By Jonathan Snowden

One of the great challenges of being a boxing fan, and a heart burn inducing part of being a boxing bettor, is trying to figure out which fighters still have it and which are on the steep decline to athletic oblivion. It's not always as easy to discern as you might imagine.

Starting tonight on Spike TV, we'll all be forced to put our predictive talents to the test. There are no Golovkins or Canelos fighting this weekend. But, for the fighters in the ring, there's a lot at stake. Andre Dirrell, Andre Berto, Victor Ortiz and Lucian Bute have all been written off by many. By Monday, we'll have a little better idea who can put the haters in their place and who is done as a serious fighter.

What follows is a rundown of every boxing card televised in English on American television. Who's worth checking out and who can you skip to finally check out The Jungle Book? Who's likely to win—and why? You'll find that here, weekly, in this new running series.

Andre Dirrell (24-2, 16 KOs) vs. Blake Caparello (22-1-1, 6 KOs)

Date: April 29th
Network: SpikeTV
Promoter: King’s Promotions/Haymon Boxing
Undercard: Anthony Dirrell (28-1-1) vs. Caleb Truax (26-2-2), Jonathan Guzman (20-0) vs, Daniel Rosas (20-2-1)
Interest Level: Medium

The Dirrell Brothers are doing lots of media discussing the water crisis in their native Flint, Michigan. What better time, then, to bring boxing and its potential economic impact, to that community? Instead, PBC being PBC, they're holding the show several hundred miles at the Trump Taj Mahal, a casino that was very nearly closed down a year ago. PBC has steadfastly refused to put fighters in their home towns for a boost, if only in optics and energy. Why change anything now? 

Andre faces former light heavyweight fringe contender Blake Caparello. Want to convince yourself the underdog has a chance? Caparello has faced guys with some stylistic similarities to Dirrell and beaten them late in their careers. Andre has had huge layoffs due to managerial and health issues alike, and the jury is out as to whether or not the once promising fighter has anything left, or if he’s more of a Allan Green style faded name. 

Anthony faces a decent but undersized Caleb Truax. His struggles with Don Mouton and Sakio Bika indicate hope for Truax, but like Caparello, the athletic disadvantages are so great, he’ll be counting on Anthony Dirrell being a completely spent force to win. That's unlikely.

Main Event Prediction: Andre Dirrell by (boring) Unanimous Decision

Andre Berto (30-4, 24 KOs) vs. Victor Ortiz (31-5-2, 24 KOs)

Date: April 30th
Network: FOX
Promoter: TGB Promotions/Haymon Boxing
Undercard: Edwin Rodriguez (28-1) vs. Thomas Williams Jr. (19-1), Jorge Lara (27-0-2) vs. Fernando Montiel (54-5-2)
Interest Level: Medium/High

There’s a loaded fight card for the Stubhub Center this Saturday, but sadly you may not be able to see all of the best fights. Gerald Washington/Eddie Chambers and Terrell Gausha/Orlando Lora represent serious steps up for two guys that PBC has spent a lot of time and money on, but there seems to be no obvious location for them to be aired. The fights that will make TV should make for great viewing though. 

Most exciting is the co-main, pitting two flawed punching light heavyweights in a battle that promises fireworks. The winner clearly establishes themselves in the top ten of the division and will probably be considered a contender for Adonis Stevenson’s light heavyweight title down the line.

As for the main event rematch, unfortunately it is years past its sell date.Berto has looked generally fresher in his fights of late and will come in as the favorite. He quickly dispatched of Josesito Lopez last year, and dominated a capable Steve Upsher Chambers in 2014. Ortiz, on the other hand, never seemed to recover from his bizarre knockout loss to Floyd Mayweather. Stoppage losses to the "Riverside Rocky" and Luis Collazo followed, and he’s fought but twice in 24 months, both times against substandard competition. Berto should take care of business here and perhaps inside 6.

Main Event Prediction: Andre Berto by 5th Round KO

Badou Jack (20-1, 12 KOs) vs. Lucian Bute (32-3, 6 KOs)

Date: April 30th
Network: Showtime
Promoter: Mayweather Promotions/Haymon Boxing
Undercard: James DeGale (22-1) vs. Rogelio Medina (36-6)
Interest Level: High

The main event here is all about setting up a challenger for the A-side in the co-main main event. If that sounds weird, well, it's boxing. 

James DeGale is a consensus choice as the top guy at super middleweight. Clearly the intent is for him to win easily, and fight the Bute vs. Jack winner. but why did they need to pick someone so bad as “Porky” Medina? Medina’s moment of shining glory was a stunning KO win over J’Leon Love 2 years ago, but he’s never faced anyone else who’s even ranked. Yet, somehow, he managed an IBF title shot. This was really the best option?

For fans, the main event makes up for it. Badou Jack may be the champ, but is still somewhat untested at the top level. Having beaten Anthony Dirrell and George Groves suggest that really serious strides have been made, but it is tough not to also see the fighter who was stopped in one round by Derek Edwards and managed only a draw with Marco Antonio Periban. 

Lucian Bute proved to the world that he still has something to give by giving DeGale an outstanding tilt last year. Honestly, the popular Bute as a champion in a rematch with DeGale is a bigger fight than Jack/DeGale. Considering the promoter's perspective often miraculously lines up with how judges decide the winner, I’m going with a possibly unpopular pick.

Main Event Prediction: Lucian Bute by 9th Round KO

Adrian Luciano Veron (15-1, 10 KOs) vs. Cristian Nestor Romero (16-7-1, 8 KOs)

Date: April 30th
Network: TyC Sports (available on DirecTV)
Promoter: Argentina Boxing Promotions (really)
Undercard: Isidro Ranoni Prieto vs. Someone? People you have not and will never hear of?
Interest Level: Low

You won’t always see TyC’s fight cards covered here even though anyone with DirecTV can pull them down. To be honest, they’re not worth talking about most of the time. But this week’s episode offers some interesting backstory.

Veron was an undefeated prospect when he and Romero fought for the first time last August. Romero came back from a 1st round knockdown to land a tremendous body shot that put Veron away. It was Romero’s second consecutive win against decent competition, which puts him in the weird position of being an opponent who's actually trying hard to win.

Veron is more of a boxer than a lot of the Argentine fighters you’re used to seeing such as Marcos Maidana or Lucas Matthysse, but Romero is pretty much guaranteed to push the action in this one. He is unlikely to pull off a third upset in a row, but at least you know he'll be trying.

Main Event Prediction: Adrian Veron by Unanimous Decision

Side Title: Anabel Ortiz (19-3, 3 KOs) vs. Katia Gutierrez (19-6, 4 KOs)

Date: April 30th
Network: BeIN Sports/Azteca America
Promoter: Zanfer
Undercard: Pedro Campa (19-1) vs. Jose Alfaro (28-9-1)
Interest Level: Low

Boxrec.com rates Anabel Ortiz as the top women’s boxer at 105 lbs and lists Katia Gutierrez at #6, so as far as ranked competitors against one another goes at one weight class, it might be the best matched fight this year. Before you get too excited, however, keep in mind that Boxrec only lists 92 female minimumweight fighters, and that the 13-13-1 Anahi Torres is #11 in the world according to their computerized rankings. 

With the low KO percentages at play and the shortened 2 minute rounds, this isn’t likely to be the fight that converts anyone to being a big women’s boxing fan. But, with the success of Holly Holm and Ronda Rousey in MMA, promoters are at least willing to give it a shot. 

Main Event Prediction: Anabel Ortiz by Unanimous Decision