ORANGE, Calif. (Sept. 3, 2017) – In the biggest fight of his career, Danny Roman (23-2-1, 9 KOs) delivered a masterful performance by knocking out WBA champion Shun Kubo (12-1, 9 KOs) in the ninth round to become the newest world champion at 122-pounds.

Roman traveled to Kubo’s home country of Japan to battle the newly minted Kubo. Roman, who lives and trains in Los Angeles, made good on his prefight promise to win by knockout.

“I said before the fight that I didn’t intend for this to go to the judges,” Roman said. “The plan was to knock him out and take the WBA title in dominating fashion.”

Roman, indeed, dominated the fight from start to finish. He won every round on every scorecard with the exception of the first round on one score sheet. He battered Kubo on multiple occasions, dropping him in the seventh and eighth rounds before finishing him off in the ninth.

“Words can’t describe what I’m feeling right now,” Roman said after the fight. “It’s a dream come true.”

“We’re incredibly proud of Danny Roman,” said Ken Thompson, president of Thompson Boxing Promotions. “In our eyes, Danny is the ultimate champion. He never backs down from a challenge and tonight he showed that he belongs among the best in the 122-pound division.”

“We never had any doubt that Danny would win the WBA title,” said Alex Camponovo, matchmaker and general manager at Thompson Boxing Promotions. “He looked unbelievable against Kubo. We believe his best years are still ahead of him. That’s a scary thought for the rest of the champions in this division.”

The 12-round WBA championship fight took place at the Shimazu Arena in Kyoto, Japan. Roman is trained and managed by Eddie Gonzalez and exclusively promoted by Thompson Boxing Promotions.

For more information, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please check our Facebook Page, watch our YouTube channel on Thompson Boxing TV, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.

LOS ANGELES, CA (September 2, 2017) WBC Super Flyweight World Champion SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (42-4-1, 38 KO’s), of Si Sa Ket, Thailand and former WBC Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-1-0, 38 KO’s), both weighed in within the required WBC 7-day weight limit ahead of their highly anticipated rematch set for Saturday, September 9 from the legendary StubHub Center in Carson, California and televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

From his training camp in Thailand, Rungvisai weighed in at 119lbs. while Gonzalez tipped the scales in Japan at 119.8lbs. Both fighters were required to weigh-in at 121lbs. or under per the World Boxing Council.

Opening the telecast, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (36-1-1, 27 KO’s)) of Mexico City will battle fellow rival countrymen and former flyweight world champion JUAN FRANCISCO “EL GALLO” ESTRADA, (35-2-0, 25 KO’s) of Sonora, Mexico in a 12-round WBC Super Flyweight Title Eliminator.

Both warriors were also within the WBC 7-day weight limit from their respective training camps in Mexico with Cuadras tipping the scales at 119.9lbs. and Estrada at 121lbs.

Co-featured on the outstanding “SUPERFLY” card is the United States debut of NAOYA “THE MONSTER” INOUE, (13-0-0, 11 KO’s) of Yokohama, Japan defending his WBO Super Flyweight Title against top contender ANTONIO “CARITA” NIEVES, (17-1-2, 9 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio.

Remaining tickets for “SUPERFLY” are now on sale priced at $250 and $150, both of which have very limited availability, in addition to $100 and $60. The $30 price range is sold out. All ticket prices are plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges. Tickets can be purchased at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425. Doors will open on the night of the event at 3:30 p.m. PT with the first bell at 4:00 p.m. PT.

The StubHub Center is located at 18400 Avalon Blvd., Carson CA, 90746 on the campus of California State University – Dominguez Hills. For directions and further information please visit their website at www.StubHubCenter.com

SOCIAL MEDIA:
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TWITTER:
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ORANGE, Calif. (Sept. 2, 2017) – World title challenger Danny Roman (22-2-1, 8 KOs) and WBA champion Shun Kubo (12-0, 9 KOs) each weighed in at 121.4 lbs. at Saturday’s weigh in from Kyoto, Japan.

Kubo defends his 122-lb. title for the first time, and Roman finds himself in the first world championship fight of his career this Sunday, Sept. 3, from the Shimazu Arena in Kyoto.

The 12-round WBA world championship fight is promoted by Shinsei Boxing Gym, in association with Thompson Boxing Promotions.

For more information, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please check our Facebook Page, watch our YouTube channel on Thompson Boxing TV, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.

02 September 2017 – Shanghai, China: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), sent shockwaves throughout the crowd at the 15,000-seater Shanghai Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai, China with an exciting evening of world-class martial arts action. ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI showcased a series of compelling bouts, punctuated by a thrilling headliner that left fans on the edge of their seats. In the main event, Ben “Funky” Askren of the United States retained the ONE Welterweight World Championship, defeating Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam of Sweden.

Visit the official ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI photo gallery by clicking: http://bit.ly/onephotos

In the main event of ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI, reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion and one of the best martial artists in the world pound-for-pound, Ben “Funky” Askren of the United States easily took care of Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam of Sweden, taking his younger foe down to the mat at will with his world-class wrestling and finishing him with a volley of punches. On the mat, the former US Olympian effortlessly secured a mount position and relentlessly pounded on the Swedish striker to compel veteran referee Yuji Shimada to halt the action in the second round.

Ben Askren, ONE Welterweight World Champion, stated: “I really had a wonderful time in Shanghai. Thanks for having me. It’s an honor to be here. To everyone who is watching from all around the world, thank you guys so much, it means the world to me.”

Askren added: “I am ready for anyone in the world who wants to step up to the plate and challenge me for my title.”

In the co-main event of the evening, Chinese flyweight prospect Ma Hao Bin returned to the ONE Championship cage against compatriot Hexigetu, and his performance certainly did not disappoint. Known by the moniker “The Southern Eagle,” Ma once again proved his mettle on the ground with another technical grappling showcase, converting several takedown attempts, ultimately winning by guillotine choke with ten seconds remaining in the second round.

Singaporean prospect Amir Khan continued his winning roll inside the ONE Championship cage by stopping Jaroslav Jartim of Czech Republic. Khan wasted no time in bringing the action to the mat with a successful takedown. Once on the ground, Khan rained down heavy blows to punish Jartim. Although Jartim found a way to return to his feet, Khan easily secured the finish in the stand-up trade with a left high kick and strong right cross. Jartim succumbed shortly after as the referee deemed him unable to continue. The technical knockout conquest earned Khan his fifth straight victory.

In one of the most exciting matchups of the evening, Xu Chun Yan of China and Eh Ya Nut of Cambodia put on a spectacular showcase of aggression to the roar of a packed crowd as the two competitors engaged in a skirmish in the opening moments of the strawweight contest. Although she is known for her boxing background, Xu flaunted her solid ground game to pacify her Cambodian opponent’s firepower in the stand-up trade, wearing down Eh Ya Nut and steering her to a decisive victory by way of unanimous decision.

Japanese veteran Tetsuya Yamada claimed his first win under the ONE Championship umbrella, submitting China-based American Kyle Rozewski. The finish came swiftly when Yamada effortlessly took Rozewski down to the canvas and fastened a rear-naked choke to earn the victory in the first round.

Sagetdao Petpayathai of Thailand was successful in his second outing as a ONE Championship athlete, defeating Mahmoud Mohamed of Egypt. The Lumpinee Stadium Muay Thai legend lit up Mohamed with his powerful striking, tagging the Egyptian with lightning quick elbows and thudding punch combinations. Petpayathai opened up his hands and drove Mohamed to the mat where he unleashed the bout-ending sequence to clinch the victory by technical knockout in the first round.

“Supermom” Miao Jie of China made a triumphant promotional debut in ONE Championship by submitting Mona Samir of Egypt. Miao got the job done by forcing Samir to tap with an armbar submission in just 49 seconds of the very first round.

In a battle of Chinese lightweight standouts, Zhang Ze Hao came out on top of Li Cheng Chao. Having a solid game plan to topple Li, Zhang delivered a sensational performance, forcing his opponent to succumb to strikes in the third round.

Xie Chao of China and Marc Marcellinus of Malaysia kicked off ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI in exciting fashion. Both men wasted no time in going to battle at the center of the cage. With the two stalwarts spent after just a few minutes of action, it was Xie who came away with the win via submission in the first round.

Official results for ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI
ONE Welterweight World Championship bout: Ben Askren defeats Zebaztian Kadestam by TKO (Strikes) at 4:09 minutes of round 2
Flyweight bout: Ma Hao Bin defeats Hexigetu by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 4:50 minutes of round 2
Lightweight bout: Amir Khan defeats Jaroslav Jartim by TKO (Strikes) at 3:46 minutes of round 1
Strawweight bout: Xu Chun Yan defeats Eh Ya Nut by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
Featherweight bout: Tetsuya Yamada defeats Kyle Rozewski by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:55 minutes of round 1
Featherweight bout: Sagetdao Petpayathai defeats Mahmoud Mohamed by TKO (Strikes) at 1:41 minutes of round 1
Strawweight bout: Miao Jie defeats Mona Samir by Submission (Armbar) at 0:49 minutes of round 1
Lightweight bout: Zhang Ze Hao defeats Li Cheng Chao by TKO (Strikes) at 2:53 minutes of round 3
Featherweight bout: Xie Chao defeats Marc Marcellinus by Submission (Kimura) at 1:28 minutes of round 1

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

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, ONE Championship is the home of martial arts. The world’s most exciting martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia, featuring some of the world’s best martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. In addition to its digital platforms, ONE Championship broadcasts to over 1 billion potential viewers across 128+ countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including FOX Sports, Setanta, MNC, Astro, Thairath TV, ABS-CBN, TV5, MYTV, HTV, OSN and more.

FRED STERNBURG: On behalf of GGG Promotions and Golden Boy, HBO Pay-Per-View, and all our great sponsors, we are less than three weeks away from the fight we’ve been waiting years for. It’s finally here, and, boy, everyone can’t wait, the main event. It’s going to be the World Middleweight Championship.

Defending champ Gennady “GGG” Golovkin is on the phone with us today. He’ll be answering questions about training camp and his expectations going into September 16 for the big pay-per-view. That will be at T-Mobile Arena. We also have his Hall of Fame trainer Abel Sanchez and his promoter Tom Loeffler on the phone to answer questions.

Without any delay, it’s my pleasure to introduce to you Tom Loeffler, who will introduce both Abel and Gennady. Tom?

TOM LOEFFLER: Thank you, Fred. We couldn’t be more excited about this fight coming up September 16. As Fred mentioned, it’s really the fight not only for the middleweight supremacy, but boxing supremacy. The winner of this fight, these two champions, world class fighters, the best middleweights in the world, I think the winner is really going to be considered the best fighter in the sport of boxing.

We had a tremendous kickoff media day on Monday at L.A. Live, where we had over 3,000 fans there, tons of media. The interest for this fight now is really reaching a fevered pitch. We’d like to thank HBO, who had a tremendous debut of 24/7 last Saturday after the Cotto fight. The Under the Lights show will be premiering this Saturday, and then the second episode, which everyone’s eagerly awaiting, will be after — September 9, when Chocolatito takes on Rungvisai in their rematch on the Super Fly show. So September 9 will be the second episode of 24/7.

It’s been a tremendous training camp. I know Abel is really pleased at how everything is going. I’ll just put on Abel to say a few words, and we can get straight into the questions for GGG, for Abel, or myself.

ABEL SANCHEZ: Thank you very much, Tom. Thank you very much to all the media that’s tuned in.

We’re having a great training camp as always. We’ve been at camp since July the 1st. Probably by fight time we’ll have two months and a couple weeks. We’re looking forward to a good fight, to a difficult fight, obviously, but that’s the way all these fights at this level should be. Thank you very much for tuning in. We’ll wait for some questions.

FRED STERNBURG: Gennady, before we open it up for questions, any comments? How’s camp going, and how do you feel with this fight finally coming up? We’re only 2 weeks away, 2 1/2 weeks.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Yeah, I feel great. Good morning, everybody. I’m very excited for this fight. I have, you’re right, like a couple weeks, like two weeks. My weight is good. I feel good. Everything is good. I’m okay. I’m okay. I’m ready.

Q. As the trainer for Gennady, I’d like to hear your perspective on just basically how Gennady has been as far as like his excitement level. Because I know how much he’s wanted this fight, and I think you’ve wanted this fight for a quite a while. Is there like an additional spring in his step as he gets ready for the fight that he’s really wanted compared to some of the other ones that were maybe not as anticipated as this? And could you describe what you see in him.

ABEL SANCHEZ: Absolutely, there’s been a sparkle in his eye. It’s not so much because of this fight. It could have been any big name fight that was out there. It just so happens that this is the one that was made, that was able to be made.

He’s just been a little frustrated the last couple years that he hasn’t had that marquee name to step up and want to fight him. The names go on. But happy that it is finally here. It’s 2 1/2 weeks away. Couldn’t be more excited, myself or him. I have to say he has a sparkle in his eye. He’s a little bit different than he has been, and that’s exciting for me because I know we’re going to get a great fight.

Q. When this fight is over and if Gennady is victorious, what do you think that will mean for the way he’s remembered in boxing? Because a lot of people see he has this great record, great knockout streak, but it lacks for star power in terms of the names on the record.

ABEL SANCHEZ: I think that Canelo fighting Mayweather a couple years ago, whenever that was, I think stamps him as a bona fide elite fighter, let me just say. If Golovkin — or when Golovkin does to him on the 16th what I think he’s going to do to him, it will stamp Golovkin as a superstar because I think he’s going to dominate him and do what Floyd couldn’t do.

The 16th is a pivotal period, a pivotal day in Gennady’s career, and I think how people are going to remember it, but we still have the 16th to go. Hopefully after the fight, I’m telling you the same things.

Q. Can you describe to me what you think a victory would mean for your legacy in boxing. Because you’ve got a lot of wins, a lot of knockouts. As I said, you have that great knockout streak, but for a variety of reasons, you have yet to get the opportunity to face one of the true superstars in boxing until this point. So what would that mean for the way you’re remembered?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Right now maybe I’m not (indiscernible). Seriously, right now, I want to start and I want to win this fight because maybe for me this win will be like a history fight, like Leonard vs. Hagler. Like middleweight division, I believe the boxing division will come back. And Canelo, he’s a very special guy.

Right now for us it’s huge. Especially for me, it’s huge.

Q. Can you just describe — as I asked Abel about you’ve had — you’ve prepared yourself and always been in great shape for your fights, but sometimes they were fights that everybody sort of expected you to win very easily. I think this fight is a fight that there’s a division, that people think you’re going to win and some people think that Canelo Alvarez is going to win. So just give me your perspective on finally being in a fight that there’s some doubt in, that people think, hey, maybe the other guy might win, and how excited you are for that kind of competition.

TOM LOEFFLER: Dan, I can jump in on that. This is definitely the closest odds of any fight that Gennady’s been involved in, and I think that’s what makes this so intriguing is that 50 percent of the people think that Canelo is going to win and 50 percent think that Gennady’s going to win. That’s where, I think, the outcome is definitely in doubt, and it makes that much bigger of an event. Gennady can add to that, if he wants.

Q. Tom, do you have an opinion for what it would mean for people as they look back — his career is not over, obviously — but his legacy? Everyone needs that one big, big victory to kind of stamp themselves as a true great.

