Make no mistake, Jarrett Hurd is a fighter.
Though he entered his initial International Boxing Organization 154-pound title defense as a prohibitive
favorite over former British champ Jason Welborn, he wasn’t about to make it easy on himself.
Instead, the unbeaten Maryland went tooth and nail for the majority of nearly four full rounds before finally
blunting the challenger’s bid with a single right hand to the body that yielded a KO.
It was Hurd’s first fight since dethroning longtime IBO champ Erislandy Lara in April, and also his first since
undergoing surgery on his left shoulder.
“I’m just coming off surgery so I wanted to see how I worked off the jab,” Hurd said.
“I felt good I was working behind the jab. I got caught on the ropes and got caught with some shots and said
‘That’s enough. He got enough TV time.’”
Indeed, the bout was the final pay-per-view run-up to the heavyweight main event between Deontay Wilder
and former IBO title-holder Tyson Fury. Several reports have suggested the PPV event drew more than
300,000 buys, meaning Hurd is on his way to becoming a household name at 154.
Hurd also holds the IBF and WBA belts, and he was accosted in the ring by Jermell Charlo – the reigning
WBC champ – after beating Welborn.
“We definitely want Charlo. I’m calling the shots. I’m number one right now,” Hurd said. “When I say answer
the phone, answer the phone. I got the date. I’m going to have a hometown fight. I’m coming off two fights
with southpaws so I want to fight a right-hander and then I want the Charlo fight.”
Charlo seemed equally interested, and just as nimble with his words.
“This is easy money,” he said.
“I like those belts – they look real good on you. He said he wants another fight. I’m ready now.”
Hurd’s current elite-level career arc began early in 2017, when he rallied to stop Tony Harrison on the undercard
of Wilder’s bout with Gerald Washington in Birmingham, Alabama.
Eight months later he was in Brooklyn and on the victorious end of a 10th-round TKO over Austin Trout,
who started quickly but wilted under Hurd’s persistence and power.
The Lara win for the IBO title last winter, which is on many short lists for 2018 fight of the year, and the defeat
of Welborn lifted Hurd to 23-0 with 16 KOs.
Incidentally, Charlo will face Harrison on Dec. 22 in Brooklyn.
Boxrec.com has Hurd ranked first among all active fighters at super welterweight, followed by Lara at No.
2, WBO title claimant Jaime Munguia at No. 3 and Charlo at No. 4. The top five is rounded out by Julian
Williams, who was dropped three times and stopped by Charlo in December 2016.
In other words, Hurd shouldn’t be hurting for dance partners.
“I don’t plan on moving up any time soon,” Hurd said.
“Making weight is still fairly easy. I’m not struggling with it at all. I think I can stay here for another year or
year and a half. One thing’s for sure, I don’t plan on moving up until I get that fight with Charlo. Whenever
that happens, I’m not moving up until it happens.”
The space between welterweight and middleweight also includes Liam Smith – a KO loser to Canelo Alvarez in
2016 – and a newcomer in Kell Brook, who weighed 153¼ for a second-round KO win in March after losing
consecutive fights to then-IBO middleweight king Gennady Golovkin and Errol Spence Jr. while weighing
159½ and 146½, respectively.
Boxrec has the two Englishmen sixth (Brook) and 12th (Smith) at 154.
And count Hurd among those happy to accommodate the would-be rivals.
“In between fights I am gaining a little more weight than I usually have been. Maybe it’s with the age. I’m
getting older,” Hurd said. “It depends on how soon (a Charlo fight) happens, and there are other fights I’ll stay
at 154 for, too. Especially a fight with Kell Brook.
“I could get some fans from over in his country with that fight, or with Liam Smith.”
