FRANK WARREN AND Queensberry are proud to announce the introduction of a series of shows that will see our hugely talented prospects take centre stage in front of the BT Sport cameras.
 
With an extra 6 shows added this year to BT’s existing offering, Queensberry’s elite band of young professionals will be put under the spotlight on promotions designed to further their experience, take part in headline contests and give the viewers in the halls or at home the chance to identify talent and get behind fighters at an early point in their careers.
 
Regular competitive activity is paramount for young boxers to progress and this programme will deliver additional and valuable action in an environment that replicates major televised productions and will be broadcast on BT Sport and available for anyone to watch on the BT Sport Boxing YouTube channel.
 
The increase in fight dates for the younger contingent represents a timely boost, especially following a year of restrictions that included a cap on the number of fights permitted per show.
 
Frank Warren, who has explored the concept previously with ‘Box Academy’, believes this to be an extremely positive project that will sit alongside BT Sport’s current boxing output. Details of the first show will follow in due course.
 
“I’d like to pay tribute to BT Sport for getting right behind this initiative and supporting the sport at more of a ‘grassroots’ level. Right from the start BT made clear their intention to tell the story and maximise the exposure of our young fighters and they have been true to their word – and now even more so.
 
“It is particularly important in the times we are currently living to provide every opportunity we can for those starting out in the sport and the restrictions imposed over the last year has denied many youngsters the regular experience in the ring they require.
 
“We have prioritised and done our utmost to keep as many of our young pros as active as possible, but with limits put on the number of fights at each show and no ticket revenue coming in, it has not been an easy job.
 
“What we have found through showcasing the young talents in TV slots is that fans and viewers have been given the chance to see who is coming through the ranks from an early stage and have the opportunity to get behind their journeys.
 
“Now, these fighters will have their own platform on which to shine and show themselves to the nation. The pressure will be on, the cameras will be rolling and the spotlight applied. It will serve them so well in terms of their career progression and, when the time comes for them to headline on the big stage, they will be well prepared and familiar with the experience.
 
“I believe we have got the best, bumper crop of young fighters in the business on our books and I am so looking forward to this series of fight nights providing a vehicle to propel them forward and shine a big light on their undoubted abilities.
 
“I would encourage fight fans to get behind the series and help us with the continued development of potential future world champions.”

LAS VEGAS (July 20, 2021) – An explosive match-up between Mexican featherweights Eduardo “Sugar” Nunez (21-1, 21 KOs) and Jonathan “El Fenix” Aguilar will headline the next installment of RJJ Boxing on UFC Fight Pass®, July 29th at Benito Juarez Auditorium in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico.

The action will be streamed live and exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS®, the world’s leading digital subscription service for combat sports, starting at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT. To sign-up for UFC FIGHT PASS, please visit www.ufcfightpass.com.

RJJ Boxing on UFC FIGHT PASS is co-promoted by Roy Jones Jr. (RJJ) Boxing Promotions and De La O Promotions.

“This could very well be a coming out party for Eduardo Nunez,” RJJ Boxing CEO/co-founder Keith Veltre said, “who will be tested by Jonathan Aguilar in a battle of knockout artists. Nunez is a terrific puncher who is a rising star in the featherweight division. Another fighter to watch is 19-year-old Jorge Lugo Cota. He has all the tools to be a champion someday and he’s become a popular prospect fighting on our cards.

The 23-year-old Nunez is riding an 11-fight win streak, dating back three years, since he suffered his only pro loss to Adam Valle by way of a 6-round decision. Valle remains the only fighter to go the complete distance with Nunez, a former WBC Youth Silver Featherweight Champion. Nunez is hoping to break through on a larger scale, thanks to the exposure he’ll receive fighting UFC FIGHT Pass, and crack the world ratings this year.

Nunez’ opponent is the 10-round main event, power-punching Aguilar, is a former WBC International bantamweight title challenger. Nunez and Aguilar have 38 knockouts in 41 combined victories. Odds are Nunez vs. Aguilar reach the final bell.

In the co-featured event, super featherweight Jose “Checke Choryboy” Valenzuela (10-3, 4 KOs) takes on an opponent from the same state of Sonora, Jose Luis “Cuate” Vazquez (12-2, 5 KOs), in a rivalry fight. Valenzuela is from Los Mochis, Vazquez from Culiacon.

Cota (4-0, 3 KOs) has the potential to be a bonafide star. He has the proper bloodlines as the latest member of the fighting Montiel family, whose grandfather and uncles captured world titles. “Jorgito,” who had a 140-10 amateur record, will fight in a 6-rounder versus upset-minded Rodrigo Felix (4-4, 2 KOs), who is coming off a win by 6-round decision against previously undefeated prospect Oscar Ortega.

The opening UFC FIGHT PASS match is a 6-round, super bantamweight bout between Nazario Castro (6-2, 3 Kos) and Issac “Yaqui” Buitimea (9-7, 4 KOs).

A pair of unbeaten Las Vegas-based fighters, junior flyweight Yadira Bustillo (3-0, 1 KO) and featherweight Ezquiel Borrero (3-0, 1 KO), respectively, against Dana Fraire (1-0) Miguel Angel Nides (0-1-1) in 4-round matches.

Card subject to change.

INFORMATION:

Websites: http://www.RoyJonesJrBoxing.com, www.ufcfightpass.com

Facebook: /UFCFightPass, /KeithVeltre

Twitter: @UFCFightPass, @Keith_Veltre, @RoyjonesJRfa @RoyJonesJrOfficial

Instagram: @UFCFightPass, @KeithVeltre, @RoyJonesJrBoxing

ABOUT ROY JONES JR, BOXING PROMOTIONS: Co-founded in 2013 by 10-time world champion Roy Jones, Jr. and Keith Veltre, Roy Jones, Jr. (RJJ) Boxing Promotions is on its way to reinventing boxing. RJJ has already made a huge impact in the boxing community in a few short years. Creating exhilarating content for UFC Fight Pass, CBS Sports, Showtime, ESPN and beIN Sports in some of the finest venues across the country, RJJ has proven it is conquering the sweet science of the sport.

Based in the fight capital of the world, Las Vegas, NV, Roy Jones Jr. Boxing Promotions is climbing to the top at a fast pace, adding young talent to its growing stable: NABF super flyweight champion, IBF #8 and WBC # 14 Jade “Hurricane” Bornea (15-0, 10 KOs); two-time world title challenger, bantamweight “Mighty” Aston Palicte (26-4-1, 22 KOs); NABF welterweight champion, WBC #15 and Santiago “Somer” Dominguez (24-0, 18 KOs); former NABA welterweight champion Kendo “Tremendo” Castaneda (17-3, 8 KOs), former Interim World middleweight title challenger John “The Phenom” Vera (20-1, 12 KO), unbeaten super middleweight prospect Juan “Just Business” Barajas (11-0-1, 7 KOs), and former WBC World Youth heavyweight titlist Alexander “The Great” Flores (18-3-1, 16 KOs).

ABOUT UFC FIGHT PASS®: UFC FIGHT PASS® is the world’s leading digital subscription service for combat sports. Since launching in 2013, UFC FIGHT PASS is now available in more than 200 countries and territories. UFC FIGHT PASS provides its members with unlimited access to live UFC FIGHT PASS Prelims; live mixed martial arts and combat sports from around the world; original series and historical programming; special features; behind-the-scenes content; in-depth interviews; and up-to-the minute reports on the world of combat sports. UFC FIGHT PASS subscribers also have 24/7 access to the world’s largest fight library, featuring more than 20,000 bouts from dozens of combats sports organizations, as well as every fight in UFC history. Fight fans can access UFC FIGHT PASS on personal computers, iOS and Android mobile devices, Apple TV, Xbox One, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, LG Smart TVs, and Sony TVs with Android TV. For more information, please visit www.ufcfightpass.com.

New York City / Los Angeles (July 20, 2021) Triller Fight Club, the disruptive entertainment and tech platform which has been transforming the norms of entertainment and combat sports, today announced it has brought aboard well-known production-and-logistics expert Thorsten Meier as Fight Club’s new Chief Operating Officer.

“I am thrilled to be joining this team of innovators who, like me, are committed to changing the way boxing and entertainment are presented in the third millennium,” said Thorsten Meier. Triller’s Ryan Kavanaugh shares my goal of bringing a different experience to boxing by combining it with other exciting forms of entertainment, and I think it’s very smart. Boxing is one of the most exciting sports in the world and it’s time we start to act like it, so that new, younger fans have reason to get excited again.”

Already an established industry trendsetter as the Founder & CEO of Life in Motion Group, one of the world’s premier full-service concierge, travel- and event-management agencies with offices in NYC, London, Frankfurt and Scandinavia, Meier brings to the position decades of experience as a 360° Fulfillment Specialist to several well-known promotional firms, athletes, corporations and high-net-worth individuals.

After beginning his career in hospitality at luxury five-star hotels, Meier quickly ascended to Global Managing Director of Leading Group Sales/The Leading Hotels of the World. Sensing an industry need for capable professionals in several untapped niche markets, Meier left to form his groundbreaking Life in Motion Group in October 2009 and set about becoming a distinguished expert at providing tailor-made solutions to the needs of his ever-growing dossier of clientele.

Fluent in five languages and with an irreplaceable network of worldwide contacts, Meier came to be involved with boxing through the Klitschko’s, a pair of Ukrainian co-heavyweight champion brothers, who asked him to handle the comprehensive logistics for their mega-fights around the world. Meier later brought his talents to Kazakhstani middleweight superstar Gennadiy “GGG” Golovkin, even leading him to the DAZN network, who signed the star fighter to a blockbuster six-fight deal in 2018.

It was during the advent of the pandemic where Meier again confirmed his reputation as a mastermind by devising and implementing the “Covid Bubble,” a top-to-bottom set of protocols for preventing viral transmission that allowed Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions to resume staging large-scale “fan free” boxing events while confidently maintaining medically safe conditions for all involved.

The Covid Bubble and Meier’s system for keeping the virus at bay have become standard operating procedure for fighters and promoters, worldwide.

One of the first initiatives Meier will oversee as COO is the launch and execution of the “TrillerVerz”, a series of monthly, Tuesday night, entertainment shows at the Hulu Theater in Madison Square Garden and streamed live on the Triller app as well as Fite TV, beginning Tuesday, August 3.

TrillerVerz will offer a revolutionarily livelier presentation of boxing’s traditional “club show,” modernized to include contemporary forms of entertainment such as “rap battles” and other entertainment bonuses to be announced in the future.

“The UFC was able to create their own distinctive brand – that is what is missing right now in boxing,” continued Meier. “You have all these different promoters and shows and sanctioning bodies. The average fan has little confidence in the matchmaking and the presentation often feels rather stale. I am committed to Triller becoming a recognized institution that brings people to boxing who are not yet fans by changing what to expect at a Triller event.”

Triller Fight Club is a partnership between Triller and Snoop Dogg spearheaded by Hollywood super producer Ryan Kavanaugh with a four-quadrant business model that consists of influencers, legends, music artists and contemporary fighters. Its record-setting 2020 pay-per-view debut, pitting ring legends Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones in an exhibition fight for the ages, shattered all digital fight PPV records and became the eighth most successful fight PPV in history.

The second highly successful event, on April 17 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, saw social influencer Jake Paul level former Bellator and ONE Championship champion Ben Askren in less than a round. The event also featured performances by music superstars Justin Bieber, The Black Keys, Doja Cat, Saweetie, Diplo, Major Lazer, and the exclusive world premiere of the hip hop supergroup Mt. Westmore (Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Too $hort and E-40) performing for their first time ever together.

“Thorsten is a consummate professional with years of unmatched production and logistics expertise,” said Kavanaugh. “He will help bring Triller Fight Club events to another level. I’m excited to work with Thorsten and the superb team we are putting together to take boxing into the future.”

Effective immediately, Meier will be stepping aside at Life in Motion Group but will continue to retain a majority share in his company.

“It’s going to be about bringing new audiences together,” said Meier. “You won’t be going to just a boxing show or just a concert. Triller Fight Club fans can expect a full evening of entertainment. The sport is changing big time and someone has to start getting it right. This is big. In my opinion, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime to get younger people excited about boxing again.”

LOS ANGELES – Today, BELLATOR officials confirmed a must-see main event pitting hard-hitting heavyweights Cheick Kongo (30-11-2) and Sergei Kharitonov (32-8) against one another tops BELLATOR MMA 265 on Friday, August 20 from the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. and airs live on SHOWTIME at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

The card has also confirmed top featherweights No. 3 Adam Borics (17-1) and No. 4 Jay-Jay Wilson (8-0) will meet for the right to face the winner of the BELLATOR Featherweight World Grand Prix Final between Patricio “Pitbull” (32-4) and AJ McKee (17-0), which takes place on Saturday, July 31.

