IBF orders Edwards to face Alvarado

Sunny Edwards had been angling for a unification match with WBC champion Julio Cesar Martinez

IBF flyweight champion Sunny Edwards has his next mandatory challenger, and it’s a toughie. Levi Luna reports that Edwards, whose last mandatory defense came in December, must face former light flyweight champion Felix Alvarado in the latter’s second fight since relinquishing his title.

This represents a left turn for both men. Per Jake Donovan, a planned unification between Edwards (18-0, 4 KO) and WBC champ Julio Cesar Martinez fell through after “Rey’s” team declined to send a contract. Alvarado (38-2, 33 KO), on the other hand, was set to stay busy on the 24th of this month.

Losing the unification fight sucks and it’s yet another blemish on Martinez’s record in a year full of them, but I can’t exactly complain about this matchup. Alvarado was a beast at 108, only moving up when his fellow champions declined to face him. 13 of his last 14 wins have come inside the distance, admittedly against poor competition at times, but he absolutely mulched solid challengers in Randy Petalcorin and DeeJay Kriel.

If you wanted to see Edwards’ technical wizardry against a seek-and-destroy puncher, you’re still getting what you want. Between this and reports of some tasty matchups at 108, it’s a good time to be a fan of the little guys.