29 January 2015 – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), electrified the iconic Stadium Negara with another evening of world-class mixed martial arts action. Fight fans in Malaysia were on the edge of their seats as the best in local and international mixed martial arts talent battled it out inside the ONE Cage. In the Malaysia Warrior Bout main event, Malaysia’s own Ev “E.T.” Ting defeated the Philippines’ Eric “The Natural” Kelly by submission and took the time to call out reigning champion Marat Gafurov in the post-fight interview.

Visit the official ONE: CLASH OF HEROES photo gallery by clicking: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ivh34n9pza3q94o/AADwuMwRg-gnDecd5AIBoQyTa?dl=0

In the Malaysia Warrior Bout main event, an exhausted Ev Ting pulled out a gutsy victory over Eric “The Natural” Kelly of the Philippines, winning by submission in round three. Ting dominated the striking exchanges throughout the bout, blasting Kelly with various combinations. Kelly spent most of his time defending against Ting’s aggression, biding his time and pacing himself for a distance finish. In the third, Ting latched on a standing Guillotine that transitioned into a mounted Guillotine, leaving Kelly no choice but to tap out.

“Marat Gafurov I’m coming for you, where is that belt at?” said Ting, looking for a shot at the ONE Featherweight World Championship.

“With the new weight cut policy I wanna fight as much as I can and fight full time to feed my family. I want to fight Marat Gafurov. The fight was harder than I expected. I didn’t know he could take so much hits. I respect Kelly as a fighter and it was a great fight,” Ting added.

Eduard “Landslide” Folayang of Baguio City, Philippines showcased Team Lakay’s famous Wushu base by dominating opponent Tetsuya Yamada of Japan over three rounds. Folayang completely shut down Yamada, keeping the Japanese fighter at the long end of his straight right hand and occasional spinning back kick. Folayang also landed various flush shots and stuffed numerous takedowns to earn the unanimous decision victory.

Former American freestyle wrestler Jake Butler returned to action against mixed martial arts veteran Tatsuya Mizuno to win by first round stoppage. Butler controlled the Japanese fighter with his world-class wrestling from the opening bell, pulling Mizuno down to the canvas on a successful takedown. From there, Butler unleashed a series of elbows from top position, finishing Mizuno with only a few seconds remaining in the first round.

Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio scored an electrifying first round knockout over Malaysia’s Saiful “The Vampire” Merican. After a brief moment where both fighters took the time to size each other up, Merican lunged in looking to put together a combination but Eustaquio took a step back and unleashed a counter left hook as Merican was coming in. With Merican face down on the mat, the referee stopped the bout after a technical ground kick landed for good measure.

Samir Mrabet of Brussels, Belgium remained unbeaten in a second-round submission victory over Sami Amin of Cairo, Egypt. Mrabet controlled the action on the ground, grinding away against Amin who tried his best to defend. The end came when Mrabet secured mount and worked on the Head and Arm Choke to seal the deal.

“I’m blown away by the support I get from this new family that I’ve made in Malaysia. It really humbles me,” said Mrabet.

Keanu Subba and Rayner Kinsiong brought some local flavor into the mix with an all-Malaysian lightweight bout. After a brief exchange of strikes, Subba dumped Kinsiong to the mat via an outside leg trip. From top position, Subba landed a plethora of downward punches as the referee intervened to stop the bout.

“I saw my opportunity and took him down, and capitalized on that. That was the plan, to take him down and land some big shots,” said Subba.

Former Pankration world champion, Christian “The Warrior” Lee made quick work of Egypt’s Mahmoud Mohamed, continuing his fast rise through the featherweight ranks with a crafty submission victory. Lee swarmed Mohamed with lightning quick punches from the opening bell. An emphatic slam put Mohamed on his back and from there, Lee put the finishing touches on a Single-Arm Chicken Wing, forcing Mohamed to tap out.

Colossal ONE athletes Agilan “Alligator” Thani of Malaysia and James Kouame of Canada induced a stream of cheers from the Kuala Lumpur crowd with their intense middleweight matchup. Thani impressed with various successful takedowns throughout the bout. In round two, after a slam led to full mount, Thani worked on ground-and-pound before seizing the opportunity for a fight-ending Rear Naked Choke.

Saygid ‘Dagi’ Guseyn Arslanaliev impressed fans in his ONE Championship debut with an all-out, aggressive style, taking care of business against Jakarta, Indonesia’s Mishal Alfad in just under a minute. ‘Dagi’ put on a showcase of powerful strikes and emphatic slams and after a Suplex put Alfad on his back, ‘Dagi’ went straight for the ground-and-pound to force the referee stoppage.

Female ONE athletes Jenny Huang of Chinese Taipei and Amira Badr of Egypt kicked off the action at ONE: CLASH OF HEROES. Huang dominated both the first and second rounds with her boxing until she finished the bout by Triangle Choke submission in round two.

Official results for ONE: CLASH OF HEROES
Featherweight Malaysia Warrior bout: Ev Ting defeats Eric Kelly by Submission (Mounted Guillotine) at 1:58 minutes of round 3
Lightweight bout: Eduard Folayang defeats Tetsuya Yamada by Unanimous Decision
Catchweight bout (95kg): Jake Butler defeats Tatsuya Mizuno by TKO (Strikes) at 4:30 minutes of round 1
Catchweight bout (66.8kg): Geje Eustaquio defeats Saiful Merican by Knockout at 1:21 minutes of round 1
Lightweight bout: Samir Mrabet defeats Sami Amin by Submission (Head and Arm Choke) at 1:31 minutes of round 2
Lightweight bout: Keanu Subba defeats Rayner Kinsiong by TKO (Strikes) at 2:01 minutes of round 1
Featherweight bout: Christian Lee defeats Mahmoud Mohamed by Submission (Single-Arm Chicken Wing) at 2:20 minutes of round 1
Middleweight bout: Agilan Thani defeats James Kouame by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:12 minutes of round 2
Lightweight bout: Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev defeats Mishal Alfad by TKO (Strikes) at 0:32 minutes of round 1
Female catchweight bout (49kg): Jenny Huang defeats Amira Badr by Submission (Triangle Choke) at 3:09 minutes of round 2

In case you missed the action log on to www.onefc.com/livestream for the full replay of the fights at only US $9.99.

For more updates on ONE Championship™, please visit www.onefc.com and follow Twitter and Instagram @ONEFCMMA and Facebook at www.facebook.com/ONEFCMMA

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, the world’s most exciting mixed martial arts organization hosts the best Asian mixed martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. ONE Championship™ has partnered with FOX and STAR Sports for an unprecedented 10-year cable television deal with a coverage that spans 70+ countries across the world.

John Wayne Hibbert and Tommy Martin say their Commonwealth and WBC International Super-Lightweight clash will steal the show on Saturday night at the Copper Box Arena in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, live on Sky Sports.

Hibbert defends the titles against Martin, with the pair having sparred hundreds of rounds down the years, but they are putting their friendship to one side this weekend in this crucial battle at 140lbs.

Both men enjoyed fantastic years in 2015, with Hibbert following a cracking January win over Tyler Goodjohn by gaining revenge on Dave Ryan in September following their fight of the year battle in May. Martin claimed impressive wins over Ricky Boylan, Terry Needham and Michael Devine to move to 13-0 – and both men are targeting a big win live on Sky Sports to commence their assault on more titles in 2016.

“I’ve got no bad feeling towards him – it’s just business,” said Hibbert. “I know I’m going to win, I’ve trained hard, everything has gone smoothly, I’m just going to get in there, beat him, keep my titles and then we can be pals again. We’re about to fight each other now so there’s nothing to say. I’m not looking at any other fight – I know this is a hard fight and it needs to be my sole focus.

“We’ve both sold a lot of tickets which is great for January and I appreciate everyone who has put their hand in their pockets after Christmas to come to the show. This is about the fight though not who sells tickets, there’s a lot on the line this weekend. The fans can drag you over the line when it gets hard and I am sure that they will be in great voice on Saturday night.

“I found it easy to get into this shape and that’s down to my nutritionist and strength and conditioner. We’ve been away in Tenerife and I’ve been eating great and still on the weight. We went back to Spain and I’ve come back and I’m bang on the weight, I totally trust those boys to steer me in the right direction and I feel fantastic.”

“The press conference was quiet because its fight time now,” said Martin. “All the talking is done and I think that we are both looking forward to the fight. He thinks he’s going to win and I think I am going to win, so we are both itching to get in there and prove that. Winning would mean the world to me, people keep saying it’s another step-up, it’s too soon – I’ve had that in my last few fights. They’ve all been for titles and they’ve all been called step-up fights. That’s the aim of the game though – to keep stepping up. You are meant to fight the best and that’s what I am in the game to do. John Wayne Hibbert is one of the best in Britain and I want to beat him and take his belts.

“A lot of people are talking about this being the fight of the night and there’s been talk about the atmosphere being electric because of the amount of tickets we’ve done, so I hope that we can deliver something that matches that expectation – I am sure that we will. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think I’d take those belts home this weekend, and John knows that too.

“I enjoy all the build-up, it’s all fuel to my fire and I’m lapping it all up, it’s been fantastic – and there’s a lot more to come from me.”

Hibbert and Martin clash on a huge night of action in London as Super-Middleweight star George Groves returns to action against Andrea di Luisa.

John Ryder meets the ‘Brit Basher’ Sergey Khomitsky for the vacant WBA International Middleweight title while his gym-mate Martin J. Ward defends his WBC International Super-Featherweight strap against Italian Mario Pisanti.

Former football star Leon McKenzie continues his charge towards titles in the ring in a final eliminator for the English Super-Middleweight title against Kelvin Young and Brentwood’s Kris Agyei-Dua defends his Southern Area Super-Welterweight title against Chadwell Heath’s Ben Hall.

There’s a host of young talents on the bill with Watford Featherweight Reece Bellotti tasting eight-round action for the first time in the paid ranks, action for Brixton’s Lightweight banger Ohara Davies, Bermondsey Welterweight Ted Cheeseman, Crystal Palace Super-Middleweight Craig Richards, West Ham Super-Bantamweight Lucien Reid, Wimbledon Welterweight Louis Adolphe, Rainham Light Heavyweight Charlie Duffield and Chelsea Light-Heavyweight Deion Jumah.

Tickets are on sale now priced £40, £60 and £100 available from www.seetickets.com by calling 08712307148 (Calls cost 10ppm plus your network access charge) £200 VIP tickets are available exclusively from www.matchroomboxing.com

Tickets for January 30 are also available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ – StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua MBE.

The camps of Unified world light-heavyweight Champion Sergey Kovalev and challenger Jean Pascal have clashed ahead of their rematch this Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal, televised exclusively live in the UK on BoxNation.