I.B.O. WORLD TITLE UPCOMING FIGHTS
Light Heavyweight Karo Murat (Germany) vs. Sven Fornling (Sweden) December 15th, 2018, Germany
I.B.O. WORLD CHAMPIONS
Heavyweight – Anthony Joshua (UK) Super Featherweight – Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (Russia)
Cruiserweight – Kevin Lerena (S. Africa) Light Heavyweight – Karo Murat (Germany)
Super Bantamweight – Paulus Ambunda (Namibia) Super Welterweight – Jarrett Hurd (US)
Bantamweight – Michael Dasmarinas (Philippines) Welterweight – Thulani Mbenge (S. Africa)
Super Flyweight – Gideon Buthelezi (South Africa) Super Lightweight – Mohamed Mimoune (France)
Minimumweight – Simphiwe Khonco (S. Africa)
I.B.O. WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONS
Middleweight – Ivana Habazin (Croatia) Lightweight – Chantelle Cameron (UK)
Welterweight – Cecilia Braekhus (Norway) Flyweight – Nina Radovanovic (Serbia)
Minimumweight – Zongju Cai (China)
I.B.O. WORLD TITLE FIGHT RESULTS
December 8th, 2018 Welterweight Thulani Mbenge defeats Miguel Vazquez RTD
December 2nd, 2018 Minimumweight Simphiwe Khonco vs. Joey Canoy ND
December 1st, 2018 Super Welterweight Jarrett Hurd defeats Jason Welborn KO (4th)
October 20th, 2018 Super Lightweight Mohamed Mimoune defeats Franck Petitjean UD
September 29th, 2018 Super Bantamweight Paulus Ambunda defeats Muhamad Ridhwan KO (7th)
September 22nd, 2018 Heavyweight Anthony Joshua defeats Alexander Povetkin TKO
September 15th, 2018 Middleweight Saul Alvarez defeats Gennady Golovkin MD
August 19th, 2018 Super Featherweight Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov defeats Robinson Castellanos TKO (2nd)
July 27th, 2018 Super Flyweight Gideon Buthelezi defeats Lucas Emanuel Fernandez Leone UD
July 22nd, 2018 Minimumweight Simphiwe Khonco defeats Toto Landero UD
June 23rd, 2018 Welterweight Thulani Mbenge defeats Diego Chaves KO (7th)
June 2nd, 2018 Cruiserweight Kevin Lerena defeats Roman Golovashchenko UD
May 5th, 2018 Middleweight Gennady Golovkin defeats Vanes Martirosyan KO (2nd)
April 20th, 2018 Bantamweight Michael Dasmarinas defeats Karim Guerfi KO (4th)
April 7th, 2018 Super Welterweight Jarrett Hurd defeats Erislandy Lara SD
March 31st, 2018 Heavyweight Anthony Joshua defeats Joseph Parker UD
March 24th, 2018 Light Heavyweight Karo Murat defeats Travis Reeves TKO (12th)
March 3rd, 2018 Cruiserweight Kevin Lerena defeats Dmitry Kucher UD
February 17th, 2018 Super Middleweight George Groves defeats Chris Eubank Jr. UD
February 10th, 2018 Super Featherweight Shavkat Rakhimov defeats Malcom Klassen KO (8th)
January 27th, 2018 Lightweight Emmanuel Tagoe defeats Fernando Saucedo TKO (10th)
January 20th, 2018 Super Lightweight Mohamed Mimoune defeats Emiliano Rodriguez UD
December 30th, 2017 Super Featherweight Firuza Sharipova defeats Djemilla Gontaruk UD
December 2nd, 2017 Light Heavyweight Igor Mikhalkin defeats Doudou Ngumbu UD
October 28th, 2017 Heavyweight Anthony Joshua defeats Carlos Takam TKO (10th)
October 14th, 2017 Super Welterweight Erislandy Lara defeats Terrell Gausha UD
October 7th, 2017 Super Middleweight Chris Eubank Jr. defeats Avni Yildirim KO (3rd)
September 16th, 2017 Middleweight Gennady Golovkin draws with Saul Alvarez DR
September 9th, 2017 Super Featherweight Shavkat Rakhimov defeats Emanuel Lopez UD
September 9th, 2017 Cruiserweight Kevin Lerena defeats Youri Kalenga SD
July 28th, 2017 Super Flyweight Gideon Buthelezi defeats Ryan Ponteras UD
July 15th, 2017 Super Middleweight Chris Eubank Jr. defeats Arthur Abraham UD
June 10th, 2017 Minimumweight Simphiwe Khonco defeats Lito Dante UD
I.B.O. WOMEN’S WORLD TITLE FIGHT RESULTS
December 8th, 2018 Women’s Welterweight Cecilia Braekhus defeats Aleksandra Lopes UD
December 8th, 2018 Women’s Flyweight Nina Radovanovic defeats Sanae Jah MD
October 13th, 2018 Women’s Lightweight Chantelle Cameron defeats Jessica Gonzalez UD
September 8th, 2018 Women’s Middleweight Ivana Habazin defeats Gifty Amanua Ankrah UD
July 21st, 2018 Women’s Welterweight Cecilia Braekhus defeats Inna Sagaydakovskaya UD
May 5th, 2018 Women’s Welterweight Cecilia Braekhus defeats Kali Reis UD
April 21st, 2018 Women’s Super Welterweight Mikaela Lauren defeats Verena Kaiser MD
December 2nd, 2017 Women’s Lightweight Chantelle Cameron defeats Viviane Obenauf RTD
November 27th, 2017 Women’s Super Lightweight Svetlana Kulakova defeats Judy Waguthii SD
October 21st, 2017 Women’s Welterweight Cecilia Braekhus defeats Mikaela Lauren TKO (6th)
June 9th, 2017 Women’s Welterweight Cecilia Braekhus defeats Erika Farias UD
