Judah-Santa Cruz bout could top Bradley-Abregu

Without a doubt, the premier fight in boxing this week is Saturday night's WBO light welterweight title bout between undefeated champion Timothy Bradley and undefeated challenger Luis Carlos Abregu on HBO.

But the one with name recognition matches two-time former champion Zab Judah against Jose Armando Santa Cruz at a 143-pound catch weight televised by ESPN Friday night at the Prudential Center. If things go the way Judah plans, he might end up talking to the Bradley-Abregu winner about a title fight in January following another tuneup in October at the Pru.

"Between October and January, you will see a title shot I bet," Judah said. "We're looking to sit down with HBO and Showtime and figure out some type of time frame. But I'm not in a rush. I don't want anybody to think that."

Judah would be happy to eventually fight any of the 140-pound champions, whether it's Bradley, Devon Alexander or Amir Khan. The 32-year-old Judah once ruled that weight class before becoming welterweight champ and then losing four tough fights to the likes of Carlos Baldomir, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey.

Now, it's time to return to the division where he was a far bigger star than any of the current champs. Recalling a moment before last year's Cotto-Manny Pacquiao fight, Judah described a scene in a Las Vegas hotel lobby. "I had a crowd around me, and Devon Alexander was standing by himself to my left. I yelled, 'Hey guys, look, that's the champion of the world, Devon Alexander.' People were like, 'Huh? Zab, sign this.' I was like, 'Cool, I tried to help, but it didn't work.' "

It could be like that again for Judah (38-6, 26 KOs), but first he must get past Santa Cruz (28-4, 17 KOs). He had some tough losses at lightweight, including a disputed decision against former champion Joel Casamayor, who is a slick southpaw similar to Judah. But Santa Cruz won his past two bouts after moving up to 143, where he feels much stronger.

"The crowd knows who won," Santa Cruz said of his loss to Casamayor at Madison Square Garden. "I think speed is the No. 1 thing I have to watch out for with Judah. I have to put pressure on him."

This will be Judah's first bout in eight months, but he's primed for the second act of his career. "King Kong is back," Judah said. "I'm going to climb to the top starting with Santa Cruz [tonight]."