Tickets for the event go on sale this Thursday at 10 a.m. CT and are available at Sanford Pentagon Box Office & Ticketmaster.

The preliminary portion of BELLATOR MMA 265: Kongo vs. Kharitonov currentlyfeatures a flyweight bout pitting No.5-ranked Alejandra Lara (9-4) against DeAnna Bennett (10-7-1) and willbegin at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT and stream live on the BELLATOR MMA YouTube channel, SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV. Additional preliminary bouts will be announced in the near future.

Holding an impressive MMA record of 30-11-2, 1 NC, No. 3-ranked Cheick Kongo returns to action for the first time since headlining the first-ever major MMA event in his native France last October. The former kickboxer remains a force to be reckoned with and holds records for the most fights (16) and wins (12) in BELLATOR heavyweight history. With high-profile victories over Vitaly Minakov, Mirko Cro Cop, Antoni Hardonk, and Matt Mitrione, the Parisian is keen to pad his current promotional records, set new ones, and earn his shot at BELLATOR gold.

The man nicknamed “The Paratrooper,” Kharitonov is the owner of an equally notable MMA resume, with the Russian scoring vicious wins against some of the sport’s marquee names, such as Fabricio Werdum, Andrei Arlovski, Pedro Rizzo, Murilo “Ninja” Rua, Matt Mitrione, and Alistair Overeem. Now, fresh off two championship victories on the regional circuit, Kharitonov returns to the BELLATOR cage with the intention of climbing the heavyweight rankings and asserting himself as a BELLATOR title contender.

28-year-old Hungarian Adam “The Kid” Borics has won 17 of 18 fights to begin his professional career, bouncing back from his only loss with three straight victories. Training out of South Florida’s Sanford MMA gym, Borics has firmly established himself as a true threat to anyone in the 145-pound division, where he is currently ranked third.

Undefeated in his first eight fights as a professional, New Zealand’s Wilson has won in style, accumulating six finishes in those eight wins. Following a split decision win against Tywan Claxton, Wilson scored a violent knockout of Sergio DeBari, then followed that victory up with an equally vicious spinning backfist stoppage over SBG’s Pedro Carvalho in April. The Kiwi fighter will be looking to secure a high-stakes victory over Borics with a world title shot awaiting the winner.

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BELLATOR MMA 265: Kongo vs. Kharitonov Main Card:

SHOWTIME

Friday, August 20 – 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT 

Heavyweight Main Event: #3-Cheick Kongo (30-11-2) vs. Sergei Kharitonov (32-8)

Featherweight No. 1 Contender’s Bout: #3-Adam Borics (17-1) vs. #4-Jay-Jay Wilson (8-0)

Preliminary Card: 

BELLATOR MMA YouTube channel | SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel | Pluto TV

6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT

Flyweight Bout: #5-Alejandra Lara (9-4) vs. DeAnna Bennett (10-7-1)

For more information on upcoming BELLATOR MMA events, visit BELLATOR.com.

About BELLATOR MMA:
BELLATOR MMA is a leading global mixed martial arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, BELLATOR events take place in major cities worldwide and can be seen on television in over 160 countries to an available audience of over one billion people. In the United States, BELLATOR can be seen on SHOWTIME. BELLATOR is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. BELLATOR is based in Hollywood, Calif. and owned by entertainment giant ViacomCBS, home to the world’s premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.

About SHOWTIME

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly owned subsidiary of ViacomCBS Inc., 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 Amazon, Apple^®, Google, LG Smart TVs, Oculus Go, Roku^®, Samsung Smart TVs, Xbox One and PlayStation^®4. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Amazon’s Prime Video Channels, Apple TV Channels, AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, Hulu, The Roku Channel, Sling TV and YouTube TV. Viewers can also watch on computers at Showtime.com. 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. 

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA (July 20, 2021) — As we look forward to the showdown between eight-division world champion and boxer laureate Senator Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao and unified WBC/IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr., which is 32 days away, it seems only fitting to look back at Manny’s thrilling victory over  then undefeated WBA welterweight “super” champion Keith Thurman, which took place two years ago today in Las Vegas.  Manny opened the fight with a first-round knockdown of Thurman en route to a 12-round split decision victory.  As Thurman accurately stated in his post-fight interview, “It was a night of blessings and lessons.”  Manny’s victory over Thurman was a career highlight for boxing’s longest and most successful partnership.  For 20 years, Manny has had his trainer, world-famous Freddie Roach, in his corner, literally and figuratively, winning world titles in seven different weight divisions in a career of firsts that not only defines the champion he repeatedly became, but the Filipino spirit which has been embraced by the world.  During those the past 20 years, Manny has played David to a roster of Hall of Fame Goliaths, scoring the most impressive victories of his era against the likes of Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Márquez, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, and Shane Mosley.  In his last three fights, which took place during a 12-month period, from July 15, 2018 through July 20, 2019, Manny ran the table, winning welterweight world title fights against Lucas Matthysse, Adrien Broner, and Thurman.  

Below, please find selected clips from ringside, and a link to the FOX Sports PBC Pay-Per-View telecast.          

• Manny Pacquiao vs. Keith Thurman Full Fight | HIGHLIGHTS | PBC ON FOX – YouTube
• Manny Pacquiao: Thurman win the perfect ending, if he wants it – Sports Illustrated
• Manny Pacquiao remains the most riveting fighter of his generation (espn.com)
• Manny Pacquiao beats Keith Thurman by split decision (apnews.com)
• Ellerbe squashes talk of Pacquiao-Mayweather rematch (yahoo.com)
• Dwyre: Manny Pacquiao’s victory would be the ultimate farewell to a storied career – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)
• Whicker: Manny Pacquiao’s win over Thurman will reverberate for a while – Orange County Register (ocregister.com)
• Manny Pacquiao defies Father Time with another signature victory | Las Vegas Review-Journal (reviewjournal.com)
• Pacquiao mulls future after title stunner (yahoo.com)
• Manny Pacquiao beats Keith Thurman by split decision for welterweight title – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)
• In a blistering bout, Thurman couldn’t keep up with the ageless Pacquiao (and other observations from Las Vegas) – The Athletic

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

Manny (62-7-2, 39 KOs), the one-time Boxing Writers Association of America Fighter of the Decade and three-time BWAA Fighter of the Year, hails from Sarangani Province in the Philippines.  He faces his biggest professional boxing challenge when he takes on Spence (27-0, 21 KOs), of Desoto, Texas.  Spence is 11 years younger and over four inches taller than the amazin’ Manny.  Would Manny have it any other way?  The Pacquiao-Spence world championship event, which headlines a FOX Sports PBC Pay-Per-View, Saturday, August 21 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, is promoted by TGB Promotions, MP Promotions and Man Down Promotions.  The pay-per-view will begin at 9 p.m. RT / 6 p.m. PT.  Remaining tickets can be purchased through t-mobilearena.com and axs.com.

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For more information: visit www.premierboxingchampions.com, http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/homepage and www.foxdeportes.com, follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @PBConFOX, @FOXSports, @FOXDeportes and @TGBPromotions become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/foxsports & www.facebook.com/foxdeportes.

BOSTON (July 20, 2021) – Like so many of his fellow Irish boxers, amateur standout Thomas O’Toole is following the green and gold path from Ireland to Boston, after signing a managerial contract with Ryan Roach’s Fighter Locker.

The 23-year-old O’Toole is a promising light heavyweight prospect who captured top honors at the 2019 Irish Elite Championships. Last year, the Irish southpaw upset pre-tournament favorite Tony Browne in semifinals of the Irish Elite Championships, and he lost by split decision in the final to Emmet Brennan, who is representing Ireland in Tokyo at the Olympics.

Irish boxer who’ve moved to the Boston area as a base for their professional careers include WBO World Super Middleweight Champion Stevie “Celtic Warrior” Collins (36-3, 21 KOs – 1986-97), WBA World light middleweight title challenger Sean Mannion (42-14-1, 13 KOs) – 1979-93), and heavyweight Kevin “The Clones Colossus” McBride (35-10-1 (29 KOs) – 1992-2011), best known as the man who knocked “Iron” Mike Tyson into retirement.

“I’ve only heard good things about Ryan, and I like the family aspect he talked about for his fighters,” O’Toole explained why he signed with Fighter Locker. “I know every manager will talk about how they will take care of you, but I really believed you, and I trust you will get a great promoter for me when the time comes. Plus, you have some Olympians, so you’re not taking just any and all fighters to sign. You want champions, which was the main thing for me. Knowing I’m in a stable with Olympians/national champions is great.

“I always intended to turn pro after Tokyo and had interest in waiting around for 2024 (next Olympics in Paris). It all worked out. I achieved more than I had hoped as an amateur an at just 23, I can’t wait to see what the next few years bring.”

O’Toole is tentatively scheduled to make his pro debut September 25th in Boston.

“Signing Thomas was very special to me,” manager Ryan Roach said. “He is one of the best in Ireland and in a very elite class. We talked a few times and we really hit it off. Last Friday, he shot me a message saying, ‘I’m all yours.’ I was ecstatic.

He really is a great fighter with a lot of skill. He’s a southpaw with some serious pop. Thomas is very young, so we will see which weight class suits him well. Boxing fans in New England, particularly in Boston, will love him. He’s a great person and fighter.”

Fighter Locker’s growing stable of gifted boxers include California super flyweight Rocco “So Cal Kid” Santomauro (21-1, 6 KOs), Troy, NY ABF American West super lightweight Ray Jay “The Destroyer” Bermudez (12-0, 9 KOs), ABF USA super welterweight Jimmy “Quiet Storm” Williams (18-5-2, 6 KOs), ABF American West super middleweight champion “The Amazing” Shawn McCalman (8-0, 4 KOs), super bantamweight Daniel “G.D.F.E.” Bailey, Jr. (7-0, 4 KOs), lightweight Leonel de los Santos (3-0, 3 KOs), a 2-time Dominican Republic Olympian, Boston featherweight Troy Anderson, Jr. (1-0, 1 KO), pro-debuting Dominican Republic welterweight Juan Solano, Salt Lake City, 2016 Brazilian Olympic silver medalist Yuberjen Martinez, Brazilian Olympian Jorge Vivas, Colorado super middleweight Marvin “Too Much” Cordova, Jr. (23-2-1, 12 KOs), West Palm Beach, FL light heavyweight Robert Daniels, Jr. (4-0, 4 KOs), Utah brothers, ABF American West lightweight champion Ignacio Chairez (9-0-1, 5 KOs) and lightweight Gabriel Chairez (4-0-1, 2 KOs).

INFORMATION:

WEBSITE: fighterlocker.com, punch4parkinsons.com

FACEBOOK: /fighterlocker

TWITTER: @RoachRyan

INSTAGRAM: @RyanRoach82

ABOUT FIGHTER LOCKER: Established in 2019, Fighter Locker is a comprehensive sports agency that manages professional boxers. Fighter Locker also helps to brand boxers by finding their voice with a 100-percent customized service. Fighter Locker does not really believe in working models. It believes in partnership optimization models in motion.

Fighter Locker uses four creative steps because it believes in “the foundation is everything”: 1. wisely conceived, 2. creatively restrained, 3. Proudly judged, 4. sharply targeted.

Rosemont, IL.– After nearly a two absence, Hitz Boxing returned with a night of fistic bombs in the ring and fireworks outside of the ring, as it put on entertaining card in front of a huge and enthusiastic at the Jennie Finch Stadium in Rosemont, Illinois.

“The layoff made us recharge our batteries and the show was a draw. It was refreshing to see a large turnout, despite not having a huge name on the card. This speaks well for the future of our program,” said Bobby Hitz.

The card was dubbed “Rock’n’Box” and featured the number-one Tom Petty Tribute Band in the nation called “Petty Union.” They put on a terrific show and that was followed by a great evening of boxing.

In the opening bout, Olivia Curry (2-0) won a four-round majority decision over Miranda Barber (1-2) in a middleweight contest. The fight was full of action as each fighter left everything in the ring. Curry won by scores of 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38.

In the evening’s final bout, Caleb Hernandez stopped Mike Montoya in round four of a scheduled six-round super middleweight bout.

In round three, Montoya took a knee. Later in the round, Hernandez was docked a point for hitting on the break.

