- Zuffa Boxing announced on Tuesday 13 October that WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames has signed a multi-fight promotional deal, with details of his next fight to follow soon
- Adames is 32, 25-1-1 with 18 knockouts, and his last outing was a unanimous decision win over Austin Williams in Orlando in March
- If the WBC mandatory against Meiirim Nursultanov is next, my prediction is Adames by unanimous decision
Carlos Adames Is A Zuffa Fighter
Right then. Carlos Adames has a new home. Zuffa Boxing announced on Tuesday that the WBC middleweight champion has signed a multi-fight deal, and the promotion says the details of his next fight are coming soon. The Dominican, 32 and from Elias Pina, said it was “a new chapter” in his career and that he is here to make history. Let’s not beat around the bush: after the year he has had, a new chapter is exactly what he needed.
Adames is 25-1-1 with 18 knockouts. His most recent fight was in March in Orlando, where he beat Austin Williams on the cards to keep his belt. It was a professional shift rather than a spectacle, and that sums up the problem. Carlos Adames has been a champion without a proper stage.
Why This Deal Matters For Adames
Make no mistake, this is about leverage and timing. The WBC ordered Adames to defend against mandatory challenger Meiirim Nursultanov, with a purse bid pencilled in for 20 October if the two camps could not agree terms. The winner then has to face Jesus Ramos Jr, who keeps his interim status. Signing with a promoter before that deadline hands Adames control of how it is staged, rather than leaving it to the mercy of a purse bid.
The Loneliest Champion At 160
I have said before that Adames is the middleweight nobody wants to share a ring with. He is awkward, he is heavy-handed and he has a proper chin, but he has never been the box-office name. A big promotion with a big platform changes that conversation. Zuffa also has a Fury and Joshua card lined up for Cardiff in December, and the more eyes that land on this company, the more eyes land on Adames.
My Prediction
I do not know yet who Carlos Adames fights first for Zuffa, and the promotion has not said. But if it is the mandatory, Nursultanov, I am backing the champion by unanimous decision. Adames is levels above in power and in the big moments, and he showed in Orlando that he can win a fight without being at his best. Nursultanov will be dangerous and tough. He will not be stopping this man.
The bigger prize is a unification, and the middleweight division has no shortage of names. A good Zuffa matchmaker should make Adames fight the best in the weight class, not hide him. If they do that, this deal could be the making of him.