Weekend Preview: Anselmo Moreno vs Abner Mares, Gary Russell Jr.

We’ve been focused on the local DMV boxing scene in recent weeks, but that will change slightly this Saturday as Showtime brings us one of my most anticipated showdowns of the year: Anselmo “Chemito” Moreno vs. Abner Mares at 122 lbs. The card in Los Angeles is fairly stacked, also featuring Leo Santa Cruz, Alfredo Angulo, Nathan Cleverly and more. That should help Showtime stack up against a solid if not spectacular competing show on HBO headlined by Erislandy Lara vs. Vanes Martirosyan at 154 and Mikey Garcia vs. Jonathan Barros at 130.

No reason to wait, however; the weekend gets off to a strong start tonight on ShoBox, as rising local featherweight Gary Russell Jr. returns in Indio, Calif. to headline a card full of members of the 2012 U.S. Olympic Boxing team making their pro debuts. Since we specialize in tracking the rise of promising prospects,  you can be sure we’ll be glued to our seats tonight. Full previews and a few predictions after the jump:[[MORE]]