TOM LOEFFLER: Well, 100 percent. As Gennady said, it’s a legacy fight for him. He’s had so many knockouts in his career. He holds the highest knockout percentage in the middleweight division. If there’s any criticism that people have of Gennady, it’s the level of competition, but they have to look at the opponents, not at Gennady. We’ve had a terrible time getting people in the ring with him. And that’s why we had respect for all the people that had gotten in the ring with him previously.

This is clearly — you know, Canelo is a proven pay-per-view star. The event is sold out in Vegas. Gennady brings his fan base. This just brings — you know, the sum of both fighters is much bigger than themselves individually, both from an international level and just a competition level. And I think a win September 16 definitely puts that stamp on Gennady’s career.

Look, if he beats Daniel Jacobs in March and beats Canelo Alvarez in September, I don’t know too many fighters that have a better year than that.

Q. Hi, Gennady. I just saw you on 24/7, in the first episode of that. I know you talked there about the first part of your career that you spent over in Europe and kind of being frustrated that your career wasn’t going the way you wanted, that you weren’t getting the fights that you wanted. When you came over to the United States and you kind of got like a second go at it, so to speak, how confident were you that it was going to lead to something like this?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Right now is a very important time for me. I feel right now very comfortable. My family, everybody support me.

TOM LOEFFLER: This is the fight that we’ve been working for. Every fight in Gennady’s career, really since he made his HBO debut September 12 — this is almost five years to the day — and every fight since then, this is really the fight that we’ve been working for. It would have been great if he’d had this type of fight earlier in his career, but as I mentioned, the other named opponents, or the champions even, weren’t willing to get in the ring with him.

Now that Canelo has agreed, this is really — all the knockouts, all the training, all the hard work, all the sacrifice that Gennady’s made has been built toward this exact fight in his career.

Q. Tom, one question for you. When Gennady comes to you, obviously, he’s not a 22-year-old, 23-year-old boxer. You’re dealing with kind of a limited amount of time. What was kind of in your blueprint, I guess, to get him to this point? Obviously, I know you’ve taken him back East to maybe try to expand his foothold out there. What was kind of the plan to get him to this point?

TOM LOEFFLER: The blueprint was, when we met with HBO, we said Gennady will fight anyone. They had a list of 20 fighters, 20 names of different fighters, anywhere from 154 to 168, and Abel and Gennady didn’t turn down any one of those. That was just — that blew HBO away. They’ve never been used to someone willing to fight everyone. They realized, if there wasn’t a fight that was able to be made, it wasn’t on the GGG side. I was very transparent with all the negotiations, everyone that we reached out to.

The first step was Madison Square Garden took a very strong interest in GGG, and he had two fights at the Theater. He sold out those fights. And then we moved to the big room in Madison Square Garden. So that was really the plan is to build him in New York City at Madison Square Garden, then when he came over here to the StubHub Center in L.A., he broke the attendance record. So that was the blueprint, not to build him in small casinos that were obscure that really didn’t bring the type of media attention because I knew with someone of Gennady’s talent and his pedigree and just his willingness to fight, that we needed to build him in the biggest markets.

A lot of people are surprised, after he’s fought in seven countries and 22 different cities, that this will be the first time he’s fighting in Las Vegas, but this is really that type of an event, that type of crown jewel event to make his debut in Las Vegas, and we see the fan reaction. All the fans coming in internationally to come see him fight, both supporting him and supporting Canelo.

We followed the blueprint. And actually, I had all these plans outside the ring and Abel had his plans, as far as the training, but if Gennady didn’t perform inside the ring, the best laid plans wouldn’t have happened. So Gennady had to perform in the ring. He always was an exciting fight. That led to his performances in the ring, and all the hard work outside the ring led to building this fight right now.

Q. I wanted to get Gennady’s reaction to Conor McGregor’s comments that he wasn’t very impressed with either Canelo or GGG. He called them a bit boring and flat-footed. So I wanted to get Gennady’s reaction to that.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: McGregor, he’s not a boxer. So his reaction is not surprising.

Q. Abel, do you have any reaction to that?

ABEL SANCHEZ: I think you have to consider the source. You’re talking about a guy who never fought an amateur fight, never been in the ring with an elite fighter, commenting on something he knows nothing about.

Q. Tom, I wanted to ask you, with that other fight over, do you think it actually is bringing more attention to this fight because this is what everybody is saying is the, quote, unquote, real fight?

TOM LOEFFLER: I think so, George. Look, that was — that had a tremendous amount of attention to the fight. Just to be clear, I think from the GGG side and the team, we were certainly not negative about Conor McGregor. I think just the fact of what he’s accomplished in the UFC, he’s clearly the most marketable fighter they’ve had, and he’s shown a lot of tremendous heart in the fights that he’s had. It’s just that Gennady is a purist, and he didn’t look at that as a true boxing match. It would be the same thing as if Floyd went into the octagon, I’d be willing to bet that Conor lasted a lot longer in the boxing ring than Floyd would have in the octagon.

So we don’t want to be negative on either Conor or on the event, but I think it definitely brought a lot of mainstream attention to that event. And then we’re just working on capitalizing on that momentum, and the boxing fans realize this is the true fight, the true boxing match with the two best fighters in the middleweight division. I think that’s what the real boxing fans are looking forward to.

Q. And what does it say that your event is sold out and theirs was, I think, 14,000 and change? Do you think that was all pricing, or is there some other message in there?

TOM LOEFFLER: I think it was pricing. Clearly, there was a huge demand for tickets for their event. I don’t know. I wasn’t involved in that event. I don’t know the internal workings on it, but from the outside, I heard the tickets were extremely highly priced. I think maybe some of the UFC fans that were used to much lower prices for some of their biggest events weren’t willing to pay those higher prices. That’s the only thing I can attribute it to.

It wasn’t for lack of attention because they certainly got — you saw the Irish fans in Las Vegas and everything like that. It probably would have just been a component of overpricing the tickets as opposed to the people that were willing to afford to pay those prices.

Q. And is this the kind of matchup that can make, well, both of these fighters pay-per-view stars in the realm of getting 800,000 to a million buys consistently?

TOM LOEFFLER: I think so. I really think building on the numbers that Canelo did, Canelo did 1 million buys against Chavez, and you see the fan base that Gennady brings, I think they complement each other perfectly. Canelo has his fans, his diehard fans that are going to buy his pay-per-view fights, buy the tickets. And when you add the component this is the first time that Gennady has fought someone that actually has a more established name, especially on the pay-per-view side, than he has.

Before, it seemed like he was always carrying the promotions when we couldn’t get one of the bigger names or one of — you know, some of the biggest champions in the ring with him. And now this fight with Canelo, now we’ll see how much bigger of an event this will be where Gennady brings his fan base. He sold out, I think, the last seven arenas that he’s fought at, and that’s from New York to London to L.A. You know, every time he fought, he had a sellout, sold out arena.

Then you bring in Canelo, who had over 50,000 people at Cowboy Stadium against Liam Smith, you bring these two marketing sources, the point is not only are these the two best boxers in the division, but two of the most marketable fighters in the sport of boxing. I think that’s what really makes this a unique event. You don’t have that type of matchup very often in the sport.

Q. This question is for Gennady. If successful, this will be his 19th middleweight title defense. The record is held by Bernard Hopkins with 20. Obviously, that’s within range. People thought that may last for a very long time. Bernard Hopkins is an executive with Golden Boy, which has Canelo. How much would setting that record mean to Gennady, to you, Gennady? And also, the second part of that question is have you ever like imagined how you would fare prime on prime against some of the great middleweights in history? Specifically, Hopkins, but also guys like Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Right off the top, the interest for me is it’s a huge fight. The story — in the middleweight division, it’s a long story. I don’t know, I remember a lot of great champions, like Carlos Monzon, Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Bernard Hopkins. Right now I think new stories, new times for us. So many stories are huge in the middleweight division. To be a champion is huge.

Q. Abel, could I ask you the same question. Gennady has approached some historical milestones. Where do you think he would rate on the all time list of great middleweight champions?

ABEL SANCHEZ: I don’t think he’s ever really contemplated how he would feel if he broke Bernard’s record. He respects Bernard a heck of a lot. Obviously, we’ve been in the business for a long time, you and I, and we know that all these records were meant to be broken. It just seemed like Bernard’s was unreachable.

Gennady, on the pace that he’s going, could end up with five, six more wins in the middleweight division. So it would be historical. As far as how he would fare, it’s a different era. I think that Carlos Monzon was a great fighter, so was Joey Robinson, so was all those guys in their era. I think that everybody has an era. I don’t know how he would have fared against those guys.

I would have liked to have seen him fight Bernard in his prime because I think Bernard — or even Roy Jones in his prime because those guys were, as I remember I saw myself, those were great fighters. Hopefully, this era will be Golovkin’s era as Roy and Bernard had theirs.

Q. One more question, and this is for Gennady or whoever wants to jump in on it. We just had a situation where, for the first time since Bernard Hopkins and Jermain Taylor were the only two people since the late 1980s to hold all four of the titles, including the WBO. Terence Crawford just accomplished that. After this, would going after that one missing title that Gennady — now held by Billy Joe Saunders — would that be a priority? How important is having all the titles to him?

TOM LOEFFLER: Bernard, maybe I can jump in on my side. Ever since Gennady won the WBA middleweight championship and he was the undefeated WBA middleweight champion, Olympic silver medalist, he’s wanted to fight the best in the division. That’s the only way that he could prove that he was the best not only in the middleweight division but one of the best in the sport of boxing.

It was just so hard at the time when Felix Sturm was considered one of the top middleweights in the world and he was a mandatory for two years. Sturm did everything he could to avoid that fight. Then when Sergio Martinez was considered the best middleweight, and Gennady would have loved a matchup between — to unify his WBA title with Sergio’s WBC title. Unfortunately, Sergio chose to fight Cotto at the time, which then Cotto lost to Canelo.

It’s been very difficult getting other champions to agree. We have respect for David Lemieux. As soon as he won the IBF title, he agreed to fight GGG. But I think the other champions saw that and saw the eight-round domination of one of the biggest punchers in the middleweight division, another champion, it makes it hard to make those fights.

Terence Crawford, you’ve got to give him a lot of credit. He unified the title, but I think fighting a guy that had two titles and was willing to fight him for a reasonable amount of money, I mean, when we talk to Saunders, you’re talking about telephone numbers he wants just to get in the ring with him.

If you’re confident — you know, Gennady — there was an old story where his managers were negotiating with Eddie Hearn to come to England. All they wanted was some tickets and a logo on the mat. When you’re a confident champion, you don’t ask for those astronomical numbers if you really think you can win the fight. If you think you’re going to lose the fight or you think you’re getting knocked out, that’s when people start pricing themselves out, and that’s what made it so, so difficult to unify the division.

That’s why I think this fight with Canelo — look, if Gennady looks good against Canelo and performs the way we all believe he’ll perform, then it opens up a lot of doors. Then he’s in a whole different financial realm in terms of the moneys that we’re able to offer people. But if you can’t get the other champions to fight, you can’t unify the titles, and that’s the situation that we’ve been faced with the last six years.

Q. Well, the thing you said about HBO, that you agreed to all 20 names, a lot of those guys have ducked Gennady. I presume that a victory in this fight, not just because of the money, but all roads would have to go through him. I mean, maybe the people that ducked him before would have no choice but to — you know, if they wanted to do anything, but to go to him, right?

TOM LOEFFLER: No, that’s true. And like I said, I think, if he’s victorious September 16, he’ll be — look, Canelo is still considered the Ring Magazine and lineal middleweight champion. So there’s still some people out there who think Canelo should be rated above GGG. I think after this fight there will be no question. The winner of this fight will absolutely be — if Canelo wins, he’ll be considered the best middleweight. If Gennady wins, he’ll be considered the best middleweight and, again, one of the best in the entire sport.

If GGG is successful, then I think it will open up a lot of doors, and I think people, they’ll really have no excuse at that point to — not to fight him. I think that’s where Gennady’s career is going to be defined is, not the first part of his career, I think with the Jacobs fight and the Canelo fight and then what happens afterwards, I think that’s how his career is going to be defined as a middleweight champion.

Q. Hi, gentlemen. Thanks for taking the time. Gennady, I’m writing about your coach right now, and I want to know, when the bell rings and the fight starts, what words of Abel’s do you have in your mind? Or what advice from him is there?

TOM LOEFFLER: What does he usually say to you before a round begins, Gennady?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: You’re right. Patience. It’s patience.

Q. Patience?

TOM LOEFFLER: Abel, is that basically the gist?

ABEL SANCHEZ: Usually, yes, that and I may say whatever it is we discussed right prior in the dressing room about what we wanted to do. But most of it is patience because, actually, the first fight that I ever worked with him was a fight in Panama where he got a little wild on me — he knocked the guy out in the first round, but he got a little wilder than what I wanted him to do. When he got back in the corner, that was my chastising him. That was my scolding him for that.

So every time we’re in the beginning of a fight, I always say patience, just be patient. That’s why you see him go out and analyzing the first round. He really doesn’t that much, just analyzing until he gets his distance and gets the idea of what the other guy is going to do. And that comes because he’s patient and just looking for his opportunities.

Q. That’s great. And, Gennady, I’m wondering what’s different about Abel than other trainers you had in Kazakhstan? You know, when you think of what Abel taught you the most, something that he did.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: You know, different times, different guys in everything. My personal style is very different, like more mature, different age, weather, food. You know, it’s different — publicity.

TOM LOEFFLER: Gennady’s really — just to jump in there, Gennady’s had the best of both worlds, where the Kazakh amateur program is one of the best programs in the world, where he had that real solid foundation. I think that’s where he had that discipline and the sacrifice he goes through. I think that came from the Kazakh amateur program. He had a lot of punching power, and he had a lot of knockouts in the amateurs.

Then when he got to Abel’s gym and Abel’s philosophy and training, really training in the Mexican style, Abel was able to add a more professional style to Gennady, where he’s one of the best at cutting off the ring and putting constant pressure on his opponents, and that’s where either they’re knocked out by one shot or they’re just worn down, as we’ve seen in some of the fights. They just can’t take the constant pressure.

I think what Abel was able to build on to an already established fighter in the amateurs and the pros, I think it’s just taken Gennady’s career to a completely different level.

Q. Abel, how long did it take for you to transfer him into a Mexican style fighter, and what did that take?

ABEL SANCHEZ: I think it’s an ongoing process, but I think, going on what Tom said too, I don’t think there’s enough — sometimes there’s not enough credit given to what they bring us. Yeah, we’re lucky that we’re in the position to be able to develop them after, but if we don’t get that good foundation — and the Kazakh system is known in the last 15 years for creating great amateur fighters. But if they give us that foundation, it’s a lot easier for us to continue to develop the more TV friendly kind of style.

To answer your question, Fred, it’s an ongoing thing, but I think when you first — after the first four or five fights, he started to understand what his role was inside the ring, to be able to give Tom and Herman Brothers the ability to be able to market him, we have to do that inside the ring, and they do it outside. If we don’t give them something to market, then it’s impossible for them to do their job.

Q. Abel, is it hard to teach a fighter patience who has that killer instinct?

ABEL SANCHEZ: It’s hard to teach a fighter patience that wants to just fight — a natural fighter that just wants to fight. But being prepared and having those times in the gym where you know going into a fight that you’re in the best shape you could ever be mentally and physically, it’s a lot easier because you’re not in a hurry to do anything. You know, that opportunity will present itself, and you’re ready.

Also, I go back to the Kazakh system. With 350 amateur fights, there’s nothing he hasn’t seen. There’s no style he hasn’t seen. There’s no size he hasn’t seen. There’s no shape. So it’s easier to be patient when there’s nothing that can surprise you.