In round four, Hernandez rocked Montoya with an uppercut, and then put him down with a hard flurry. It was another flurry that forced a ref stoppage at 2:42. It was learned that Montoya dislocated his shoulder during the fight.

Hernandez is now 6-0 with six knockouts. Montoya is 8-4-1.

Simon Buetnner won a four-round majority decision over James Ballard in a light heavyweight contest.

Buettner won by scores of 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38 to raise his mark to 8-1. Ballard falls to 10-3.

There were fireworks both in and out of the ring during a light heavyweight bout that saw Robin Safar score a fifth round stoppage over Josue Obando in a scheduled eight-round affair.

The was an actual fireworks display that was going on for much of the fight.

In round five, Safar landed a crushing right to the jaw that backed Obando onto the ropes. Safar followed up with five unanswered blows, and the fight was stopped at 1:17.

Safar of Sweden is now 12-0 with nine knockouts. Obando of Mexico drops to 20-30-2.

Jimmy Quiter remained undefeated with a third round stoppage of James Warfield in a scheduled four-round light heavyweight bout.

In round one, a clash of heads caused a cut on the forehead of Warfield. In round three, Quiter hurt Warfield with a series of punches. A follow up flurry on the ropes forced a referee stoppage at 1:46.

Quiter is now 4-0 with four knockouts. Warfield falls to 0-2.

In an entertaining lightweight fight, Angel Barrera remained undefeated with a four-round majority decision over Daniel Buenaventura.

This fight was considered The Fight of the Night, as the two stood toe-to-toe for the entire four round contest. If both guys continue to develop, Hitz is already thinking about a rematch with bigger stakes down the road.

Barrera won by scores of 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38 to raise his mark to 2-0. Buenaventura is 2-3.

In a mild upset, Chris Chatman (16-11-1) scored a six-round split decision over local favorite Mike Gavronski (26-5-1) in a cruiserweight bout.

The fights can be seen on the following links:

LOS ANGELES – BELLATOR MMA returns to action on Saturday, July 31 with BELLATOR 263 headlined by Featherweight World Champion Patricio Pitbull (32-4) squaring off with No. 1 ranked AJ McKee (17-0) in the Featherweight Grand Prix Finals with both the title and one million dollars on the line. Also, top-ten featherweights collide in the co-main event as No. 2 ranked Emmanuel Sanchez (20-5) takes on the surging No. 8 ranked Mads Burnell (15-3). 

BELLATOR 263 emanates from The Forum in Los Angeles andairs live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Limited tickets remain and are available at www.bellator.com.

Click here for additional information detailing fighter eligibility, as well as additional voting criteria.

MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND1. Patricio Pitbull (32-4)2. Vadim Nemkov (14-2)3. Gegard Mousasi (47-7-2)4. Ryan Bader (28-6, 1 NC)5. Yaroslav Amosov (26-0)6. AJ McKee (17-0)7. Sergio Pettis (21-5)8. Douglas Lima (32-9)9. Corey Anderson (15-5)10. Juan Archuleta (25-3)	WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND1. Cris Cyborg (24-2, 1 NC)2. Juliana Velasquez (12-0)3. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-1)4. Julia Budd (15-3)5. Liz Carmouche (16-7)6. Denise Kielholtz (6-3) ?17. Arlene Blencowe (14-8) ?18. Cat Zingano (12-4)9. Kana Watanabe (10-1-1)10. Leslie Smith (12-9-1)	MEN’S HEAVYWEIGHTC. Ryan Bader (28-6)IC. Valentin Moldavsky (11-1) 2. Tim Johnson (15-7) 3. Cheick Kongo (30-11-2) 4. Tyrell Fortune (11-1) ?15. Linton Vassell (20-8) ?16. Steven Mowry (9-0)7. Matt Mitrione (13-9)8. Davion Franklin (3-0)9. Gokhan Saricam (5-1)10. Jake Hager (3-0)
MEN’S LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTC. Vadim Nemkov (14-2)1. Ryan Bader (28-6)2. Corey Anderson (15-5)3. Phil Davis (22-6) 4. Anthony Johnson (23-6)5. Julius Anglickas (10-1)6. Lyoto Machida (26-11)7. Grant Neal (6-0)8. Christian Edwards (5-0) 9. Melvin Manhoef (32-15-1) ?110. Karl Albrektsson (11-3) NR	MEN’S MIDDLEWEIGHTC. Gegard Mousasi (47-7-2)1. John Salter (18-4)2. Austin Vanderford (11-0) 3. Costello van Steenis (13-2) 4. Fabian Edwards (9-2) 5. Johnny Eblen (9-0)6. Charlie Ward (9-4)7. Romero Cotton (5-0)8. Mike Shipman (14-3)9. Ed Ruth (8-3)10. Norbert Novenyi Jr. (5-0)	MEN’S WELTERWEIGHTC. Yaroslav Amosov (26-0)1. Douglas Lima (32-9)2. Michael Page (19-1)3. Jason Jackson (14-4)4. Neiman Gracie (10-2)5. Logan Storley (11-1)6. Joey Davis (8-0) 7. Derek Anderson (17-4) 8. Paul Daley (43-18-2) 9. Oliver Enkamp (10-2) ?110. Sabah Homasi (15-9) ?1
MEN’S LIGHTWEIGHTC. Patricio Pitbull (32-4)1. Patricky Pitbull (23-10)2. Sidney Outlaw (16-4) 3. Benson Henderson (28-10) 4. Peter Queally (13-5-1) 5. Goiti Yamauchi (25-5) 6. Myles Jury (19-6) 7. Aviv Gozali (6-0) 8. Alexander Shabliy (20-3) 9. Dan Moret (15-6) 10. Adam Piccolotti (12-4)	MEN’S FEATHERWEIGHTC. Patricio Pitbull (32-4)1. AJ McKee (17-0)2. Emmanuel Sanchez (20-5)3. Adam Borics (17-1)4. Jay-Jay Wilson (8-0)5. Aaron Pico (8-3)6. Daniel Weichel (41-12)7. Pedro Carvalho (11-5)8. Mads Burnell (15-3)9. Justin Gonzales (12-0)10. Jeremy Kennedy (16-3, 1 NC)	MEN’S BANTAMWEIGHTC. Sergio Pettis (21-5)1. Juan Archuleta (25-3)2. Patchy Mix (14-1)3. Magomed Magomedov (18-1)4. Raufeon Stots (16-1)5. Leandro Higo (21-5)6. James Gallagher (11-1)7. Josh Hill (20-4)8. Jornel Lugo (6-0)9. Cass Bell (5-2)10. Darrion Caldwell (15-5)
WOMEN’S FEATHERWEIGHTC. Cris Cyborg (24-2, 1 NC)1. Julia Budd (15-3)2. Arlene Blencowe (13-8)3. Cat Zingano (12-4)4. Leslie Smith (12-8-1)5. Leah McCourt (5-1) 6. Sinead Kavanagh (7-4) 7. Janay Harding (6-5) 8. Jessy Miele (9-5)9. Talita Nogueira (8-2) ?110. Jessica Borga (3-3) NR	WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHTC. Juliana Velasquez (12-0)1. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-1)2. Liz Carmouche (16-7)3. Denise Kielholtz (6-3) 4. Kana Watanabe (10-1-1) 5. Alejandra Lara (9-4)6. Veta Arteaga (6-4)7. Kate Jackson (11-5-1)8. Diana Avsaragova (4-0) NR9. Hannah Guy (3-1) ?19. Valerie Loureda (3-1)

Please visit Bellator.com for additional information.

****

About BELLATOR

BELLATOR MMA is a leading global mixed martial arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, BELLATOR events take place in major cities worldwide and can be seen on television in over 160 countries to an available audience of over one billion people. In the United States, BELLATOR can be seen on SHOWTIME. BELLATOR is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. BELLATOR is based in Hollywood, Calif. and owned by entertainment giant ViacomCBS, home to the world’s premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.

TUCSON, Ariz. (July 20, 2021) — WBC super featherweight world champion Oscar Valdez authored a title-winning knockout for the ages in February over Miguel Berchelt. For his encore — and the first defense of his title — the undefeated two-time Mexican Olympian will make his desert homecoming.

Valdez (29-0, 23 KOs) will look to make it 30 for 30 against undefeated 2016 Brazilian Olympic gold medalist Robson Conceição on Friday, Sept. 10 from the AVA Amphitheater at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona.

A native of Nogales, Mexico, Valdez moved to Tucson as a young child and spent his elementary school years there before returning to Mexico.

In the 10-round co-feature, undefeated junior lightweight star Gabriel Flores Jr., from Stockton, California, will fight Mexican veteran Luis Alberto Lopez. Valdez-Conceição and Flores Jr.-Lopez will stream live and exclusively on ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

Promoted by Top Rank, tickets starting at $25 go on sale Tuesday, July 27 at 10 a.m. MST and can be purchased by visiting Etix.com.

“Oscar Valdez is coming off a career-best performance and wants to put on a spectacular showing in front of the great Tucson fans,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “Conceição has been waiting for this shot ever since he turned pro, and having promoted him for his entire career, I know he’ll be at his very best. We have a great co-feature, as the young Flores wants to prove he is a contender to watch, and he can do that by beating a tough Mexican in Luis Alberto Lopez.”

Valdez cemented his status as one of the faces of Mexican boxing with his 10th-round knockout over longtime champion Berchelt. He is 8-0 in world title fights, including six defenses of the WBO featherweight world title he won in July 2016. Valdez and Conceição fought as amateurs in the gold medal match of the 2009 Pan American Games, with Conceição prevailing by a single point. Valdez turned pro nearly four years before Conceição (16-0, 8 KOs), who made history as the first Brazilian boxer to capture Olympic gold. A native of Bahia, Conceição made his pro debut in November 2016 on the Manny Pacquiao-Jessie Vargas undercard and knocked out four of his first five foes. Last October, he survived an early knockdown to edge Louie Coria by unanimous decision. He last fought April 10 in Tulsa and knocked out Jesus Antonio Ahumada in the seventh round.

“I am very excited to fight in my second home, Tucson, Arizona, where I will have my first defense of the WBC super featherweight world title,” Valdez said. “It motivates me to know that I will defend the title in front of my friends and my family, and I will be willing to put it on the line as in all my fights. I’m coming to give a great show to my people, and I can’t wait to see you on Sept. 10.”

Conceição said, “I’ve been waiting my whole life for this opportunity, and that’s why I’m training with great determination. I will represent my family and Brazil. I already won a gold medal for my country and now I will bring home a world title. With great determination, I will deliver a great performance. It will be a true spectacle!”

Flores (20-0, 7 KOs) made history in 2017 when, at 16 years old, he became the youngest fighter ever to sign a promotional contract with Top Rank. He went 3-0 in 2020, including a shutout decision over Matt Conway on the Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II undercard. Flores performed three times inside the MGM Grand Las Vegas Bubble, punctuated by a sixth-round stoppage over former world title challenger Jayson Velez in February. Lopez (22-2, 12 KOs), from Mexicali, Mexico, has won five straight bouts since a 2019 decision loss to Ruben Villa. He notched his signature win last July with a split decision over Andy Vences.

“This is the next step in my journey towards a world title, and I will convincingly defeat Lopez,” Flores said. “I’m going to prove once again that I’m ready for the next level.”

Lopez said, “I appreciate matchmaker Brad Goodman and Top Rank for the opportunity to fight Gabriel Flores Jr. I know he’ll be prepared to give everything on Sept. 10, but so am I, and I guarantee nothing but my very best. I’m a man of few words, and I’ll let my actions do the talking inside the ring.”

The undercard, streaming live and exclusively on ESPN+, will feature Japan’s undefeated WBO flyweight world champion Junto Nakatani (21-0, 16 KOs) defending his title against Puerto Rican former world champion Angel “Tito” Acosta (22-2, 21 KOs). Nakatani, who has never fought outside of Japan, knocked out Filipino contender Giemel Magramo in eight rounds last November to win the vacant world title. A former Japanese flyweight champion, Nakatani has won four straight bouts by stoppage. Acosta, who made three successful defenses of the WBO light flyweight crown, has won two fights since a debated 12th-round stoppage at the hands of Elwin Soto. Acosta was leading on all three scorecards when he was stopped on his feet early in the round.

The ESPN+ undercard will also see undefeated Puerto Rican sensation Xander Zayas (9-0, 7 KOs) in a six-round junior middleweight bout against an opponent to be named and lightweight sensation Raymond Muratalla (12-0, 10 KOs) in an eight-rounder.

Also scheduled to appear in eight-round bouts: 2016 Mexican Olympian and junior welterweight prospect Lindolfo Delgado (12-0, 11 KOs), rising junior lightweight René Telléz Girón (15-1, 9 KOs) and Mexican junior welterweight knockout artist Omar Aguilar (21-0, 20 KOs).

About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the industry-leading sports streaming service that offers fans in the U.S. thousands of live sports events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks and exclusive editorial content from dozens of ESPN writers and reporters. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ has grown to more than 13.8 million subscribers. Fans sign up to ESPN+ for just $5.99 a month (or $59.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNplus.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices). It is also available as part of The Disney Bundle that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu for $13.99/month (Hulu w/ads) or $19.99/month (Hulu w/o ads).

JOE JOYCE HAS identified the ideal venue to stage his world title tilt, should he be successful in seeing off the challenge of Carlos Takam in their heavyweight showdown at the SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday.

Joyce’s field of dreams is still in North London, but further round the North Circular at the Emirates Stadium, home of his footballing favourites Arsenal FC.

Victory on Saturday will ensure the 35-year-old remains at the head of the queue to take on the winner of the forthcoming Anthony Joshua-Oleksandr Usyk battle pencilled in for September.

With Joshua/Usyk now official, Joyce has been confirmed as the first WBO mandatory challenger for the winner. 

Joyce would love to lure whoever emerges as WBO champion to N7 to unleash his own Arsenal on the champion.

“That would be a great one for the history books and there is a first time for everything,” said the heavyweight force, who would relish being the first to headline on the hallowed Emirates turf.

“The Emirates is an amazing stadium, so I am looking forward to it happening hopefully.”

Big fights, of course, have been staged at football grounds across London and the country, with Upton Park, Loftus Road, the old White Hart Lane, Elland Road and Old Trafford among the stadiums to host the noble art.

Arsenal’s previous ground, Highbury, was the venue for another major sporting event that took place in 1966, when Muhammad Ali fought Henry Cooper for a second time.

Since this time, the home of Arsenal has been strictly football.

Joyce visited the stadium today ahead of his big night on Saturday to perhaps get a feel of what might be should he continue to successfully hunt down a shot at a world title belt.

Even though Joyce is typically associated with Putney, north of the capital isn’t so far away from his place of birth.

“I actually started off in East London and was born in Mile End. I lived with both my parents in Bethnal Green before they split up and my mum moved to Hackney, then Leytonstone, before we went south to Putney when I was six.

“I got to go to Highbury sometimes when one of my uncles took me because my dad wasn’t into football much so I didn’t get the chance to follow as closely as I would have liked.

“The first game I watched – I can’t remember how old I was, but I was pretty young at the time – was an Arsenal-Liverpool game in the era of Ian Wright and David Seaman.

“I have always been an Arsenal fan since school and soon I am getting to do a fishing show soon with my childhood heroes Wright and Seaman.”

Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles takes place at the SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday (July 24).

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).

Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

£50 Tier
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£100 Floor
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Unified Heavyweight Champion of the World Anthony Joshua OBE will put his IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO World Titles on the line against Oleksandr Usyk at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday September 25, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and Ireland.

Joshua (24-1, 22 KOs) dominated and then floored IBF Mandatory Challenger Kubrat Pulev to score a brutal ninth-round knockout at The SSE Arena, Wembley last time out in December in what was his first fight on UK soil since he stopped Alexander Povetkin in seven explosive rounds at Wembley Stadium back in September 2018. 

The Heavyweight division’s biggest attraction has sold-out stadiums and arenas around the world and now ‘AJ’ returns to the Capital for his fifth stadium fight looking to create more history as he faces his latest WBO Mandatory Challenger at the new state of the art home of Spurs, following in the footsteps of Frank Bruno MBE who defeated Joe Bugner in Matchroom Boxing’s first Heavyweight promotion at the old White Hart Lane in October 1987.

Ukrainian pound-for-pound star Usyk (18-0, 13 KOs) made the move to the Heavyweight division after dominating at Cruiserweight, ending his extraordinary spell at 200lbs as the Undisputed king with a phenomenal run of victories in his opponent’s backyard against Marco Huck, Mairis Briedis, Murat Gassiev and Tony Bellew. 

The 2012 Olympic Gold medallist began his assault on the Heavyweight division by retiring Chazz Witherspoon in seven rounds at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago in October 2019 and continued his bid to become a two-weight World Champion when he outpointed Derek Chisora over 12 rounds at The SSE Arena, Wembley last October. 

“The date is set and we are fully locked in,” said Joshua. “September 25, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, I put it all on the line again and it’s time to defend my crown. We are two Olympic Gold medallists who have fought our way to the top and never avoided challenges. 

“The stadium is exceptional, the atmosphere will be electric, I’m honoured to be the first person to fight in such an awe inspiring venue. The stage is set and I am ready to handle business.”

Usyk said: “The path will be mastered by the walking one.”

Eddie Hearn, Chairman, Matchroom Sport, said: “Olympic Gold vs. Olympic Gold, Unified World Heavyweight Champion vs. Undisputed Cruiserweight World Champion this one has it all and I can’t wait to stage this huge event in front of over 60,000 at the stunning Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on September 25.”

Freddie Cunningham, Managing Director, 258MGT, said: “AJ once again shows why he is the number one in the division by defending his belts against the toughest opposition in the rankings. Another UK boxing stadium event and another world’s first by staging the fight at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium make this one of the biggest UK sporting events of the year.” 

Alexander Krassyuk, General Director, K2 Promotions, said: “This is a huge fight between two gentlemen of the sport. Wow! The two London 2012 Olympic Champions are set to collide for the Heavyweight crowns. Let the best man win, and we will see you again for the rematch!”

Daniel Levy, Chairman, Tottenham Hotspur, said: “This is a huge occasion for Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – Anthony Joshua is an icon in the world of sport and to have him fight here in London N17, against a top opponent in Oleksandr Usyk, will be amazing for the area of Tottenham. This event will once again showcase the stadium’s ability to take the hosting of world-class sporting occasions to the next level – we cannot wait for September 25.”

Adam Smith, Head of Boxing Development, Sky Sports, said: “Anthony Joshua is back, live on Sky Sports Box Office, in an epic evening of World Heavyweight Title action on September 25. We’ve followed Anthony Joshua’s enthralling journey since the very start – and now Ukraine’s pound-for-pound star Oleksandr Usyk stands in the way of ‘AJ’s’ ultimate ambition of becoming an Undisputed World Champion.

“The unbeaten Usyk is returning to the city where he struck gold at the same Olympic Games as ‘AJ’ and we know him well from that dramatic win over Tony Bellew and a breathless battle with Derek Chisora. I couldn’t be more delighted after working for two years to secure a spectacular Heavyweight showdown at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a stunning backdrop for fight fans as Joshua vs. Usyk lights up London.”

An announcement on tickets will be made in due course.

FRISCO, TEXAS (July 20, 2021): Roger “The Kid” Gutierrez (35-3-1, 20 KOs) will defend his WBA Super Featherweight World Championship against Rene “El Gemelo” Alvarado (32-9, 21 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round trilogy fight that will be the co-main event to Ortiz Jr. vs. Kavaliauskas. The event, which will also feature Felix Alvarado and several rising talents, will take place on Saturday, Aug. 14 at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas and will be streamed live on DAZN.

“The final chapter of the longstanding rivalry between Roger Gutierrez and Rene Alvarado will end on Aug. 14,” said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy. “The results of their first two fights were sharply different from each other, though both battles produced an equal amount of excitement. This third fight will put an end to their rivalry with even more action and place the winner on the path to unify titles in the division.”

Gutierrez is a Venezuelan world champion who had initially suffered several setbacks in his young career, including a stoppage loss to Rene Alvarado. However, Gutierrez maintained his tenacity and turned his career around by scoring an upset knockout win against Rocky Hernandez in 2019. Since then, the 26-year-old has been on an incredible streak in which he avenged his first professional loss by defeating Alvarado and becoming a world champion. Gutierrez plans to remain champion by winning decisively on Aug. 14.

“I am very excited for this trilogy fight that I am going to have with Rene Alvarado,” said Roger Gutierrez. “I know that the fight will not be easy and my opponent is tough. He beat me in the first fight, and then I took the title from him in the second bout.. It will be an exciting battle, and I know the fans will enjoy it very much. ”

Alvarado is a 32-year-old former world champion of Managua, Nicaragua who has fought the likes of Robinson “Robin Hood” Castellanos, Jayson “La Maravilla” Velez, Danis “Djingis Khan” Shafikov, Carlos “The Solution” Morales and Andrew “El Chango” Cancio, the man he beat to become a world champion. Though he lost his belt to Gutierrez in his first defense, he planas on regaining the title and initiating a long reign.

“I am happy to have the opportunity to rectify the loss I suffered against Roger Gutierrez,” said Rene Alvarado. “I made mistakes in that second fight, but I promise to correct them all on August 14 so I can deliver to Nicaragua a great victory. As always, I will train 100% and leave everything in the ring.”

Felix Alvarado (36-2, 31 KOs) of Managua, Nicaragua will defend his IBF light flyweight world title against Erick López (16-5-1, 10 KOs) of Guadalajara, Mexico in a scheduled 12-round clash.

Pablo Cesar “El Demoledor” Cano (33-7-1, 23 KOs) from Tlalnepantla, Mexico and Danielito “El Zorro” Zorrilla (15-0, 11 KOs) from Toa Baja, Puerto Rico will open DAZN’s main broadcast in a 10-round clash in the 140-pound division.

Additional bouts will be streamed live on Golden Boy’s official Facebook page.

Alex Martin (16-3, 6 KOs) of Chicago, Illinois will meet Josec Ruiz (22-4-3, 15 KOs) of Miami, Florida in a 10-round battle in the super lightweight division.

George Rincon (11-0, 7 KOs) of Dallas, Texas will return in a 10-round super lightweight fight against a soon-to-be-announced opponent.

Leonardo Baez (19-4, 10 KOs) of Mexicali, Mexico and Hector Valdez (14-0, 8 KOs) of Dallas, Texas will clash in a 10-round matchup for the NABA Super Bantamweight Title.

Alex Rincon (8-0, 6 KOs) of Dallas, Texas will participate in an eight-round super welterweight bout against Sanny Duversonne (11-3-2, 8 KOs) of Miami, Florida.

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Ortiz Jr. vs. Kavaliauskas is a 12-round fight for the WBO International Welterweight Title presented by Golden Boy The event is sponsored by Hennessy “Never Stop. Never Settle” and “BetOnline – Your Online Sportsbook Experts.” The fight will take place on Saturday, Aug. 14 at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas and will be streamed live on DAZN.

Tickets for Ortiz Jr vs. Kavaliauskas are on sale now and are priced at $250, $150, $100, $75, $50 and $35, not including applicable service charges. Tickets will be available for purchase at www.seatgeek.com.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com and DAZN.com. Follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing and @DAZNBoxing. Become a fan on Facebook
at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoy and https://www.facebook.com/DAZN. Follow on Instagram @GoldenBoy and @DAZNBoxing. Follow the conversation using #OrtizKavaliauskas

About The Star
The Star is the 91-acre campus of the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters and training facility in Frisco, Texas. Developed as a first-of-its-kind partnership between the City of Frisco, Frisco ISD and the Dallas Cowboys, The Star features Ford Center, a 12,000-seat stadium that hosts Frisco ISD football games, concerts and other events; Cowboys Fit, a 60,000 square-foot gym developed in partnership with leading fitness developer, Mark Mastrov; Cowboys Club, a members-only club where the country club meets the NFL; the Omni Frisco Hotel, a 16-floor, 300-room luxury hotel; Baylor Scott & White Sports Therapy & Research at The Star, a 300,000 square-foot center of excellence for sports medicine; Twelve Cowboys Way, a 17-story, luxury residential tower in partnership between Pro Football Hall-of-Fame Quarterback #12 Roger Staubach, and Dallas-based developer and former Dallas Cowboys center, Robert Shaw; Formation, a dynamic coworking experience offering a collaborative work environment of open workspace, dedicated desks and private offices; as well as a variety of shopping, dining and nightlife options throughout The Star District. For more information on The Star, visit www.TheStarInFrisco.com.

PROVIDENCE, RI (Tuesday, July 20) – Back in business, back-to-back.

CES MMA and CES Boxing invade the MGM Springfield in the heart of Metro Center in Springfield, MA, with back-to-back shows next month, a blockbuster summertime spectacular signaling a long-awaited return to full-time promoting for one of the region’s top combat sports attractions.

