Former WBA and IBF junior middleweight champion Jarrett ‘Swift’ Hurd 24-1 (16) might be fighting at middleweight on Sunday but he hasn’t given up on facing the big names at 154-pounds.
The 30-year-old from Accokeek, Maryland weighed in at 158lb for his 10-round bout against Luis Arias 18-2-1 (9) at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida, while his opponent came in half a pound heavier.
“A win over Arias, if I were to stop him, would separate me from a Danny Jacobs, from a Gabriel Rosado, and it would make me stand out as a fighter that does something that no other fighter has done,” Hurd said on the Last Stand Podcast with Brian Custer.
“I don’t want it to be a close fight, I want it to be just one-sided, and I want to win spectacularly.”
Hurd won the vacant IBF belt against Tony Harrison in 2017 and successfully defended against Austin Trout in the same year before claiming the WBA strap from Erislandy Lara and defending the two world championships against Jason Welborn in 2018.
In May 2019 he lost his titles by decision to Julian Williams, who was knocked out by Jeison Rosario in five. Rosario would go on to be stopped by WBC champion Jermell Charlo, who is scheduled to face WBO boss Brian Castano to unify all four major straps next month.
Hurd is hoping to land at least one big fight at junior middleweight before a permanent move up to 160-pounds.
“I’m the best at 154. The world just hasn’t seen it yet. As I said, I had a hiccup, and some of the best fighters take a loss, but the loss is not just a loss. It’s a learning lesson,” Hurd said.
“Look at Canelo Alvarez right now. He took a loss to one of the best in the world, and now he’s the best in the world.
“I’m 30 now, and it’s getting harder to make 154, but I got to have a rematch with Julian Williams and my fight with Jermell before I move up to 160.”
Hurd was last in action in January last year when dropped Francisco Santana in the 10th and final round to win a wide points decision at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
“I fought right before the pandemic hit, so I took some time off and not only that, I was moving into a new home out of my parents’ house,” Hurd said.
“Taking some time off from my last fight, no gyms open, nothing, I’m just sitting around in the house and I look in the mirror and my weight is up to like 217!
“That’s a big drop going from there to 154, so for this fight we’re going to step up to 160. We don’t want to drop too much weight, but this is just for this fight.”