Q. Tom, can you comment on the importance of Abel and his training and legacy to the brand of GGG from a business perspective.

TOM LOEFFLER: I think what Abel brings to the table, Abel has had many world champions in the past. It’s just now with the success of GGG where he’s getting the recognition and the accolades of trainer of the year. I think the last two years he’s received that award.

But Abel’s training system — Abel just brings that calmness in the corner, but the value he adds to Gennady’s career is the fact that he’s instilled in Gennady, you need to put on a show for the fans. You need to put on an entertaining fight so the fans that buy the tickets, the fans that tune in to HBO or buy the pay-per-view, they feel like they’ve gotten their money’s worth. Gennady isn’t one of those fighters who dances around the ring for 12 rounds and wants to collect a paycheck. He wants to bring the entertainment.

The fans that come to the arena or tune in on TV to his fights, they know there’s going to be an exciting fight. He’s never been in a dull fight. Regardless of which style he’s fought, Gennady Golovkin has never been in a dull fight. That’s the box office draw that Abel has created out of Gennady.

Obviously, Abel having his Mexican heritage and being able to teach Gennady some Spanish words and things like that, that just brings a whole different level to Gennady’s career. But I think it’s just the fact that he’s created such an entertaining style and entertaining fighter, and that’s allowed us, on the marketing and promotional side, to highlight what Gennady’s accomplished in the ring.

Q. This question is just for GGG. Champ, I have a question for you. You’ve become very popular when you fought in Southern California. I’m wondering, though, how’s it going to be now, knowing that you are not going to be the most popular fighter entering the ring? Is this going to have an effect on you at all, or is this something you’ve prepared for?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Yeah, probably in Las Vegas. In L.A., they’re for me. In New York, they’re for me. I don’t know if in Dallas, Texas, or in Vegas, they’re probably for Canelo.

TOM LOEFFLER: I think it’s not so much the more popular fighter going in the ring. I think it’s the more popular fighter going out of the ring. If Gennady gets the victory September 16, I think he’ll become the most popular fighter in the sport. If you can beat a proven champion like Canelo, such a marketing draw, that just takes Gennady’s career to a different level.

I think what he was saying before is he’s fought in New York, I think six times now. So in New York he would be more popular than Canelo. In Las Vegas, since Canelo has fought there many times, Canelo is probably more popular in Las Vegas. So it just depends.

You know, in the UK, if you take GGG to the UK, the boxing fans love him over there, and he’s more popular in the UK, for example. So it just depends on the market. But that’s what brings this international flavor to this event.

ABEL SANCHEZ: I was going to add a little bit to that. Being a Latin, being a Mexican, I think that we just enjoy a good fight, and the base, the Latin base, or the Mexican base that Canelo has and that Golovkin have, as long as they put up the kind of fight that we expect as Mexicans or Latins, I think we’re going to be happy with whomever wins, and we’re going to support both.

Q. Good morning. GGG sounds like he’s on a spaceship out near Jupiter, but we’ll take a shot at it, and maybe Abel can help out with the question because it relates to him as well. Gennady looked fantastic at the event in Los Angeles, but as we all know, 35 isn’t 30, it’s not 25. Can the fighter and the trainer talk about how his body is different at 35, how it feels different in training, and how the training is different from how it was five, six, seven years ago.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Thank you very much for your compliment. I feel great at this age. Seriously, I don’t know, just my training every day, I’m just the same. Just my sparring is the same, like my speed, my power, I don’t lose. I feel like ten years ago. Like right now, you’re right, I’m 35, but I feel like 25. Maybe inside, maybe right now I’m younger than Canelo. I feel like 25.

Q. Abel, you want to comment on his sparring and how you see him in the gym now.

ABEL SANCHEZ: Yeah, obviously as a coach, you take into consideration the years, the age, but he’s doing the same things now, harder now because he’s at a different level than he was four, five years ago. He’s still working as hard as he was before and not slacking off, not — I’m not having to make any concessions for being 35 years old. We’re doing the same things we did in the past.

But about five or six fights ago, seven fights ago maybe, I cut down the rounds of sparring, but that’s really the only thing that I’ve done different. But then I didn’t do it because of age. I did it because he just comes to camp in such a state that I don’t have to abuse him in camp. I can leave a lot in him by working him less because he’s in shape when he comes to camp. We’re not losing 25 pounds. So it’s easier for me as a coach to get out of him what he needs and get him ready to peak right before fight time.

Q. Second question for both. Something that Abel touched on earlier in the conversation. Subsequent to this, upwards of five or six more, are you comfortable with the thought of fighting for another couple, three years, maybe longer? You want to be fighting like Mayweather at the age of 40? What are your thoughts on that?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Yeah, probably. Maybe like 40, five years more. This is boxing. Every day is difficult and dangerous. Right now I feel great. Everything’s good. My family and my team support me. I feel very comfortable. So probably, yeah, five years more.

ABEL SANCHEZ: I think, if we get, if we’re able to secure the kind of fights that motivate him mentally — physically they’re always in shape. Obviously, all great fighters like that are always in shape, but the mental part of it is so important because you have to be motivated for a fight. If Tom and the Herman Brothers and the powers that be can get him the kind of fights that motivate him and want him to come back in the gym and work as hard as he does for all fights, then, yes, I can see him fighting that long. I think, if there’s an if, that’s a big if.

Q. No concerns about the possible long-term effects about boxing and getting punched in the head?

ABEL SANCHEZ: No, remember, he’s probably been a pro less than Canelo’s been a pro, and his fights are a heck of a lot shorter than Canelo’s fights. Canelo is the one that has the wear and tear on him, not Golovkin. Canelo has got 49 fights. And Golovkin has 36, 37, whatever he has, and his fights have been shorter, and he turned pro in 2006. I believe Canelo’s been a pro a little bit longer than he has.

No, we don’t have the long periods of training camps like we used to for the other fighters. That helps. And his fights being shorter helps. If he’s motivated to fight on, to fight for the next three or four years, then he should. If he doesn’t have it in him, then he shouldn’t.

I think, if we do good on the 16th, I think the public will ask for him to fight on, and as long as he keeps fighting the way that I know he can, the public will keep asking for that. Hopefully, Tom can put those together.

FRED STERNBURG: Before we wrap up, just a reminder that HBO sports will be airing the special Under the Lights: Canelo-Golovkin Saturday evening at 10:00 p.m. East Coast and West Coast on HBO, and episode 2 of 24/7: Canelo-Golovkin will premiere the following week on HBO immediately following Tom’s terrific card with all the super flyweights at StubHub Center. Tom, any last comments before we head to trainer and fighter?

TOM LOEFFLER: I’ll tell you, we can’t be more excited about this fight. It’s really the crescendo of we’ve had a banner year for boxing in 2017, even with the Mayweather-McGregor fight. It’s just the spotlight that’s been shown on the sport of boxing has never been brighter, or not for a long time, than we’ve seen this year. This really seems to be the main event of the year.

So we’re excited about this fight. Fred, as you mentioned, the Super Fly show September 9th. Don’t miss that. That will be on HBO with the second airing of 24/7.

This is really — this is the fight that everyone on the GGG side has been working hard for. We give Canelo a lot of credit. We give the Golden Boy side a lot of credit for being extremely cooperative with the co-promotion, the MGM properties up in Las Vegas, and just looking forward to Gennady’s premiere not only in Las Vegas but at the T-Mobile Arena, one of the most premier arenas around the world.

Naturally, we can’t leave out HBO. It’s just been a tremendous partner for Gennady’s career, and very thankful for their support.

FRED STERNBURG: Abel, any last words? You still feel like you’re 25, like Gennady does?

ABEL SANCHEZ: Not after hits the mitts with me, not after he pounds on my shoulders. No, I feel that we’re training very hard to be well prepared to give the fans, not to disappoint the fans and to give the fans the kind of fight that they expect from us. I know Canelo is training just as hard. So hopefully, that night will be a magic night for boxing and for all of us.

FRED STERNBURG: Thanks, Abel. Gennady, we’ll let you have the final word. Any last words to the media?

GENNADY GOLOVKIN: Yes, of course. Thank you very much, everybody. I respect boxing. If you respect boxing like me, watch my fight on HBO. Welcome to my fight.

FRED STERNBURG: Thank you, everyone, for joining us. Thank you, Gennady, Abel. Thank you, Tom.

And just a reminder, live on pay-per-view at a special time, 8:00 p.m. East Coast, 5:00 West Coast on Saturday, September 16, live on HBO Pay-Per-View. We look forward to seeing everybody out there fight week. Thank you again for joining us today.

# # #

Canelo vs. Golovkin is a 12-round fight for the middleweight championship of the world presented by Golden Boy Promotions and GGG Promotions and sponsored by Tecate “BORN BOLD”; Hennessy, Never Stop, Never Settle; O’Reilly Auto Parts. Better Parts, Better Prices…everyday!; Fred Loya Insurance; Interjet; Thor: Ragnarok; Fathom Events; Tsesnabank; and Capital Holdings. Diaz, Jr. vs. Lara is 12-round WBC Featherweight Title Eliminator bout presented by Golden Boy Promotions. Caballero vs. De La Hoya is a 10-round fight for the NABF Super Bantamweight Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions. Martin vs. Rojo is a 10-round lightweight bout for the WBC Continental Americas and vacant WBA Intercontinental Championships presented by Golden Boy Promotions and GGG Promotions in association with Cancun Boxing. The event will take place Saturday, Sept. 16 at T-Mobile Arena and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at a special time of 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT.

HBO Sports will air the special “Under The Lights: Canelo/Golovkin” Saturday, Sept. 2 at 10:00 p.m. (E/PT) on HBO. It’s the final time the two will see each other until fight week unfolds in Las Vegas.

Episode #2 of 24/7 Canelo/Golovkin premieres Saturday, Sept. 9 on HBO immediately following the live Boxing After Dark triple header from the StubHub Center at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

Tickets for the closed circuit telecast of Canelo vs. Golovkin at Bellagio Resort & Casino, MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, The Mirage Hotel & Casino, Monte Carlo Resort and Casino, New York-New York Hotel & Casino, Luxor Hotel and Casino and Circus Circus Las Vegas are priced at $75, not including applicable fees. All seats are general admission and are currently on sale. Tickets may be purchased at any MGM Resorts International Box Office, by phone with a major credit card at 1-800-745-3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

Photos and videos are available for download by clicking here or copying and pasting the link http://bit.ly/CaneloGolovkin into a browser. Credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions for photos and videos used.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com and www.hbo.com/boxing; follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @Canelo, @gggboxing, @OscarDeLaHoya, @hboboxing and @TomLoeffler1; become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/gggboxing, and www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing; follow on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @Canelo, @gggboxing, @HBOboxing and @OscarDeLaHoya; and follow the conversation using #CaneloGGG.

1 September 2017 – Shanghai, China: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), recently held the ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI Official Face-Off, featuring main event combatants ONE Welterweight World Champion Ben Askren of the United States and challenger Zebaztian Kadestam of Sweden. The two martial artists squared off in front of media at the Char Bar at the Hotel Indigo Shanghai on The Bund, Thursday, 31 August in Shanghai, China.

Photos of the ONE CHAMPIONSHIP: SHANGHAI OFFICIAL FACE-OFF can be found here: http://bit.ly/oneshanghaifaceoff

Ben Askren, ONE Welterweight World Champion, stated: “In this sport, it’s you against the other guy. You make or break your own destiny. I want to be in control of the outcome at all times. Being a champion goes far beyond just wearing that gold belt around my waist. It is also about how you carry yourself as champion, and how you inspire others with the way you train and compete. Kadestam is a tough guy, he showed that in his last bout. But it doesn’t matter what his strengths and weaknesses are. At the end of the day, he can’t stop my wrestling. He’s going to be on his back, and I’m going to be pounding away until the referee stops the contest.”

Zebaztian Kadestam, ONE world title challenger, stated: “I always enjoy a good battle between two martial artists testing themselves. Ben Askren is one of the best martial artists in the world, and this is the reason I chose to come to ONE Championship, for an opportunity to test myself against the absolute best. Martial arts is my life and I believe I am going to be a martial artist until the day I die. Nothing is going to take me away from this. I am coming into the cage with everything I have. You can expect the best version of Zebaztian Kadestam when I step onto that battlefield.”

A former NCAA Division I All-American, Ben “Funky” Askren of the United States is a collegiate wrestling legend and a US Olympian who represented the nation at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He is universally recognized as one of the finest martial artists in the world today. Askren joined ONE Championship in 2014, winning the ONE Welterweight World Championship in just his second bout. Askren has since successfully defended the title twice, including his most recent victory, a first-round submission of young Malaysian star Agilan Thani in May. Sporting an unblemished 16-0 professional record, Askren seeks to continue his reign as champion, this time against Zebaztian Kadestam.

Zebaztian “The Bandit” Kadestam of Sweden holds an outstanding professional record of 9-3, and is a tremendous competitor with a wide array of striking and grappling techniques. Seven of his nine career victories have come by way of knockout. Kadestam made a successful ONE Championship debut last May when he defeated Luis Santos, upsetting the top welterweight contender via a come-from-behind third-round knockout. Kadestam’s resounding victory quickly earned him a title opportunity, as he is now booked to face the toughest opponent of his career in Ben Askren.

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, ONE Championship is the home of martial arts. The world’s most exciting martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia, featuring some of the world’s best martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. In addition to its digital platforms, ONE Championship broadcasts to over 1 billion potential viewers across 128+ countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including FOX Sports, Setanta, MNC, Astro, Thairath TV, ABS-CBN, TV5, MYTV, HTV, OSN and more.

How frustrating was it to have to wait for this fight with Canelo?

“We have been talking about this fight for years. The last two years, I lose interest, because after every fight, Golden Boy said, ‘No. OK, maybe next fight.’ I remember the situation after the Amir Khan fight, when I go into the ring. Oscar De La Hoya said, ‘This is a good day for us and I will call GGG’s manager tomorrow.’ I think it was hard on the fans too.

“The fans are hungry for this fight. After the Julio Cesar Chavez fight, I believed it is possible for us, and in June I see Canelo’s face, and it is more serious. He is ready. This was not like Canelo not being ready. It was Golden Boy not being ready.”

Abel Sanchez Blog – Part 1

How frustrating was it to wait for this fight with Canelo to happen? Is Gennady saving his anger for fight night? What do you expect Gennady to accomplish on Sept. 16?

“I’ve never seen Gennady frustrated except when Sturm refused to fight him and the WBA kept giving him opportunities to avoid his mandatory obligation. I could also see him getting frustrated last year when three of the top middleweights (Canelo, Saunders, Eubank) wouldn’t fight him and then Brook stepped up to the plate to save the day last September in London.”

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HBO Sports will air the special “Under The Lights: Canelo/Golovkin” Saturday, Sept. 2 at 10:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on HBO. It’s the final time the two will see each other until fight week unfolds in Las Vegas.

Episode #2 of 24/7 Canelo/Golovkin premieres Saturday, Sept. 9 on HBO Immediately following the live Boxing After Dark triple header from the StubHub Center at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

Canelo vs. Golovkin takes place Saturday, September 16 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at a special time of 8:00 p.m. ET/ 5:00 p.m. PT.

