SHOWTIME Sports continues to unveil its busiest and most comprehensive combat sports schedule yet with boxing, BELLATOR MMA and extensive behind-the-scenes coverage across all events. Following is a glance at what fight fans can expect to see over the next seven weeks on SHOWTIME.
*Plus, the BELLATOR 261 weigh-in is LIVE now, and the Davis-Barrios press conference will be live at 1 p.m. ET.
FRIDAY, JUNE 25 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT – HEAVYWEIGHTS COLLIDE IN BELLATOR MMA:
- On Friday night, No. 1 ranked heavyweight Tim Johnson and No. 3 ranked heavyweight Valentin Moldavsky will vie for the interim title in the main event of BELLATOR MMA 261. The talented and versatile Sean Grande, voice of the Boston Celtics, will act as play-by-play announcer. Grande fills in for SHOWTIME Sports’ lead play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo, who will be ringside for boxing the following night in Atlanta.
SATURDAY, JUNE 26 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT– GERVONTA “TANK” DAVIS RETURNS TO SHOWTIME PPV:
- One of boxing’s biggest attractions returns to the ring as Gervonta “Tank” Davis jumps up two weight classes to the 140-pound division to take on undefeated Mario “El Azteca” Barrios, the WBA Super Lightweight World Champion. It is the second SHOWTIME PPV main event for Baltimore’s Davis, who seeks to conquer a third weight division against San Antonio’s Barrios. The last time boxing fans saw Davis, he scored one of the most sensational knockouts of 2020 against decorated champion Leo Santa Cruz on Halloween. Davis closed out 2019 with a spectacular performance against Yuriorkis Gamboa in front of a sold-out State Farm Arena crowd where he will return on Saturday night.
- SHOWTIME PPV OVERVIEW: Saturday’spay-per-view co-feature pits two top 154-pound contenders as Erickson “Hammer” Lubin faces former unified champion Jeison Rosario in a WBC Super Welterweight Title Eliminator. Plus, super welterweight contender Carlos Adames will take on Mexico’s Alexis Salazar in a 10-round showdown and hard-hitting Olympian Batyr Akhmedov steps in against former world champion Argenis Mendez in a 12-round WBA Super Lightweight Title Eliminator to kick off the telecast.
- Viewers can purchase the telecast at SHO.com/PPV and watch live on any SHOTWIME supported device. The event is also available via all traditional cable and satellite providers and via PlayStation store and Sling TV. Davis vs. Barrios is also available at select closed-circuit locations and movie theatres.
SATURDAY, JULY 3 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT – SHOWTIME RETURNS TO THE WAR GROUNDS:
- Expect nothing but fireworks on Independence Day weekend as undefeated Interim WBA Super Featherweight Champion Chris “Primetime” Colbert continues his rise to stardom in one of boxing’s elite divisions. Colbert will face hard-hitting 130-pound contender Tugstsogt “King Tug” Nyambayar on Saturday, July 3, headlining the live SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The SHOWTIME telecast will feature unbeaten rising star Michel Rivera battling lightweight contender Jon Fernández in a 135-pound WBA title eliminator in the co-main event as well as highlights of undefeated super lightweight contender Richardson Hitchins squaring off against Darwin Price in a 10-round duel.
SATURDAY, JULY 3 – ALL ACCESS: DAVIS VS. BARRIOS EPILOGUE:
- The Emmy® Award-winning series ALL ACCESS is on hand in Atlanta to reveal never-before-seen moments from fight week, intimate scenes from the locker rooms before and after the fight and inside the ropes on Saturday night. ALL ACCESS: Epilogue premieres immediately following next week’s live telecast of Colbert vs. Nyambayar. Catch up on ALL ACCESS: DAVIS vs. BARRIOS Episode One and Episode Two before Saturday’s PPV telecast.
FRIDAY, JULY 16 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT – BELLATOR 262:
- The main event features undefeated 125-pound world champion Juliana Velasquez (11-0) making the first defense of her title against BELLATOR Kickboxing’s Flyweight World Champion and No. 4 ranked Denise Kielholtz (6-2).
SATURDAY, JULY 17 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT – UNDISPUTED STATUS ON THE LINE IN HISTORIC BOUT:
- In less than one month, Houston’s Jermell Charlo will look to make boxing history when he defends his WBC, WBA and IBF belts against WBO champion Brian Castaño in one of the most anticipated and important fights of the year. Both fighters aim to achieve something that has never been done before by becoming the first undisputed champ at 154 pounds in the four-belt era. Despite being a pay-per-view caliber scrap, fight fans can witness boxing history on SHOWTIME. “If he’s saying he’s going to make me risk my life, what do you think I’m going to make him do with his?” said Jermell at last week’s kickoff press conference. “Charlo is strong and a good boxer but he has never suffered in the ring before. He will on July 17,” said Castaño.
FRIDAY, JULY 23 – SHOBOX: THE NEW GENERATION TURNS 20-YEARS-OLD:
- ShoBox: The New Generation celebrates its 20-year anniversary with a four-fight card Friday, July 23. The popular series debuted in Atlantic City on July 21, 2001 and has produced 84 fighters who later went on to win a world title. Just as it has for the past 20 years, the upcoming quadruple-header will feature prospects matched tough.
SATURDAY, JULY 31: THE MOST SIGNIFICANT FIGHT IN BELLATOR MMA HISTORY:
- The greatest BELLATOR fighter of all-time, Patricio Pitbull, meets the greatest homegrown BELLATOR talent of all-time, AJ McKee, in the finals of the BELLATOR Featherweight World Grand Prix. What began with 16 featherweight athletes vying for a one-million-dollar grand prize has come down to Pitbull, the BELLATOR MMA No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter, and the 17-0 knockout artist McKee, in what will be the most significant BELLATOR fight in history.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 14 – BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE UNIFICATION FIGHT SET:
- Another significant world championship unification fight will take place on SHOWTIME on Saturday, August 14 as the WBC Bantamweight World Champion Nonito Donaire will face WBO Bantamweight World Champion John Riel Casimero in a 118-pound bout with Filipino bragging rights also at stake.