Bektemir Melikuziev and Darius Fulghum are fit to fight.
Both boxers made weight for their WBA super-middleweight title elimination bout, though by different means. Uzbekistan’s Melikuziev was 166.8lbs on his second attempt after he was originally 0.2lbs over the limit. The 2016 Olympic silver medalist came back within the allotted one-hour period to shed more than a full pound.
Houston’s Fulghum checked in at 167.6lbs on his first and only trip to the scales.
Their scheduled 12-round contest will headline a DAZN show on Friday, beginning at 9pm. ET from Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas.
The timing and location of their fight is fitting, given what takes place one night later. Caleb Plant will defend his interim WBA 168lbs title against Armando Resendiz at the nearby Michelob ULTRA Arena. Their clash tops a PBC on Prime Video show that will also feature a super-middleweight contest between Jermall Charlo and Thomas “Cornflake” LaManna.
Wins by Plant and Charlo are expected to lead to a head-on collision later this year. The winner of Friday’s DAZN main event will factor into that mix down the road.
The primary WBA super-middleweight title is held by the lineal and undisputed champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, 63-3-2 (39 KOs).
Melikuziev, 15-1 (10KOs) – who trains out of Joel Diaz’s facility in Indio, California – has won eight in a row and has beaten every opponent he has faced as a pro. The lone hiccup he endured was a shocking knockout defeat by Gabe Rosado in June 2021. That setback was avenged less than two years later, when Melikuziev won a landslide decision over 10 rounds.
A 29-year-old southpaw, Melikuziev has since added wins over Alantez Fox, Pierre Dibombe and David Stevens to push closer to title contention.
Houston’s Fulghum, 14-0 (12 KOs) has stopped his past two opponents after being extended the 10-round distance twice in a three-fight span.
A 28-year-old contender who holds a nursing degree from Prairie View A&M University, Fulghum's career has been moved at an aggressive pace in his less than four years as a pro. He was tested in a decision win over Fox, which ended a seven-fight knockout streak, in January 2024. He was also taken 10 rounds in a unanimous decision win over Vaughn Alexander in June in Indio.
Fulghum has since scored back-to-back knockout wins, headed into his first scheduled 12-round affair.
Full weights
12 rounds – WBA super-middleweight title eliminator
Darius Fulghum (167.6lbs) vs Bektemir Melikuziev (168lbs)
10 rounds – middleweight
Eric Priest (159.8lbs) vs Luis Arias (159.6lbs)
10 rounds – junior middleweight
Santiago Dominguez (149.6lbs) vs John Vincent Moralde (155.8lbs)
8 rounds – junior middleweight
Grant Flores (156.4lbs) vs Brandon Diaz-Campos (will weigh in later)
6 rounds – heavyweight
Federico Pacheco Jnr (259.4lbs) vs Calvin Barnett (270.4lbs)
6 rounds – welterweight
Cayden Griffiths (149lbs) vs Edgar Gutierrez (146.6lbs)
6 rounds – heavyweight
Joshua Edwards (222.4lbs) vs. Alexander Rhodes (273.8lbs)
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on and .