2016 Olympic Bronze Medallist, and fighting hometown hero, Nico Hernandez will return to the professional boxing ring on Friday, February 15, at the Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane, Kansas.
The undefeated Hernandez (6-0, 4 KOs) will face Mexico’s Victor Trejo Garcia (16-9-1, 8 KOs) in an eight-round flyweight special attraction in the featured live bout immediately preceding the SHOWTIME tripleheader telecast of “ShoBox Live at the Kansas Star Casino.”
The Hernandez vs Garcia bout is presented by Salita Promotions and John Anderson’s KO Night Boxing.
Tickets for the live event will go on sale on Friday, January 18, at 10 a.m. CT and are priced at $110, $75, $60, $45 and $25. They can be purchased at www.KansasStarCasino.com, www.Ticketmaster.com and at the Lucky Star Players Club at Kansas Star Casino.
Hernandez, who won the first Olympic men’s boxing medal since the 2008 Beijing Olympics by taking bronze at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was 94-5 as an amateur. He also captured six national titles, scored eight wins in the Ringside World Championship (an annual Kansas City-area event billed as “the largest amateur boxing tournament in the world”), along with six consecutive Silver Gloves National Championship wins, and a 2014 National Golden Gloves gold medal.
The 23-year-old turned professional in March 2017 and has dominated all his fights. He was last seen scoring a unanimous eight-round decision over Texas veteran Josue Morales. This will be his third consecutive fight at the Kansas Star Casino, where he enjoys tremendous popularity.
“I’m excited to be fighting on February 15 in front of my hometown fans at the Kansas Star Arena,” said Hernandez. “I’ll be in great shape and plan on putting on a great show. I want to be very active in 2019 and win a world title before the end of the year. It’s my time to shine.”
Presented by Salita Promotions, “ShoBox Live at the Kansas Star Casino” will feature top prospect Shohjahon Ergashev (15-0, 14 KOs) of Detroit via Fergana, Uzbekistan, taking on also undefeated Mykal Fox (19-0, 5 KOs) of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, in a 10-round welterweight main event.
In the other two televised bouts, Fort Worth’s rugged Jesse Angel Hernandez (12-1, 7 KOs) will take on Britain’s Thomas Patrick Ward (25-0, 4 KOs) in a 10-round super bantamweight battle for the WBA-NABA Championship and Grozny, Russia’s undefeated Aslambek Idigov (15-0, 7 KOs) will face once-beaten Travis Hanshaw (14-1-1, 7 KOs) of Ashland, Kentucky, in an eight-round super middleweight contest.
On fight night, the doors open at 5:30 pm (CST) and the action starts at 6:00 pm. Bouts subject to change. The Kansas Star Casino is located at 777 Kansas Star Drive in Mulvane, Kansas.
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About ShoBox: The New Generation
Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talent matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise exciting, crowd-pleasing and competitive matches while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. Some of the growing list of the 79 fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes: Errol Spence Jr., Andre Ward, Deontay Wilder, Erislandy Lara, Shawn Porter, Gary Russell Jr., Lamont Peterson, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Nonito Donaire, Devon Alexander, Carl Froch, Robert Guerrero, Timothy Bradley, Jessie Vargas, Juan Manuel Lopez, Chad Dawson, Paulie Malignaggi, Ricky Hatton, Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams and more.
About Kansas Star Arena
The Kansas Star Arena, a Boyd Gaming facility, is located just off Exit 33 on the Kansas Turnpike and is adjacent to the Kansas Star Casino. The 42,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Kansas Star Arena is south-central Kansas’ home for big-name national acts such as Journey, Pat Benatar, Championship Rodeo, mixed martial arts events and more. The Arena accommodates up to 6,500 guests for headliner events. In 2014, Midwest Gaming and Travel awarded the Kansas Star more than 25 honors in its annual Reader’s Choice Awards, including “Best Concert Venue” in the state of Kansas. For more information, visit kansasstarcasino.com. Connect with Kansas Star Arena at facebook.com/kansasstararena and www.kansasstarcasino.com/entertain/arena. Kansas Star Casino is a property of Boyd Gaming. Founded in 1975, Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) is a leading geographically diversified operator of 29 gaming entertainment properties in 10 states. With one of the most experienced leadership teams in the casino industry, Boyd Gaming prides itself on offering its guests an outstanding entertainment experience, delivered with unwavering attention to customer service. For additional Company information and press releases, visit www.boydgaming.com.