There is genuine hatred between both fighters in the build up to the return – Kovalev won the first fight with an eighth round stoppage in March last year – and it could be even spicier second time around with Kovalev’s WBO, IBF and WBA Super World titles on the line again.

At the pre-fight press this week it turned nasty when Pascal started handing out bananas to black members of the audience, including Kovalev’s trainer John David Jackson, a former two-weight world champion, who had to be restrained from going after Paschal by security guards.

This was in response to alleged racist comments made by Kovalev to Pascal when he said, “I’m going to whoop your black ass.” Pascal said, “That’s a racist comment. He called me a piece of (expletive) because I’m black. He didn’t say that to any white fighter.”

“Do you want to keep it for your black coach?” Said Pascal to Kovalev as he held up a banana. “Black people, do you want some?”

Russian ace Kovalev dismissed Pascal’s comments when it was his turn to speak on the podium. He said, “Everybody knows what is true,” Kovalev said. “But you will see on Saturday. It will be a personal fight for me.”

Jackson defended his charge, saying he wouldn’t be working Kovalev’s corner if he was a racist. “It’s not about race. Sergey may say things where at the time when he says them, they may come out wrong, but if he was racist, I wouldn’t be in his corner.”

Canadian Pascal, a former WBC World Champion at light-heavyweight, continued his rant accusing Jackson of only coming into the Kovalev camp a few weeks before the fight because Kovalev doesn’t trust him.

“He (Kovalev) came to you for three weeks before the fight. He don’t trust you because you’re black. He doesn’t respect you.” Said Pascal.

Jackson fired back, “Is that all? Why is Marc [Ramsey, Pascal’s former trainer] not here. Because he knows you’re getting knocked out in this fight. That’s why he’s not here. No other reason. He told you you’re gonna get knocked out this fight. Yeah, put the mic away now, because that’s true. You know that’s true. That’s why you’re stuck right here.”

With security called in to calm the camps down, Jackson said to Pascal, “Shut the **** up, you had your time” and challenged him to a fight outside. “Come outside and you’ll get knocked out.”

Live coverage will start on BoxNation at 2am on Saturday night. To subscribe to BoxNation (Sky 437/490HD, Virgin 525, Freeview 255, TalkTalk 415, iPhone, iPad or Android and Amazon devices) for only £12 a month visit boxnation.com or to watch online subscribe at watch.boxnation.com

– Ends –

About BoxNation

BoxNation, the Channel of Champions and proud partner of Rainham Steel, is the UK’s first dedicated subscription boxing channel. For £12* a month and no minimum term customers can enjoy great value live and exclusive fights, classic fight footage, magazine shows and interviews with current and former fighters.

Previous highlights have included Haye vs Chisora, Khan vs Collazo and Mayweather vs Maidana.

The channel is available on Sky (Ch.437), Freeview (Ch.255), Virgin (Ch.546), TalkTalk (Ch.415), online at watch.boxnation.com and via apps (ios, Android, Amazon). BoxNation is also available in high definition on Sky (Ch. 490), at no extra cost to Sky TV subscribers, providing they are already HD enabled.

BoxNation is also available to commercial premises (inc. pubs, clubs and casino’s) in the UK and Ireland, for more information on a commercial subscription please call 0844 842 7700.
For more information visit www.boxnation.com

*Plus £8 registration fee for Sky TV customers.

ORANGE, Calif. (Jan. 28, 2016) – Thompson Boxing Promotions launches its first show of the year with a stacked card featuring world ranked super bantamweight Danny Roman, undefeated heavyweight knockout artist LaRon Mitchell, and top featherweight prospect Erick Ituarte.

The six-fight “New Blood” event takes place on Friday, Feb. 12 from the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, Calif.

Emerging from last year with five solid wins, Roman (17-2-1, 5 KOs) aims to continue his tour de force against Ramiro Robles (12-4-1, 6 KOs) of Mexico in the “New Blood” 10-round main event. Roman will make the second defense of the NABA Title he won last year.

Roman, a Los Angeles native, has won nine straight, is ranked fourteenth by the WBA, and is coming off a 2015 campaign that earned him “Fighter of the Year” honors by the California Boxing Hall of Fame.

“I’m looking to have an even better year this year,” said the 25-year-old Roman. “I just have to take it one fight at a time. I’ve been preparing for Robles since the start of the year. I’ll be ready to put on an excellent performance.”

In the 6-round co-feature, the San Francisco-based Mitchell (10-0, 10 KOs) brings his powerful brand of boxing to Juan Manuel Dominguez (6-4, 4 KOs) of Mexico. Mitchell, a former college football player, has been terrorizing the heavyweight prospect ranks with his knockout ability and fearless attitude.

“It takes a certain kind of mental fortitude to box in the heavyweight division,” said Mitchell, who also works as an elementary school teacher in California’s Bay Area. “If you’re not careful, one punch can take you out. I should know. I’ve done that to every one of my opponents.”

Tickets for “New Blood” are on sale and priced at $40, $60, & $100, and are available for purchase by calling 714-935-0900, or online at ThompsonBoxing.com.

“New Blood” Undercard

Leading the undercard is 21-year-old Erick Ituarte (12-1-1, 2 KOs) of Los Angeles. The featherweight prospect cleaned up nicely last year with three convincing wins. He starts the New Year against Jorge Ruiz (7-2, 2 KOs) of San Diego in a bout scheduled for 6-rounds.

Additionally on “New Blood,” top middleweight prospect Rudy Puga (6-0, 5 KOs) of Salinas, Calif. meets Alejandro Osuno (3-1, 2 KOs) of Nayarit, Mex. (6-rounds).

Junior middleweights Miguel Trejo (3-0, 2 KOs) of Anaheim, Calif. and Kevin Hylton (2-6, 1 KO) of Kingston, Jamaica square off in a 4-round fight.

Opening the show are young super bantamweights Jhordy Ramirez (1-0, 1 KO) of Santa Maria, Calif. and Juan Carlos Diaz (0-1) of Tijuana, Mex. (4-rounds).

Thompson Boxing Promotions App

Download the Thompson Boxing Promotions app to stay current on all our events in Southern California, nationwide, and from around the world, learn about our star-studded stable of boxers, and be the first to get your hands on tickets to our action-packed shows.

“New Blood” is presented by Thompson Boxing Promotions and sponsored by Lucas Oil, in association with LATV Networks.

For more information, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com. To follow the conversation on social media, please use #NewBlood and #ThompsonBoxing.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please check our Facebook Page, find us on Google+ and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.

MONTE CARLO, Monaco (January 28, 2015)- The mission of the World Mixed Martial Arts Association (WMMAA) is to continue growing as the world’s governing body for professional and amateur MMA. WMMAA has already granted more than 50 memberships worldwide in its less than four-year existence.

WMMAA SANCTIONED MEMBERS

Afghanistan, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Chinese Taipei, Columbia, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, FYR of Macedonia, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Iran, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Mexico, Moldova, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Netherland Antilles, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Paraguay, Poland, Romania, Russia, Senegal, South Korea, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, Suriname, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United States, Uzbekistan Venezuela
______________________________________________________________

“My personal vision for WMMAA is extremely optimistic,” WMMAA president Vadim Finkelchtein commented. “Short term, we plan to launch female divisions. Midterm, we
aim to sign agreements with institutions like WADA and other world agencies and unions. It’s really essential in order for MMA – and that’s our long term goal – to become recognized internationally, including by the Olympic Committee, and to become official in SportAccord as well as the Olympic Games.

“Three years ago, when we first started, I didn’t dream we would have achieved as much in such a short time span. As of today our association has close to 60 members. We are just gearing up and the interest towards WMMAA keeps growing exponentially. The level of competition evolves with each new championship under the WMMAA banner and participating teams keep getting stronger. The National Federations that are members of WMMAA are evolving as well. To date, we’ve held three World Championships, several World Cups, European and Asian Championships, and this year the Pan-Am Championship will follow.”

The WMMAA’s philosophy stresses respect, honor, loyalty, self-discipline, competition, safety and education, as opposed to strictly fighting, hurting or defeating an opponent. WMMAA has made tremendous strides around the world, particularly in 2015, and its future appears to be boundless.

“The WMMAA had a deeper impact in 2015, not only within the sport, but also the perception of what MMA really is in terms of it being a non-professional platform,” WMMAA Vice President Tomas Yu said. “For the past two years, we’ve been focused on structure, developing financial models through data mining, which have resulted in value proposition that proved to be transformational, setting the standard for how we would proceed. Once we set this agenda, everyone in our organization had a very clear focus.

“It’s important to note that our sport is not just a sport, it’s an art featuring mixed martial artists, not fighters. Trash talking and aggressive public behavior may get MMA on TMZ but, as far as role models are concerned, I’d much rather have somebody like Holly Holm than Ronda Rousey because of their contrasting personalities. Media, unfortunately, follows irrelevant gossip, instead of helping to drive an educated movement in MMA.”

Understanding the need to reach a global market, Yu introduced core business principals in a sport environment to drive organizational value, integrate athletes, provide a flexible showcase of talent, and much more. Yu also recognized the need for global leaders and he has aided in the development of the first Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs in Combat Sports Administration.

Through the initiative of Yu and Pan-American members, the WMMAA is the only organization to have a universal MMA officials’ database, yet, Yu has a tremendous challenge ahead in terms of common knowledge and perception of MMA in most countries. In many cases, the country’s Minister of Sport is reluctant to fund membership simply because it doesn’t consider MMA a sport due to its non-Olympic status.

First, Yu must approach the country’s Administrator of Sports with MMA updated data about why MMA is indeed a sport, even though it isn’t recognized by the Olympic Committee. In lieu of MMA not being an Olympic sport, the WMMAA does have its own version, The WMMAA World Championships. The next obstacle is gaining financial support, so he speaks with the Minister of Tourism about untapped potential revenue streams and economic growth resulting from fans, athletes, media and administrators who will be attending international events in his or her country.

“Fight week leading up to an event, for example, creates commerce,” added Yu, who is a New Mexico-based merchant banker. “We need to educate everyone in the industry that making money isn’t against our philosophy and MMA isn’t just about selling tickets and pay-per-view buys. MMA offers more opportunities to create corporate sponsors than any Olympic-sponsored sport.

“Unsanctioned MMA events in non-WMMAA member countries are clearly unsafe for its participants. I believe that official MMA sanctioning by a worldwide organization like the WMMAA has to be sold for its added values. What other sport teaches respect like MMA? Hurting people, other than to defend yourself, isn’t part of true MMA teachings.”

The WMMAA philosophy is working, though, based on its remarkable growth in such a relatively short time period. Last December in Prague, the 2015 WMMAA World Championships set records with 49 represented countries and nearly 200 athletes.

