In an unfortunate turn of events, the FOX preliminary portion of the Floyd Mayweather versus Conor McGregor mega event has lost its primary attraction. Former titleholder Shawn “Showtime” Porter was supposed to main event it versus Thomas Dulorme, but he has now dropped out of the fight. Yordenis Ugas will step in as a late replacement nine days out from fight night.
Shawn Porter (27-2-1, 17 KOs), who is withdrawing citing a death in the family, was a heavy favorite in this fight. A former IBF titlist, Porter was much more accomplished than Thomas Dulorme (24-2, 16 KOs). The Puerto Rican was once considered a major prospect, but he has now been stopped twice in his two biggest tests. Dulorme does have a pretty good win over Hank Lundy though.
While this is definitely damage to the show’s drawing power, as a fight it is probably improved. Yordenis Ugas (19-3, 9 KOs), a 2005 amateur World Championship gold medalist and 2008 Olympic bronze medalist, is one of many prized fighters to come from the highly acclaimed Cuban amateur system. Three early losses tempered expectations, but it should be noted that all three were against unbeaten fighters and two were split decisions. Ugas is currently on a three fight winning streak over a trio of decent, mid level PBC fighters. This win could push him back towards real contention in the division.
All in all, this is a more interesting fight, but it certainly won’t draw the same eyeballs.
