Hooker to face LesPierre on March 9th

By Patrick L. Stumberg

Badlefthook.com

Well, that didn’t take long. Maurice Hooker’s previously confirmed appearance on the Dmitry Bivol-Joe Smith Jr. undercard will see him fight WBO #14 Mikkel LesPierre in Hooker’s second super lightwieght title defense.

LesPierre (20-0-1, 9 KO), born in Trinidad and Tobago and currently living in New York, has spent his 6.5-year career doing a whole lot of nothing, frankly. He had his first 10-round bout in February, defeating 12-0 Noel Murphy, and then stopped recent Alex Saucedo victim Gustavo David Vittori four months later.

Even acknowledging, as Scott did, that most of Hooker’s appealing opponents are tied up in the World Boxing Super Series, this is weaksauce. His #1 contender, Jack Catterall, doesn’t have a fight booked. Neither does fellow Top Rank member and WBO #6 Arnold Barboza Jr., or #7 Georgi Chelokhsaev, or #9 Fatih Keles.

I mean, I knew this was what I was getting into when I became a boxing fan, so I can’t complain. But I’m going to, anyway.

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