“We’ve (Yu is also President of the WMMAA Pan-American Division) more than doubled membership (North America, South American Central American and Caribbean) in the past year with seven official members and five more on the way. In 2016, we need to better educate people worldwide about MMA values, as we are what the WMMAA does and stands for. We’re not promoters; WMMAA is a sanctioning body. And equally important is to determine what is needed for the future of MMA, in addition to effectively achieve our goal to be the world’s official MMA governing body.”

Information

www.WMMAA.org
www.facebook.com/World.MMA.Association
www.youtube.com/user/TheWMMAA
CONTACT: Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 1.978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com @FightPublicist

ABOUT WMMAA: The goal of the World MMA Association is to provide unbiased structure and guardrail the growth of MMA as the official world governing body for Mixed Martial Arts. A non-profit organization founded in 2012, WMMAA is on a mission to develop a standardized and regulated organization, including competition, training, officiating, testing and growth when necessary. More than 50 countries have been granted WMMAA membership.

Roc Nation Sports and Mills Marketing and Communications Inc. President Drew Mills are proud to announce a new partnership for Dusty Hernandez-Harrison (28-0, 15 KOs) and GEICO. This is the second national brand partnership Roc Nation Sports has secured for Hernandez-Harrison, including a deal last month announced with Fila. The new deal for Hernandez-Harrison and GEICO include the following deal points:

– Company logo placement on athlete and his cornermen fight night attire (including trunks, robes and t-shirts) for all fights
– Opportunity to collaborate with athlete on co-branded events at headquarters
– Presenting partner for select Dusty Hernandez-Harrison fights on broadcast TV
– Opportunity to collaborate and execute with company in a meaningful, philanthropic initiative in Washington, DC

In addition, here are two quotes from Michael Yormark, President & Chief of Branding and Strategy for Roc Nation and Bill Brower, GEICO’s Marketing and Media Advertising Director:

“Clearly GEICO is one of the most innovate and forward-thinking marketing companies in the business and we are so thrilled that they possess the foresight and creativity to partner with a rising star such as Roc Nation Sports’ Dusty Hernandez-Harrison. This is yet another example of Roc Nation’s innate ability to develop unique and non-traditional partnerships specifically within the boxing space. With GEICO headquartered in the same D.C. region that Dusty grew up competing in, this partnership has synergies that extend well beyond the ring. That said, Dusty’s business savvy is already well beyond his years and I know that he is excited to work closely with the marketing professionals at GEICO to make this partnership one of the most dynamic and successful in the industry.”
– Michael Yormark, President & Chief of Branding and Strategy, Roc Nation

“Dusty Hernandez-Harrison is the kind of young athlete that we are very proud to sponsor. He’s only 21 and already has a 28-0 record to his name and a drive to succeed in business, which is shown through his partnerships with Roc Nation Sports and now with GEICO. When Dusty steps into the ring, he carries with him the hopes of a young champion. GEICO is excited to be a part of that experience through representation at all of Dusty’s fights as well as partnering with him on initiatives outside the ring.”
– Bill Brower, GEICO’s Marketing and Media Advertising Director

Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Dmitry “The Mechanic” Mikhayleno (20-0, 9 KOs) and Karim “Hard Hitta” Mayfield (19-2-1, 11 KOs) will face each other in the opening bout of the Kovalev-Pascal II HBO World Championship Boxing® telecast Saturday night live from the Centre Bell in Montreal, Quebec, Canada for ten rounds for the vacant USBA Welterweight Title. The scouting report for this bout is below:

Category
Dmitry
“The Mechanic” Mikhaylenko
Karim
“Hard Hitta” Mayfield
Age
29
35
Record
20-0-0 (9 KOs)
19-2-1 (11 KOs)
Strength
Dmitry has impressive endurance. He throws an unlimited number of punches and utilizes a fearless in-your-face style.
Mayfield has faced high-level opposition. He possesses good speed in his hands and has a strong chin as well.
Weakness
Mikhaylenko does not possess knockout power in either hand. His in-your-face style also allows his opponents to land shots.
Karim has a tendency to get sloppy at times. He can be a brawler in the ring at times, rather than utilize his boxing skills.
Experience
Dmitry has not faced the same top-level opposition as Karim. His biggest win to date came in his most recent bout against former interim titleholder Johan Perez in August on HBO Latino.
Mayfield has substantial experience. He fought former title contender Thomas Dulorme and holds a win over former interim titlist Mauricio Herrera. He has also previously competed on HBO in the Kovalev-Agnew co-feature in March of 2014.
Power
Dmitry lacks significant power in both hands.
Karim’s power comes out when he smells blood. He has an overhand right that has worked wonders for him in the past.
Speed
The Mechanic has one speed that he likes to maintain throughout the fight.
Hard Hitta has good hand speed when he puts his punches together. He also moves around the ring well which makes his opponents come to him.
Endurance
Mikhaylenko possesses great endurance. He is able to maintain a steady pace throughout the entire fight while also utilizing a high punch output.
Karim has solid endurance as he has been a full ten rounds on four separate occasions. However, he has shown fatigue in the later rounds of some fights. He cannot afford to do that against Mikhaylenko because of the unrelenting pressure that Dmitry likes to apply.
Accuracy
Dmitry is very accurate with his punches. He fights at close range and throws punches and combinations from all angles at a very short distance.
Mayfield demonstrates average accuracy when he is boxing, but he tends to get sloppy. He has also been known to headhunt rather than put his punches together and vary his targets.
Defense
The Mechanic’s offense might just be his best defense. He likes to dictate the pace of the fight by walking his opponents down, which can overwhelm his opponents with an offensive onslaught of punches.
Karim moves around the ring well but sometimes he does not move enough. He tends to find himself going toe-to-toe with guys rather than sticking and moving.
Chin
Mikhaylenko’s chin is still a question as he has yet to be in any great danger thus far.
Mayfield has a solid chin. He has been rocked in the past but never stopped.
Style
Dmitry is a high volume puncher who is always moving forward. He likes to throw punches from all angles and apply constant pressure throughout the fight.
Karim is an entertaining fighter with quick hand speed and decent power. He has no problem trading punches with whoever is standing in front of him.
Crowd Support
The Mechanic may have earned himself some fans in Canada when he competed at the Centre Bell last March when he scored a fifth round stoppage win.
Mayfield may have good crowd support because he has the bigger name of the two. He has also been on the big stage before, so he might be well-received coming into the bout.
Intangibles
At 20-0 Mikhaylenko is not trying to protect his undefeated record. He was originally slated to face ranked contender Ray Robinson and he did not think twice about the change of opponent. He is testing his skills against another highly regarded former title contender in Karim Mayfield. The Mechanic is well-aware that a loss here could be a major setback in his hunt for a world title, but a win can be the catalyst that gets him there.
Karim has been inactive for over a year after two tough and close losses against Thomas Dulorme and Emanuel Taylor. Rather than bounce back with tune-ups to alleviate any ring rust, he has opted to accept the dangerous task of facing an undefeated and ranked welterweight in Dmitry Mikhaylenko. Similar to Dmitry, a loss here after a year out of the ring can be detrimental to his career, but a win would put him right back on the map in this stacked welterweight division.
The Match-up
1. Will Mayfield be able to handle the non-stop come forward style of Mikaylenko?
2. Will Mikhaylenko be able to handle the movement and power of Mayfield?
3. Both guys are in a must-win fight on HBO, who will capitalize on that opportunity?
4. The welterweight division is very hot right now, who will show they belong among the elite?

According to Main Events’ matchmaker and NABF Matchmaker of the Year, Jolene Mizzone, “I give both of these guys a lot of credit. Mikhaylekno was originally supposed to fight a southpaw in Robinson and he accepted a last minute switch to Mayfield, who many believe is a tougher fight then Robinson. Also, Mayfield accepted this fight on two weeks’ notice instead of taking a scheduled tune-up fight in February. This should be an exciting fight!”

About January 30
The grudge match for the unified light heavyweight world championship between Sergey Kovalev and Jean Pascal, a Vidéotron presentation in collaboration with Mise-O-Jeu, will be televised live in the United States on HBO beginning 9:45pm ET/PT. The HBO telecast will open with a ten-round match-up between Dmitry Mikhaylenko and Karim Mayfield for the vacant USBA Welterweight Title. In Canada the event will be available on pay-per-view TV, please consult with your local cable provider. The card is promoted by Main Events and InterBox in association with German Titov Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions. Tickets are on sale on at www.evenko.ca, at Centre Bell box office and at Club de boxe Champions in Montreal.

About Main Events
Main Events was founded in 1978 by the late Dan Duva and is now run by his widow Kathy Duva. As one of the top promotional companies in the world, Main Events has promoted boxing legends Evander Holyfield, Arturo Gatti, Lennox Lewis, Pernell Whitaker and many more. Currently, Main Events promotes WBO, IBF and WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev. Main Events is committed to promoting quality fights that boxing fans want to see.

About InterBox
InterBox, founded in Québec in 1997, and acquired by Groupe Sportscene in 2004, is a boxing organization that is recognized and respected throughout the Quebec province and the world. Its goal is to promote professional boxing, locally and internationally, with talented boxers who are supervised by top-notch trainers and have access to a cutting-edge support staff. InterBox regularly promotes and presents first-rate events in cooperation with such major corporate sponsors as Vidéotron, La Cage – Brasserie sportive and Coors Light.

FOLLOW US:
www.mainevents.com
Twitter: @main_events
Facebook: facebook.com/MainEventsBoxing
Instagram: @Main_Events
www.interbox.ca/en/home
Twitter: @Interboxca
Facebook: facebook.com/interbox
www.KovalBoxer.com
Twitter: @KrusherKovalev
www.jeanpascalboxing.com
Twitter: @JeanPascalChamp
www.hbo.com/boxing
Twitter: @HBOBoxing
Facebook: facebook.com/HBOBoxing
Instagram: @HBOBoxing

Dmitry “The Mechanic” Mikhaylenko
“I would like to welcome everybody here. I want to thank HBO and Main Events for this opportunity. I like it here in Canada. It is my second time fighting here. It was just a year ago when I was here in the back row for this press conference and now I am in the front row. I thank Karim Mayfield for taking this fight on the short notice. Now my dream has come true and I am fighting on HBO. I don’t like to talk much before the bout. I am 100% ready and I want to give the best show to our fans. The victory goes to the strongest guy.”

Karim “Hard Hitta” Mayfield
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Karim “Hard Hitta” Mayfield
“I am happy to be able to have this opportunity. It was short notice but as a professional you have to be prepared for these types of opportunities. I am always ready. I have a lot of power and speed. I am ready to win this [USBA Welterweight] Title on January 30. After this fight, the winner, which will be me, will have better opportunities available to them after this fight. January 30 I look forward to capitalizing on his punch count.”

