Dan Rafael has the latest on former IBF lightweight champion Richard Commey, who hasn’t seen action since losing his title to Teofimo Lopez last December. The 33-year-old “will be back in action on either Jan. 23 or in early February on a Top Rank undercard,” per co-manager Keith Connelly.
Jackson Marinez and Antonio Moran are potential opponents.
The Lopez loss was Commey’s first since a pair of narrow split decisions against Robert Easter Jr. and Denis Shafikov back in 2016. His five-fight winning streak had seen him crush Isa Chaniev for the belt, miss out on a fight with Vasiliy Lomachenko due to a knuckle injury, and then beat down an overweight Ray Beltran in his first defense
Even if he doesn’t end up claiming a title again, it’s good to see the Ghanaian back in action. He always fights his ass off and is, by all accounts, a genuinely good human being outside the ring. Top Rank has no shortage of up-and-comers who need their mettle tested, so 2021 will hopefully be a busy year for Commey.