Gabriel Rosado (right) takes a punch from Maciej Sulecki during their WBO International Middleweight Championship bout at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia – Photo By Stephen McCarthy / Sportsfile via Getty Images
There is a lot of jostling amongst middleweights in the division. Maciej Sulecki hopes to make his way to the top.
Sulecki will face Rowdy Legend Montgomery tonight at the Melrose Ballroom in Queens, New York. The 10-round bout, contracted at 165 pounds, will headline a Primetime Promotions card that will stream live on BXNG.TV and in Poland on TVP Sport (7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT).
At Thursday’s weigh-in, Sulecki weighed in at 164.8 pounds. Montgomery came in at 163.6 pounds.
“Maciej Sulecki is back facing a tough Rowdy Montgomery from Southern California,” Lukasz Kownacki, who manages Sulecki, told The Ring Thursday. “Sulecki sells out with Polish fans here locally and is an amazing draw (because) of his fighting style and personality.
“We’re looking forward to having him back on the big stage soon, showing why he is still a top-level contender. He is training here in New York City and ready to showcase his talent on TVP Sport this Friday.
“Rowdy is a good fighter. We are not overlooking him. We know he recently beat an unbeaten prospect. He’s the type of fighter that can push Maciej and give him a tough test.”
Kownacki is the brother of heavyweight Adam Kownacki.
Sulecki (31-2, 12 knockouts), who was born and raised in Warsaw, Poland, last fought on June 9 of last year, knocking out journeyman Angel Hernandez in the second round. The win over Hernandez took place about 18 months after Sulecki defeated Fouad El Moussadi by decision.
The 35-year-old has won his last three fights since losing by decision to then-WBO world middleweight titleholder Demetrius Andrade in June 2019. In April 2018, Sulecki lost by unanimous decision to Daniel Jacobs.
Sulecki has notable victories over Hugo Centeno, Jack Culcay, and Gabriel Rosado.
Montgomery (11-5-1, 8 KOs), who resides in Victorville, California, was victorious in last fight on March 30, knocking out unbeaten light heavyweight Kareem Hackett in the third round. The win over Hackett took place about eight months after Montgomery lost a decision to Steven Nelson.
The 38-year-old had won his previous three fights prior to the loss to Nelson. He is trained by Southern California trainer Henry Ramirez.
Also on the card that is promoted by Eryk Rachwal, fringe junior lightweight contender Kamil Laszczyk (30-0, 11 KOs) of Wroclaw, Poland will square off against Yohan Vasquez in an eight-round bout. Laszczyk has not fought in almost two years.
Vasquez (25-5, 20 KOs), who is originally from the Dominican Republic and now resides in The Bronx, New York, has lost his last three fights, including a knockout loss to Tsendbateer Erdenebat on December 16.
Avtandil Khurtsidze (33-2, 22 KOs) of Georgia will return to the ring for the first time in over seven years when he will face Argentina’s Victor Exner (11-15-2, 5 KOs) in a six-round super middleweight bout.
Heavyweight prospect Piotr Lacz (9-0, 7 KOs) of Poland will square off against Joe Jones (14-10-1, 10 KOs) of Jersey City, New Jersey in an eight-round bout.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]
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