Kathy Duva
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events
“Today 33 years ago, my husband was discussing Roberto Duran with the doctor as I was giving birth to my beautiful daughter, Nicole. I am immensely proud of her. Happy Birthday, Nicole. It is a pleasure to work with Interbox again. Our staffs work very well together. Tomorrow night we get on opposite sides but everything leading up to that point has been a pleasure. Tune in at 9:45 PM on HBO. Making his first appearance on HBO will be Dmitry Mikhaylenko against Karim Mayfield in 10 rounds for the USBA Welterweight Title. He told us yesterday his hobbies are women and beer, so I know he will be loved by the fans here in Canada. I want to thank our Russian Sponsors Rosneft and Myakhov Vodka. They provide good solid support for us. This is our first time with Rosneft; we want to welcome them. We have a wonderful event for you on Saturday. I love coming to Quebec. They are people who take boxing seriously as a major sport. Thank you for having me again. Thank you to Pierre and Jean Bedard and the team from Interbox. Be there at 6:30. The fans here in Canada are in for a treat with our two great fighters Cassius Chaney and Virgilijus Stapulionis.”

Pierre Duc
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Pierre Duc, Vice President of Interbox
“Once again it has been a tremendous pleasure to work with Main Events. We have learned to work together as a team and it is just getting better. We are competitors once our guys get in the ring, but during the planning we have been a team. Thank you so much and do not miss the gala on Saturday.”

Egis Klimas
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Egis Klimas, Manager of Mikhaylenko
“Thank you. I don’t have to tell how happy we are to be here. Feels like we are at home. We like it here. Want to thank HBO for giving us this opportunity. They are wonderful people. I want to thank Team Mayfield. At one point, several years ago, me and Karim were in LA were talking about possibly working together. Ultimately it didn’t work out, but I know he is a good warrior. I have nothing negative to say about him. He is a really good fighter. He has speed in his hands. Dmitry has speed and a lot of punches. It is going to be a tremendous fight. I can’t predict a victory. It is going to be a really good competition. Also fighting on Saturday is Virgilis Stapulionis, who is my countryman, he is going to be on the undercard. I represent him too.”

Greg Cohen
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Greg Cohen, Promoter of Mayfield
“It is really terrific to be here. I want to thank Kathy and Main Events. We have worked together many times. They are always a pleasure to work with. When Ray Robinson dropped out, I called Jolene [Mizzone, Main Events’ matchmaker] because I thought Karim would make a great replacement. I hadn’t even mentioned it to Karim. When Jolene said she thought we could make this fight happen, I called Karim and he didn’t even hesitate. He is in fighting shape 365 days a year. That is what you want as a promoter. That is what you want from your fighters and you seldom get it. Come Saturday night Karim Mayfield will be 100% and I firmly believe he will come out of the ring wearing the USBA belt.”

Press Conference Dais
Photo Credits: Vincent Ethier/Interbox

Joel Diaz
“I want to thank everybody for coming out here. I want to thank my team, Chris Byrd former heavyweight champion. I want to thank everybody at Main Events and Jean Pascal for putting me on the card. I want to thank Abraham Gomez for taking the fight. You have to have a pair of balls to get in the ring. 2016 is going to be a hell of a year for us.”

About January 30
The grudge match for the unified light heavyweight world championship between Sergey Kovalev and Jean Pascal, a Vidéotron presentation in collaboration with Mise-O-Jeu, will be televised live in the United States on HBO beginning 9:45pm ET/PT. The HBO telecast will open with a ten-round match-up between Dmitry Mikhaylenko and Karim Mayfield for the vacant USBA Welterweight Title. In Canada the event will be available on pay-per-view TV, please consult with your local cable provider. The card is promoted by Main Events and InterBox in association with German Titov Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions. Tickets are on sale on at www.evenko.ca, at Centre Bell box office and at Club de boxe Champions in Montreal.

About Main Events
Main Events was founded in 1978 by the late Dan Duva and is now run by his widow Kathy Duva. As one of the top promotional companies in the world, Main Events has promoted boxing legends Evander Holyfield, Arturo Gatti, Lennox Lewis, Pernell Whitaker and many more. Currently, Main Events promotes WBO, IBF and WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev. Main Events is committed to promoting quality fights that boxing fans want to see.

About InterBox
InterBox, founded in Québec in 1997, and acquired by Groupe Sportscene in 2004, is a boxing organization that is recognized and respected throughout the Quebec province and the world. Its goal is to promote professional boxing, locally and internationally, with talented boxers who are supervised by top-notch trainers and have access to a cutting-edge support staff. InterBox regularly promotes and presents first-rate events in cooperation with such major corporate sponsors as Vidéotron, La Cage – Brasserie sportive and Coors Light.

FOLLOW US:
www.mainevents.com
Twitter: @main_events
Facebook: facebook.com/MainEventsBoxing
Instagram: @Main_Events
www.interbox.ca/en/home
Twitter: @Interboxca
Facebook: facebook.com/interbox
www.KovalBoxer.com
Twitter: @KrusherKovalev
www.jeanpascalboxing.com
Twitter: @JeanPascalChamp
www.hbo.com/boxing
Twitter: @HBOBoxing
Facebook: facebook.com/HBOBoxing
Instagram: @HBOBoxing

Tickets On Sale For Feb 18th Opening Night
BEST FIGHT CARD IN YEARS!

GREAT Heavyweight & Light Heavyweight
Bouts Featured

NCAA Wrestling All American In Big MMA Bout

Three weeks from tonight perhaps the best Fight Club OC show in several years will happen, and tickets are finally on sale to the public at www.fightcluboc.com, so don’t miss this strong show set for Thursday, February 18th in The Hangar at the OC Fair & Event Center.

How about a solid heavyweight bout between undefeated 6-0 Sergey Kuzman vs 9-3 Rodney Hernandez. Kuzman was the European heavyweight champion and Hernandez has been in tough before.

How about 5-0 Dmitry Bivol
who may be the future light heavyweight champion of the world. All five of Bivol’s wins have been by knockout with his last KO win over solid veteran Junior Jones.

Not be outdone Fight Club OC fans will see 8-1 super featherweight
Bekman Soylybaev defend his NABA US belt; and 7-0 Ruslan Madivey who is trained by Abel Sanchez will be back in action. It will be an Orange County matchup when Anaheim’s
Carlos Gonzalez faces Garden Grove’s Guadalupe Arroyo with both fighter’s making their pro debuts.

Watch Testament: The Birth Of A Boxer below On Carlos Gonzalez making his pro debut Opening Night at Fight Cluc OC…

Testament: The Birth of a Boxer
Testament: The Birth of a Boxer

MMA is back in a big way on the February 18th Fight Club OC show, when two time NCAA All American wrestler Ryan Lang gets back action. Lang who wrestled at Northwestern and finished 2nd in the NCAA Championships in 2007 has been off for a few years but will bring his 4-1 pro record into the ring when he meets tough U.S. Marine Justin Governale who also brings an impressive 5-3 into the lightweight bout.

Plus it will be another All Orange County matchup, but this time it will be MMA, as Santa Ana’s Christian Gonzales makes his pro debut facing Huntington Beach’s 0-1 Joe Cisneros.

NEW FOR 2016 – Fight Club OC will now start 30 minutes earlier now at 7:00pm, with doors still opening at 6:30pm. Happy Hour gets underway at 5:30pm at Baja Blues right next door to The Hangar.

All tickets prices at $60 are now on sale at www.fightcluboc.com

February 18th
Doors – 6:30pm – First Bout – 7:00pm
88 Fair Dr
Costa Mesa, CA, 92626

Exciting cruiserweights Marco Huck and Ola Afolabi clash for a fourth time, exclusively live on BoxNation in the UK, on Saturday 27th February at the Gerry Weber Stadium, Halle, Germany.

The addition of Huck v Afolabi will form a big LIVE double header with WBO World Super-Lightweight Champion Terrence Crawford defending his title against Hank Lunday later that night from New York.

Huck, a former two-time WBO World Cruiserweight Champion, and Afolabi, a two-time Interim WBO World Champion, meet in a crucial crossroads fight for both men and a victory will mean another world title shot for the winner.

The veterans re-ignite there fiery six-year rivalry with Huck currently ahead in the series 2-0-1 after close decisions in 2009, 2012 and 2013 and both will be looking for a knockout to end the quadrilogy conclusively.

German hero Huck, originally from Serbia, lost his WBO crown last time out when he was halted in eleven rounds by undefeated Krzysztof Glowacki in a thriller.

Huck dropped the Pole in an exhilarating sixth round and was ahead on the scorecards before Glowacki found a big punch to floor Huck, it could have been stopped by the referee, but he was given a chance to continue and Glowacki steamed in to get the stoppage.

“Captain” Huck, 31, has been a big favourite with UK fight fans’ on BoxNation with a number of his memorable battles televised on the Channel of Champions. With 26 knockouts in 38 wins, 3 losses – two by stoppage – and one draw, you know that Huck will bring excitement.

London born Afolabi pulled off a huge upset in his last fight to dethrone favourite Rakhim Chakhkiev in his hometown of Kazan, Russia, in November to win the IBO version of the world title.

Afolabi, 35, had to weather the storm from Chakhkiev in the early rounds until the Russian started to fade in the fourth and the experienced Afolabi stepped it by landing with solid jabs. He dropped Chakhkiev in the fifth, but it wasn’t ruled a knockdown by the referee. Afolabi sensed it was over and went in to finish Chakhkiev with a big right hand and left hook to leave him face down on the canvas.

Known as “Kryptonite”, Afolabi is a familiar face to British fans’ from his victory over Enzo Maccarinelli in 2009 to stop the Welshman and claim the Interim WBO World title.

Both fighters aim to end the final chapter by knockout, telling Badlefthook.com: “In my last fight, I didn’t show what I [am] able to do. I beat myself against Glowacki. It won’t happen again. I’m getting ready with my new coach for the fight on Feb. 27. I will be in top condition this time. Ola and I fought three very hard and close fights in the past, which were all decided in the last rounds. But now I want to end this chapter with an early KO victory and end it once and for all.” Said Huck

Afolabi replied, ”I am very pleased to fight against Huck again. Our previous battles were all very exciting and close. This time though there is a big difference: I am the reigning world champion and he is the challenger. I will defend my title because I am at the peak of my career. Huck will get what Rakhim Chakhkiev got.”

Live coverage will start on BoxNation at 2am. To subscribe to BoxNation (Sky 437/490HD, Virgin 525, Freeview 255, TalkTalk 415, iPhone, iPad or Android and Amazon devices) for only £12 a month visit boxnation.com or to watch online subscribe at watch.boxnation.com

– Ends –

About BoxNation

BoxNation, the Channel of Champions and proud partner of Rainham Steel, is the UK’s first dedicated subscription boxing channel. For £12* a month and no minimum term customers can enjoy great value live and exclusive fights, classic fight footage, magazine shows and interviews with current and former fighters.