The weekend kicks off Friday, August 6 with CES 63 live on UFC FIGHT PASS®, featuring a heavyweight showdown between five-time UFC veteran Yorgan De Castro (6-3, 5 KOs) of Fall River, MA, and Iowa’s Rakim Cleveland (21-13, 13 KOs), followed by live championship boxing on Saturday, August 7, headlined by reigning WBC USNBC Silver Super Middleweight Champion Kendrick Ball Jr. (16-1-2, 11 KOs) defending his title against Meridian, MS, challenger Tyi Edmonds (14-3, 9 KOs).

Tickets for both events are available online at CESFights.com. CES 63 streams live on FIGHT PASS beginning at 8 pm ET with play-by-play announcer Michael Parente (@MichaelParente) and color commentator Joe Lauzon (@JoeLauzon), a 27-time UFC vet, and FUN 107 on-air personality and cageside correspondent Madelyn Grimaldi (@maddieonair).

Visit CESFights.com for more information and follow CES MMA on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @CESMMA. Updates on CES Boxing can also be found on Facebook in addition to Instagram and Twitter by following @CESBoxing.

CES MMA is a mixed martial arts promotional company based out of Providence, R.I., founded by legendary boxing promoter Jimmy Burchfield Sr. It promoted the first sanctioned professional mma event in the state of Rhode Island on Sept. 17, 2010 at Twin River Casino Hotel. Since its inception, CES MMA has been a gateway to the UFC developing the careers of UFC contenders Calvin Kattar, Rob Font, Charles Rosa, William Knight, Mike Rodriguez, Tony Gravely, Andre Soukhamthath and others. In October 2012, CES MMA promoted its first pay-per-view event at The Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, featuring the professional MMA debut of former WWE superstar Dave Bautista, and recently signed a two-year extension to broadcast exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS®.

CES Boxing is one of the top promotions in the northeast and one of the few to successfully promote both mixed martial arts and professional boxing. Launched in 1992 by longtime boxing judge Jimmy Burchfield Sr., the promotion is the only in professional boxing to boast two reigning WBC Youth world champions in lightweight Jamaine Ortiz and featherweight Irvin Gonzalez. CES Boxing recently teamed with UFC FIGHT PASS, the world’s No. 1 streaming platform for combat sports, to showcase its events to a worldwide audience, and worked as a promotional consultant for the Mike Tyson-Roy Jones Jr. pay-per-view event in November of 2020.

UFC FIGHT PASS® is the world’s leading digital subscription service for combat sports. Since launching in 2013, UFC FIGHT PASS is now available in more than 200 countries and territories. UFC FIGHT PASS provides its members with unlimited access to live UFC FIGHT PASS Prelims; live mixed martial arts and combat sports from around the world; original series and historical programming; special features; behind-the-scenes content; in-depth interviews; and up-to-the minute reports on the world of combat sports. UFC FIGHT PASS subscribers also have 24/7 access to the world’s largest fight library, featuring more than 17,000 bouts from dozens of combat sports organizations, as well as every fight in UFC history. Fight fans can access FIGHT PASS on personal computers, iOS and Android mobile devices, Apple TV, Xbox One, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, LG Smart TVs, and Sony TVs with Android TV.

MGM Springfield covers three city blocks in the heart of downtown Springfield, Mass. As the world’s first LEED™ Platinum-certified gaming resort, MGM Springfield ignites a cultural and economic renaissance in a historic New England city by seamlessly blending new design with restored historic buildings. The resort offers more than 125,000 square feet of gaming space, a 240-room boutique hotel on Main Street, superior spa services, diverse retail and inspired dining headlined by Costa and The Chandler Steakhouse. MGM Springfield also features a sevenscreen Regal luxury cinema complex, bowling lanes, a seasonal skating rink and outdoor marketplace displaying local art, events and talent. For more information, visit the MGM Springfield Newsroom or mgmspringfield.com.

NOTTINGHAM Light-Heavyweight hope Ezra Taylor has signed promotional terms with Frank Warren’s Queensberry.

Taylor, 26, won a string of regional amateur titles but is now chasing bigger belts in the professional ranks, and believes he has the platform to achieve that.

His only professional fight was in March 2020 when he stopped Jevgenijs Andrejevs inside two rounds.

Taylor is trained by Ray Ricketts who coached him as an amateur at Bilborough Community Boxing Club and managed by former professional Costas Evangelou.

“Costas pulled the strings and put a good word in for me. I’m guessing Frank’s guys did their research and after a few meetings a deal was signed,” said Taylor who will box on a Queensberry show in July.

Thanks to sponsors, Taylor is now a full-time fighter and recently left his job as a sales account manager.

Ezra whose boxing heroes are Roy Jones Jr and Andre Ward added: “I was selling a dream to people, now I have bought the dream I have been sold.

“This is fantastic opportunity and I have some great people behind me. I will give it everything that it takes.

“In the first year I want to get as many fights as possible behind me adapting to what it is like when the pressure is on as a professional.

“Hopefully I will be build myself up, challenge for titles, win them and move on to the next one until I reach the top.”

Taylor first walked into a boxing gym in his early teens, but never expected to even compete as an amateur let alone earn a professional contract with a Hall of Fame promoter.

He explained: “I started when I was about 14, but I was only going to the boxing gym once a week to keep fit.

“Eventually I had to spar with guys who lived boxing, were in the gym most nights and competing as amateurs. I started getting beat up.

“I just wanted to be fit, fling a skipping rope around and tell my friends I was hitting the bag in the boxing gym.

“I lost interest, but still used a gym and eventually I got a bit of height and muscle. I went back to the boxing gym when I was 19-years-old, again for fitness and the rest is history.

“I was 20-3 as an amateur, my only losses came at elite level and I won five regional belts, but I was stepped up quickly because I was a late starter.

“It was a tough amateur career. Four fights in I was fighting guys who had 20 fights and that’s a lot in experience terms.

“On paper, I was meant to lose but I kept the momentum going and ended up in the elite championships early on.

“I’m grateful it happened because a lot of these kids have about 70 fights and it wasn’t a walk in the park. It made me the boxer I am today.”

London, UK (20 July 2021) Big-punching Coventry ace River Wilson-Bent believes that Stoke-on-Trent rival Nathan Heaney doesn’t want to face him for the Vacant English Middleweight title now that purse bids have been called by the BBBofC.

Midlands Area Champion Bent, 27, is gagging for the showdown and senses that Heaney has gone cold after seeing Bent knockout his last three opponents back-to-back in devastating style.

His last fight in May was a thriller against George Farrell when he halted the Derby man in the seventh round and is now looking to take the next step up on his pursuit of the Lonsdale belt.

In an interview with Ali Drew for Hennessy Sports’ YouTube Channel, Bent said, “We’ve shared a couple of rounds, we’ve done a few rounds with each other sparring. Yeah, it will be a great fight, especially for the Midlands area. He’s a Stoke lad and I’m Coventry. The amount of tickets that we’ll both sell, the roof will be lifted. I think the fight should happen. On my behalf and my team’s behalf the fight will happen. The only reason it won’t happen is obviously him. I’d fight him in Stoke in front of all of his fans and I’d walk out first. That doesn’t bother me I want this fight it’s a massive fight. Let’s see what he says,”

Bent continued, “I don’t think he’s up for it to be fair. I hope he proves me wrong but I don’t think he wants the fight. I didn’t see him share it [news of the English title purse bids] when it first came out, I messaged him saying, ‘this is cracking, let’s have it’. He looked at it, seen it, didn’t write anything for a while then he messaged me back saying ‘it would be a cracking fight’. Then I messaged him back saying ‘Are you up for it then?’ Are we going to do it?’ and he didn’t even reply. So he’s looked at it and not replied that indicates to me that he’s had second thoughts or he hasn’t thought about it and I sense he doesn’t want the fight.”

Hammer-fisted Bent, who holds down a full-time job as a roofer, has been compared to a young Ricky Hatton with a similar exciting, hard-hitting, all-action style and can sell a huge amount of tickets due to his popular down-to-earth, man of the people, personality.

He said, “Ricky Hatton’s a legend. If I can pull it off and get the same legacy as he has it it will be a dream,”

Hailing from Exhall, Bent aims to rejuvenate Coventry’s boxing scene that has a rich history with British and Commonwealth Champions champions including Dean Pithie, Neil Simpson, Richard Evatt, Steve Bendall and Andy Halder and he aims to go even further and become the city’s first World Champion.

He added, “Yeah definitely, I want to win the British title, I think there’s been two British champions from Coventry. If I can go on to European and World title. If I win the English next, if I do fight Heaney for it, then it’s the next on the ladder. I’ll keep going up and up. Yeah, bringing boxing back to Coventry will be mad.”

For further information go to www.hennessysports.com or social media: Facebook @HennessySports, Twitter @HennessySports and Instagram @hennessysports

CARLOS TAKAM HAS fired a forthright warning to Joe Joyce ahead of their heavyweight showdown on Saturday night, warning the British Olympian that he intends to put a first dent in his perfect professional record at the SSE Arena, Wembley.

Takam, an LA-based, French-Cameroonian, is a two-time world title challenger with nearly four times as many fights as Joyce under his professional belt.

He has got the impression that he has been drafted in as a fall guy for Britain’s next big heavyweight hope, with the winner of this fight at the head of the queue to face the winner of Anthony Joshua-Oleksandr Usyk for the WBO world title.

Far from being fodder for the Juggernaut, Takam insists he is in it to win it and plans on inflicting a Wembley upset.

“Hey boy! What’s up Joyce?,” said Takam in a direct message to the Putney man. “I hope you are ready for this fight because I’ve come here to win. On Saturday you won’t beat me, I’m sorry. This is my time. This is Carlos Takam time and I’m going to beat your guy!

“I will see you on Saturday night Joe and I am here to win, not to lose. See you boy, I am ready for the win, definitely.”

The fighting talk from the Frenchman was backed up by Joyce’s promoter Frank Warren, who knows he has imported a top-notch heavyweight to test his man at the highest level.

“He’s a seasoned performer who comes to fight and you know that his and Joe’s styles will make a fight,” said the Hall of Fame fight maker. “He will come at Joe and that will suit Joe, I think, and he will have to be at his best and he will have to do it better than the other guys did like Joshua and Chisora.

“That is how I look at it but, I repeat myself again, he has only had 12 fights and this is a big step up where a win will see him keep his mandatory position to fight the winner out of Joshua-Usyk taking place in September. I think the fight will be ordered pretty soon after that.

“Joe has been in with tough guys right from the start because of his age and he has done that, but you can still see there are things he needs to do and work on. I think that Takam will be another good name for his record and it will be another great experience for Joe.

“They are big guys who will be throwing bombs at each other and Joe has got a good chin. Takam does come to fight, he throws shots and I can tell you from talking to his team, they fancy the job.”

Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles takes place at the SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday (July 24).

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).

Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

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£150 Floor

CORONA, CA (July 19, 2021) – Undefeated lightweight prospect, Ruben “Ace” Torres (11-0, 9 KOs), who is nearing the point of being called a contender, will headline Thompson Boxing’s “We. Are. Back.” on Saturday, August 14th, 2021. Torres will be taking on Richard “Diamante” Zamora (19-4, 12 KOs), of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, in a scheduled 8-round bout.

540 days after their last live event, this will be the first fight with fans in attendance and everyone is encouraged to get their tickets now. Tickets priced at $50, $75, & $100, and are available for purchase by calling 714-935-0900, or online at ThompsonBoxing.com.

This event will take place at the Omega Products International Event Center in Corona, CA. Doors open at 5:00 pm PT with the first fight starting at 7:00 pm PT.

Torres, now 23-years-old from South Central Los Angeles, is trained and managed by Danny Zamora, who has worked with Torres since the start of his career.

“I am so excited to have the fans back,” said Torres. “I feed off the crowd’s energy and it makes me want to put on the best performance possible for them. Knowing I’ll have friends and family there makes a huge difference, but I still have a job to do against Zamora who is no slouch inside the ring.”

Torres is nearing the point of being a ten-round fighter and facing an experienced veteran like Zamora will be a good test. He has goals of a world title shot soon.

“I am excited about this fight because this opponent brings a lot to the table,” Torres continued. “He has fought Mario Barrios, Antonio Moran, and many other great fighters and I want to show that is the level that I am on.”

“We are happy to announce that we can finally open safely to the public. We were able to successfully promote our shows during this tough time through our live streams,” said Ken Thompson of the 321 Boxing series that launched in July of 2020. “But it is the fans who make each event unique with the atmosphere, they bring that extra motivation to the fighters. This will surely be a sold-out show and I can’t wait to see everyone having a great time, enjoying great fights.”

