Under normal circumstances, Saul ‘Baby’ Juarez and Axel Aragon would collide in Mexico City, one of the main hubs for the Boxeo Telemundo series.

Instead, the pair of former title challengers from Mexico will collide in a bubble in Central Florida given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

A 10-round junior flyweight clash between Juarez and Aragon tops the August 21 edition of Boxeo Telemundo, airing live from a crowdless Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Florida. The series debuted from the location last Friday and will serve as the host for all four installments of the summer season.

“It was a different experience to hold a show here without fans and especially with all of the protocols in place,” Felix ‘Tutico’ Zabala Jr., president of All Star Boxing, Inc. told krikya360.com. “Everything went well last week. We were very pleased with how everything was handled by our partners NYC Laboratories in ensuring the safety of all the fighters and everyone involved in the show.”

All boxers and assigned essential personnel are required to submit to full health screenings and must remain in the enclosed location throughout fight week.

As for the fights, the main event pits a recent title challenger eager to get back in the mix, while another desperate to return to the win column.

Ensenada’s Aragon (13-3-1, 8KOs) was forced to hit the road for his lone career title fight, coming up just short in a technical decision defeat to current strawweight titlist Wilfredo ‘Bimbito’ Mendez in their rematch last October in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico. The opportunity came on barely seven days’ notice for Aragon, a late replacement for Colombia’s Gabriel Mendoza who was forced to withdraw after not being able to secure a travel visa in time.

The bout was far more competitive than their previous clash one year prior, when Mendez won a lopsided decision in the very same venue prior to winning his first title. Aragon offered a much better account of himself the second time around, before a clash of heads in round six left him with a deep cut over his left eye. The contest was stopped one round later, where he landed on the wrong end of a split decision.

Juarez (25-11-2, 13KOs) enters desperate to turn around his career. The second-generation boxer from Mexico City has won just two of his last ten starts, with two of his seven losses over that period coming at the world title level. Both attempts went to the scorecards, with Juarez coming up well short on the road versus long-reigning undefeated strawweight titlist Wanheng Menayothin in Aug. 2016 in Thailand and to unbeaten Kenshiro Teraji in a December 2018 title fight in Japan. A win over Mario Andrade last March hoped to provide a spark, only to suffer a surprise split decision defeat to countryman Ganigan Lopez last November.

Juarez traveled to the United States for the first time in his pro career for his most recent outing, a competitive-but-clear points loss to former title challenger Jonathan ‘Bomba’ Gonzalez this past February at Miccosukee Indian Gaming Resort in Miami, Florida. The bout served as the 2020 season premiere of Boxeo Telemundo, returning to its roots and at the time heading a planned 16-event schedule.

Four dates—all in May—were wiped out due to the pandemic, prompting event handlers to huddle up and figure out how to salvage the remaining eight shows.

The solution was to bring all of the summer season participants to Central Florida, creating one of two major sports bubbles in the region. The current series is running at the same time as the balance of the National Basketball Association (NBA) regular season and playoffs, with all games taking place nearby ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista. 

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox