It’s been 5½ years since Keith Thurman last fought in the area from which he hails, and in his return, he promises pain.
Keith Thurman's clash with Luis Collazo on Saturday will be his first hometown fight in nearly six years.
“We’re coming to hurt this boy,” Thurman said of Luis Collazo at Friday's weigh-in at the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida, the site of Saturday's fight, which airs on ESPN at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
Keith Thurman (25-0, 21 KOs) came in under the 147-pound limit at 146.2 pounds, while Luis Collazo (36-6, 19 KOs) weighed in at exactly 147.
While Thurman will have plenty of friends and relatives in the house Saturday night, Collazo will also have a special family member cheering him on: his ailing mother, who will be seeing him fight for the first time in her life, professional or otherwise.
“Having her here is a blessing,” Collazo said.
In the co-main event, Tony Harrison (21-0, 18 KOs) was 153.8 pounds and Willie Nelson (23-2-1, 13 KOs) was 154.6 for their fight.
Harrison and Nelson got in a shoving match Thursday at the press conference for the fight, and although they played it cool Friday, Harrison made it known that he was taking this scrap personally.
“Bad blood,” he said repeatedly after making weight, speaking of Nelson.
The doubleheader marks the debut of PBC on ESPN.
“This is big for our network,” announcer Joe Tessitore said, “and big for the sport.”