In the co-feature, super bantamweights Humberto Rubalcava (11-2, 7 KOs), of Orange, Calif, and Eros Correa (10-0, 7 KOs), of San Jose, Calif., will go to battle in an 8-round bout.

This event will stream live for free on the Thompson Boxing Promotions website (www.thompsonboxing.com), as well as their Facebook and YouTube pages, in additions to Fight Hub TV, our proud Media Partner.

UNDERCARD BOUTS:

Super lightweight Israel “Bad Ways” Mercado (9-1, 7 KOs) of Pamona, Calif., will face Eduardo “Dinamita” Rafael Reyes (10-17, 6 KOs) of Reynosa, Mexico (6-rounds).

Welterweight Louie Lopez (8-1-1, 4 KOs) of nearby Corona, Calif., will face an opponent TBA (6-rounds).

Middleweight Nelson “Knuckle” Oliva (1-0, 1 KO) of Fontana, Calif. will face Antonio Duarte (2-2) of Tijuana, Mexico. (4-rounds)

Opening the card is bantamweight Lazaro Vargas of Indio, Calif (1-0, 1 KO), who will face Alexis Alvarado (2-0, 2 KOs), of La Puente, CA. (4-rounds)

Rich Marotta will operate as the blow-by-blow commentator with expert commentary by Doug Fischer and Steve Kim. Jessica Rosales will serve as the onsite ringside reporter.

This event is sponsored by Thompson Building Materials, transforming spaces in beautiful places; Omega Products International, the leading stucco manufacturer in the United States; Henry / Fortifiber, moisture system control as easy as 1,2,3, and Makita, rule the outdoors.

For more information, regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com. You can also follow the conversation on social media, please use #321Boxing and #ThompsonBoxing.

Please check our Facebook Page, watch our YouTube channel on Thompson Boxing TV and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.
Fight Hub TV is a proud Media Partner with Thompson Boxing shows and a great resource for all things Boxing.

Boston (July 19, 2021):

Boston Boxing Promotions is proud to present the biggest boxing event to take place in New England since the pandemic, The Great American Boxing Bash, three consecutive Friday Nights of boxing live from the legendary Castleton in Windham, New Hampshire and broadcast for free on Boston Boxing Promotion’s YouTube Page.

The regional excitement surrounding The Great American Boxing Bash is unprecedented with tickets to the first event selling out shortly after going on sale and now being sold online at 4 times the face value.

“Although Boston Boxing Promotions was able to run 4 empty venue events during the pandemic, hardcore boxing fans in and around New England have not been able to attend a live event in over a year and half. The demand was so overwhelming from both fighters and fans, we decided to do three straight weekends featuring over 30 fights.” Said Boston Boxing Promotions president, Peter Czymbor.

“And if there was one fight that our fans have been begging for it is the long awaited neighborhood war between two of our most popular fighters, Harry Gigliotti (7-2, 3 KOs) and Brandon Higgins (7-1, 5 KOs). This fight has been building in anticipation among local boxing fans since both fighters turned pro and now with virtually identical records, it’s a true 50/50 fight and the winner will be ready for the national stage.”

In addition to the highly anticipated Gigliotti vs. Higgins showdown, The Great American Boxing Bash will feature:

The most popular and talented fighter to emerge from Maine since Joey Gamache, Brandon Berry (22-5-2, 15 KOs) who fights Travis Casetellon (16-4-1, 12 KOs) for the NABA-USA Welterweight Title.

The return of undefeated blue chip prospect, Evan Holyfield (6-0, 4 KOs), son of Hall of Famer and only 4 time heavyweight world champion, Evander Holyfield.

The return of Massachusetts’ undefeated Amanda Pavone (8-0, 3 KOs) who is closing in on a world title shot.

An appearance from Oxnard, California single shot knockout sensation, Danny Robles (6-0-1, 4 KOs) who went viral last year on a Boston Boxing Promotions event when he set a state record for fastest KO at 13 seconds.

Connecticut’s buzzed about national amateur standout, Alejandro Paulino (1-0, 1 KO), who recently turned professional on a Boston Boxing event and is already considered one of New England’s most promising prospects.

Undefeated heavyweight, James Torney (4-0, 4 KOs) who has been serving as one of Deontay Wilder’s chief sparring partners in preparation for his mega fight with Tyson Fury.

And a who’s who of fighters from one of the hottest regional boxing scene in the country including James Perkins (4-0-1, 3 KOs), Nick Molina (3-0, 1 KO), Travis Gambardella (6-1-2, 2 KOs), Kris Jacobs (3-1-1, 1 KO), Kyle Cusick (2-1) and many more.

Despite knowing all 3 shows would be sold out, it was still important to Czymbor and company that the national audience that the promotion gained during the pandemic not be forgotten. Therefore the Great American Boxing Bash will remain free to watch live and online with commentary from fan favorite, BoxRec’s Grey Johnson and a revolving door of special guest commentators that has included on past broadcasts, boxing legends like Micky Ward.

“After the the amazing viewership we received for our empty venue shows during the pandemic, we wanted those fans from around the country and the world to be able experience the excitement that is Boston Boxing Promotions at the Castleton, a venue which has become New England’s version of the late, great Blue Horizon. We can’t wait to showcase one of the best regional boxing scenes in the country with the Great American Boxing Bash.”

The Great American Boxing Bash presented by Boston Boxing Promotions takes place Friday, July 23rd, Friday, July 30th and Friday August 6th at the Castleton in Windham, New Hampshire. Tickets for July 23rd are completely sold out. Very limited tickets remain for July 30th and August 6th and are available at www.boxingnh.com. All three nights will be aired live on www.YouTube.com/BoxingBoston

ABOUT BOSTON BOXING PROMOTIONS

Boston Boxing Promotions was founded in 2013 and is dedicated to the resurgence of professional boxing at the regional level, particularly in the New England area. Since that time, it has presented professional boxing events in places like Boston, Cape Cod, New Bedford and New Hampshire. Boston Boxing Promotions was the first independent boxing promoter on the east coast to hold an event during the pandemic, last August when they held an empty venue show in Windham, New Hampshire that was broadcast for free on YouTube and watched live by thousands of boxing fans worldwide. After 4 empty venue events for free and broadcast online at www.youtube.com/bostonboxing Boston Boxing Promotions returns with The Great American Boxing Bash, three consecutive Friday Nights of boxing July 23, July 30 and August 6. All three events will be broadcast live and for free on www.youtube.com/bostonboxing

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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA (July 19, 2021) — Tuesday will mark the second anniversary of eight-division world champion and boxer laureate Senator Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao’s dethroning of then undefeated WBA welterweight “super” champion Keith Thurman.  Manny, at age 40, became the oldest man to win a welterweight title.  But it was 20 years ago — June 23, 2001 to be exact — that Manny made his U.S. debut as a professional fighter.  Following a sixth-round knockout victory of Kumanpetch Kiatvoraph to retain his WBC International super bantamweight title, on April 28, 2001, in the Philippines, Manny and his manager traveled to San Francisco for a vacation.  In early June, they took a Greyhound bus down the coast to Hollywood in search of a gym and some ring work to stay in shape — literally a busman’s holiday!     

Below are the recollections of Manny, Freddie, Hall of Fame broadcaster Jim Lampley, who called the fight from ringside for HBO, and Ross Greenburg, the executive producer of that HBO PPV telecast.

MANNY PACQUIAO

“We were staying in a small apartment in Hollywood, near the Denny’s On Sunset Boulevard, not far from the highway (Highway 101).  The Denny’s and the apartment building are still there,” said Manny.  “We wandered over to a gym that had been recommended to us — Wild Card Boxing Club — and my manager introduced himself to a man in the gym and told him he was looking for a trainer to work mitts with me.  That man turned out to be the gym owner, Freddie Roach, who agreed to work with me.  After the first round, I returned to my corner and said I just found my new trainer.  Freddie was great with the mitts and as I soon found out, great with instruction too.  Suddenly, as I was preparing to go back to the Philippines, we get an offer to challenge IBF junior featherweight champion Lehlo Ledwaba.  I was the No. 3-rated contender and the two fighters ahead of me couldn’t, or wouldn’t, take the fight.  Freddie and I had trained together about two weeks and now I’m walking into the ring at the MGM Grand to fight Ledwaba on HBO Pay-Per-View.  It was crazy!  That fight changed my life.”

WORLD-FAMOUS FREDDIE ROACH   

“I opened up Wild Card in hopes that one day a new Muhammad Ali would walk in looking for a trainer.  And then, in 2001, he did. Only he was nearly a foot shorter, weighed 122 pounds and spoke very little English,” said Freddie.  “I remember the first time we met.  He came in looking for a trainer to work the mitts and after the first round I went back to my corner and said this guy is sensational.  We have a new fighter.  Soon Manny gets the call offering him the Ledwaba fight.  He was getting ready to go back to the Philippines.  If that call comes a day later, Manny misses out on that fight.  We trained for two weeks and every day I’m falling more and more in love with his boxing skills and power.  He was that good.  So now it’s fight week and I’m going to every casino trying to lay a bet on Manny.  Unfortunately, the fight was considered such a mismatch that no casino would post odds on it.  The guys at Top Rank were really giving me the business, saying that Manny didn’t stand a chance and I’m trying to convince them that Manny is going to do a number on Ledwaba.  Top Rank was promoting the show and Manny’s fight was the co-main event to Oscar De La Hoya vs. Javier Castillejo, and Ledwaba was considered the class of the division.  Manny jumped on Ledwaba from the start and finished him in the sixth round.  It was brutal.  But what a night.  I remember we all went to dinner to celebrate at some small restaurant near the MGM Grand.  Manny and I went from strangers to a world championship team in about two weeks.  It sounds like a movie, doesn’t it?”

JIM LAMPLEY          

“Larry Merchant and I had both seen Ledwaba for the first time with our own eyes on April 21 USA, April 22 South Africa when he defended his title against Mexican contender Carlos Contreras on the undercard of Lennox Lewis vs. Hasim Rahman.  That night Ledwaba looked immaculate in easily handling Contreras.  He showed balance, timing, skillful craft, and to our eyes seemed pretty clearly to be the best 122-pound fighter in the world.  He was 33-1–1 against a pretty representative assortment of contenders from varied geographic bases.  We were pleased to learn he would be back on HBO exactly two months later.  

“On the day before Ledwaba vs. Manny Pacquaio (Pock-Yow, we had to practice it and not everyone in the room was having an easy time of it), we met a young Filipino who looked like an unlikely challenger.  Not a lot of experience, seemingly a bit wide-eyed, and a little short of the necessary English language base to explain to all of us non-Tagalog speakers exactly what he was about.  I leaped to the inner conclusion the experienced and confident Ledwaba was likely to school him.  Why not??

“The following evening Ledwaba was swept away by a furious storm of power punching activity, and so were we.  Ledwaba was never in the fight, and by the time Pacquaio had finished him off, in round six, we were well aware that if the world’s best junior featherweight was in the ring in Las Vegas, that was the unknown Filipino, not the skilled South African to whom he had laid waste.  It was the beginning of HBO’s lengthy and colorful journey with one of the greatest and most exciting prizefighters in the history of the planet, and the fact that the story—-twenty years later—-HASN’T ENDED YET is simply mind boggling.  Mind boggling.”   

ROSS GREENBURG

“What I remember vividly about Manny’s arrival on HBO PPV was the two-week notice to face Ledwaba, and our announcers at ringside — Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant, and George Foreman — being given a crash course on his history and his ring acumen.  The fight began with Jim asking the audience to excuse him as he tries to pronounce his name, in the second round Larry Merchant said that coming into the fight people were “wondering if this fight would catapult Ledwaba to superstar status, and now they are wondering if the same can be said of Manny Pacquiao.”  By the end of the fight Larry Merchant said, “I didn’t know anything about Manny Pacquiao before the fight, and I was very impressed with what I saw during the fight, and now I want to see him again.”  It was clear to all of us at ringside and in the truck that we were about to go on a ride of a lifetime with a transformational boxing superstar.”

Manny’s victory over Ledwaba was also the start of arguably boxing’s longest and most successful partnership.  With Freddie in his corner, literally and figuratively, Manny won world titles in seven different weight divisions in a career of firsts that not only defines the champion he repeatedly became, but the Filipino spirit which has been embraced by the world.  Over the past 20 years, Manny has played David to a roster of Hall of Fame Goliaths, scoring the most impressive victories of his era against the likes of Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Márquez, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, and Shane Mosley.  In his last three fights, which took place during a 12-month period, from July 15, 2018 through July 20, 2019, Manny ran the table, winning welterweight world title fights against Lucas Matthysse, Adrien Broner, and Thurman.          