Previous highlights have included Haye vs Chisora, Khan vs Collazo and Mayweather vs Maidana.

The channel is available on Sky (Ch.437), Freeview (Ch.255), Virgin (Ch.546), TalkTalk (Ch.415), online at watch.boxnation.com and via apps (ios, Android, Amazon). BoxNation is also available in high definition on Sky (Ch. 490), at no extra cost to Sky TV subscribers, providing they are already HD enabled.

BoxNation is also available to commercial premises (inc. pubs, clubs and casino’s) in the UK and Ireland, for more information on a commercial subscription please call 0844 842 7700.
For more information visit www.boxnation.com

*Plus £8 registration fee for Sky TV customers.

NEW YORK (Jan. 28, 2016) – SHOWTIME Sports® is commemorating 30 years of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING with a year-long celebration that will highlight the biggest, most memorable and exciting SHOWTIME fights spanning four decades.

The network’s flagship sports series, SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, was born on March 10, 1986 when “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler defeated John “The Beast” Mugabi by spectacular 11th-round knockout. Since then, the series has distinguished itself as the premium television destination for boxing’s brightest stars and countless significant events in the storied history of the sweet science.

In celebration, SHOWTIME will go deep into its archive to reprise classic fights, grouping them together by a common theme each month. A new fight, each one wrapped with brief context and commentary from one of the network’s boxing experts, replays every “Throwback Thursday” night on SHOWTIME EXTREME throughout 2016. While Thursday night is the viewer’s destination for the initial replay of the classics, all the bouts for that month are available on SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, SHOWTIME ANYTIME® and via the network’s online streaming service. Plus, on the last Saturday of the month, a programming block including all of that month’s classics will air concurrently on SHOWTIME EXTREME.

The month of January has been dedicated to Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Evander Holyfield and his Hall of Fame career. Thus far, SHOWTIME has presented a compilation from Holyfield’s cruiserweight career, plus Holyfield vs. Michael Dokes and Holyfield vs. Buster Douglas in entirety with both extraordinary Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson bouts airing tonight at (10 p.m. ET/PT, SHO EXTREME).

Each month’s live SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING event will include a segment in support of the 30th anniversary retrospective. Segments will include a vintage feature or a special guest which will connect the greats of the past to the modern era and that night’s main event.

Digital support each month will include short form, high-impact video components—complete rounds, highlights, exclusive interviews with the biggest stars and historic perspective from the personalities that color the rich history of boxing on SHOWTIME. Examples of the short-form content for January’s celebration of Holyfield are as follows:

Exclusive Interviews: “Evander Holyfield Reflections” is a series of digital shorts cut from a recent interview. Watch this clip as Holyfield remembers his 1997 rematch with Mike Tyson: http://s.sho.com/1nPcElI

Full Rounds: Tyson vs. Holyfield 1 | Round 11: http://s.sho.com/1nL4w5K

Bonus Features: Holyfield vs. Tyson 2: http://s.sho.com/23ttJ5g

Social Content: Douglas vs. Holyfield | Collision Course: http://s.sho.com/1nPwIEC

For much more, visit SHOWTIME Sports Channel on YouTube and SHOWTIME Boxing on Facebook or @ShoSports on Twitter.

Coming in February, SHOWTIME will celebrate its greatest “Rivalries.” Classic bouts for the month include Johnny Tapia vs. Paulie Ayala I and II, as well as the incredible trilogy between super bantamweight champions Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez. (A programming alert with precise dates and times is forthcoming.)

Other themes to be assigned to the months that follow include “Mike Tyson,” “Fights of the Year,” “Julio Cesar Chavez,” “Puerto Rican Stars,” “Upsets,” and “Floyd Mayweather.”

The celebratory campaign culminates at year’s end with a fans’ vote for the greatest knockouts in SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING history.

# # #

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, and also offers SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND and FLIX ON DEMAND®, and the network’s authentication service SHOWTIME ANYTIME®. Showtime Digital Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNI, operates the stand-alone streaming service SHOWTIME®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS and telco providers, and as a stand-alone streaming service through Apple®, Roku®, Amazon and Google. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Hulu, Sony PlayStation® Vue and Amazon Prime Video. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks™, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel™, and Smithsonian Earth™ through SN Digital LLC. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV. For more information, go to www.SHO.com.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 28, 2016) – M-1 Global’s first event of 2016 is shaping up as a potential blockbuster with the announcement of the second M-1 Challenge bantamweight elimination fight for M-1 Challenge 64 on February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

Antun “Killer” Racic, of Croatia, will face Ukrainian Vitaly Branchuk for right to fight for the vacant M-1 Challenge bantamweight championship. The survivor will advance to the championship round against the winner of the previously announced M-1 Challenge bantamweight semifinal eliminator, also part of the M-1 Challenge 64 card, between Pavel Vitruk ((12-2-0, M-1: 6-2-0) and undefeated Kazakhstan-native Sergey Morozov(6-0-0, M-1: 2-0-0). Vitruk is a Ukrainian-born fighter who lives and trains out of St. Petersburg, Russia.

The main event pits three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) and former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0) in the semifinals of the M-1 Global Grand Prix Middleweight Tournament.

In the co-feature, newly signed Alexander “Drago” Volkov (24-6-0, M-1: 8-3-0), of Russia, takes on Estonian challenger Denis Smoldaraev (11-1-0, M-1: 7-1-0) for the vacant M-1 Challenge heavyweight championship.

Racic (18-6-1, M-1: 6-2-0) is coming off of an impressive win by decision versus Alexei Nevzorov last September at M-1 Challenge 61. The powerful Croatian, who is a standout grappler, is dropping down to fight as a bantamweight.

Branchuk (20-5-0, M-1: 0-1-0) will be fighting in his second M-1 Global event, the first two years ago at M-1 Challenge 45, in which he lost a decision to Yunus Evloev. The 24-year-old Branchuk is riding a seven-fight win streak. Known as a strong striker, he has knocked out 10 of his opponents.

M-1 Challenge 64 will be streamed live from Moscow in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.

INFORMATION:

Upcoming Events: Feb. 19 – M-1 Challenge 64 in Moscow, Russia; Mar. 4 – M-1 Challenge 65 in St. Petersburg, Russia

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

LAS VEGAS, NV (January 28, 2016) — Before they enter the ring for their super brawls, MANNY “Pacman” PACQUIAO, TIMOTHY “Desert Storm” BRADLEY JR., TERENCE “Bud” CRAWFORD and FELIX “El Diamante” VERDEJO, who are headlining upcoming world championship events, took time out to make predictions on Super Bowl 50, which will pit the Denver Broncos against the Carolina Panthers on February 7. Also adding their two cents were trainers World-Famous FREDDIE ROACH and TEDDY ATLAS, who will be facing each other from opposing corners for the first time, with Pacquiao and Bradley, respectively, Top-10 contender “Hammerin'” HANK LUNDY and undefeated Brazilian buzz saw WILLIAM “Baby Face” SILVA, the respective opponents of Crawford and Verdejo.

THE PREDICTIONS

MANNY PACQUIAO
“Peyton Manning is a great competitor and with the possibility that this could be his last game I think he will be an inspiration to the Broncos to win and to end Peyton’s career as a world champion. He is certainly an inspiration to me.”

TIM BRADLEY
“It’s very clear to me — Carolina Panthers 31-27.”

FREDDIE ROACH
“I’m going with the Broncos because Peyton Manning, like Manny Pacquiao, has racked up all the records and the victories against superior opposition. Champions like Manning and Pacquiao know only one way to go out in their last rodeo and that’s on top. It’s Manningfest Destiny.”

TEDDY ATLAS
“It is Cam Newton’s time as I believe it is Tim Bradley’s and that is why Newton will win a Super Bowl and Bradley, a super championship, while Peyton Manning and Manny Pacquiao both retire after great careers.”

TERENCE CRAWFORD
“I don’t know what the score will be but the Carolina Panthers are the better team. One big reason is that they have Cam Newton as quarterback.”

HANK LUNDY
“I’m not really into it that much because I’ve got my own Super Bowl to worry about on February 27th and I’m coming to win the championship. I like Peyton Manning a lot, but I think Cam Newton is going to take care of business. Panthers 21-14.”

FELIX VERDEJO
“I’m going to pick the Carolina Panthers to win the Super Bowl this year. They are the better team”

WILLIAM SILVA
“I’m from Brasil so I do not get to see a lot of American football, but I think the Panthers will be the better team on Super Bowl day based upon their performances in past games. As far as the score, I think it will be the Panthers with three touchdowns to the Broncos’ one touchdown.”

********************

Pacquiao (57-6-2, 38 KOs), of General Santos City, Philippines, boxing’s only eight-division world champion and the reigning Fighter of the Decade, collides with five-time world champion Bradley (33-1-1, 13 KOs), of Palm Springs, Calif., in a 12-round world welterweight championship battle. Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with MP Promotions, Pacquiao vs. Bradley will take place Saturday, April, 9, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View®, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

Crawford (27-0, 19 KOs), of Omaha, the 2014 Fighter of the Year and a two-division world champion, will be defending his World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior welterweight world title against Top-10 contender Lundy (26-5-1, 13 KOs), of Philadelphia, PA. Verdejo (19-0, 14 KOs), of San Juan, Puerto Rico, will be risking his WBO Latino lightweight title, Top-Five world ranking and his impending world title shot when he takes on Silva (23-0, 14 KOs), of São Paulo, Brasil, in a battle of undefeated contenders. Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Tecate, Classic Entertainment & Sports (CES), Diamante Promotions and Madison Square Garden, the Crawford/Verdejo championship doubleheader will take place on Saturday, February 27, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Both fights will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

For fight updates go to toprank.com, hbo.com/boxing or mgmgrand.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing,, facebook.com/trboxeo or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, or twitter.com/hboboxing. Use the Hashtags #PacBradley, #CrawfordLundy or #VerdejoSilva to join the conversation on Twitter.

George Groves says he’s ready to meet his domestic rivals at Super-Middleweight as he returns to action at the Copper Box Arena in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, live on Sky Sports – if the clashes lead to World title fights.

Groves faces Andrea di Luisa in east London in his first fight since his slender loss against Badou Jack in Las Vegas in September, and the three-time World title challenger accepts that it’s going to take a few fights to get back to the level he wants to operate at.

The Super-Middleweight division remains as vibrant as ever, and English fighters are at the forefront. Groves’ old foe James DeGale MBE holds the IBF crown, while Jack could soon come up against Liverpool star Callum Smith after his April clash with European champion Hadillah Mohoumadi was sanctioned as a final eliminator. Add St Helens’ Martin Murray into the mix, and the Brit pack are right in the mix for the major honours, and Groves believes he can emerge as the cream of the crop – but is in no rush to gain another win over DeGale.

“I’ll fight anyone that is put in front of me,” said Groves. “Right now, it’s January, it’s my first fight since the Jack fight and it’s Andrea di Luisa. He’s boxed at a high level and has wins and losses at that level, he’s here to present problems and he has a style that if you are not switched on he will take advantage of your mistakes. I believe he’ll ty and set traps for me but at the same time I think he’ll give me openings and I will take them and get a good knockout win to kick-of 2016 in style.

“I could’ve come back and had a fight down the bottom of an undercard and knocked out some nobody inside two or three rounds, but I haven’t done that. I’m topping the bill live on Sky Sports against an opponent that is going to be hungry, he’s live and he’s here to ask serious questions. Di Luisa is a good fighter and the perfect fight for me to get myself back into the mix. I want to get two or three fights before the summer and then we can look at where we are at ranking-wise and see what opportunities are open to me.

“I’ve got nothing but good will to James DeGale. He’s had his own tough times, but right now he’s riding high. A lot of people have said his last fight with Lucian Bute was closer than the six rounds he was given it by, but I didn’t see it. As long as he’s still winning, good luck to him. My time will come and I am not worried about him, I just have to concentrate on myself, get the win this weekend to kick 2016 off in style.

“I should be in contention for another World title in the summer because I have the profile and the performances to match. If James is still World champion then maybe our paths will cross, but I am just focused on getting myself into range of a World title shot and that’s what I want.”

Groves’ clash with Di Luisa headlines a huge night of action in London as John Wayne Hibbert defends his Commonwealth and WBC International Super Lightweight titles against Tommy Martin.

John Ryder meets the ‘Brit Basher’ Sergey Khomitsky for the vacant WBA International Middleweight title while his gym-mate Martin J. Ward defends his WBC International Super-Featherweight strap against Italian Mario Pisanti.

Former football star Leon McKenzie continues his charge towards titles in the ring in a final eliminator for the English Super-Middleweight title against Kelvin Young and Brentwood’s Kris Agyei-Dua defends his Southern Area Super-Welterweight title against Chadwell Heath’s Ben Hall.

There’s a host of young talents on the bill with Watford Featherweight Reece Bellotti tasting eight-round action for the first time in the paid ranks, action for Brixton’s Lightweight banger Ohara Davies, Bermondsey Welterweight Ted Cheeseman, Crystal Palace Super-Middleweight Craig Richards, West Ham Super-Bantamweight Lucien Reid, Wimbledon Welterweight Louis Adolphe, Rainham Light Heavyweight Charlie Duffield and Chelsea Light-Heavyweight Deion Jumah.

Tickets are on sale now priced £40, £60 and £100 available from www.seetickets.com by calling 08712307148 (Calls cost 10ppm plus your network access charge) £200 VIP tickets are available exclusively from www.matchroomboxing.com.

A furious Derry Mathews has accused WBO World Lightweight champion Terry Flanagan of playing mind games after their massive title showdown at the Liverpool Echo Arena was pushed back a month to Saturday 12th March.

Manchester’s Flanagan has suffered severe tendonitis in his left foot that has left him unable to train ahead of the big fight but Mathews believes his bitter rival is running scared.

The 32-year-old said: “He doesn’t fancy this fight in Liverpool, even his manger didn’t fancy it and come fight night there’ll be nowhere for him to run; it’ll be just me and him in that ring. He’s trying to pull a fast one pretending he’s injured but he’s just delaying the inevitable; I’m taking that belt with both hands.”

He added: “If he is genuinely injured then I wish him all the luck with his recovery but if he’s trying to play mind games then he’s picked the wrong man to play them with. I’ve got the strongest mind in the business and I’ve seen it all before. Silly mind games won’t work on me, I’m fully focused on becoming the new champion in my home town.”

Boasting an impressive record of 38 career wins with 20 stoppages, Mathews is as experienced as they come and is unfazed by the challenge of facing an unbeaten fighter. The Liverpudlian is looking forward to fighting in front of his home crowd and says the pressure is all on his opponent.

“The entire country has made the mistake of writing me off before I’ve even put a foot in the ring. Apart from my team and my fans, everyone has Flanagan down as the clear favourite. That doesn’t bother me one bit, every time I’m written off by people I prove them wrong with a big win. All that matters is deep down I know it’s going to be my title and now he knows that too; he’s realised he’s in deep water” said Mathews.

Flanagan didn’t mince his words when the pair went head-to-head at a heated press conference held at Liverpool’s Hilton Hotel, boldly predicting that he’ll have no problem knocking out Mathews at any point in the fight. Derry, preparing for the 50th fight of his professional career, says his rival has another thing coming if he thinks it’ll be that easy.

He said: “I’ve got him worried; it’s clear to see for everyone. He put himself right in it when he stupidly announced he was going to knock me out, he couldn’t name a round at the press conference and here we are two weeks later still waiting to hear a round; at least now he has another five weeks to think of one!”

Ticket for ‘A Tale Of Two Cities’ are priced at £40, £60, £80, £100, £150* and are available from:

Eventim

0844 249 1000

www.eventim.co.uk

Liverpool Echo Arena

0844 8000 400

www.echoarena.com

Ticketmaster

0844 844 0444

www.ticketmaster.co.uk

A special V.I.P ticket priced at £250* that includes an inner ringside V.I.P seat, lanyard, complimentary beer, wine and soft drink (between a certain time period) and canapés are available to purchase through the Frank Warren Box Office office only on 01992 505 550.

The Channel Of Champions, BoxNation, will televise live and exclusive on Sky 437/HD 490, Virgin 546, TalkTalk 415 and Freeview 255. Subscribe at www.boxnation.com or watch online at watch.boxnation.com and via iPhone, iPad or Android and Amazon devices.

IMMOKALEE, FL. (January 28, 2016) – It has been about a month since Howard Davis Jr. passed away.

The former Olympic star and professional was one of the most well liked people in the boxing community. During the process of Davis falling ill, his son Dyah was by his side and he now vows to carry on the boxing legacy set forth by his father.

Davis of Coconut Creek, Florida will be back in the ring for the first time in a 17 months, will take on Edgar Perez on Sunday at the Seminole Casino Hotel Immokalee.

Davis has been trying to get back in the ring sooner, but could not find anyone to step up and fight him.

“I was trying to get fights and I always am decent shape”, said the 34 year-old Davis.

“I guess that I am too much trouble for contenders and too dangerous for prospects. I guess that means I am high risk and no reward.”

When his father passed away on December 30, 2015, Davis began to get even more motivated about his career.

“I found my motivation with the passing of my father. His legacy will continue on through me. His spirit is in me. My father was my best friend. He always knew that I have the ability and now it is time to show the world that.”

With a possible fight on the horizon and his father living out his last days, Davis made the most of his time with Howard.

“My main objective in his last few weeks was to spend as much time as possible. We didn’t talk too much boxing. We watched some of his old tapes as we just saw the impact he made on so many people. It made me feel great to see the people who reached out following his passing. Lots of people reached out in so many ways.”

Dyah feels he has a new start in boxing as he has inked a deal with Marshall Kauffman’s King’s Promotions.

“I am fortunate that Marshall is giving me a shot. He has put on a lot of shows in the past couple years and I am looking for bigger fights. As seen by my record, I will fight anybody. It just seems everybody wants an easy route these days. My route is that I want to fight only big fights. I feel like I can get there by fighting the best. This is just a fight to get back in the mix of things. I really don’t know anything about him. I will get in there and take care of him.”

“The fans should look forward to see a new and improved Dyah Davis. My father’s spirit lives within and i will carry on his legacy.”

Davis – Perez is part of the undercard of a great night of boxing that will be showcased on PBC: The Next Round on Bounce TV. The telecast begins at 9 p.m. ET/PT and is headlined by undefeated rising star Erickson “The Hammer” Lubin taking on Mexican brawler Jose De Jesus Macias in a 10-round super welterweight battle while welterweights Alex “El Pollo” De Jesus and Joseph Elegele meet in an eight-round showdown.

Michael Chudecki won a 8-round unanimous decision over previously undefeated Louis Cruz in a Jr. Welterweight bout at B.B. Kings Blue Club in New York City.

Cruz was deducted a point in round four and in round five for double-hitting. In round seven, Chudecki was docked a point for hitting Cruz while he was down.

Chucdecki, 139 lbs of Szamocin, Poland won by scores of 79-70 and 77-72 twice and is now 11-1-1. Cruz, 139.4 lbs of Bronx, NY is 11-1.

Luis Rosa dominated veteran German Meraz by scoring an 8-round unanimous decision on a Featherweight bout.

In round five, Rosa landed a right that sent Meraz to the canvas. Meraz was docked 2 points in the same round for holding. Rosa scored another knockdown in round seven.

Rosa, 125.4 lbs of New Haven, CT won by scores of 80-68 twice and 79-69 to raise his record to 22-0. Meraz, 124.6 lbs of Agua, MX is 48-37-1.

Shelly Vincent remained perfect by winning a dominating 6-round unanimous decision over Renata Domsodi in a Featherweight bout.

Vincent, 125.8 lbs of Providence, RI won by scores of 60-54 on all cards and is now 16-0. Domsodi, 124.4 lbs id 12-8.

Former world title challenger Jerry Belmontes won a 8-round majority decision over previously undefeated Valentyn Golovko in a Jr. Welterweight bout.

Belmontes, 138.6 lbs of Corpus Christi, TX won by scores of 78-74, 77-75 and 76-76 to raise his record to 21-8. Golovko, 139.6 lbs of Kharkov, RUS is 21-1.

In a good back and forth action fight, Devaun Lee scored a mild upset when he won a majority decision over previously undefeated Ian Green in a 6-round Middleweight bout.

Green was cut under his right eye in round three. He started bleeding from his nose in round four.

Lee, 160 lbs of Queens, NY won by scores of 58-56 twice and 57-57 to raise his record to 6-2. Green, 160 lbs of Paterson, NJ is 8-1.

On paper it was a battle of undefeated Cruiserweight, but Lenin Castillo made quick work of Marcelo Tavares in a bout scheduled for 8-rounds.

Castillo dropped Tavares with a combination in round one and he stayed down for the count at 42 seconds.

Castillo, 175.2 lbs of Dominican Republic is 13-0-1 with 8 knockouts. Tavares, 173 lbs of Sao Paulo, BRA is 8-1

Derrick Murray remained undefeated by winning a 6-round unanimous decision over Darryl Hayes in a Featherweight bout.

Murray, 125.8 lbs of St. Louis, MO won by scores of 60-54 twice and 59-55 and is now 12-0-1. Hayes, 125.4 lbs of Houston, TX is 5-6.

Las Vegas – UFC® announced today that its card on Saturday, Feb. 6 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas will now air live on FS1 and be headlined by a five-round welterweight bout between former champion Johny Hendricks and the dynamic Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.

Originally scheduled as UFC 196 live on Pay-Per-View, the fight card was moved to FS1 following the loss of the heavyweight title fight between champion Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez, as both competitors were forced out of the bout due to injuries.

Now, fans can enjoy an action-packed card including Roy Nelson vs. Jared Rosholt, Ovince Saint Preux vs. Feijao Cavalcante, Joseph Benavidez vs. Zach Makovsky, and Josh Burkman and KJ Noons live on FS1 on Saturday, Feb. 6. The full bout order is available at UFC.com.

The main card for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: HENDRICKS vs. THOMPSON will air live on FS1 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, with prelims also airing on FS1 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The UFC FIGHT PASS® Early Prelims, headlined by Mickey Gall vs. Mike Jackson, will begin at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

With the shift, the lightweight title fight between champion Rafael Dos Anjos and featherweight champion Conor McGregor on Saturday, March 5 in Las Vegas will now be called UFC® 196: DOS ANJOS vs. McGREGOR. The March 5 Pay-Per-View event also features UFC women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm taking on Miesha Tate.

Fans seeking ticket refunds based on the changes to the Feb. 6 card can do so at the point of purchase.

Visit the UFC® Press Portal for information and content to support your UFC coverage.

About UFC®

UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.

ANAHEIM, CALIF. (Jan. 27, 2016) – Mexican warriors Julio Ceja and Hugo Ruiz will compete in a rematch of their exciting 2015 super bantamweight world title fight on Saturday, February 27, live on SHOWTIME® from Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast will be headlined by undefeated three-division world champion Leo “El Terremoto” Santa Cruz, who’ll be making the first defense of his Featherweight World Championship against former world champion Kiko Martinez.

“I’m very happy to fight again in Southern California on such a fantastic card,” said Ceja. “In the first fight with Hugo Ruiz we had a sensational battle which ended with me coming out victorious and I’m very confident that I will win again. I look forward to putting on another great show on February 27.”

“I’m excited for the immediate rematch with Julio Ceja,” said Ruiz. “I know that I had him badly hurt during our first fight and that I will be victorious on February 27. I’d like to thank everyone involved for this great opportunity to avenge my loss.”

Ceja (30-1, 27 KOs) and Ruiz (35-3, 31 KOs) met on August 29, 2015, in Los Angeles, with Ceja winning the WBC 122-pound world title via a fifth-round stoppage in a wild back-and-forth brawl. Ruiz struck the first big blow in round three when he connected with a sharp left hand that floored Ceja. The fireworks continued into round five when Ceja unloaded a powerful left hook that put Ruiz on the mat. Ceja saw his opening and used a flurry of punches to close the show and take home the world title.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions, are priced at $27, $54, $104 and $199 and are on sale now via ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster retail locations or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets are also available at the Honda Center Box Office.

The 23-year-old Ceja has won six fights in a row and is looking to prove that his victory over Ruiz was no fluke. The native of Atizapan de Zaragoza, Mexico will be fighting in the U.S. for the second time since turning pro in 2009 at just 16 years old. The power-puncher owns victories over experienced veterans Henry Maldonado, Jesus Acosta, Alejandro Morales and Genaro Camargo.

A 29-year-old fighting out of Sinaloa Mexico, Ruiz entered the first fight against Ceja on a four-fight win streak and as winner of 26 of his last 27 fights. He’s defeated the likes of Jean Sampson, Yonfrez Parejo and Francisco Arce throughout a pro career that began in 2006. His bout with Ceja was his U.S. debut and his exciting style has earned him another shot at the world title.

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports follow on Twitter @SHOSports, @LeoSantaCruz2, @MartinezKiko, @TGBPromotions, @HondaCenter and @Swanson_Comm or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOSpo

HBO Boxing’s flagship program kicks off 2016 with a highly anticipated light heavyweight title rematch when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: SERGEY KOVALEV VS. JEAN PASCAL II AND DMITRY MIKHAYLENKO VS. KARIM MAYFIELD is seen SATURDAY, JAN. 30 at 9:45 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from the Bell Centre in Montreal, exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports broadcasting team will call the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

Other HBO playdates: Jan. 31 (9:30 a.m.) and Feb. 1 (11:30 p.m.)

HBO2 playdate: Feb. 2 (11:30 p.m.)

Undefeated Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (28-0-1, 25 KOs) of Kopeysk, Russia, now living and training in Los Angeles and Ft. Lauderdale, defends his light heavyweight crown for the second time against Jean Pascal (30-3-1, 17 KOs) of Quebec, Canada, in a scheduled 12-round bout. The 32-year-old Kovalev, who owns one of the highest knockout percentages in boxing and is among the fiercest punchers, has been a force in the 175-pound division, beating ring legend Bernard Hopkins in a unification bout, as well as knocking out Nathan Cleverly and Cedric Agnew prior to his fiercely contested victory over Pascal in March 2015. His name appears on virtually every list that ranks the sport’s pound-for-pound aces.

After losing to Kovalev via technical knockout, Pascal, 33, rebounded with a decision win against Yunieski Gonzalez in Las Vegas last July and now seeks victory before a hometown Montreal crowd. The fight marks Kovalev’s eighth appearance on HBO and Pascal’s sixth.

The opening bout features undefeated welterweight prospect Dmitry Mikhaylenko (20-0, 9 KOs) of Gelendzhik, Russia, and San Francisco’s Karim Mayfield (19-2-1, 11 KOs) in a 147-pound contest set for 10 rounds. Mikhaylenko’s opponent was originally slated to be Ray Robinson, but an injury suffered in an automobile accident caused Robinson to withdraw. Mayfield hopes to upset Mikhaylenko’s plans to fast-track up the ladder in the deeply talented welterweight division.

HBO’s flagship “World Championship Boxing” series marks its 44th year in 2016, while HBO Boxing presented its 1,000th fight last year.

Follow HBO boxing news at hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/hboboxing.

All HBO boxing events are presented in HDTV. HBO viewers must have access to the HBO HDTV channel to watch HBO programming in high definition.

The executive producer of WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is Rick Bernstein; producer, Dave Harmon; director, Johnathan Evans.

® WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.

Long Island, NY (January 27, 2016) – TONIGHT from the famed BB King’s in the heart of Times Square, DiBella Entertainment presents Broadway Boxing.

The 7 bout card will air LIVE at 7 PM ET on www.GFL.TV for just $14.99 by clicking: HERE

In the main event, undefeated Louis Cruz (11-0, 5 KO’s) takes on Michael Chudecki (10-1-1, 3 KO’s) of Poland in a Jr. Welterweight bout scheduled for 8-rounds.

With each fight, Cruz has been upping the competition and he continue that trend with his fight with Chudecki.

Chudecki will be looking to get back in the column following his first defeat in his last bout against Michal Syrowatka.

Scheduled to appear will be undefeated Featherweight Luis Rosa Jr. (21-0, 10 KO’s) of New Haven, Connecticut battling veteran German Meraz (48-36-1, 29 KO’s).

Rosa is one of the fastest rising fighter’s in Jr. Featherweight and Featherweight divisions.

He has won some high profile, national televised bouts over Jorge Diaz (17-2) and Luis Del Valle (18-1) and with a win tonight, his name will be in the middle of conversations for a big fight later this year.

He has to get past the 85-fight veteran out of Agua, Mexico, who has a win over former world champion Cruz Carbajal and has won three straight fights.

In an 8-round Jr. Welterweight bout, undefeated Ukranian Vaentyn Golovko (21-0, 14 KO’s) will take on former world title challenger Jerry Belmontes (20-8, 6 KO’s) of Corpus Christi, Texas.

In a 6-round Featherweight bout, Popular New England female, Shelly Vincent (15-0, 1 KO) makes her New York debut against Renata Domsodi (12-7, 5 KO’s) of Budapest, Hungary.

Undefeated Middleweight, Ian Green (8-0, 6 KO’s) of Paterson, NJ will fight Devaun Lee (5-2, 3 KO’s) of Jamaica, New York in a 6-round bout.

Undefeated Cruiserweight Lenin Castillo (12-0-1, 7 KO’s) of the Dominican Republic squares off with Marcelo Tavares (8-0, 8 KO’s) of Sao Paulo, Brazil in a 8-round battle of undefeated Cruiserweights.

Derrick Murray (11-0-1, 5 KO’s) of St. Louis will fight Darryl Hayes (5-5, 1 KO) of Houston, Texas in a 6-round Featherweight clash.

Sergey Kovalev, WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion
“I want to thank you. I am really excited to be here in Canada and repeat this fight again. I am really happy. I am happy to fight Saturday and show you quality boxing. I have nothing to say just watch HBO channel on Saturday night and at the Centre Bell in Montreal. It should be a very interesting fight in the ring because is going to be two good boxers. It is going to be very not a war; it is going to be a mental fight who is personal fight for me. I have nothing to say. He is not a fighter. I hope that he will bring something in the ring. We will be great fight for boxing fans. Appreciate to all my fans worldwide and more to my Canadian fans. Montreal remind me of my hometown in Russia with the snow and the weather. Thank you so much. I will try to make shorter. See you Saturday.”

Jean Pascal, Former Light Heavyweight World Champion
“Saturday night I am not just a boxer, I am a promoter. I have my boxer Joel Diaz on the card. He is my boxer. He is a rising star. Right now we have a chance to have this young lion in our backyard. He is 20-0 and is going to be 21-0 on Saturday. Don’t miss his fight. The reason why I am a promoter is Kovalev said he is going to end my career. Do good on Saturday night, Diaz, because Saturday night is supposed to be the end of my career. I woke up good this morning and in a great mood. I don’t want to insult anybody. I don’t want to trash talk to anyone. I feel like training camp was great. I did 12 weeks: four in weeks in Canada and eight weeks in California with Freddie Roach. It was great. I had a great time in Los Angeles. The training was intense. I pushed myself beyond the limits. I woke up late this morning. I did not have breakfast. I feel hungry right now. He called me and [Adonis] Stevenson a piece of shit, because we are black. The things that Kovalev don’t know yet he is going to find out Saturday night.”

Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events
“Always a pleasure to be back in beautiful Montreal. This is another tremendous event. Main Events is promoting again in cooperation with the wonderful people at Interbox. If I could do every show with them, my life would be easy. Sadly, when the bell rings on Saturday, we will not be on the same side. I want to thank HBO and Peter Nelson, without whom I would not be here today. He is the reason Sergey Kovalev got the chance he got. He has converted on that opportunity. I look forward to continue to work with them in the future. Also on the HBO telecast is a great fight between Dmitry “The Mechanic” Mikhaylenko against Karim “Hard Hitta” Mayfield. It is a 10-round fight for the vacant USBA Welterweight Title. Watching Mikhaylenko fight is just amazing. It should be a terrific fight. When you get in the ring with Mikhaylenko, it is always a challenge. I would also like to thank our Russian sponsors, Rosneft and Myakhov Vodka. Thank you all for welcoming us the way you do. It is always a pleasure to come to Montreal.”

“I just have one question for Pascal, where did you get those sparkly sneakers because I need a pair.”

Jean Bedard, President of Interbox
“I would like to welcome everybody to Montreal. Who knows what we can expect on Saturday? I would like to thank Peter Nelson and HBO. Peter, I know you have big plans for Sergey in the future, but I think you will have to go back to the drawing board on Monday. I would like to thank Main Events and Kathy Duva. We have the same culture as them and that is to bring the best fights to the fans. Thank you Sergey Kovalev and his team for coming back to Montreal.”

Peter Nelson, Executive Vice President, HBO Sports
“Thank you Kathy. Jean [Bedard], to your point, I am keeping my Monday morning schedule open. I am excited to see what happens on Saturday. I want to thank the fighters for taking this high-risk, high-reward fight. This is our first World Championship Boxing event of 2016. Thank you to Jean Bedard and Kathy Duva. Kathy, between exporting Arturo Gatti to the United States and importing Sergey Kovalev to Canada, I don’t know if this makes you an honorary citizen or an enemy of the state here in Canada. To Kathy’s point about Sergey Kovalev, we are not the ones toiling for years, sacrificing to train and develop these fighters, to earn their opportunity to be on HBO. Sergey did it the hard way. Jean Pascal has never turned down a challenge. We are excited and looking forward to a terrific event.”

Egis Klimas, Manager of Sergey Kovalev
“Welcome to circus for free. We want to thank Canadian fans. This is a beautiful country and beautiful city. All of this talking is nothing. Pascal has a reason to be scared. He didn’t know the last time how hard Sergey can punch. He is more scared than the first time. We can’t blame Jean Pascal because he is scared. I don’t know why boxing always brings a war. It is still a spot it isn’t a war zone. We came to compete. Saturday is going to be a good fight.”

John David Jackson, Trainer of Sergey Kovalev
“Thank you very much. It is good to be here in Montreal once again. The fans are very warm and welcoming people. There is a lot I can say about Jean Pascal. He expressed his true colors. Sergey may say things that may come out the wrong way. If he was racist, I wouldn’t be in his corner. Marc [Ramsay] isn’t here because he told you [Pascal] will get knocked out this fight again.”

Freddie Roach, Trainer of Jean Pascal
“Thank you. We have had a really great training camp. Working very, very hard. His weight is good. Everything is spot on. I would like to wish Sergey Kovalev and John David Jackson the best of luck. We are ready and we are going to war.”

Dr. Robert Schinke, Pascal’s Sports Psychologist
“This is not about us, it is about the boxers. They are precious resources. Jean is a world class performer who always takes the best of opponents. Sergey Kovalev is the best of opponents and we respect him to the utmost. There has been a lot of verbal sparring in the last few weeks; it is going to be a war. We prepared well for it. Pascal is prepared. He has a full eight weeks of preparation with Freddie Roach. In the past, he has picked up the very skills he has needed to. He is happy to be back for this second fight. We believe he is fully capable and we will see Saturday night that our assessment is spot on.”

BETHLEHEM, PA. (January 27, 2016) – Unbeaten prospects Alex Martin (11-0, 5 KOs), Raynell Williams (10-0, 5 KOs) and Jamontay Clark (8-0, 5 KOs) will put their perfect records on the line on Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) TOE-TO-TOE TUESDAY on FS1 and BOXEO DE CAMPEONES on FOX Deportes Tuesday, February 9 from Sands Bethlehem Events Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Televised coverage begins at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT and is headlined by undefeated 2012 U.S. Olympian Jamel Herring (14-0, 8 KOs) taking on Colombia’s Luis Eduardo Flores (21-2, 17 KOs) in a 10-round lightweight bout.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by King’s Promotions, are priced at $100, $75 and $45, not including applicable service charges and taxes and are on sale now. Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com. To charge by phone call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000.

Martin will take on Rossemberth Gomez (17-4-1, 13 KOs) in an eight-round welterweight bout, Williams faces Gabriel Tolmajyan (14-2-2, 3 KOs) in eight rounds of lightweight action while Clark takes on Elvin Perez (28-12-4, 19 KOs) in a six-round welterweight affair.

Further action features 25-year-old Philadelphia-native David Gonzales (6-0-2, 1 KO) battling Pittsburgh’s Justin Johnson (6-10-4) in a six-round super lightweight fight, 25-year-old Stivens Bujaj (14-0-1, 9 KOs) in cruiserweight action and New Jersey’s Bienvenido Diaz (2-1, 2 KOs) against Philadelphia’s Joseph Serrano in a four-round lightweight contest.

Rounding out the action is 24-year-old Sultah Staton (4-0, 2 KOs) of Philadelphia in a six-round super lightweight bout, Washington D.C.-native Jordan “Shortdog” White (1-0, 1 KOs) in a four round featherweight bout against Mexico’s Manuel Rubalcava (2-15) and Florida’s Santario Martin (1-2) battling New Jersey’s Darryl Bunting (0-0-1) in a four-round middleweight attraction.

In addition to his 2012 National Golden Gloves Championship, Martin won three Chicago Golden Gloves fighting out of nearby Harvey, Illinois. An owner of 340 amateur wins, Martin turned pro in 2013 and is yet to lose. The 26-year-old picked up four victories in 2015 and will begin 2016 against the 29-year-old Nicaraguan Gomez who will be making his U.S. debut.

A member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, Cleveland’s Williams looks to improve on an impressive 2015 campaign that saw him pickup five victories, including his October triumph over Rafael Eduardo Reyes. The 26-year-old will match up with the Armenian-born Tolmajyan who fights out of Glendale, California.

A highly-regarded prospect, the Cincinnati-native impressed in his hometown last time out by stopping Joe Wilson Jr. in the second round. The 21-year-old is unbeaten since turning pro in 2014. He’ll be up against the most experienced foe of his career when he takes on the Nicaraguan Perez.

For more information visit www.premierboxingchampions.com www.sandseventcenter.com, http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/homepage, www.foxdeportes.com.
Follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @JamelHerring, @FS1, @TheSBEC, @FoxDeportes and @Swanson_Comm and become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/foxdeportes and www.Facebook.com/the SBEC. Highlights available at www.youtube.com/premierboxingchampions.

The WBC Welterweight Tournament will continue on Saturday, January 30, when Azael “Turbo” Cosio (20-3-2, 17 KOs) of Santa Marta, Panama, faces Cesar Miguel “El Zurdo” Barrionuevo (28-3-2, 19 KOs) of Catamarca, Argentina.

The winner of this fight will face Pennsylvania’s Sammy “The Who Can Mexican” Vasquez in the semi-final in late Spring.

Promoted by Sampson Lewkowicz of Sampson Boxing and Reginaldo and Oswaldo Kuchle of Promociones del Pueblo, the 12-round Cosio vs. Barrionuevo showdown will be held at Hotel Ixtapa Azul, in Guerrero, Mexico, and will be televised live on Mexico’s Televisa and TyC Sports of Argentina.

According to Lewkowicz, in the other leg of the tournament, new WBC Welterweight Champion Danny Garcia has been mandated to face Amir Khan. The winner of that fight will then face the winner of the Cosio/Barrionuevo vs. Vasquez semi-final fight.

“This tournament is a great move by the WBC,” said Sampson Lewkowicz. “I’m very happy for the great opportunity that the WBC has given all the participants to compete for the prestigious green belt.”

Lewkowicz says he loves the tournament format to unclog the top levels of the welterweight division and is looking forward to their next move, a super welterweight tournament beginning in late Spring.

“What the WBC is doing is good for boxing and gives some talented fighters their chance to fight for a championship they might otherwise be forced to wait years for or be shut out of totally. I commend them for this move.”
About Sampson Boxing
After a very successful run as a matchmaker and adviser, Sampson Lewkowicz switched over to the promotional side of professional boxing in January 2008.

Sampson Boxing has grown into one of the world’s most prestigious promotional firms, representing many of the world’s best fighters and most promising young contenders.

Sampson Boxing has promotional partners all over North and South America, Africa, Asia, New Zealand, Australia, Europe and Central America and Sampson Boxing events have been televised on such premiere networks as HBO, Showtime, ESPN, VS. and several international networks.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 27, 2016) – M-1 Global president Vadim Finklechtein has announced contract extensions for M-1 featherweight champion Ivan “Buki” Buchinger, former M-1 Challenge light heavyweight titlist Stephan “T-800” Puetz and top American featherweight contender Lee “American Bulldog” Morrison.

“We’ve prolonged the contract with M-1 Global veteran fighters Buchinger, Puetz and Morrison,” Finkelchtein said. “We constantly work on our roster to have the best possible fighters.”

Buchinger (30-4-0, M-1: 5-0-0), the 29-year-old from Slovakia, captured the vacant M-1 Challenge featherweight title in 2014, via a fourth-round knockout of Tural Raginov at M-1 Challenge 52. In his last fight this past October, Buchinger successfully defended his title with a unanimous decision over current M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Mansour “Tarzan” Barnaoui at M-1 Challenge 62.

Puetz (13-2-0, M-1: 4-1-0), fighting out of Germany, is an electrifying fighter who won the M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion in 2014, taking a decision from Viktor Nemkov at M-1 Challenge 46. Puetz successfully defended his title twice in 2014 against Luis Fernando Miranda (SUB2 – choke) and Valery Mykasnikov (KO/TKO2 – punches). In 2015, Puetz took on previously undefeated M-1 Challenge heavyweight champion Marcin Tybura, who lost in three rounds due to a severely broken nose at M-1 Challenge 57. In his most recent fight this past December at M-1 Challenge 63, Puetz lost his title belt in a rematch with Nemkov by way of a decision.

Morrison (13-6-0, M-1: 2-3-0) is a popular featherweight contender out of Okanogon, Washington. The gutsy 29-year-old (pictured below on right) has notable M-1 Global decision wins over Pavel Vitruk and Mikhail Malyutin.

Upcoming Events: Feb. 19 – M-1 Challenge 64 in Moscow, Russia; Mar. 4 – M-1 Challenge 65 in St. Petersburg, Russia

Information

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!