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Mike Coppinger, ESPN
Subriel Matias and Liam Paro are in the process of finalizing a deal for a junior welterweight title fight June 15 in Manati, Puerto Rico, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.
It’s a homecoming for Matias, who will defend his IBF title at 140 pounds for the second time.
Matias (20-1, 20 KOs) has stopped every fighter he has ever faced in the pros. His lone defeat, a decision setback to Petros Ananyan in February 2020, was avenged three fights later via ninth-round TKO in January 2022.
Matias’ past six fights were under the PBC banner, but after he signed a three-fight deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing last month, his bout against Paro will be streamed on DAZN.
Matias, 31, is ESPN’s No. 3 junior welterweight and is among boxing’s top action stars. His last fight was in November, when he stopped Shohjahon Ergashev in Round 5.
Paro (24-0, 15 KOs) is a 27-year-old southpaw coming off a career-best performance, a sixth-round TKO win over contender Montana Love in December. All but two of Paro’s fights took place in his native Australia, where he lives and trains.