Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Subriel Matias congratulated Richardson Hitchins on Saturday night on his victory over IBF light welterweight champion Liam Paro, letting him know he would see him soon. Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) dethroned Paro (25-1, 15 KOs), winning by split decision over 12 rounds at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
(Credit: Melina Pizano/Matchroom)
If the fight happens, it would be a difficult style for Hitchins because Matias wouldn’t be afraid to press like Paro did. He would take Richardson down like Gustavo Lemos did, but he would hit harder shots.
Matias (22-2, 21 KOs) is counting on Hitchins to decide to defend his newly won IBF belt against him, which could happen if he fails to bite any of the big names his promoter Eddie Hearn has said he wants to try. to face him against the next one. These are the four Hearn mentioned he wants for Hitchins:
If Hearn can’t get any of those four to agree to face Hitchins, Matias will likely be the next opponent he lines him up against. He is ranked No. 5 in the IBF, below Jack Catterall and Arnold Barboza Jr. Matías (21-2, 21 KOs) was defeated by Paro by unanimous decision in 12 rounds last summer, on June 15.
Richardson Hitchins would move up to 147 if this fight is ever ordered. #Boxing pic.twitter.com/8XMqyoorqh
-Zain (@ZainBoxing) December 8, 2024
Hearn didn’t mention former IBF light welterweight champion Subriel Matias as a possible Hitchins’ next opponent, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to make this fight next. The four guys Hearn mentioned won’t be excited about fighting him because his style is bad for each of them.
“When I got in the ring afterwards, some of Liam’s team came up to me and said, ‘Do you think we could have gotten a draw on the last one?’ Honestly, no. I got it 8-4. 7-5 if you want to be really generous, but no,” Eddie Hearn told iFL TVtalking about Richardson Hitchins’ victory over Liam Paro last Saturday night.
“When it read 117-111, I thought, ‘Don’t tell me someone is giving it to Liam Paro.’ 117-111, you’re scoring 9-3 against Liam Paro. It’s incredible. I told Liam the problem for him was between five and ten, probably eleven, all clear Richardson Hitchins rounds.
“In those rounds, he basically racked up six guaranteed rounds. You have to give it maybe 12. Maybe that was for Liam, but for me it was 8-4 or 7-5. The right man won. It was an incredible performance.
It’s a good thing Hitchins wasn’t robbed on Saturday night because that would have spoiled the evening. The judge scored it 117-111 for Paro, who should have been concentrating on the little things he was doing and ignoring all the clean right hands Hitchins was hitting him from the fifth round onwards.
“He fights Teófimo López for Brooklyn. It is a unification fight. The preparation would be epic. This is a great fight,” Hearn said when asked who Hitchins will fight next. That’s what he’s going to do next because I think a fighter of Richardson’s quality should fight those guys. (José ‘Rayo’) Valenzuela. Obviously, we have (Jack) Catterall. He (Teófimo) is talking about moving to 147. Get together before you leave,” Hearn said.
Hearn may be able to get one of those guys to agree to fight Hitchins, but it will probably require His Excellency Turki Alalshikh to choose to host the fight in Riyadh. Hitchins doesn’t have the popularity to attract the names he and Hearn would like him to fight. These fighters would need to be well received to agree to fight Hitchins due to the likelihood of them losing.