTE-CARLO SHOWDOWN VI. You can view the full card and weigh-in here.
You can view the current international boxing rankings here.
In MMA News, UFC 323 takes place for the final time on ESPN+ before UFC moves to Paramount in 2026 on December 6th, when Merab Dvalishvili, 34, (21-4) faces Peter Yan, 32, (19-5) as the main event. Merab Dvalishvili and Petr Yan have fought once previously, with Dvalishvili winning by unanimous decision in March 2023. Dvalishvili dominated the five-round fight with superior wrestling, winning a decisive victory with all three judges scoring the bout 50-45. This could be Peter Yan’s last shot at UFC Gold after a few failed attempts, while Yan has won 3 fights in a row since losing to Merab. Merab is on a 14-fight win streak!
The co-main event sees the night’s first title up for grabs when UFC Flyweight Champion Alexandre Pantoja (30-5) takes on No. 1 Joshua Van (15-2) in an exciting flyweight contest. Pantoja, 35, is the division record holder for wins, finishes, and submissions. He goes for his fifth title defense, adding to his eight-fight win streak that began in 2021 and back-to-back submissions in his most recent outings. Van, who is only 24, holds the UFC record for most significant strikes landed per minute, is making his fourth Octagon appearance of 2025, and has won 5 fights in a row.
In a flyweight contest, two-time division champion No. 2 Brandon Moreno, 31, (23-8-2) goes head-to-head with No. 5 Tatsuro Taira, 25, (17-1), as Taira looks to make it 8-1 inside the Octagon and add to his five UFC stoppage victories. Both fighters are looking to win so they can have a shot at the 125lb title.
Former simultaneous two-division titleholder and U.S. Olympic gold medalist No. 10 Henry Cejudo (16-5) takes on Dana White’s Contender Series alumni Payton Talbott, 27, (10-1) from Reno, Nevada, in a bantamweight showdown. Henry Cejudo, 38, claims he is retiring after this fight; however would still consider a fight with his former friend and training partner, Brandon Moreno, if the UFC offered him that fight.
In a light heavyweight bout to kick off the ESPN PPV main card, former 205lb champion No. 5 Jan Blachowicz (29-11-1) goes up against No. 11 Bogdan Guskov (18-3), as Guskov, 33, who is a Brown Belt in BJJ, that also can box, aims to maintain his 100 percent career finish win rate, including 13 in the first round. Both fighters need this win to remain relevant in the top 10. Volkan Oezdemir is the only fighter to defeat Guskov in the UFC by submission in 2023. Guskov stopped Nikita Krylov in July of 2025 in the first round in Abu Dhabi. Blachowicz, who is age 42, understands this is his last shot at a title run and is coming off a unanimous decision loss to #3 Carlos Ulberg in March of 2025.
You can view the UFC 323 Countdown Show, Presser, Weigh-in, Media day, full card betting odds, and purchase the event here.
PFL MENA Welterweight Championship is up for grabs, as Kuwait’s Mohammad Alaqraa (9-1) takes on Morocco’s Badreddine “Dreamchaser” Diani (10-3). Originally set to meet in last year’s Welterweight finale, Alaqraa and Diani finally square off for PFL MENA gold. You can view the weigh-in photos and results here.
For PFL start times, more information, and to watch this event, click here.
To view the current UFC rankings, click here.
Get prepared for the UFC in 2026 and sign up to Paramount+ here.
For the most current news from the #2 MMA Promotion PFL, click here.
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