Former monarch in two divisions, Jose “Sniper” Pedrasa and his opponent Arnold Barbosa Jr already in Glendale, Arizona for Friday’s match on the Top Rank undercard at the Desert Diamond Arena. It will be broadcast on ESPN.

The star fight will feature Emmanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (36-1, 30 KOs) against Australia’s Liam Wilson (11-1, 7 KOs) for the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior lightweight title.

Earlier, Pedrasa (29-4-1, 14 KOs) will look to end the undefeated status of rising contender Arnold Barboza Jr. (27-0, 10 KOs) in a 10-round bout at 140 pounds.

“Barboza is a great boxer. He is an elite boxer. If I beat him, I will fight for the title of world champion.– Pedrasa said during a press conference with the participants of the evening.

“The most important thing for me is to be able to create new fans, including international ones. Wherever you go, these fans recognize you and admire you. It makes you feel great. And for me personally, family is everything. The first thing I do after a fight is to be with my family.“, he added.

Barbosa Jr., for his part, acknowledged that Pedraza will be an obstacle to his goals in the division.

“We trained very hard. A very tough fight awaits us. We are not underestimating this fight. For this camp, we are starting over. We saw our mistakes. We have trained hard and are ready. Without a doubt, this is the biggest challenge in my career. We have a lot of respect for Pedras and everything he has done. We are looking forward to this fight. It will be a great fight. I really want to test myself, and it will work to my advantage,” he said.