Former WBO World Super Bantamweight Champion Isaac Dogboe will be moving up to featherweight when he faces veteran Chris Avalos on Tuesday, July 21.
The scheduled eight-round bout will take place at the MGM Grand Ballroom in Las Vegas, Nevada and will be televised by US network, ESPN.
For Ghana’s Dogboe, this will be his first bout since suffering successive losses to Mexico’s Emanuel Navarrete. The two first squared off in December 2018. Navarrete dominated, battering Dogboe to win a 12-round unanimous decision and wrest away his WBO 122-pound world title.
The May 2019 rematch was just as one-sided. Dogboe tasted canvas in the sixth and 12th rounds. The fight was stopped in the final frame as Dogboe’s corner threw in the towel.
Dogboe (20-2, 14 KOs) hasn’t fought since, spending much of the time searching for a new voice in his corner to pair with father/trainer Paul Dogboe. The younger Dogboe briefly worked with Freddie Roach before deciding it wasn’t a good fit. That was followed by a stint with legendary boxer James Toney and John “Pops” Arthur. Ultimately, that didn’t pan out either.
Ultimately, Dogboe settled on Washington, DC based trainers Barry Hunter and Patrice Harris, two of the more respected coaches in the sport. While Hunter has expressed his desire to see Dogboe remain at 122lbs, the man called “Royal Storm” will make his return at 126.
His opponent, the 30-year-old Avalos (27-7, 20 KOs), is coming off back to back losses and appears to be entering the latter stages of his pro career. Nevertheless, he’ll be a good barometer for a Dogboe also coming off back to back defeats.