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24/7 #CaneloGGG – Episode 1 (Click to watch Full Episode)
Link: https://youtu.be/QrdGoqt_Wv4
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Take an in-depth look at Canelo Alvarez
and Gennady ”GGG” Golovkin leading up to
their fight for middleweight supremacy (Click to watch)
Link: https://youtu.be/uflG5Xxz9U8
Embed:
(You may post video to your digital & social platforms)

Watch Gennady Golovkin’s Greatest Hits (Click to Watch)
Link: https://youtu.be/HbF3Ct0aQ4U
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ORANGE, Calif. (Sept. 1, 2017) – World title challenger Danny Roman (22-2-1, 8 KOs) and WBA champion Shun Kubo (12-0, 9 KOs) addressed the Japanese media for the final time on Friday.

Kubo defends his 122-lb. title for the first time, and Roman finds himself in the first world championship fight of his career this Sunday, Sept. 3, from the Shimazu Arena in Kyoto.

The 12-round WBA world championship fight is promoted by Shinsei Boxing Gym, in association with Thompson Boxing Promotions.

Roman was measured and reserved in his responses during the question and answer portion of Friday’s fight week press conference.

“This is my first world title fight,” Roman said. “We are really excited for it. I hope the Japanese fans like my style. I’m going to be ready for whatever Kubo brings. I’ve been preparing for this moment since I began boxing. I’m ready to be at this level.”

The Los Angeles native is in the middle of the strongest stretch of his professional career. Roman is riding a 14-fight winning streak and is the former NABA champion. He’s been dismantling opponents on the scorecards, winning virtually every round on every scorecard during his lengthy hot streak.

In Kubo, he’ll go up against one of the rangiest opponents to date.

“He boxes well. His skill set is very obvious,” Roman said. “He uses his distance and reach to his advantage. I expect a tough fight.”

“Danny is in excellent shape both mentally and physically,” said Ken Thompson, president of Thompson Boxing. “This is the perfect time for him to be in this position. He’s a tireless worker, a true professional. I know he’ll be coming back to the United States as a world champion.”

“Danny is ready for a tremendous fight,” said Alex Camponovo, matchmaker and general manager for Thompson Boxing. “He’s earned the right to be on this stage and we’re confident that he’s going to win the world title on Sunday. We’re extremely thankful to the WBA and Mr. Kubo and his team for making this fight happen.”

For more information, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please check our Facebook Page, watch our YouTube channel on Thompson Boxing TV, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.

Louisville, KY (September 1, 2017) The Real Deal Boxing, the promotional entity of Evander Holyfield’s Real Deal Sports and Entertainment, will return to the legendary boxing city of Louisville, Kentucky on Thursday, September 28 with an outstanding card of world class fights at the Crowne Plaza Louisville Airport Hotel, it was announced today.

“We said we were committed to building boxing back in Louisville and I hope this shows the fans that we are true to our word,” said co-owner and Hall-of-Famer Evander Holyfield. “There is a lot of undiscovered talent in the city and we will continue to honor the legacy of the great Muhammad Ali by bringing our events to his hometown. I encourage everyone to take part by buying a ticket or purchasing our live-stream on our website.”

Eric Bentley, the Chief Operating Officer of Real Deal Sports & Entertainment, reiterated the company’s aspiration to bring boxing back to Kentucky. “We really wanted to build off the success of our first event in Louisville. It’s a great city with passionate fans and a rich history in the sport, a dedicated and competent commission under the leadership of Chad Miller, and a lot of undiscovered local talent like our future superstar Carlos Dixon that we’re excited to build. This card really exemplifies everything Evander stood for as a fighter, and what his company now represents: exciting, competitive bouts that place the boxers at the forefront. With established contenders and some of the sports best prospects, this card will be even better than the first one. Don’t miss this event and be sure to book your room at the Crowne Plaza in Louisville for this one!”

Advance tickets priced at $125, $75 and $40 will go on sale on Tuesday, September 5 through www.TheRealDealBoxing.com, VIP Ringside Tables and VIP Tickets are also available. The Crowne Plaza Louisville Airport Hotel is located at 830 Phillips Lane, Louisville, KY 40209. Doors will open on the night of the event at 6:00 p.m. with the first bell at 6:30 p.m.

Headlining the September 28th event, top featherweight contenders will battle over 10-rounds as Providence, Rhode Island’s TOKA KAHN “T-Nice” CLARY, (22-1-0, 15 KO’s) faces BRAULIO “El Chavo” RODRIGUEZ (19-2-0, 17 KO’s), of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic for the vacant WBC Continental Americas Featherweight Title.

The 25-year-old, all-action Clary returns to Louisville following his dominant and decisive victory over Angel Luna at The Real Deal Boxing’s debut event on June 24 at Freedom Hall.

Fighting for the first time in the United States, the 29-year-old Rodriguez will be looking to bounce back into the win column following a very hard-fought majority decision loss to Alberto Mercado in Caguas, Puerto Rico.

Featured in the 10-round co-main event, DUKE “The Baby Faced Terminator” MICAH, (20-0, 18 KO’s), of the boxing rich region of Accra, Ghana, will make his highly-anticipated United States debut defending his WBC International Bantamweight Title against MARIO “EL Triturador” DIAZ, (16-1-0, 6 KO’s) of Aguascalientes, Mexico.

The 25-year-old Micah, world ranked #13 by the World Boxing Council, has fought three times in the United Kingdom and is coming off the finest win of his five-year professional career.

On March 11, 2017, Micah was victorious against tough Mexican veteran Jonathan Aguilar earning the WBC International Bantamweight Title in Accra, Ghana.

Fighting for the first time in the United States, the 22-year-old Diaz is on a remarkable fourteen bout winning streak.

In a fantastic six round clash of top super featherweight prospects, Washington D.C.’s JOSHUA DAVIS, (11-1-0, 5 KO’s), will battle RAY “Lightning Jr.” LAMPKIN, (10-0-0, 4 KO’s) of Portland, Oregon.

Cruiserweight prospects will also see action as Real Deal’s newly-signed prospect JOSHUA TEMPLE, (4-0-0, 4 KO’s), of St. Louis, Missouri, faces Worcester, Massachusetts’ BRYAN DANIELS, (5-0-0, 3 KO’s).

The card will also feature two of the company’s highly-regarded prospects: Louisville’s own CARLOS DIXON (1-0-0, 1 KO) and Detroit’s JANELSON BOCACHICA (7-0-0, 4 KO’s), plus much more!

Further information on this outstanding evening of world class professional boxing will be announced shortly.

Real Deal Sports & Entertainment is proud to partner with Medical Arts Radiology (www.medicalartsradiology.com) and Venum (www.venum.com).

TORONTO – Fight Network, the world’s premier 24/7 multi-platform channel dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports, presents three star-studded live mixed martial arts events this weekend, highlighted by the live main card for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: Volkov vs. Struve on Saturday, Sept. 2 at 3:00 p.m. ET. The live action kicks off tonight, Sept. 1 at 9:00 p.m. ET with LFA 21: Noblitt vs. Branjao followed by a live broadcast of ONE Championship: Shanghai, featuring the return of undefeated phenom Ben Askren, on Saturday, Sept. 1 at 7:00 a.m. ET.

The stacked main card for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: Volkov vs. Struve emanates from Rotterdam, Netherlands on Saturday, Sept. 2 at 3:00 p.m. ET, headlined by an explosive heavyweight clash between No. 7-ranked Russian Alexander Volkov (28-6) and No. 8-ranked Dutchman Stefan Struve (28-8). Rounding out the four-bout telecast is a welterweight matchup pitting Afghanistan’s Siyar Bahadurzada (22-6-1) against unbeaten Australian Rob Wilkinson (11-0), a women’s bantamweight showdown between Brazil’s Talita de Oliveira (4-1) and American Marion Reneau (7-3-1) and a welterweight bout featuring England’s Leon Edwards (13-3) against rugged American scrapper Bryan Barberena (13-4). Leading into the main card telecast, Fight Network will present an encore of UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: Struve vs. Miocic from September 2012, which kicks off at 12:00 p.m. ET. The UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: Volkov vs. Struve main card will re-air on Saturday night in primetime at 9:00 p.m. ET.

Saturday’s live action gets an early start at 7:00 a.m. ET with ONE Championship: Shanghai from China, headlined by a showdown for the ONE welterweight championship, as undefeated American wrestler Ben Askren (16-0) defends his crown against Swedish challenger Zebaztian Kadestam (9-3). In other featured bouts, Mongolia’s Narantungalag Jadambaa (12-5) collides with Japan’s Tetsuya Yamada (21-5-2) in a featherweight bout and Singapore’s Amir Khan (7-2) meets the Czech Republic’s Jaroslav Jartim (8-6-1) in a lightweight tilt.

But first, Legacy Fighting Alliance invades Branson, Missouri tonight, Sept. 1 at 9:00 p.m. ET, for LFA 21: Noblitt vs. Branjao. In the main event, a pair of undefeated prospects will face off as American Kyle Noblitt (8-0) battles Brazilian Antonio Paulo Branjao (4-0). In other action, Grady Hurley (14-1) takes on Kevin Holland (9-3) in a middleweight matchup, TJ Brown (9-4) faces Trey Ogden (8-1) in a lightweight bout, Katy Collins (7-2) and Shannon Sinn (3-5) square off in the women’s flyweight division, Jeremiah Cullum (5-1) looks to hand Charles Johnson (4-0) his first professional setback in a flyweight tilt, Oscar Valdez (7-4) meets Yazan Hajeh (5-0) at 145 pounds, plus Dakota Bush (3-0) risks his perfect record against fellow lightweight Jose Martinez (7-2).

Fight Network’s live telecasts of UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: Volkov vs. Struve and ONE Championship: Shanghai are available exclusively in Canada, while LFA 21: Noblitt vs. Branjao will be live broadcast in Canada and over 30 countries across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

For a full listing of Fight Network’s broadcast schedule, please visit www.fightnetwork.com, follow us on Twitter @fightnet, become a fan on Facebook and visit us on Instagram @fightnet.

NEW YORK (Sept. 1, 2017) – Before fight fans turned their attention to the desert with knockout PPV numbers last Saturday, the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE Facebook series landed a massive haymaker of its own. Linacre Media and CES Boxing partnered on a pre Mayweather-McGregor card that ran from 6-9:30 p.m. ET live from Foxwoods in Connecticut, with the tech-forward, fan-friendly Facebook broadcast platform drawing an audience of 201,935 fight fans, and counting.

“Fight fans were primed and ready for Saturday night’s mega-event from Las Vegas, and we were pleased to be able to entertain so many with great fights from Foxwoods for the hours leading up to Showtime PPV,” said Mark Fratto, Principal and Director of Business Development, Linacre Media. “Of course we had some fans thinking they’d get to see Mayweather-McGregor, but we were quick to point them in the proper direction for that content. The hundreds of thousands that stayed on our platform saw some great action, including a wild ending in the CES main event. As a matter of fact, we saw 50,000 more fight fans log-in on Sunday to review the closing moments, and as always with our interactive Facebook shows, offer their own opinions and interpretations. We’re pleased to be able to announce that seven or more shows are being added to the calendar from September through November, including one leading into GGG – Canelo.”

Over the first four months of programming, the numbers on the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series have showed promise and potential for the new platform with an average of more than 85,000 fight fans tuning in per event. The August “Super Saturday” from Foxwoods (202,000), the July Roy Jones Jr. “Desert Showdown” from Phoenix (63,000), the May “Slugfest at the Sun” from Mohegan Sun (46,000) and the June “Rosemont Rumble” from Chicago (32,000) saw a total of more than 8,000 total hours of Facebook video consumed by 342,000-plus users across all devices.

In addition to the raw viewership numbers, the fully-interactive, fan-friendly productions have seen more than 33,000 collective live post engagements, including more than 3,000 “likes” or “loves,” more than 10,000 comments and 3,000-plus shares.

FIGHTNIGHT LIVE broadcasts are viewed by 76 percent men, 24 percent women. The top demographic is comprised of males aged 25-34, which encompasses approximately 30 percent of the audience, on average.

The Aug. 26 Foxwoods “Super Saturday” show stands out individually with 201,935 views across 3,336 live hours of content, with 8,224 viewer interactions including 1,133 “likes” or “loves,” 1,570 comments and 1,392 shares.

“For more than 25 years, CES has delivered boxing excitement to fans all over the world. The tradition continued Saturday night at Foxwoods when we teamed with FIGHTNIGHT LIVE by using cutting edge technology allowing fight fans to view the fights live on Facebook. This historic, record-setting event was the result of a great production team and action-packed, competitive fights,” said CES President Jimmy Burchfield, Sr.

Facebook FIGHTNIGHT LIVE has been delivered to fans absolutely free since its May 2017 launch courtesy of corporate partners like Barbour One 9, Talent Management and Entertainment Production (www.barbourone9.com) and Northeastern Fine Jewelry (www.nefj.com).

Created and produced by Linacre Media out of New York City, the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series features professional announcers, multiple camera angles, graphics, replays and behind-the-scenes access and interviews. The streamed shows are available globally wherever Facebook is available. The initiative not only enables fans from around the world to tune in, but also gives up-and-coming fighters a global platform to showcase their abilities, gives promoters an accessible “broadcast” solution and gives sponsors the ability to reach a mass audience via branded content.

More FIGHTNIGHT LIVE dates will be officially announced in the coming weeks.

FIGHTNIGHT LIVE is available online at: https://www.facebook.com/FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE/

Follow all the action via social media at FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Facebook, @FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Instagram and @FIGHTNIGHTLIVE_ on Twitter, or by using the hashtag #FIGHTNIGHTLIVE. For the latest Linacre Media events and broadcast schedule, follow @LinacreMedia across all social platforms or use the tags #LinacreMediaEvents or #LinacreMediaOnTV.

Super-Middleweight Umar Sadiq recently joined Frank Warren’s growing stable and is confident his career switch will pay dividends.

In June, the Ilford man turned pro and is set to make his debut on the Billy Joe Saunders v Willie Monroe Jr undercard at the Copper Box Arena on September 16th.

“Up until a few months ago I had a job as an accountant. I left that to focus fully on boxing,” Sadiq told Below the Belt TV. “That’s because I’m so serious about what I’m doing. There are so many things that I can draw on to back up my belief in being the best in the world.

“You can’t deny your destiny really, because here I am – I’m boxing again. I’ve gone out and tried different things and I know that this is what I want, so I mean business!”

As an amateur, Sadiq boxed for England and Nigeria and only just missed out on representing the African nation at the Rio Olympics last summer.

He also graduated in Accountancy at London Metropolitan University, but decided to give up a highly-paid job in the city to follow his boxing dream, and he believes he can win major titles.

“When I’m in an accountant office, I’m working and I know what my limits are,” explained Sadiq. “I can see what my manager’s earning, I can see what the director’s earning. What the director’s earning is not enough for the lifestyle that I visualise for myself.

“When I’m in an office I’m working…when I’m in a boxing ring it’s not work. I enjoy this, I live for this! I get so much of a buzz being around boxing events and the promotion. It’s not work, it’s a lifestyle. Essentially I’ve just taken an early retirement [laughs].”

Billy Joe Saunders makes the second defence of his WBO Middleweight World Title against American Willie Monroe Jr in the evening’s main event; Ilford Light-Heavy powerhouse Anthony Yarde fights for the Vacant WBO Inter-Continental Title; teenage Heavyweight sensation Daniel Dubois takes on AJ Carter for the Vacant Southern Area strap in only his fifth contest; knockout artist Joe Pigford fights for the Vacant WBO European Super-Welterweight title.

