All photos by Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions
Fresh off his impressive victory over Takashi Miura on Saturday, July 15, 2017, Max Kellerman commented to Miguel Berchelt during the post-fight interview, “You now have out boxed and out toughed the two toughest guys in the division, in [Francisco] Vargas and Miura.”
Berchelt’s full abilities were on display Saturday night at The Fabulous Forum. He turned what was billed as a potential fight of the year candidate, into a highly entertaining, but one-sided beat down.
Now the question becomes, what’s next for Berchelt?
When surveying the top of the Junior Lightweight division, the two names which come up are Vasyl Lomachenko (8-1, 6 KOs) and Jezreel Corrales (22-1, 8 KOs).
Corrales battled Robinson Castellanos on the undercard of Berchelt vs Miura and earned a hard-fought technical decision.
Corrales, the WBA Junior Lightweight champion, has an entertaining style which you’d have to believe would mesh well Berchelt’s.
Corrales is fast, can punch and is not one to shy away from violent exchanges with his opponent, as evidenced in the Castellanos fight. The fight would arguably be easy to make as Berchelt’s promoter Zanfer Promotions, and Corrales’ promoter Golden Boy Promotions, have worked together in the past, including this past Saturday.
The one hypothetical matchup which immediately captured the boxing public’s attention is Berchelt taking on the division kingpin, Lomachenko. Lomachenko is widely regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters currently.
He has looked sensational in his most recent outings, leaving audiences in awe of a boxing skill set which appears to be unrivaled by any pugilist in the sport.
Lomachenko is scheduled to face Miguel Marriaga August 5 at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles. When asked whether he would like to fight Lomachenko by Max Kellerman, Berchelt didn’t hesitate.
“I am ready to fight the best, I already showed it,” said Berchelt. “I beat Vargas, beat Miura, I am ready to fight the best.”
Although Lomachenko is an intriguing matchup, it is hard to see how this fight takes place next for Berchelt. Lomachenko is at a point in his career where he is looking for the most attractive fights from a commercial standpoint and a fight with Berchelt doesn’t meet that criteria quite yet.
There have also been conversations of Lomachenko possibly moving up a weight class to take on Mikey Garcia. The only way the fight takes place is if Lomachenko wants it to. Berchelt can lobby for the fight, but he is ultimately at the mercy of Lomachenko.
One matchup which has not garnered much attention is a fight with fellow countryman, Orlando “Siri” Salido. Berchelt would definitely be the favorite for good reason and their styles would all but guarantee an exciting fight.
There have been reports linking Salido (44-13-4-, 31 KOs) to a possible matchup against Gervonta “Tank” Davis (18-0, 17 KOs) on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor.
If this fight does in fact take place and Salido pulls off the upset, Berchelt vs. Salido could take priority over any other fight and both fighters’ teams would be willing to make.
Whomever Berchelt faces next, with Saturday nights impressive performance, he put the boxing public on notice that he is a force to reckon with in the Junior Lightweight division.
