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Zuffa Boxing

The second edition of Zuffa Boxing takes place Sunday from the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. In the main event, former junior welterweight champion Jose Valenzuela will take on Diego Torres.

Valenzuela started his career 12-0 before running into Edwin De Los Santos in 2022. That night, Valenzuela suffered a third-round knockout for the first loss of his career. That loss was followed by a widely disputed decision loss to Chris Colbert. Valenzuela would get revenge against Colbert in an immediate rematch, scoring a sixth-round knockout with a devastating right hand.

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The win over Colbert was enough to set Valenzuela up for the biggest fight of his career, a shot at Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz for the WBA junior welterweight title. Valenzuela made good on the opportunity with a measured performance to edge out a split decision in a major upset.

Valenzuela was unable to repeat that solid performance in his first title defense -- and most recent fight -- when he was nearly shut out by Gary Antuanne Russell to lose the belt.

Valenzuela will now look to get back in the win column when he faces Torres, who has fought all but one of his career bouts in his native Mexico.

That lone fight in the United States was also Torres' lone professional loss, a 2023 TKO defeat against Raymond Muratalla. That loss has aged well as Muratalla has gone on to become the current IBF lightweight champion.

Torres has rebounded from the Muratalla loss with four consecutive wins, including two by stoppage.

The other two fights on the Zuffa Boxing 02 main card are very compelling with names that are familiar to boxing fans.

At middleweight, Serhii Bohachuk will face Radzhab Butaev in a fight that could steal the show. Bohachuk nearly upended the career of rising star Vergil Ortiz in 2024, scoring a pair of knockdowns en route to a narrow majority decision loss. Bohachuk is coming off a loss to Brandon Adams in his most recent fight but remains a dangerous man on any given night. In Butaev, faces a similar slugger with 12 knockouts in 16 career victories.

Also, former light heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk will face Radivoje Kalajdzic in another fight with explosive potential.

Let's take a look at the odds for each bout as well as how you can catch the action on Sunday before getting to a prediction and expert pick on the main event below.

Zuffa Boxing 02 fight card, odds

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

  • Jose Valenzuela -800 vs. Diego Torres +500, lightweights
  • Serhii Bohachuk -175 vs. Radzhab Butaev +140, middleweights
  • Oleksandr Gvozdyk -550 vs. Radivoje Kalajdzic +380, light heavyweights

Where to watch Zuffa Boxing 02

Date: Feb. 1 | Location: Meta APEX -- Las Vegas
Prelims begin at 6 p.m. ET
Main card begins at 9 p.m. ET
Watch live: Paramount+ (subscribe now for just $8.99 per month)

Prediction

As mentioned, Torres' lone career loss came against the best fighter he has fought and in the United States. The fight with Valenzuela is very similar for Torres. Like Muratalla, Valenzuela is considerably better than the rest of the fighters on Torres' resume. And Torres is having to come to America again to take on another big challenge. This should be a chance for Valenzuela to get off to a solid start in his Zuffa Boxing debut. Pick: Jose Valenzuela via TKO5