Some of the very best up-and-coming prospects in the country including Welling Super-Featherweight Archie Sharp; Ilford Super-Bantamweight Lucien Reid; Fulham Super-Middleweight Zak Chelli, New Malden Super-Middleweight Lerrone Richards and Erith Flyweight Jake Pettit feature. Ilford Welterweight Hamza Sheeraz and Tamworth Light-Heavyweight Ryan Hatton their highly-anticipated pro debuts.

Tickets for Saunders vs. Monroe Jr priced at £40, £50, £70, £100, £150, £200 and £250 (VIP/Hospitality) are available from:

www.eventim.co.uk

www.seetickets.com

www.ticketmaster.co.uk

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 1, 2017) – On Friday, Sept. 15, one day before the highly anticipated battle for middleweight supremacy between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady “GGG” Golovkin, WBA Interim Featherweight Champion Claudio Marrero (22-1, 16 KOs) will make the first defense of his title against Jesus Rojas (25-1-2, 18 KOs) in the 12-round main event of Golden Boy Boxing on ESPN at the MGM Grand Marquee Ballroom in Las Vegas. The ESPN3 livestream of the undercard bouts begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT, followed by the main event at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT on ESPN Deportes and streaming live on ESPN3 and on ESPN2 at 1:15 a.m. ET/10:15 p.m. PT.

Marrero, of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, captured the Interim WBA Featherweight Title with a devastating first-round knockout of Carlos Zambrano in April 2017. Though suffering his only defeat against Jesus Cuellar in 2013, Marrero has scored six victories since then, five of them by knockout.

Rojas will return after an impressive eighth-round technical knockout victory against the previously undefeated Abraham “Chamaco” Lopez. The native of Caguas, Puerto Rico, has taken on the likes of former world champion Jorge “El Travieso” Arce and Jorge “El Pilón” Lara of Mexico (who will take on Joseph “JoJo” Diaz in the co-main event of Canelo-Golovkin). Rojas will look to take yet another step towards the top of the 126-pound division with a victory over Marrero.

In the co-main event, Boston’s Rashidi “Speedy” Ellis (18-0, 12 KOs) will make the second defense of his IBF North American title against Juan Carlos “Merengue” Abreu (19-3-1, 18 KOs). Ellis earned his crown with an impressive first-round knockout victory over Eddie “E-Boy” Gomez in December 2016. In his first defense, Ellis fought in a toe-to-toe battle against John Karl Sosa en route to a majority decision victory in April 2017. Ellis faces a tough challenge in Abreu, a veteran of the Dominican Republic with tough fights against Pablo Cesar “El Demoledor” Cano and Humberto “La Zorrita” Soto on his resume.

Ryan “Kingry” Garcia (10-0, 9 KOs) will open up the ESPN Deportes transmission in an eight-round fight for the Junior NABF Super Featherweight title against Miguel Carrizoza (10-2, 2 KOs) of Nogales, Mexico. Garcia, a young prospect of Victorville, Calif., is coming off a spectacular first-round knockout of Mario Antonio Macia and will look to earn his seventh knockout victory in a row on Sept. 15.

Horacio “Violento” Garcia (32-3-1, 22 KOs) of Guadalajara, Mexico will take on fellow
countryman Diuhl Olguin (11-7-2, 9 KOs) in an eight-round super bantamweight rematch. In their first encounter, Garcia lost via an upset unanimous decision in July of this year. In the night’s swing bout, Alexis “Laberinto” Salazar (11-3, 3 KOs) of Tlaquepagque, Mexico will take on Evan Torres (6-4, 5 KOs) of El Paso, Texas in a scheduled six-round middleweight fight. The bout will be a rematch of their May 2017 fight, which Salazar won via close split decision.

Opponents for former IBF champion Jose “El Tecuala” Argumendo (20-3-1, 11 KOs), who will participate in an eight-round minimumweight bout, and Philadelphia’s Damon “No Smilin'” Allen, Jr. (12-0-1, 5 KOs), who will return in an eight-round lightweight fight, will be announced shortly.

Marrero vs. Rojas is a 10-round featherweight fight presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with TGB Promotions. The event is sponsored by Tecate, BORN BOLD; Hennessy, Never Stop, Never Settle; and Interjet. The event will beheld at the MGM Grand Marquee Ballroom in Las Vegas on Friday, Sept. 15. Doors open at 3:00 p.m. PT, and the first fight begins at 3:30 p.m. PT. The ESPN3 livestream of the undercard bouts begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m., followed by the main event at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. on ESPN Deportes and streaming live on ESPN3 and on ESPN2 at 1:15 a.m. ET / 10:15 p.m. PT.

Tickets priced at $10, $25, $50 and $75 for Marrero vs. Rojas will go on sale Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 10:00 a.m. PST. *Receive VIP seating to the Canelo vs. Golovkin Weigh-in with the purchase of a $75, $50 or $25 ticket, subject to availability. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call the TicketMaster Contact Center at (800) 745-3000 or MGM Resorts Contact Center at (866) 740-7711. Tickets will also be available for purchase online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.mgmgrand.com and various MGM Resorts Box Offices. All ticket prices do not include service fees or applicable service charges.

Videos and images are available for download by clicking here or copying and pasting the link http://bit.ly/9-15MarreroRojas. Credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com; follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @OscarDeLaHoya, @ESPN and @ESPNBoxeo; become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/espn.fnf, and www.facebook.com/ESPNBoxeo; and follow on Instag

Brooklyn, N.Y. (Aug. 31, 2017) – Uprising Promotions middleweight Kemahl “Hitman” Russell (11-1, 9 KOs) will be making his New York debut next Saturday, Sept. 9, facing Ian Green (12-1, 9 KOs) of New Jersey at Resorts World Casino in Queens. In the bout, Russell will be battling Green for the vacant Junior NABF middleweight championship belt.

“First and foremost, we want to thank Evander Holyfield, Eric Bentley and Real Deal Boxing for this opportunity,” said Ronson Frank, President of Uprising Promotions. “Obviously, it has been really tough getting on shows right now in New York due to limited availability. We are excited about this fight, and we feel that it is very winnable for us. Russell has been working hard, and he is coming off an impressive first round knockout last month. His confidence is sky high, and training camp has been going really well. Come September 9, we are looking to take it to Ian Green and come out of there with a win.”

Russell is coming off a devastating first-round knockout of Nigel Edwards in Jamaica just a little over a month ago, and he has remained in camp since that bout to prepare for Green. The win for Russell was a strong statement after the lone loss of his career in March to unbeaten Sergiy Derevyanchenko, who is now the number one contender for the IBF Middleweight Championship.

Russell started his professional career with 10 consecutive victories, eight of those coming by way of knockout. The Kingston native won the Jamaican edition of the Contender Boxing Series in 2015, stopping Richard Holmes in the fourth round of those finals. He earned his way into the Contender Finale with stoppage wins over Kevin Placide and Kevin Hylton before a unanimous decision victory over Devon Moncrieffe in the semifinals.

Green enters this bout following a majority decision over Andy Mejias in March. His lone professional defeat came in 2016 to New York middleweight Devaun Lee, who fights Giovanni Lorenzo on this same card next weekend in Queens.

For more information on Uprising Promotions and to keep up with all of our latest news, keep it locked to UprisingPromotions.com and make sure to follow us on social media: @UprisingNYC

New York (August 31, 2017) -Undefeated welterweight prospect, Boubacar Sylla has moved his training camp to the famed Headbangers Boxing Club in our Nation’s capital of Washington, D.C.

The 23 year-old Sylla, who is managed by Split-T Management, and has established himself as a prospect to watch as he has raced out to a record of 7-0 with six knockouts.

Sylla of Cincinnati, Ohio has been working under the watchful eye of world class championship trainer Barry Hunter, and Sylla has been taking his game to the next the level.

With so many world class professionals that train in the same atmosphere, Sylla is expected to see major progress in his development.

“He is a good kid. I think his foundation is pretty solid, and if led the right way he is going to be very good.” said Hunter.

“His height and size will pose a problem for many fighters.”

“I got the chance to spar with Lamont and Anthony Peterson, I feel like this is putting me on a new level. This is some serious stuff up here. There’s no room for shortcuts. Fighters get exposed real quick in this gym,” said Sylla

This is a place I always wanted to train at and I’m grateful to my managers and the coaching staff for making this possible.

I’ve known Coach Barry since I was young teenager so he welcomed the opportunity to spend some time with Boubacar. His program is one of the best in the country and I’m pleased he’s opened his doors for us,” said Tim VanNewhouse of Split-T Management

Willie Monroe Jr’s camp recently posted a controversial photo showing the Middleweight contender standing over a reported Light-Heavyweight, who he’d knocked out during sparring.

New Yorker Monroe takes on undefeated WBO Middleweight World Champion Billy Joe Saunders at London’s Copper Box Arena on September 16, live on BT Sport and BoxNation.

‘El Mongoose’ also recently hosted a Facebook live Q&A session on his upcoming fight. When asked about whether Saunders trash talk had affected him the American was up front, “It’s definitely put some fire up under me. I think that’s a big mistake on his behalf. Last thing you want to do is make a nice guy mad.

“He’s going to get his ass beat and it’s going to be brutal, but it’s still going to be done with precision and intellect and patience.”

The former World Title challenger was also adamant that the WBO kingpin hadn’t faced an opponent like him before, “He’s never fought nobody like me. We can go down the list of everybody he’s fought.

“I’m glad I’m the underdog too, I’m about to come up. I’m getting fired up now talking about it!”.

Elsewhere on an action-packed card Ilford Light-Heavy powerhouse Anthony Yardefights for the Vacant WBO Inter-Continental Title; teenage Heavyweight sensation Daniel Dubois takes on AJ Carter for the Vacant Southern Area strap in only his fifth contest; knockout artist Joe Pigford fights for the Vacant WBO European Super-Welterweight title.

Some of the very best up-and-coming prospects in the country including Welling Super-Featherweight Archie Sharp; Ilford Super-Bantamweight Lucien Reid; Fulham Super-Middleweight Zak Chelli, New Malden Super-Middleweight Lerrone Richards and Erith Flyweight Jake Pettit feature. Ilford Welterweight Hamza Sheeraz; Tamworth Light-Heavyweight Ryan Hatton and Ilford Super-Middleweight Umar Sadiq all make their highly-anticipated pro debuts.

Tickets for Saunders vs. Monroe Jr priced at £40, £50, £70, £100, £150, £200 and £250 (VIP/Hospitality) are available from:

Philadelphia. Pa./Rochester, NY (Aug. 31, 2017) – This past Tuesday at the Rochester Fight Factory, Willie Monroe, Jr. met a throng of media personel during his media day workout in advance of his September 16th showdown with WBO World Middleweight Champion Billy Joe Saunders at the Copper Box Arena in London, England.

Monroe held court and analyzed many topics regarding the fight and his career as he gets ready for his 2nd world title opportunity.

Below are quotes, video interviews and images from the event, which included a visit from Rochester Deputy Mayor Cedric Alexander.

MONROE QUOTES:

“I am battle tested, and I have gone through this and gave a good account of myself against Golovkin. This time, I am going to enjoy the moment a little more. I am enjoying the process.”

“Nothing is given to you, so I have to go take it.”

“I give people from my city hope.”

“The one thing that Golovkin and Canelo need, I am going to get my hands on, so they will have to see me.”

“Saunders is a little mouthy. I am a humble guy. It has me motivated, and come September 16th, he will have heck to pay.”

“I want my rematch with Triple-G, but I think Canelo is the more skilled fighter. It will be a great fight. I appreciate both of them for fighting each other.”

“I might feel like boxing his ears off, or I may want to get him out of there.”

“My application to boxing, shows that I am strongrt then these guys.”

Former Welterweight World Champion Kell Brook has joined Billy Joe Saunders in his Fuerteventura training camp to face Willie Monroe Jr on September 16th.

Brook is also trained by Dominic Ingle, who recently teamed up with Saunders as he prepares for the second defence of his WBO World Middleweight Title.

The Hatfield southpaw hopes to face the winner of Canelo Alvarez v Gennady Golovkin, who square off in Las Vegas just a few hours after Saunders’ bout at the Copper Box Arena.

In September 2016, Brook stepped up in weight to take on ‘Triple G’, but Ingle threw in the towel in the fifth round after Brook sustained heavy damage to his right eye.

Should Saunders meet Golovkin soon, then perhaps he will ask his Sheffield gym mate for a few words of advice.

Saunders is in tremendous physical shape for his fight with Monroe Jr, and has praised his new coach for the training methods at the Ingle Gym.

“Dom reminds me in a way of my first trainer Jimmy Tibbs,” said Saunders. “He will take no nonsense at all, he doesn’t care who you are – whether you are a superstar or a fly on the wall in the gym.

“He treats everyone the same, but training is training and work is work. That is the way he looks at it and that is what I need.

“Myself and Dom have got a good natural respect for each other. In this game it is very hard to find someone you fully trust, but I absolutely trust him and give him everything I’ve got in the boxing side of it – every bit of trust I’ve got.

“I have put my career into his hands and it is working for me so far.”

Elsewhere on an action-packed card Ilford Light-Heavy powerhouse Anthony Yarde fights for the Vacant WBO Inter-Continental Title; teenage Heavyweight sensation Daniel Dubois takes on AJ Carter for the Vacant Southern Area strap in only his fifth contest; knockout artist Joe Pigford fights for the Vacant WBO European Super-Welterweight title.

Some of the very best up-and-coming prospects in the country including Welling Super-Featherweight Archie Sharp; Ilford Super-Bantamweight Lucien Reid; Fulham Super-Middleweight Zak Chelli, New Malden Super-Middleweight Lerrone Richards and Erith Flyweight Jake Pettit feature. Ilford Welterweight Hamza Sheeraz; Tamworth Light-Heavyweight Ryan Hatton and Ilford Super-Middleweight Umar Sadiq all make their highly-anticipated pro debuts.

Tickets for Saunders vs. Monroe Jr priced at £40, £50, £70, £100, £150, £200 and £250 (VIP/Hospitality) are available from:

CARSON, CALIF. (August 30, 2017) – Sensational three-division champion Leo “El Terremoto” Santa Cruz will defend his featherweight world title against Chris Avalos, while four-time world champion Abner Mares defends his 126-pound championship against once-beaten Andres Gutierrez at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. on a show presented by Premier Boxing Champions live on FOX and FOX Deportes on Saturday, October 14. Televised coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.

If Santa Cruz and Mares win their respective matches, they have both agreed to terms to meet in a highly anticipated rematch for the WBA featherweight title in early 2018. Santa Cruz won a hard-fought, narrow decision against Mares in a 2015 Fight of the Year candidate that saw the two men go toe-to-toe for 12 fast-paced rounds and combine for over 2,000 punches thrown.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Ringstar Promotions and TGB Promotions, are priced at $30, $50, $75, $100, $150, and $250 and are on sale now. To purchase tickets, visit AXS.com HERE.

“Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares are two of the best featherweight champions in boxing and to have them both fighting on the same card is a treat for boxing fans,” said Tom Brown, President of TGB Promotions. “Against Avalos, Santa Cruz will have the opportunity to demonstrate why he’s considered one of the most skilled and durable fighters in the division and in his first defense since winning the title Mares can expect a rugged challenge from Gutierrez, who has only lost once in his career and by a close decision.”

