Arnold Barboza Jr. and Jack Catterall weighed 139 3/4 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in for their 12-round fight for the vacant WBO interim light welterweight title this Saturday, February 15th, at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England. The event will be shown live on DAZN.

(Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)

As Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn points out, the winner of the Catterall vs. Barboza Jr. fight will very likely be elevated to the full WBO 140-lb champion when Teofimo Lopez vacates or is stripped of his title for failure to fight them. Teo does NOT want to fight either of these guys, notably Barboza Jr. (31-0, 11 KOs). Something about that guy makes Lopez want nothing to do with fighting him.

Catterall’s Style

Using his counterfeit Shakur style, Catterall (30-1, 13 KOs) has put together four consecutive wins since his controversial 12-round decision loss to former undisputed champion Josh Taylor on February 26, 2022. Catterall fights just like Shakur Stevenson. He is the spitting image of the Newark, New Jersey native inside the ring.

Barboza Jr. has too much talent for that fighting style, and it could be a bad night for Catterall if he can’t come up with the offensive firepower to deal with his skills. Barboza Jr. may have the most talent out of all the fighters in the 140-lb division, and he’s not someone that an imitation Shakur style will work against.

Jose Ramirez found pockets of success against Barboza Jr. when he focused on his power game in their fight on November 16, but it still wasn’t enough for him to win. He did show that the way to give Barboza Jr. problems was with pressure and hard punches. Unfortunately for Catterall, he has no power and is not a pressure fighter.

“I’m hoping to give the UK fans a great show. Hopefully, some of these fans will come back with me,” said Arnold Barboza Jr. to DAZN Boxing after weighing in today for his fight against Jack Catterall this Saturday night in Manchester.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a knockout or if it goes the distance. We’re ready to go 15 rounds if need be or ready to six to stop him.”

“I’m super focused. I have one more sleep tonight. All the hard work’s done with the team. I’m going to rest and relax and stay tuned for tomorrow night,” said Catterall. “Jack Catterall wins.”