FIGHT WEEK

OSCAR VALDEZ HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO DEFEND HIS 130-POUND TITLE IN SPITE OF TESTING POSITIVE FOR A BANNED SUBSTANCE. AND EVANDER HOLYFIELD RETURNS AT 58.

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OSCAR VALDEZ (29-0, 23 KOs)
VS. ROBSON CONCEICAO (16-0, 8 KOs)

• When: Friday, Sept. 10
• Where: Casino Del Sol, Tucson, Ariz.
• TV/Stream: ESPN+
• Division: Junior lightweight (130 pounds)
• At stake: Valdez’s WBC title
• Pound-for-pound ranking: Valdez, Honorable Mention
• Odds: 11½-1 odds (average of multiple sites)
• Also on the card: Gabriel Flores Jr. vs. Luis Alberto Lopez, junior lightweights; Junto Nakatani vs. Angel Acosta, junior lightweights (for Nakatani’s WBO title)
• Prediction: Valdez KO 8
• Background: Valdez’s reputation soared and was floored within a seven-month span. The hard-punching Mexican recorded a career-defining victory by stopping Miguel Berchelt to win a 130-pound belt in February only to test positive for a banned substance in the week before his first defense, although he was placed on probation and allowed to defend his belt. Valdez denies he knowingly used a PED. The former featherweight champ reached new heights by putting his respected countryman Berchelt down three times and stopping him in Round 10 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, after which he climbed onto some pound-for-pound lists. Then, last Tuesday, we learned that he tested positive for the weight-loss medication phentermine, which is banned by the drug-testing outlet to which the fighters agreed, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association. Phentermine is also a stimulant that can enhance endurance. The Pascua Yaqui Tribal Athletic Commission, which is overseeing the card, allowed the fight to go on because it adheres to World Anti-Doping Agency rules. WADA bans the drug only when it’s detected closer to the competition. And the WBC decided probation was sufficient. Conceicao, a 2016 Olympic gold medalist from Brazil, has vast amateur experience but has faced no one near Valdez’s status as a professional. He has taken part in only three scheduled 10-rounders.

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EVANDER HOLYFIELD (44-10-2, 29 KOs)
VS. VITOR BELFORT (1-0, 1 KOs)

• When: Saturday, Sept. 11
• Where: Seminole Hard Rock, Hollywood, Fla.
• TV/Stream: Pay-per-view
• Division: Heavyweight
• At stake: No titles
• Pound-for-pound ranking: None
• Odds: Holyfield 1½-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)

• Also on the card: Andy Vences vs. Jono Carroll, junior lightweights; Anderson Silva vs. Tito Ortiz, cruiserweights
• Prediction: Holyfield KO 7

• Background: Oscar De La Hoya, 48, was scheduled to fight Vitor Belfort in Los Angeles but had to pull out after testing positive for COVID-19. In stepped 58-year-old former heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield, who has been angling for a comeback fight over the past few years and was targeted by Belfort. Holyfield last fought in May 2011, when he stopped Brian Nielsen in 10 rounds. He was always known for his fitness but there is no telling how a man nearing his 59^th birthday will perform in the ring, even one of the best fighters of his generation. That said, he’ll have a distinct advantage over Belfort in terms of experience. The 44-year-old former UFC champion has taken part in one boxing match, a first-round knockout in 2006. And Holyfield presumably will be significant bigger than Belfort. Holyfield weighed 226 for the Nielsen fight. Belfort and De La Hoya had agreed to a 185-pound weight limit, although Belfort probably will come in well over 185 without restrictions. The fight was moved to Florida after California authorities refused to sanction the bout.

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• Also fighting this weekend: Heavyweight contender Tony Yoka (10-0, 8 KOs) faces Petar Milas (15-0, 11 KOs) on Friday in Paris (ESPN+); Filip Hrgovic (12-0, 10 KOs) takes on Marko Radonjic (22-0, 22 KOs) in a heavyweight bout Friday in Klagenfurt, Austria (DAZN); Kerman Lejarraga (32-2, 25 KOs) vs. Dylan Charrat (20-0-1, 6 KOs) face off in a junior middleweight bout Saturday in Barcelona, Spain (DAZN); and Roxie Lam (7-4, 4 KOs) faces Carietto Santoro (5-0, 1 KO) in a featherweight bout Saturday in Grand Prarie, Canada (FITE).