“This is going to be a jam-packed afternoon of can’t-miss action for boxing fans in Southern California,” said Richard Schaefer, Chairman & CEO of Ringstar Sports. “StubHub Center brings out the best in fighters and I expect that to continue when Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares defend their titles against two hungry challengers in Chris Avalos and Andres Gutierrez. Ringstar Sports, along with TGB Promotions, are looking forward to putting together an exciting card full of future stars and compelling bouts for the great fans at StubHub Center and watching on FOX and FOX Deportes.”

Santa Cruz (33-1-1, 18 KOs) established himself as one of the top featherweights in the world in matches against Mares and Carl Frampton. Cruz lost a close decision to Frampton in 2016 and avenged the loss with a decision victory on Jan. 28 in Las Vegas. The 29-year-old was unbeaten in his first 33 pro fights on his way to world titles at 118, 122 and 126-pounds. With a victory over Avalos, Santa Cruz, who fights out of Los Angeles, will cement his hold on featherweight supremacy and stay on the path to that showdown with Mares.

“I’m excited to get back in the ring,” said Santa Cruz. “I’ve been working hard in camp and it’s great to be back in the gym. Chris Avalos is a tough contender who’s fought the best in the division. I love my fans and I’m planning on giving them a great show. I never overlook any opponent, but my plan is to put on a great performance, and then give fans more exciting fights against Abner Mares and Carl Frampton. I’m ready to prove I’m the best featherweight in the world.”

Fighting out of Lancaster, California, Avalos (27-5, 20 KOs) will be vying for a featherweight title for the first time. He came up short in his other world championship bout, losing the 122-pound world championship Carl Frampton via knockout in 2015. In his most recent bout, Avalos scored a TKO victory over Miguel Flores when the fight was stopped on cuts in the fifth round on July 18 in the main event on FS1 and FOX Deportes.

“I grew up with Leo Santa Cruz, so I know how to fight him,” said Avalos. “We did a lot of sparring wearing headgear as amateurs, and I put a hurting on him back in the day. I’m not scared. I’m ready to fight. I know in the back of his mind, he’ll be thinking about that. I know I’m the underdog, but I’m not scared. I have a game plan and I know I’m going to win. I’ve fought two champions and lost to Carl Frampton and Oscar Valdez, but I’m a much better fighter and I’m more focused now than I was for those fights. I’ve got the opportunity I’ve been waiting for and I’m going to take full advantage of it.”

Mares (30-2-1, 15 KOs) has fought some of the best competition between the 118-126 pound divisions and has claimed world titles in three different weight classes during his pro career. The 31-year-old climbed back into the championship ranks in December of 2016 by dropping featherweight Jesus Cuellar in a hard-fought, narrow decision victory. Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico and fighting out of Robert Garcia’s gym in Riverside, Calif., Mares has taken down former champions Daniel Ponce De Leon, Joseph Agbeko and Anselmo Moreno in a career that dates back to his time representing Mexico at the 2004 Olympics.

“I’m excited to be getting back in the ring on October 14 at StubHub in Los Angeles on FOX and FOX Deportes,” Mares said. “My fans will once again see the boxing style and strength that won me my WBA Featherweight title in December. I’m stronger, faster and committed to keeping that title and taking the others. My opponent is a strong challenger and we will bring an action filled fight for boxing fans. I am the people’s warrior and a boxer they can believe in. You don’t want to miss this fight.”

The 24-year-old Gutierrez (35-1-1, 25 KOs) suffered the first loss of his career when he dropped a narrow decision to tough veteran Cristian Mijares last year. That interrupted a 16-fight win streak that included nine knockouts and began after he fought to a draw with Jesus Ruiz in 2011. Gutierrez, of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, was set to fight Carl Frampton in a title eliminator in July, but the fight was called off when Gutierrez fell in his bathroom in Belfast, Ireland and broke his nose, lost two teeth and cut his chin.

“I am coming to destroy Abner Mares,” said Gutierrez. “I am in great shape and I’m very hungry to get in the ring and prove I’m one of the best in the world. I will be world champion and reach my dreams on October 14.”

# # #

Fans can live stream the fights on FOX Sports GO, available in English or Spanish through the FS1 or FOX Deportes feeds. The fights are available on desktop at FOXSportsGO.com and through the app store, or connected devices including Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV, Xbox One and Roku. In addition, all programs are also available on FOX Sports on SiriusXM channel 83 on satellite radios and on the SiriusXM app.

For more information visit www.premierboxingchampions.com, www.ringstar.com,www.tgbpromotions.com, http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/homepage and www.foxdeportes.com.
Follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @Ringstar, @TGBPromotions, @FOX, @FOXDeportes and @Swanson_Comm and become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/RingstarSports and www.facebook.com/foxdeportes. Highlights available at www.youtube.com/premierboxingchampions.PBC on FOX & FOX Deportes is sponsored by Corona Extra, La Cerveza Mas Fina.

EDMONTON, Canada (August 30, 2017) – Super Channel is pleased to announce that it has acquired the rights in Canada to broadcast the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) from MP & Silva, a leading international media company that provides media rights, digital, technology and sponsorship services.

“Our acquisition of the World Boxing Super Series further reinforces our commitment to make exciting world-class boxing a regular staple of Super Channel SPORTS,” said Don McDonald, President and CEO for Super Channel. “It is a strategic step in our quest to establish Super Channel as the go-to destination for boxing fans looking for unique and exciting boxing action, at all levels.”

Frank Uddo, MP & Silva’s President, North America, commented: “We are delighted to work with Super Channel and World Boxing Super Series in Canada to help promote and distribute what we believe is a refreshingly premium international boxing competition. The new format, transparency, and potential match-ups should excite all boxing fans in Canada.”

World Boxing Super Series is a new revolutionary bracket-style elimination tournament featuring the world`s best boxers and a total of $50 million in prize money. The knockout format of the competition will see the best boxers ultimately compete for the Muhammad Ali Trophy, the greatest prize in boxing. The tournament is organized by newly-founded Comosa AG, a Swiss-registered company with principal owners Highlight Event & Entertainment, Modern Times Group and Team Sauerland. Comosa AG is working in partnership with boxers, promoters and managers around the world, and in alignment with the four major world boxing federations, to create a new global platform for the sport.

The tournament, the first of its kind which is planned to take place on an annual basis, will kick off on September 9. The inaugural season of the World Boxing Super Series will feature two weight classes, 16 fighters, and a total of 14 main events. An expert panel invited the world’s best boxers to compete, namely the top 15-ranked fighters of the four major federations: WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO. In each weight class, eight boxers will battle it out in a bracket-style elimination tournament, with four quarterfinals (September & October 2017), two semifinals (January & February 2018) and one championship final (May 2018).

“I can’t think of a better home than Super Channel for the World Boxing Super Series” said Troy Wassill, Director of Programming, Domestic Distributors and Sports for Super Channel. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to have this exciting opener with Usyk vs Huck as the lead-in to the quarter finals, with eight consecutive weekends of top-flight action.”

Schedule for World Boxing Super Series 8 quarterfinal matches coming to Super Channel:

September 9, 2017 – Cruiserweight Quarter-Final:
Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, Germany
WBO Cruiserweight World Championship

Oleksandr “The Cat” Usyk (12-0, 10 KOs), Champion, Kiev, Ukraine
2-Time Ukrainian Olympian, 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist, The Ring #1
vs.
Marco “Kapt’n” Huck (40-4-1, 27 KOs), Challenger, Berlin, Germany by way of Serbia
Former WBO Cruiserweight World Champion, The Ring 7
September 16,2017 – Super Middleweight Quarter-Final:
Echo Arena, Liverpool, UK
WBC Super Middleweight Diamond Championship
Callum “Mundo” Smith (22-0, 17 KOs), Liverpool, Merseyside, UK – The Ring #5
vs.
Erik Skoglund (26-0, 12 KOs), Nykoping, Sweden

September 23, 2017 – Cruiserweight Quarter-Final:
Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, USA
WBA Cruiserweight World Championship
Yunier Dorticos (21-0, 20 KOs), Champion, Miami, Florida, USA by way of Cuba
vs.
Dmitry “The Russian Hammer” Kudryashov
(21-1, 21 KOs), Challenger, Volgodonsk, Russia
September 30, 2017 – Cruiserweight Quarter-Final:
Riga Arena, Riga, Latvia
WBC Cruiserweight World Championship
Mairis Briedis (22-0, 18 KOs), Champion, Riga, Latvia – The Ring #4
vs.
Mike “The Rebel” Perez
(22-2-1, 14 KOs), Challenger, Cork, Ireland by way of Cuba
October 7, 2017 [A1] – Super Middleweight Quarter-Final:
Hanns-Martin-Schleyer Halle, Stuttgart, Germany
IBO Super Middleweight World Championship
Chris “Next Gen” Eubank Jr (25-1, 19 KOs), Champion, Brighton, Sussex, UK – The Ring #7
vs.
Avni Yildirim (16-0, 10 KOs), Challenger, Sivas, Turkey

October 14, 2017 [A2] – Super Middleweight Quarter-Final:
The SSE Arena, Wembley, London, United Kingdom
WBA Super Middleweight World Championship
“Saint” George Groves (26-3, 19 KOs), Champion, Hammersmith, London, UK – The Ring #3
vs.
Jamie Cox (24-0, 13 KOs), Swinton, Wiltshire, UK

TO BE CONFIRMED
Cruiserweight Quarter-Finals:
TBA
IBF Cruiserweight World Championship
“Iron” Murat Gassiev (24-0, 17 KOs), Champion, Vladikavkaz, Russia – The Ring #2
vs.
Krzysztof “Diablo” Wlodarczyk (53-3-1, 37 KOs), Challenger, Piaseczno, Poland – The Ring #10
Former IBF & WBC Cruiserweight World Champion

Super Middleweight Quarter-Finals:
TBA
Juergen Braehmer (48,3 35 KOs), Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommem, Germany
Former WBO & WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion
vs.
Rob “Bravo” Brant
(22-0, 15 KOs), Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA
All fights will also be available on Super Channel On Demand.

All fights and fighters are subject to change.

Super Channel has recently aired major boxing events live like Brook vs. Spence Jr., Pacquiao-Horn, Eubank, Jr. vs. Abraham, Lomachenko vs.Marriaga and Crawford vs. Indongo.

To see all the World Boxing Super Series action live, as well as more exciting boxing to come, fight fans in Canada can contact their local cable provider to subscribe to Super Channel and all that it offers, including premium series, movies and much more, for as low as $9.95 per month.
About Super Channel

Super Channelis a national premium pay television network, consisting of four HD channels, four SD channels, and Super Channel On Demand.

Super Channel’s mission is to entertain and engage Canadian audiences by providing a unique and exclusive entertainment experience. With a core foundation of integrity and accountability, we dedicate ourselves to implementing innovative programming strategies and unparalleled team work that provides viewers with exceptional value and variety.

Super Channel is owned by Allarco Entertainment 2008 Inc., an Edmonton-based media company.

Super Channel is currently available on Bell TV, Shaw Direct, Rogers Anyplace TV, Shaw Cable, Cogeco Cable, Access Communications, Bell Alliant TV, Source Cable, SaskTel, MTS, Novus, EastLink, TELUS, Videotron, Westman Communications and other regional providers.

Connect with Super Channel:

www.superchannel.ca
Twitter: @SCSportsTV
Instagram: @SuperChannelTV
Facebook: /SuperChannel

About MP & Silva

MP & Silva is a full service global sports media agency that connects passionate fans with clubs, broadcasters and brands. Founded in 2004, the company has rapidly grown to become a key participant in the global sports marketplace. The company prides itself on using its global team to create value and deliver tailored solutions for its clients and partners; distributing media rights of some of the world’s most prestigious sports events, offering a broad set of sponsorship consultancy services and providing a range of digital services and technology solutions. Headquartered in London and Singapore, MP & Silva has international offices in Beijing, Budapest, Dubai, Dublin, Luxembourg, Monaco, Munich, New York, Paris, Tokyo and Warsaw.

Connect with MP & Silva

Website: www.mpsilva.com
Twitter: @MPSWorldwide

New York, August 30, 2017–A rough and Frenchman will be making the trip across the Atlantic Ocean in an effort to derail the long awaited return of “The Hebrew Hammer” Cletus Seldin, 19-0 16KO’s (Long Island, NY) in the main event of Rockin’ Fights 28 on Thursday, September 28th at The Paramount in Huntington, NY.

Star Boxing has just announced that the hard punching Jewish knockout prospect
will be facing former French Jr. Welterweight Champion Renald Garrido of Paris, France in a bout scheduled for 10 rounds in the Jr. Welterweight division.
Garrido’s a veteran of over 36 fights with 19 wins (19-15-2 4KO’s). He has some impressive upset wins on his record, particularly when traveling to fight hometown favorites. He has already upset local undefeated fighters Bradley Saunders (in England) and Daouda Sow (in France). Garrido is much better than his record indicates and he has battled tooth and nail with some of the top Jr. Welterweights around the world including Frankie Gavin, Ceferino Rodriguez, and Serhiy Fedchenko. Garrido has never been stopped in his entire career of 36 professional bouts.
Garrido has a similar style to Seldin, as he is known for his aggressiveness and non- stop punching which will make for a highly entertaining bout.

Garrido, thrilled to have the chance to topple another top prospect said: “I am the specialist in beating the undefeated no matter which country I fight. Prepare for the arrival of the LION and an anthology brawl”.
The Hebrew Hammer Seldin brings a fervent fan base to The Paramount. They have been clamoring for him to get back in the ring as the all action, power punching Jr. Welterweight never fails to thrill his large contingent of fans.

Seldin, when asked about fighting a former French champ and real tough veteran after a one-year layoff said: “This guy is a real scrapper, his style is just like mine and this is going to be a real scrappy and exciting fight for me and the fans”.
Cletus Seldin, more commonly known as the ‘Hebrew Hammer’ was laying a path of destruction on his way to a world championship fight until he was derailed by various aliments. “The Hammer” is one of the hardest punchers in the division and has drawn sellout crowds to every fight.

Seldin, inactive since June of 2016 due to various medical issues, is now 100% healthy and is chomping at the bit to get back inside the ring. The former WBC International Silver Super Lightweight Champion will be making his 16th appearance at The Paramount and currently holds a 7 fight knockout streak.
Promoter Joe DeGuardia had these thoughts about the main event “It’s long overdue getting Cletus back in the ring at The Paramount and he certainly has not picked an easy opponent for his return. Garrido can fight and brings it every time he steps into the ring. This will be a sensational battle and you better get your tickets early because there is no doubt in my mind that we will once again sellout The Paramount on September 28th.”
The undercard will be announced shortly.

ORANGE, Calif. (Aug. 30, 2017) – Top rated world title contender Danny Roman (22-2-1, 8 KOs) has wrapped up what is undoubtedly the most important training camp of his career.

Roman arrived in Japan last week for his WBA Super Bantamweight Championship showdown with Shun Kubo (12-0, 9 KOs) set for this Sunday, Sept. 3, from the Shimazu Arena in Kyoto.

The 12-round world championship fight is promoted by Shinsei Boxing Gym, in association with Thompson Boxing Promotions.

Roman, 27, has won 14 straight fights dating back to March 2014. During that streak, he won the NABA championship and made four successful defenses. In January, the Los Angeles native knocked out the highly ranked Adam Lopez in the ninth round in a WBA title eliminator – which earned him the right to face Kubo.

