Keith Thurman to defend against Luis Collazo on July 11
WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman (25-0, 21 KOs) will fight former champion Luis Collazo (36-6, 19 KOs) on July 11 in Tampa, Florida.
Thurman, 26, defeated former two-division world champion Robert Guerrero by a one-sided decision in March in his last outing and was seeking fights against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao. But for now he will have to settle for 34-year-old southpaw Collazo.
This has got to be seen as a step down for the champion because Collazo hasn’t done much in boxing for many years.
Collazo previously held the WBA 147 pound title from 2005 to 2006 before losing it to Ricky Hatton by a controversial decision. In January 2014, Collazo knocked out former world champion Victor Ortiz in the second round, but in his next fight four months later he lost a one-sided decision to Amir Khan and then contemplated retirement before returning to score a second round TKO over Christopher Degollado last month.
"Collazo always comes to fight," said Thurman. "He has been in with some of the best fighters in the world and he has tons of experience. I'm looking forward to it and I'm looking forward to giving the fans what they love to see - action. July 11 is going to be a night full of action."