Manny (62-7-2, 39 KOs), the one-time Boxing Writers Association of America Fighter of the Decade and three-time BWAA Fighter of the Year, hails from Sarangani Province in the Philippines.  He faces his biggest professional boxing challenge when he takes on undefeated unified WBC/IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 KOs), of Desoto, Texas.  Spence is 11 years younger and over four inches taller than the amazin’ Manny.  Would Manny have it any other way?  The Pacquiao-Spence world championship event, which headlines a FOX Sports PBC Pay-Per-View, Saturday, August 21 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, is promoted by TGB Promotions, MP Promotions and Man Down Promotions.  The pay-per-view will begin at 9 p.m. RT / 6 p.m. PT.  Remaining tickets can be purchased through t-mobilearena.com and axs.com.

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For more information: visit www.premierboxingchampions.com, http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/homepage and www.foxdeportes.com, follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @PBConFOX, @FOXSports, @FOXDeportes and @TGBPromotions become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/foxsports & www.facebook.com/foxdeportes.

JOE JOYCE CARRYING out his best work on canvas is not an unusual concept. After all, 11 of his 12 professional opponents to date have met with the floor of the ring or been saved from the imminent prospect by the instincts of a protective referee.

But Big Joe is also big into transferring his visions, experiences and emotions onto the fabric favoured by painters and artists, with the man known as The Juggernaut just as content quietly perching in front of his easel as he is marching forward with menacing intent under the lights in the ring.

The more than accomplished artist is particularly proud of his latest works. Not exactly painting by numbers, but the No.10 figures strongly in this very personal portrait.

It is a painting that tells the story of his November 28, 2020 heavyweight collision with the multi-titled, seemingly indestructible wrecking machine, Daniel Dubois.

Joyce got the sense that, in the eyes of the watching public, he was merely cast as another step on the gloried career ladder of the young world champion in waiting.

While he never doubted himself – and nor should he have, given his Olympic standing – Joyce accepted his role as a decorated underdog and knew the proof of the pudding would be in the punching.

And his jab, which essentially won him the fight, was on point and Dubois could take no more of the spearing accuracy and sunk to his knee in the 10th round to take himself out of the firing line. His left eye socket that had taken a pummelling from the left glove of Joyce was grotesquely swollen and his race was run.

The plaudits, along with belts, now belonged to Joyce and his portrait marks this moment in time for one of boxing’s quiet achievers.

“It was a turning point for me, where I went from an underdog to pretty much a fully fledged prospect,” explained the 35-year-old, who returns to the fighting fold against Carlos Takam at the SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday night. “It was a fight where everyone thought I was going to lose and even get knocked out in the first few rounds.

“I proved a lot of people wrong and won a lot of people money for Christmas.”

The fact that many of the fight public and pundits didn’t give him a prayer, Joyce believes, worked in his favour on the night, with the weight of expectation heaped firmly on the young man.

“Yeah it was less pressure and the heat was on Dubois. I’ve been in a lot bigger fights, the Olympics for instance, with a lot of people watching me, so I am used to the pressure. I just get on with it and perform on the night.

“The painting definitely reflects my moment, but I don’t know if it is quite finished yet. I look at it and think I could do more detail, but then I might lose some of the freshness of it. Maybe I have captured it,” he wondered, before telling the process of how he went about capturing the defining point of the fight.

“I just printed off an image, but I didn’t have a particularly good picture because it was from a clip of the fight and it was a bit pixelated so I couldn’t get all the detail I wanted. It does get to the point when you can overdo a painting and it is quite good to know when to stop, otherwise you can ruin the essence of what you are trying to paint.

“I can push my work to being almost photo realistic by painstakingly painting, but it just takes so long and you can get bored of painting the same thing. More recently I have preferred to work it all out in one sitting.

“You don’t want it to be too perfect or you might as well just blow up a photograph.”

This isn’t Joyce’s first venture into personal portraits and it almost certainly won’t be his last.

“The last time I did a self-portrait was my first year of university and I had some massive canvas that one of the students in the third year helped me make. It ended up being so big that it was wider than my outstretched arms and almost as tall as me.

“I will do one for the world title, for sure.

“The thing is, with boxing and painting, it takes time and you have to work at your skills.”

Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles takes place at the SSE Arena, Wembley on July 24.

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).
 
Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

£50 Tier
£70 Floor/Tier
£100 Floor
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Las Vegas – UFC^® today announced that the 9^th Annual UFC International Fight Week^™ will take place in Las Vegas from Tuesday, September 21, through Saturday, September 25, headlined by UFC^® 266: VOLKANOVSKI vs. ORTEGA, presented by Modelo.The event-filled week will also include the traditional 2020 UFC Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonyand a two-day, interactive UFC Fan Experience^®.

The prestigious 2020 UFC Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, presented by Toyo Tires^® will be held on Thursday, September 23, and will honor specific achievements and contributions to UFC and the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. 

In addition, on Friday, September 24, and continuing on Saturday, September 25, fans will be able to take part in an easily accessible and fully interactive, free, two-day UFC Fan Experience that will feature meet and greets, autograph sessions, and partner activations that provide unprecedented access to UFC champions, top-ranked contenders, Hall of Famers, and other UFC personalities.

Fans from around the world who converge on Las Vegas for UFC International Fight Week will also be able to enjoy ceremonial weigh-ins, press conferences and live entertainment of a traditional Fight Week leading to the schedule’s culminating event, UFC^® 266: VOLKANOVSKI vs. ORTEGA, on Saturday, September 25, at T-Mobile Arena.

Details regarding the bout card for UFC 266, event locations and additional activities for UFC International Fight Week will be announced at a later date. For more information, visit UFCFIGHTWEEK.COM.

Los Angeles, CA (July 17, 2021) World Ranked Super Welterweight Serhii ‘El Flaco’ Bohachuk, (18-1, 18 KOs), of Los Angeles, CA makes his return to the ring Tonight, July 17 in an eight-round clash against Brandon ‘The Business’ Baue, (16-23, 11 KOs), of Troy,  Missouri at the Rock Rapids Rumble in Rock Rapids, Iowa. The fight is promoted by 15 Rounds Boxing in association with 360 Promotions and Ural Promotions and will be broadcast globally on FITE.TV at 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT.

After enduring his first loss as a professional to Brandon Adams on March 4, 2021, the 26-year-old Bohachuk, one of the most exciting super welterweights in the sport, looks to resume his march towards a world title opportunity under the watchful eye of renowned trainer Manny Robles. In preparation for tonight’s fight, Bohachuk has been sparring with world ranked contender Vergil Ortiz Jr. in Southern California.

JOE JOYCE’S manager Sam Jones has hinted that he has spies in the camp of big fight rival Carlos Takam.

Several of Sam’s tweets might be mind games ahead of their Heavyweight blockbuster at SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday July 24, live on BT Sport.

In a recent message Jones tweeted: “Good sparring session again yesterday

@carlos_takam the way your (sic) picking the pace up towards the end of the rounds is very impressive.”

But Takam appeared unsettled when Queensberry’s Dev Sahni asked him about Team Joyce getting info from Takam’s camp, snapping: “I don’t know how he got that information, but I don’t give a f**k.”

Takam (39-5-1,  28 KOs) who will be challenging for Joyce’s WBO International, WBC Silver and Commonwealth Heavyweight titles added:  “I don’t want to speak about that. I just want to focus on the fight.”

Joyce (12-0, 11 KOs) was also coy about whether he has inside info, saying: “You’ll have to find out if we have spies in his camp. I am not divulging any information.

“I am ready. It’s going to be a great fight. May the best man win and that will be me.”

Joyce could have got even up close and personal with Takam and not needed a gym plant. Arrangements were made for the pair to spar in Las Vegas, but his rival’s trainer got cold feet and pulled the plug.

Joyce said: “I assumed he didn’t want the smoke.

“Sam Jones sorts my sparring when I am in America training and I thought I would be sparring with Takam, but I was told he wasn’t sparring.”

Frenchman Takam defended his trainer, explaining: “I said ‘why not?’ when I was asked to spar with Joe. My trainer said he didn’t want me to spar with him because he felt we would fight.

“I was okay to spar, but my coach said; ‘One day you are going to fight that guy.’ Anyway what is the smoke?”

“What’s the smoke?” Joyce replied. “You’re going to get the smoke.”
 

Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles takes place at the SSE Arena, Wembley on July 24.

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).
 
Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

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CARLOS TAKAM says Joe Joyce will be wishing he’s back in the ring with Oleksandr Usyk when he starts landing bombs next week.

Cocky Carlos leapt at the chance to challenge for Joyce’s WBO International, WBC Silver and Commonwealth Heavyweight titles at SSE Arena, Wembley on Saturday July 24, live on BT Sport.

Joyce had been sweating on a date with Oleksandr Usyk, but that fell through when Tyson Fury v Anthony Joshua never materialised.

Joyce did fight Usyk in the WSB in 2013 losing on points and Takam told him: “I am a more difficult fight for Joe than Usyk.

“Joe knows Usyk because they boxed before and Usyk knows Joe.

“I am a problem because Joe has never fought someone like Carlos Takam. How am I going to fight him? It’s a surprise.

“I have experience. He has never fought anybody with my experience. That’s why I say he hasn’t fought anyone like me.”

Both Joyce and Takam are explosive punchers, and the French star predicts that it will be over with the first knockdown.

“He is going to try and put me down, I am going to try and put him down. Whoever puts someone down first is the winner,” he added.

“I want to hurt him like he is going to want to hurt me. We are going to punch each other and I am ready for that fight.Three further title clashes will take place on the undercard of Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles at the SSE Arena, Wembley on July 24.

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).
 
Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

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To watch Dev Sahni’s full interview click here

Juliana Velasquez: 

“I think I would be clinching a bit more, her striking didn’t surprise me, but I felt that I did enough to retain the title.”

“I beat her with my jab, if you look at her face, it’s messed up, if you look at mine, my face is fine. I think people in the audience favor her because she has a kickboxing style and I counter, but I think it was my boxing that was the difference tonight.”

“When I come in here, I don’t think of myself as a champion, I think of myself as someone who needs to earn the belt and tonight I felt that I did that.”

#5–Tyrell Fortune (11-1, 1 NC) defeated #7-Matt Mitrione (13-9, 1 NC) via submission (strikes) at 1:45 of round one

Tyrell Fortune:

“I feel great coming out of the fight. He stepped forward so I went for the shot instead of throwing the punch and I guess I made contact with my head. Besides that I was running through him for the takedown. As you saw, I finished on top, and the fight went from there.

“I didn’t feel it (the clash of heads), I can only go off of what he was saying at the time. Like I said, I was just looking to get on top and continue to fight so I didn’t really know what else to do. I thought if there was a contact that the ref would have saw and we would have stopped that’s why I paused for a second on top of him. I didn’t go right to punching. Once the ref said to continue, I was continuing to fight.

“I want Tim Johnson. I don’t want a title shot. I’d rather have Tim Johnson first. That’s really the only fight I’ve been training for since that loss. To me, with him taking that loss (against Valentin Moldavsky) and me getting this win, it should line us right up… I’m gonna’ try to knock his a– out just like he did me.”

Matheus Mattos (13-2-1) defeated Cee Jay Hamilton (15-9) via TKO (strikes) at 1:33 of round two

Matheus Mattos:

“He’s a wrestler. So, he could have done the boring game and taken me down. But he chose to go for the striking. Fortunately, he did it because it was a beautiful knockout. If Bellator could send more strikers to me, then they would be welcomed.”

“I feel great, perfectly strong. But I felt my knee go ‘thwack.’ And I stopped moving a lot. I didn’t do much footwork. I knew this was going to be on my hands, because my leg was painful. Hopefully, everything went well. 

“My two losses were to two of the best in the world. So, I’ve been fighting at a high level a long time and I’m prepared for everyone. They can see that this fight welcomed me to Bellator, and now they know me. They know Matheus Mattos is a striker and he’s coming for us.

“I’m in my prime now so I’m prepared for everyone.”

 #2–Arlene Blencowe (14-8) defeated Dayana Silva (9-6) via TKO (punches) at 1:00 of round three

Arlene Blencowe:

“I feel great. I want to give a shout out to my kids at home. I’ve been away from home for nine weeks and it’s the longest I’ve ever been without my kids. So, this win is for you.”