On Wednesday, Danny Roman participated in a light media workout in Japan. He touched on a variety of topics, such as his preparation leading up to his first world title shot, the diversity of sparring partners, and the amount of support he’s received from fans.

How are you approaching this fight, your first attempt at a world title?

“This is what I’ve been fighting for. I’m not going to let this slip away. I’m bringing home the title to Los Angeles. I’m going to fight my fight. I’m going to break him down round by round. I can’t let it go to the judges. The plan is to stop him or make him quit.”

Your opponent, Shun Kubo, is a tall southpaw who will have the reach advantage. What else do you know about him?

“He uses his distance and tries to stay on the move, but I won’t let him do that. I won’t let him fight his fight. He’s going to have to adjust to me. He’s the champion. He’s going to be ready for a real fight. He has certain advantages in that he is tall, but we have a strategy for that.”

Any concerns about fighting in a foreign country or the time zone change. Will the 16-hour time difference affect you?

“No, not at all. That’s why we came here 10 days ahead of fight night so we could get used to the new time and develop a level of comfort. I’ll be fine.”

What kind of support have you seen on social media?

“I keep getting new fans and followers on social media (Instagram: @_babyfaceassassin_). It’s great to see that support. It motivates me even more. People are starting to learn about me. All of their good luck wishes provides me with additional energy. I’ve never felt so focused or strong before a fight. I think all of the support that I’ve received has made a big difference.”

How was it like sparring with the likes of Isaac Zarate, Michael Conlan, Junto Nakatani, and Joshua Zuniga?

The sparring was top notch. I went 14 rounds easy and could have done three more on top of that if I had to. I had an excellent sparring partner in Isaac Zarate. He’s a southpaw in the featherweight division. Top prospect Michael Conlan came in and gave me a couple of solid sparring sessions as well. Junto Nakatani and Joshua Zuniga also were very important in getting me ready for my first world title shot.

For more information, please visit ThompsonBoxing.com.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please check our Facebook Page, watch our YouTube channel on Thompson Boxing TV, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @ThompsonBoxing.

Nashville, TN (August 30, 2017) – Fight night returns to Nashville when Tri Star Boxing presents “State Fair Boxing Showdown 2” Friday, September 15.

The six-fight card is in association with Blue Chair Bay Rum and takes place at the State Fairgrounds Sports Arena, located at 500 Wedgewood Lane in Nashville. Tickets from $25 can be purchased at tristarboxing.com/tickets.

In the six round main event, Nashville based Ghanaian Sena “African Assassin” Agbeko meets Johnson City, TN’s Brad Austin for the Tennessee Light Heavyweight championship. The heavy-handed Agbeko has an excellent 18-1 record with 17 wins by knockout and looks for a fourth straight victory since his lone setback. A veteran of 37 fights, Austin’s faced many tough opponents including Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin, Yunieski Gonzalez, Ismayl Sillah, Isiah Thomas and Edwin Rodriguez among others.

Junior flyweight knockout king Edwin Reyes, 6-2 (5 KO’s), faces a foe to be announced in the eight round co-feature. Originally from Guatemala and now residing in Nashville, six of Reyes’ last seven bouts have taken place in the Volunteer State.

DeMarcus Rogers and Dedrick Bell will square off in a six rounder for the Tennessee State Welterweight Championship. Chattanooga’s Rogers owns a solid 11-3-1 professional ledger with four victories by KO but will have his hands full with his Memphis based foe. Bell’s deceptive ledger is 18-29-1 (9 KO’s) but the majority of his defeats came against championship level fighters.

22-year-old middleweight Winfred Harris Jr. of Detroit, MI looks to run his record to 15-0 when he battles Tennessee based Cuban Yolexcy Leiva over six rounds. On June 23, Harris took a quantum leap in competition and impressively outpointed notoriously tough Lanardo Tyner. Leiva, 5-6 (4 KO’s), is expected to give Harris all he can handle having previously faced quality foes in Marcus Willis, Frank Galarza, Boyd Melson, Thomas Lamanna and Kanat Islam.

Additional undercard bouts include debuting light heavyweight Maidel Sando versus Justin Brown (0-1), and 140 pounder Eduardo Aguiar fighting for the first time against William Ware (2-5).

“It’s great to come back to Nashville,” said Tri Star Boxing’s Matt Young. “The city’s interest boxing has grown tremendously during the last few years. We’ve got a diverse and talented group of fighters on the card and it’s a great forum for them as well. The State Fair is a major event and we’re expecting a huge crowd on September 15.”

BROOKLYN (Aug. 30, 2017) – A trio of 154-pound world champions will defend their titles as part of a SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING tripleheader headlined by Erislandy Lara defending against undefeated Terrell Gausha, in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions on Saturday, October 14 live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) from Barclays Center, the home of BROOKLYN BOXING®.

The card, promoted by DiBella Entertainment and TGB Promotions, will feature four undefeated 154-pound boxers and will pave the way for an undisputed king of the 154-pound division.

Erislandy “The American Dream” Lara (24-2-2, 14 KOs), generally recognized as the best boxer in the super welterweight division and its longest reigning champion, will defend his title against undefeated 2012 U.S. Olympian Terrell Gausha (20-0, 9 KOs).

In the co-main event, hard-hitting unbeaten champion Jermell “Iron Man” Charlo (29-0, 14 KOs) takes on top contender Erickson “Hammer” Lubin (18-0, 13 KOs) while “Swift” Jarrett Hurd (20-0, 14 KOs) will make his first title defense against tough former world champion Austin “No Doubt” Trout (30-3, 17 KOs).

“On October 14 at Barclays Center, three world champions will be defending their belts, on SHOWTIME, in a night of tremendous super welterweight action,” said Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment. “Long reigning Cuban Erislandy Lara takes on undefeated Olympian Terrell Gausha and newly crowned Jarrett Hurd faces respected former world champion Austin Trout. This card also features one of the best matchups that can be made between two undefeated fighters, champion Jermell Charlo and young sensation Erickson Lubin.”

“This is a blockbuster card for boxing fans,” said Tom Brown, President of TGB Promotions. “The 154-pound division is full of talent and this card is loaded with the best champions and top-ranked contenders in the division. The guy who will be the eventual king of the division is fighting on this show and the fans will be treated to matches that will determine who that unified champion will be.’’

Tickets to the event will go on sale on tomorrow, August 31 at 10 a.m. ET and start at $50 (not including applicable fees). Tickets can be purchased at ticketmaster.com, barclayscenter.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets can also be purchased at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center starting Friday, September 1 at noon ET. Group discounts are available by calling 844-BKLYN-GP.

“We are thrilled to continue our best year yet of BROOKLYN BOXING with our fifth major boxing event of 2017,” said Brett Yormark, CEO of Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment. “We always aim to deliver fight fans an evening packed with top-notch matchups from start to finish, and this card certainly does that.”

Lara, a 34-year-old Cuban southpaw, owns victories over Trout, Alfredo Angulo and a slew of former champions and top contenders in addition to a controversial split decision loss to Canelo Alvarez on the way to cementing his credentials as the top boxer in the division. Lara will make the seventh defense of his world title as he continues to train with renowned trainer Ronnie Shields.

“I’m very excited to be making another title defense back on SHOWTIME headlining a great tripleheader,” said Lara. “This is an interesting fight versus an undefeated U.S. Olympian in Terrell Gausha. I know he will be ready because it’s his opportunity to beat the best fighter in the division and become a champion. But come fight night, he will quickly realize and know why I’m the consensus No. 1 super welterweight in the world. After this performance, I look forward to, one-by-one, adding a WBC and IBF title to my collection.”

The 29-year-old Gausha, of Cleveland, Ohio, earned a shot at the world title with solid victories in his last two matches. He won a hard-fought decision over Steven Martinez last August and followed it up with another impressive victory over Luis Hernandez on Feb. 10. Lara figures to be his toughest battle in his pro career that dates back to 2012.

“I’ve been talking about this since I was a three-year-old watching Muhammad Ali on television,” said Gausha. “I’m here now and blessed for this opportunity. Lara’s a tough fighter, champion and the best opponent I’ll fight on paper. He’s been in with the bigger names. But the better the opponent, the better I am, and I’m coming to dethrone him. He’s crafty, but the world hasn’t seen all that I can bring to the table. I’ll make adjustments on the fly and do things that I’ve never shown before. Seeing other Olympic team members win titles gives me motivation to earn the victory and the notoriety I’ve been looking for.”

Charlo of Houston, Texas will be making the second defense of his title, which he won by knockout victory over John Jackson on May 21, 2016. The 27-year-old Charlo successfully defended the title with a highlight reel knockout victory over fellow Texan Charles Hatley on April 22 at Barclays Center. He and his twin brother, Jermall, both held world titles at 154-pounds, before Jermall relinquished his title to move up to 160 pounds. Charlo now trains in Dallas with Derrick James, trainer of world champion Errol Spence Jr.

“Lubin is young and hungry and I know he always comes to fight, but there’s a reason why I’m where I am in the sport,” said Charlo. “I’ve been through the trenches and I don’t plan to stop anytime soon. This is what boxing always needs — two young, undefeated fighters willing to risk their ‘0’. But I think it’s a little early for Lubin to step in the ring with me, and I plan on keeping my title. October 14 I’ll show everyone why I’m a world champion.”

Lubin, 21, is nicknamed “The Hammer’’ because of his power in both hands and his ability to bring a quick conclusion to every match. Lubin of Orlando, Fla., has picked up 10 victories since the beginning of 2015 including seven knockouts on his way to contender status. Lubin most recently scored a sensational knockout of Jorge Cota in a title eliminator in March at Barclays Center.

“This is a fight for the fans,” said Lubin “You have an undefeated champion against an undefeated Prospect of the Year. I’m very excited to be fighting for the belt and it’s truly been a dream of mine ever since I first got into boxing. Come fight night, Charlo will either give it to me or I’m going to rip the belt out of his hands. Many fans and reporters have said that he’s one of the best, and that will make it even sweeter. My mentality will be to seek and destroy, so everyone tune-in to SHOWTIME on October 14, you will witness boxing’s new superstar!”

Hurd, 26, will be making the first defense of the title that he won with a KO victory over Tony Harrison on Feb. 25. Fighting out of Accokeek, Maryland, Hurd soared up the rankings with stoppage victories over previously unbeaten fighters Frank Galarza and Oscar Molina at Barclays Center plus veteran Jo Jo Dan.
“I got a Trout to catch,’’ said Hurd. “His losses have all been to top champions Canelo Alvarez, Erislandy Lara and Jermall Charlo. But I’m on a streak of six straight knockouts and Trout has never been stopped, so I’m looking for the stoppage to make a statement that the other fighters couldn’t make. This is definitely my toughest fight, and I didn’t have to take it since it’s a voluntary defense. But I wanted this fight to stop Austin Trout, proving to the fans and people in general I’m the real deal and a true champion.”
Trout, a 31-year-old southpaw from Las Cruces, New Mexico, has faced some of the top 154-pound boxers in the division. He defeated Miguel Cotto in New York to win a title in 2012 and has close losses to Canelo Alvarez and Lara on his resume. In his most recent attempt at winning the title, Trout gave Jermall Charlo perhaps the toughest test of his career after looking impressive in four straight victories leading up to the challenge.

‘What a blessing it is to have this opportunity at a world title shot,” said Trout. “I want to thank everyone who has been in my corner to help get me career defining fights. It’s refreshing to see young champions showing heart and testing their skill with the best in the game. With that said, salute to Hurd for allowing this fight to go through.”

# # #

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports,www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing, @LouDiBella, @TGBPromotions @BarclaysCenter and @Swanson_Comm or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing, www.Facebook.com/barclayscenter,
and www.Facebook.com/DiBellaEntertainment

Swedish amateur star Oliver Flodin has signed a long-term promotional contact with Team Sauerland and will make his professional debut on September 30 on the undercard of the European Super Lightweight Championship contest between Anthony Yigit and Sandor Martin at the Solnahallen in Stockholm.

The 21 year-old from Vaggeryd was introduced to combat sports at a young age. Encouraged by his father, he started practicing Taekwondo when he was 4 years old, and was a black belt by the time he was 8.

His talent was then transferred to boxing, where in over 100 amateur fights, he represented the Swedish national team at a number of major tournaments, and won various international and domestic titles including the Swedish elite championships when he was just 16 years old.

Having caught the eye of Europe’s leading boxing promoter, Flodin was invited to Berlin to spar with former two-weight World Champion ‘King’ Arthur Abraham. Here he impressed, subsequently earning himself a place in Team Sauerland’s star-studded stable alongside fellow Swedish fighters Erik Skoglund, Anthony Yigit, Otto Wallin, Mikaela Laurén and Klara Svensson.

‘’It’s a dream come true,’’ he says. ‘’I would like to thank Team Sauerland for this great opportunity. I’m excited to get the chance to fight on big shows and at big arenas. I can’t wait to get started on September 30 at the Solnahallen.

‘’Going to Germany to spar with Arthur Abraham gave me a lot of confidence. I knew I had to be at my best against a World-class fighter and the sparring went well. That proved to me that I was at the level to make it as a professional. There is a lot I want to achieve. I want to win the European title first and then the World.’’

Promoter Nisse Sauerland says he is excited to welcome Flodin to the team and is looking forward to seeing him in action on September 30.

‘’I’m delighted to have secured Oliver’s signature,’’ said Sauerland. ‘’It’s an exciting time for Swedish boxing and we are going to keep on investing and developing the market, and I’m sure Oliver will have a big part to play in this. He comes with a good amateur pedigree, he looked good in camp with Abraham and I’m looking forward to seeing how he fares in his first professional fight.’’

Flodin will be campaigning in the middleweight division. His first fight will be a four-round contest against an as yet unconfirmed opponent. He will be trained by his father Soren and manager Wally Munteanu, and will be sharing his time between Vaggeryd and Gothenburg.

Tickets for the Nordic Fight Night on September 30 in Stockholm are available via www.ticketmaster.se or by calling (+46) 077-170 70 70. All the action will be shown live and exclusive on Viaplay Fighting. For more information please visit www.viaplay.se/figthing

29 August 2017 – Singapore: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), has just announced the addition of senior executive Jack Lim to its executive leadership team. Jack Lim joins the company as Chief Commercial Officer of ONE Championship and will be responsible for uniting all of ONE Championship’s existing revenue streams while leading the way for new and exciting growth opportunities.

Chatri Sityodtong, Chairman and CEO of ONE Championship, stated: “I am thrilled to announce the addition of Jack Lim to our executive leadership team. Jack is one of Asia’s most seasoned business leaders in the media industry. Without a doubt, our success is due to our amazing leaders and staff at ONE Championship. To unlock the full monetization of our assets, ONE Championship needs a strong and seasoned leader to think through all of our assets and how best to optimize them across all revenue streams. With Jack joining our senior leadership team, I am excited at the possibilities for ONE Championship.”

Prior to joining ONE Championship, Jack Lim served as Chief Commercial Officer of Mediacorp, Vice President of Media Sales for Sony Pictures Asia, and Director of International Sales for CNBC Asia Pacific. During this time, he honed his skills and capabilities for building brands and growing businesses across the media and tech industries. With an MBA in International Business, Lim is a transformational growth leader with demonstrated success in digital and content strategy, consultative selling, integrated marketing, with a proven track record in operating in some of the world’s most prolific blue chip organizations such as GE, IBM, and Sony.

