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Australia’s IBF featherweight king Billy Dib will have a rare non-title fight before chasing big bouts with compatriot Joel Brunker and super featherweight world champion Adrien Broner.
Dib (34-1, 21 KOs) will fight Mexican southpaw Juan Antonio Rodriguez (21-3, 19 KOs) in a super featherweight bout at Campsie in Sydney on July 13.
Also on Wednesday, three-division world title winner Danny Green (31-5, 27 KOs) announced he would fight three-time light heavyweight title contender Danny Santiago (31-5-1, 19 KOs) at Perth’s Challenge Stadium on July 25.
Dib is taking his fight against former WBC youth featherweight world champion Rodriguez – who has lost just one of his past 18 contests – with a view to moving up to the super featherweight division next year.
While he ultimately wants a crack at WBO super featherweight champion Broner, Dib is also eyeing a featherweight title defence early next year against WBO No.3 ranked Brunker, which could be his swansong in that division.
He outpointed 2004 Olympian Brunker during their amateur days and used his fellow Sydneysider as a sparring partner before a couple of his recent fights.
Brunker (22-0, 13 KOs) will fight Mexican Edgar Riovalle (34-13-1, 24 KOs) on the July 13 undercard at Orion Function Centre.
“He’s No.3 in the world, he’s worked extremely hard to get where he is and if the Australian public call for the fight and they want to see it I will give him what he wants,” Dib said.
He said the fight next month was about testing the waters in preparation for him moving up a division.
“I’m chasing some big fights in that division,” Dib said.
“A dream fight for me would be against Adrien Broner, who is being groomed as the next Floyd Mayweather in America, that’s the fight I’m chasing at super featherweight.”
Dib will have to make a mandatory defence of his title later this year, which he expects to have in the United States, possibly against Luis Franco or Gary Russell Jr.
Meanwhile, Green declared his intention to keep fighting despite losing his past two bouts.
He said the fight against Santiago would probably be his last in his home city.
While old adversary Anthony Mundine recently called him out, Green revealed he had been offered a number of world title opportunities.
“I’m not chasing ‘Choc’ (Mundine) because we’ve got offers from Beibut Shumenov to fight for his (WBA) world title,” he said.
“We’ve had offers from (IBO champion) Jean Pascal to fight in Montreal, and (British promoter) Frank Warren’s matchmaker has contacted (my trainer) Angelo Hyder to fight his guy Nathan Cleverly for the WBO world title.”
Santiago, who is the same age as 39-year-old Green, lost world title fights to Shumenov, Antonio Tarver and Zsolt Erdei.
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