“I was just trying to gauge my distance. It was starting to be a little bit of a slow fight, so sorry about that fans. I could hear you yelling. But I was determined to keep my pace and not rush into anything. We knew that she swung with power and that the overhand right and the left hook came pretty quick. We’ve been working a lot on kicks, and I’m going to have a lot of bruises tomorrow. And hopefully her calves will be sore too.”

#5-Johnny Eblen (9-0) defeated Travis Davis (10-5) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)

Johnny Eblen:

“My coaches when I came back to the corner told me not to brawl. So, I took their advice and I thought I wrestled smart.”

“He was talking s— saying, ‘Hey, let’s brawl in the corner.’ I’m like, ‘Bro, that’s stupid.’ That’s why you’re not where I’m at. Because you don’t fight smart. You’re trying to come out here and brawl. You can do that all you want, but you’re not going to be a world champion like me.”

Preliminary Card: 

Said Sowma (7-2) defeated Ronny Markes (19-9) via KO (punches) at 1:09 of round one

Cody Law (4-0) defeated Theodore Macuka (1-1) via TKO (punches) at 1:54 of round one

Diana Avsaragova (4-0) defeated Gabriella Gulfin (2-3) via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Adil Benjilany (6-3, 1 NC) defeated Johnny Soto (4-2) via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Charlie Campbell (4-1) defeated Nicholas Giulietti (2-2) via TKO (punches) at 1:30 of round two

Please visit Bellator.com for additional information.

About BELLATOR

BELLATOR MMA is a leading global mixed martial arts and kickboxing organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, BELLATOR events take place in major cities worldwide and can be seen on television in over 160 countries to an available audience of over one billion people. In the United States, BELLATOR can be seen on SHOWTIME. BELLATOR is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity, and commission relations. BELLATOR is based in Hollywood, Calif. and owned by entertainment giant ViacomCBS, home to the world’s premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.

PHILADELPHIA (July 16, 2021)–Demetrius Andrade defends his WBO Junior Middleweight world title tonight against Brian Rose on the next installment of Classic Fight Night on fubo Sports Network.

Currently the WBO Middleweight champion, Andrade (20-0) met Rose (25-5-1) on June 14, 2014, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Andrade was making the first defense of the crown that he had won just seven months prior with a win over Vanes Martirosyan. The former U.S Olympian was looking to make a statement in front of the New York crowd against Rose, who was riding an 11-fight winning streak, which included wins over former world champions Vivian Harris and Joachim Alcine.

Watch what happens when these two junior middleweights collided in this world title showdown at 8 PM ET.
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About fubo Sports Network
Available on 75 million devices, fubo Sports Network is the live, free-to-consumer TV network featuring sports stories on and off the field. Launched by live TV streaming platform fuboTV (NYSE: FUBO) in September 2019, fubo Sports Network airs live sports, award-winning original programming and partner content from CampusLore, FanDuel, Stadium, The Players Tribune, USA TODAY and VSiN, among others. Stream for free on LG Channels, News on Tubi, Plex, Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel, Vizio Channels and XUMO or as part of fuboTV’s base subscription package of 100+ sports, news and entertainment channels.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing

Undisputed IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO Super Welterweight World Championship Unification – 12 Rounds

Jermell Charlo – 153 lbs.

Brian Castaño – 153 ¼ lbs.

Referee: Hector Afu; Judges: Tim Cheatham (Nev.), Nelson Vazquez (P.R.), Steve Weisfeld (N.J.)

WBA Lightweight Interim Title – 12 Rounds

Rolando Romero – 135 lbs. 

Anthony Yigit – 140 ¼ lbs.

Referee: Rafael Ramos; Judges: Lisa Giampa (Nev.), Wilfredo Esperon (Texas), Robin Taylor (N.Y.)

*Yigit weighed in over the 135 lb. limit. Romero cannot lose his title.

Middleweight Bout (162 lbs.) – 10 Rounds

Amilcar Vidal – 161 ½ lbs. 

Immanuwel Aleem – 162 lbs.

Referee: Ellis Johnson; Judges: Ruben Carrion (Texas), Glen Crocker (Texas), Anthony De Los Santos (Texas)

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ABOUT CHARLO VS. CASTAÑO

Charlo vs. Castaño will see unified WBC, WBA and IBF World Champion Jermell Charlo and WBO World Champion Brian Castaño battle for undisputed status at super welterweight as all four 154-pound belts hang in the balance for the first time in history on Saturday, July 17 live on SHOWTIME from AT&T Center in San Antonio in a Premier Boxing Champions event.

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and will also feature unbeaten Interim WBA Lightweight Champion Rolando “Rolly” Romero taking on lightweight contender Anthony Yigit in the co-main event, plus unbeaten middleweight Amilcar Vidal matching up against veteran contender Immanuwel Aleem in a 10-round bout that opens the telecast.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Lions Only Promotions and TGB Promotions, are on sale now and can be purchased through www.attcenter.com. Romero vs. Yigit is co-promoted with Mayweather Promotions.

For more information visit www.SHO.com/sports, www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing and @TGBPromotions on Instagram @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing and @TGBPromotions or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing.

Xu Can will defend his WBA Featherweight World Title against Leigh Wood on the first week of Matchroom Fight Camp in Brentwood, Essex on Saturday July 31, live worldwide on DAZN.

Can (18-2, 3 KOs), who is recognised by The Ring Magazine as the No.3 Featherweight in the world, won China’s first ever WBA World Title when he defeated Puerto Rico’s defending Champion Jesus Rojas with a unanimous decision at the Toyota Center, Houston, in January 2019. 

At the age of 24 and 10 months, ‘Monster’ created history by becoming China’s youngest ever World Champion, and just the third from the country to win a World Title, with scores of 117-111, 116-112 and 118-110 over Rjoas, in what was his second appearance as a pro in the U.S.

He successfully defended his WBA crown at the first attempt by stopping Japan’s former Super-Bantamweight World Champion Shun Kubo in six rounds in his hometown of Fuzhou in May 2019. Can made the most of his hero’s welcome, flooring Kubo in round five before ending the contest in the next round.

Can’s all-action style was on full display in his next Title defence as he threw 1,562 punches on route to inflicting a first loss on Manny Robles III at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California, impressively outworking and breaking down Robles over 12 rounds to earn a unanimous decision. 

Nottingham’s Wood (24-2, 14 KOs) landed the vacant British Featherweight Title last time out at The SSE Arena, Wembley in February by stopping previously unbeaten Doncaster fighter Reece Mould with a brutal knockout in the ninth round.

Wood, who is trained by top coach Ben Davison, has only lost twice in his 26-fight career – a sixth round stoppage defeat when challenging Gavin McDonnell for the vacant British Super-Bantamweight Title in just his 12^th pro fight and a narrow points loss to eventual MTK Golden contract winner Jazza Dickens last year. 

“I have been idled nearly 20 months without a fight,” said Can. “In the past 5 months in Miami, my coach Pedro Diaz has worked me very hard. This is by far THE best preparation for my Title fights. I feel that I am in an excellent status, physically and mentally. In the next 3 weeks, my goal is to focus on the training and preparation. Leigh Wood is a tough opponent to face and he also has the privileges to fight at home. I must devote 200% of efforts to keep my Title. I can’t wait to see how I turn out on July 31.”

“Opportunities like this don’t always come around, I won’t need another,” said Wood. “I’m going to be World Champion. He’s very good volume puncher, if you let him fight his fight, you’re in for a hard night. I know what I have to do, and I will be exchanging on my terms.”

Elsewhere, WBA Bantamweight World Champion Shannon Courtenay (7-1, 3 KOs) will now put her World Title on the line for the first time against the USA’s Jamie Mitchell (6-0-2, 4 KOs) on Fight Camp Week 3 on Saturday August 14. 

Can vs. Wood is part of a huge night of boxing as Fight Camp returns with a bang, Welterweight star Conor Benn (18-0, 12 KOs) puts his WBA Continental Title on the line against Mexico’s Adrian Grandos (21-8-3, 15 KOs) following his sensational first round KO win over Samuel Vargas, Tommy McCarthy (18-2, 9 KOs) and Chris Billam-Smith (12-1, 10 KOs) collide in a huge showdown for the European, British and Commonwealth Cruiserweight Titles, former World Title challenger Avni Yildrim (21-3, 12 KOs) aims to bounce back from his loss to pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez when he takes on ‘Little Lever’s Meat Cleaver’ Jack Cullen (19-2-1, 9 KOs), Liverpool Super-Welterweight Anthony Fowler (14-1, 11 KOs) promises to build on his huge third-round knockout win over Jorge Fortea when he takes on Roberto Garcia (44-5, 27 KOs), Manchester Lightweight Campbell Hatton (2-0) continues his young journey in the pro ranks and former amateur star Sandy Ryan makes her highly-anticipated professional debut at Super-Lightweight.

‘JUGGERNAUT’ Joe Joyce rode through Wembley Park this week and confidently declared that he wants a Heavyweight shootout with Anthony Joshua under the iconic arch of the new Wembley Stadium.

Before heading to BOXPARK Wembley to sample London’s largest VR arcade – Meetspace VR – Joyce took a lap of the national stadium and was clearly inspired by what he saw.

“AJ at Wembley Stadium for a World Title? That would be incredible.”

If Joyce KO’s the experienced brute Carlos Takam on July 24^th he’ll be made mandatory challenger for the winner of the expected Joshua/Usyk September showdown, so such a clash may be well within reach.

Many in boxing have made Joe the overwhelming favourite for the fight with Takam, but ‘The Juggernut’ is taking nothing for granted.

“It’s the dimensions of him, he’s a bit shorter but he’s got a long reach and throws big looping shots.”

Despite being the underdog for his spectacular November 2020 victory over fancied prospect Daniel ‘Dynamite’ Dubois, Joyce considers Takam a tougher fight than the one he had with the young Greenwich banger.

“He’s got good head movement, experience… it’s going to be a different kind of fight than Dubois, a tougher fight. He’s got a good chin and he can bang.”

Before the serious stuff begins next week, though, there was time for some fun at London’s premier VR gaming experience, Meetspace VR.

Flanked by his managers Sam Jones and Adam Morallee, Joe was treated to time in the Undead Arena as well as being one of the first people in the UK to play the new game, Far Cry VR: Dive Into Insanity.

“I like to play games, especially after training with my feet up at my desk watching something and playing at the same time,” he revealed, “but today was different. VR is a real workout!”

“We started off by rolling around on the ground, shooting zombies, it was fun. Then we played the new Far Cry VR game.

“It was a brilliant game. I’ve had fun. It’s tactical… you don’t know where you’re getting shot from and you’ve got to work together for your objectives. It’s been a good day, I’ve had a great time.”

Alas, in boxing, it can’t all be fun and games.

“I’ve got sparring tonight, another session later this week and then it’s all eyes on July 24^th. Knock Carlos Takam out and then we can start thinking about Joshua at Wembley Stadium for real!”

About meetspaceVR: meetspaceVR brings world class free roam VR experiences all under one roof. With venues in Nottingham (Victoria Centre), London (Wembley Boxpark) and Birmingham (Utilita Arena) meetspaceVR has blown the minds of over 50,000 adrenaline seekers since launching in October 2018. Learn more at https://www.meetspacevr.co.uk/

More information about the experience can be found at https://meetspacevr.co.uk/zerolatency-farcryvr/

Watch the trailer on Vimeo here

Joe Joyce v Carlos Takam for the WBC Silver and WBO International titles takes place at the SSE Arena, Wembley on July 24.

Hamzah Sheeraz (12-0, 8 KOs) makes the third defence of his WBO European title against Spaniard Ezequiel Gurria (15-1, 3 KOs).
 
Swansea’s Chris Jenkins (22-3-3, 8 KOs) will finally defend his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles against Nottingham’s Ekow Essuman (14-0, 5 KOs) after recovering from injury.
 
In a well matched fourth title fight, Peacock gym ace Chris Bourke (9-0, 6 KOs) defends his WBC International super-bantamweight title against Bloxwich’s James Beech Jnr (12-1, 2 KOs).
 
There is also heavyweight action featuring David Adeleye (6-0, 5 KOs), while Mill Hill’s George Fox (3-0) will make his Queensberry debut. Reading super-featherweight hope Charles Frankham (2-0, 1 KO) has also been added to the stacked bill., along with ‘The Gent’ Micky Burke Jr (4-0, 1 KO) who also returns after his first stoppage victory in November last year.

Tickets are available NOW from AXS.com. Click here to buy tickets.

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