At ONE Championship, Lim will be overseeing the explosive growth opportunities for the promotion as it looks to expand on its existing partnerships while creating new global partnerships. He will also be responsible for uniting and leading all of ONE Championship’s existing revenue streams, overseeing sponsorships, media rights, merchandising, ticketing, and brand licensing, as well as developing additional paths of revenue for ONE Championship.

Jack Lim, Chief Commercial Officer of ONE Championship, stated: “I am honored to join such a world-class senior leadership team at ONE Championship. The breadth and depth of insights and experiences I’ve gained from working in world class multinationals will go a long way in driving ONE Championship’s global growth in the years to come. The team at ONE is incredibly passionate, with the technical expertise necessary for aggressive execution, and the heart to overcome any obstacle. The opportunities are limitless for ONE Championship.”

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, ONE Championship is the home of martial arts. The world’s most exciting martial arts organization hosts the largest sports entertainment events across Asia, featuring some of the world’s best martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. In addition to its digital platforms, ONE Championship broadcasts to over 1 billion potential viewers across 128+ countries around the world with some of the largest global broadcasters, including FOX Sports, Setanta, MNC, Astro, Thairath TV, ABS-CBN, TV5, MYTV, HTV, OSN and more.

Rochester, NY (August 29, 2017) – Promoter Mercedes Vazquez-Simmons is the recipient of the Lo Mejor de lo Nuestro Award.

The award, which is presented by the Ibero American Action League, is given to an individual who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to both community and the community at large for her contributions, leadership skills and ability to work well with all individuals and groups in her hometown of Rochester, New York.

Ms, Simmons was recognized for her Pretty Girl Promotions, what it has meant to the city of Rochester ans her ability to work with members of the community from various backgrounds and professions.

Receiving the award ” Lo Mejor de Lo Nuestro” is quite an honor . We’re honored and thankful,”said Vazquez-Simmons. “We at PrettyGirl Promotions believe community involvement is critical particularly our engagement with inner city youth.”
A quote we live by : “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”- Muhammad Ali

Simmons will receive her award at the 49th Annual luncheon on Thursday, October 12th at the Joseph A, Floreano Convention Center from 12-1:30 PM.

Beverly Hills, Calif. (August 28, 2017) – Shane Shapiro was like most young men growing up. He had dreams and aspirations on become a professional athlete. Baseball was his game of choice, and he was excelling at it. He was a standout on the diamond and in the classroom, and a college scholarship was inevitable. Then just like that, his dreams of being the next catcher for the Dodgers were thwarted, as he was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer.

Thyroid Cancer is a very rare form of cancer, as it is found 1 in 3 million teenagers every year.

Shapiro who had surgery to remove his Thyroid, and is on medication that he has to take for the rest of his life, realized that his new purpose was to help others realize their own dreams and goals.

While going through this life and death ordeal, one world resonated in Shapiro’s mind. That was word was “Fight”.

“The metaphorical analogy between a cancer fight and a boxing ring is a cliché until you experience it for yourself. If you don’t believe it, ask Daniel Jacobs,’ said Shapiro.

Shapiro, who is from Beverly Hills, California was always a boxing fan, but never imagined himself involved with the sport.

“I had this new perspective on life, that is that if you want something bad enough, you have to be prepared to die for it. To live and work in a world with these stakes with this code…mimicking the truth I had discovered in my fight against cancer. I could not see any alternative.”

In 2013, Shapiro began working with a few local amateur boxers.

“I drove them to local tournaments, did their paperwork, motivated them and started my hands-on style.”

Shapiro then formed his company No Limit Mindset.

Shapiro worked with two amateurs, which produced four national championships.

In 2014, Shapiro received a tip from a friend, and then Shapiro scouted a 20 year-old fighter named Cem Kilic. Kilic, who is of Turkish decent was living in Germany, who had competed in several international tournaments, and was a national champion.

Shapiro did his due diligence and absorbed as much information as he could on Kilic, and he saw a special fighter. A fighter with heart and hunger, and a No Limit Mindset.

With an obvious language barrier between the two, Shapiro and Kilic spoke about the fighter leaving Germany to pursue his dreams of plying his trade in the United States.

“I got him a VISA without ever meeting him, and he lived with me in my apartment in Sherman Oaks.

“I was an outsider in boxing with no connections, and Cem did not have a trainer. I took him to the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood. 20 Minutes after getting there, Freddie Roach agreed to give us a tryout. The next day, still jet-lagged, Cem sparred and put on a heroic performance, and Freddie agreed to train Cem.”

Cem is now 8-0 with five knockouts, and has sparred with the likes of Miguel Cotto, Jean Pascal, Shane Mosley, Rob Brant, Glen Tapia, Frankie Gomez, Chris Van Heerden, Sergio Mora and Anthony Mundine.

Shapiro has added three top fighters to the No Limit Mindset stable and they are undefeated middleweight Kalvin Henderson (7-0), and most recent signee lightweight contender Mason Menard (33-2).

Shapiro, who is also working on his business administration degree from Drexel University, is also a certified agent by the National Basketball Association.

“I have been a licensed boxing manager for four years, and I can already see what sets me apart from other managers. My drive for success is relentless. My style is hands on, caring, honest and profound. My fighter’s aren’t just my clients; they are family. Cem for example lives with me-although now he has his own room. I am a ferocious negotiator, and will not accept anything but the best for my fighter’s. I am not interested in short money-I’m building a stable of champions, and not chumps. We work too hard, we’ve overcome to settle for anything less.”

Josh Warrington will face undefeated Dane Dennis Ceylan in a mandated Final Eliminator for the IBF Featherweight World title at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on Saturday 21st October, live on BT Sport and BoxNation.

Leeds hero Warrington (25-0, 5 KOs) is within touching distance of forcing a dream World title showdown with bitter rival Lee Selby after the Welshman declined a substantial offer from Frank Warren to defend his crown against the current WBC International belt holder.

Multiple Featherweight Champion Warrington outpointed former World Champion Kiko Martinez last time out at his hometown fortress and is determined to secure a blockbuster Elland Road World title showdown against Selby by overcoming the dangerous Ceylan.

Former European Champion Ceylan (18-0-2, 8 KOs) has his sights firmly set on World title honours but must overcome his toughest career challenge to date in the undefeated Warrington if he is to set-up a clash with Selby.

Although fighting for the first time on British soil as a professional, the 28-year-old Ceylan is no stranger to fighting British boxers having previously shared the ring with undefeated former Commonwealth Champion Isaac Lowe and British Champion Ryan Walsh.

“This is a proper fight and one that I am massively up for,” said Warrington. “Ceylan is an undefeated former European Champion but that doesn’t matter to me. The way I see it is that he’s the one I have to beat to make myself the mandatory challenger. This won’t be an easy fight but there are no easy fights at this level and with so much a stake.

“With Selby not taking a fight with me, it’s left me annoyed and even more hungry to produce a massive performance on October 21. You’re going to see the best ever version of Josh Warrington against Ceylan. Like I keep saying, the fight with Selby is the one I have always wanted, let’s see if he is still the Champion when I’m the mandatory challenger.

“It’s going to be another huge night of boxing for the city of Leeds. The buzz around the place is crazy at the moment, they are craving for a World Champion and once I beat Ceylan I’ll be a step closer to delivering what they want.”

“Josh Warrington is a good technical fighter,” said Ceylan. “I look forward to testing my skills against him. He is a top-level opponent and I know I will have to be at my best to beat him.

‘’I always enjoy fighting British opponents. British guys are always very good, and when I fight good opponents, it brings out the best in me. I think Josh might be my toughest opponent to date so I will need to be on top of my game.

‘’My last fight was against another English guy, Isaac Lowe. He wasn’t as a good as Josh. He was more of a street type guy who just wanted to fight. Josh is more of a clever, technical fighter so it will be a different challenge and a more difficult fight.

‘’I’m really looking forward to fighting in the UK. I’ve watched some of Josh’s fights and Leeds looks like an awesome place. He’s always got a lot of fans behind him, which is going to make for a great atmosphere. I can’t wait to experience it.

‘’My dream has always been to fight for a World title, and now, I’m only one fight away, and that gives me all the motivation I need to beat this guy. I wouldn’t have taken the fight if I wasn’t confident of winning. After I beat Josh, I’ll be ready for Lee Selby. I’m training hard and I will be at my very best on October 21.’’

Frank Warren said: “This is another big step-up in class for Josh. He is desperate to get himself in the World title mix and he has a fantastic opportunity to do so on October 21. Ceylan is a former European Champion and will bring out the best in him.

“The atmosphere was fantastic last time out and I’m sure it will be even better this time with so much on the line. Fans are in for a real treat with some brilliant fity-fifty contests such as Nurse vs. Catterall, and I for one cannot wait.”

Chief support on an unmissable evening of action sees Huddersfield’s British Super-Lightweight Champion Tyrone Nurse (35-2-2,7 KOs) make a highly-anticipated defence of his crown against undefeated Chorley star Jack Catterall (18-0, 10 KOs).

Rising Manchester Super-Featherweight star Zelfa Barrett (18-0, 11 KOs) has a chance to win his first professional title when he takes on Chris Conwell (9-2, 2 KOs) for the Vacant English strap.

Undefeated Liverpool Super-Welterweight talent J.J Metcalf (16-0, 8 KOs) takes on Leeds native Damon Jones (15-1, 3 KOs) in an official eliminator for the British title currently held by Warren stablemate Liam Williams.

An action-packed undercard also features former Commonwealth Games bronze medallist and GB squad standout Sam Maxwell (Super-Lightweight); Bradford Welterweight Darren Tetley; Doncaster Featherweight Reece Mould; Leeds Flyweight Jack Bateson and the professional debut of Leeds fighter Jack Daniels.

Further exciting fights will be announced in due course.

Tickets for Warrington vs. Ceylan priced at £40 (Upper Tier), £50 (Lower Tier), £70 (Floor), £100 (Floor), £150 (Foor) and £250 (VIP/Hospitality) are now available from:

First Direct Arena
www.firstdirectarena.com
0844 2481585

Warrington and Ceylan will meet face-to-face at a press conference in Leeds on Monday 4th September. Further details will be announced shortly.

NEW YORK – August 29, 2017 – Combate Americas announced today that it has partnered with Southern California-based leisure operator Hybrid One to produce multiple, live televised Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) events in California’s Inland Empire, beginning with a nine-bout fight card for Mexican Independence Day, at The Amphitheater at Splash Kingdom Waterpark in Redlands on Friday, Sept. 15.

“Combate Americas: El Grito en La Jaula,” the event that kicks off the partnership, will air live on Azteca America in the U.S. and on ESPN Latin America at 10 p.m. ET, and will be headlined by a featherweight (145 pounds) matchup between ferocious, 26-year-old rising star Jose “Froggy” Estrada (3-1) of Oxnard, Calif. and gritty battler Izic “Lionheart” Fernandez (2-3) of Santa Ana, Calif.

In the women’s atomweight (105 pounds) co-main event, former Eddie Bravo protégé Kyra “Mogwai” Batara (6-4) of Las Vegas, Nev., fresh off her second-round submission victory over 12-time Spanish National Judo Champion Vanesa Rico, will make a quick return to La Jaula, the Combate Americas cage, where the 22-year-old will face off with Jenna Serio (3-2) of New York, N.Y.

Priced from $40, tickets for “Combate Americas: El Grito en La Jaula” are on sale at Ticketon.com.

“We are excited to partner with Hybrid One, and continue the rapid expansion of our live event series to yet another market in Southern California, beginning with a phenomenal fight card in honor of Mexican Independence Day,” said Combate Americas CEO and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) co-founder Campbell McLaren.

“We acquired Splash Kingdom in April of this year with the vision of transforming it into the Inland Empire’s leading entertainment destination. Today’s partnership with Combate Americas represents a significant step toward realizing that vision,” said Hybrid One co-founder and co-owner Ryan Sauter.

Following the kick-off event on Sept. 15, Combate Americas expects to return to the Redlands venue in December.

A second women’s atomweight matchup at “Combate Americas: El Grito en La Jaula” will pit two professional debut competitors – Brenda Enriquez (0-0) of Salt Lake City, Utah against Shyann Farmer (0-0) Alamogordo, N.M.

The 28-year-old Enriquez is coming off a stellar amateur career during which she amassed a 7-1 record, with 6 of her victories coming by way of either (T)KO or submission.

Farmer is a 24-year-old upstart who collected an amateur record of 4-1.

Elsewhere on the fight card, undefeated, emerging star Rafael “Gifted” Garcia (4-0) of Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico will make his second start in La Jaula and face off with three-time Combate Americas veteran Marcos “El Matador” Bonilla (4-4) of Los Angeles, Calif. in a featherweight contest.

In a battle between unbeaten lightweights (155 pounds) Javier “Habanero” Garcia (2-0) of Covina, Calif. will take on Guillermo Gonzalez (3-0) of San Bernardino, Calif.

Fresh off his first-round submission victory at Combate Americas on May 5, Ralph “The Spyder Monkey” Acosta (17-12) of Riverside, Calif. will collide with Cub Swanson student Gareth De La Cruz (6-1) of Palm Springs, Calif.

Doors at The Amphitheater at Splash Kingdom Waterpark open at 6 p.m. The first bout will begin at 6:30 p.m.

COMPLETE “COMBATE AMERICAS: EL GRITO EN LA JAULA” FIGHT CARD

Featherweight Main Event (Live on Azteca America and ESPN Latin America):
Jose Estrada vs. Izic Fernandez

Atomweight Co-Main Event (Live on Azteca America and ESPN Latin America):
Kyra Batara vs. Jenna Serio

Preliminary Card:
Featherweight: Rafael Garcia vs. Marcos Bonilla
Lightweight: Javier Garcia vs. Guillermo Gonzalez
Atomweight: Brenda Enriquez vs. Shyann Farmer
Flyweight: Ralph Acosta vs. Gareth De La Cruz
Flyweight: Isaac Camarillo vs. Heber Castillo
Catchweight (140 pounds): Angel Gonzalez vs. Julio Aguilera
Middleweight: Santiago Diaz vs. Alex Thompson

# # #

ABOUT COMBATE AMERICAS
Combate Americas, LLC. is the first U.S. Hispanic Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) sports franchise in history, designed to build Latino fighting champions and serve Hispanic fans, one of the world’s most avid groups of prize fighting enthusiasts. The Combate Americas franchise includes reality TV programming, live events and mobile programming. The company’s CEO, Campbell McLaren, is universally recognized as the co-founder/co-creator of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). New York Magazine described McLaren as “the marketing genius behind the UFC” and Yahoo! Sports proclaimed that he “knows more about the sport than just about anyone in it today.” With an unprecedented product and a blue-chip ownership and management team, Combate Americas is poised to break new ground and bring about a new era in world championship level MMA competition.

ABOUT HYBRID ONE
Hybrid One (“H1”) is a fast-growing provider of technology-enhanced products, services, and experiences in the leisure and hospitality industries. H1 currently includes five subsidiaries: The Wall, a popular Orange County restaurant featuring over 50 taps of self-serve craft beer paired with international street food. The brand is expanding to Redlands, California in the fall of 2017. Splash Kingdom is a recently-acquired water park and entertainment center in Redlands, California. H1 Labs is developing proprietary technologies for the leisure and hospitality industries, starting with The Wall’s groundbreaking self-pour beer system. H1 Advisors is helping infuse “Disney DNA” into entertainment and leisure projects around the world. And Hybrid Enterprises leverages vertical integration opportunities, with manufacturing operations in China and Mexico.