Lightweight champion Jorge Linares will likely defend his title against mandatory challenger Luke Campbell, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

The bout will likely take place on September 23rd and be televised by HBO.

Las Vegas (April 27, 2017) – 4 Time World Champion Jorge Linares has confirmed that he will appear to Meet & Greet his fans at the Las Vegas Convention Center for the 3rd edition of Box Fan Expo that will take place Saturday May 6, 2017 from 10am to 5pm, during Cinco De Mayo weekend. The Boxing Expo will also coincide with the mega fight between Canelo Alvarez vs Julio Cesar Chavez jr, that will take place later that evening.

Linares will appear once again at this years’ Expo at the World Boxing Association “WBA” booth and will be signing gloves, photos and merchandise. Boxing fans will also have a great opportunity to take pictures with “El Niño de Oro” the Venezuelan boxing star. Fans will also be greeted with surprises by Linares and the WBA at this years’ Expo.

Linares is a Venezuelan professional boxer who has held the WBA and Ring Magazine lightweight titles since 2016. His last fight on March 25, 2017 was a dominant performance and rematch win over Anthony Crolla in Manchester, England. He is a four-time world champion in three weight classes, having previously held the WBC featherweight title from 2007 to 2008; the WBA super featherweight title from 2008 to 2009; and the WBC lightweight title since 2014.

Linares joins, Marcos Maidana, Jessie Vargas, WBA, Mayweather Promotions, Marco Antonio Barrera, Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Al Bernstein, Thomas Hearns, Kronk Boxing, WBC, Christy Martin, Mia St.John, Fernando Vargas and Joel Casamayor among early commitments to this year’s Box Fan Expo.

Box Fan Expo has been a huge success with fans and boxing industry people. Many boxing stars have attended the last two Expo’s such as Mike Tyson, Roberto Duran, Tommy Hearns, Roy Jones Jr., Sergio Martinez, Keith Thurman, Danny Garcia, Tim Bradley, Deontay Wilder, Amir Khan, Shawn Porter, Fernando Vargas, Zab Judah, James Toney, Vinny Pazienza, Mikey Garcia , Mia St.Johns, Leo Santa Cruz, Badou Jack, Terry Norris , Riddick Bowe , Earnie Shavers, Leon Spinks and many more…

Exhibitors such as boxing gear, apparel, new equipments, energy drinks, alcohol, supplement products, broadcasting media, sanctioning bodies and other companies who wish to participate will once again have a chance to showcase their brand to fans, media and the boxing industry.

Tickets to the Box Fan Expo are available online at:
http://www.boxfanexpo.eventbrite.com

Box Fan Expo is the ultimate boxing fan experience event, which allows fans to Meet and Greet Boxing Superstars of today, current and former world champions, Legends of the sport and other boxing Celebrities at their booth. On Site, fans will experience different activities from Autograph Sessions, Photo Sessions, FaceOff with your favorite boxers, as well as a chance to purchase merchandise and memorabilia from their booth, plus so much more… you won’t want to miss this must-attend Expo!

Box Fan Expo will also feature top boxing organizations, promoters, ring card girls, famous trainers and commentators as well as boxing gear companies “ALL UNDER ONE ROOF”.

Throughout the next few days leading up to the Event, there will be more announcements on the many stars that will commit their appearance at the Boxing Expo.

And for anyone in the Boxing industry or other Exhibitors (non-industry), who would like to be involved and reserve a Booth, contact Box Fan Expo:

Telephone number: (514) 572-7222 or Las Vegas Number (702) 997-1927

For any inquiries please email: boxfanexpo@gmail.com

More information on the Box Fan Expo is available at: http://www.boxfanexpo.com

You can follow Box Fan Expo on Twitter at: https://www.twitter.com/BoxFanExpo

and on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/BoxFanExpo

Luke Campbell MBE will face Darleys Perez in an eliminator for the number one position for the WBA World Lightweight title at Wembley Stadium Connected by EE on April 29, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Campbell defended his WBC Silver title for the second time in February with a second round demolition of Jairo Lopez in his hometown of Hull, following hot on the heels of his impressive stoppage win over Derry Mathews in October in Liverpool.

The London 2012 Olympic gold medal hero is gunning for his first World title shot at Jorge Linares who defended his crown in a rematch with Anthony Crolla in Manchester last month, but Perez will be hunting a clash with the Venezuelan himself.

Perez is no stranger to the UK having met Crolla twice in Manchester in defence of the WBA Lightweight crown, and Campbell is certain that the 33 year old will provide him with his stiffest test to date in the paid ranks.

“This is the fight of my career so far and I’m so excited to be boxing on this huge night at Wembley,” said Campbell. “I feel like I’ve been improving with every performance and believe now that I’m ready for a shot at the World title.

“Darleys Perez is by far my toughest fight yet but I need to come through this in order to face the champions. We have identified Linares as a fight we want and this win would put us number one in the WBA and in a great position to fight him. It’s going to be an incredible experience and I’m looking forward to shining on the big stage.”

Campbell’s clash with Perez is the latest fight to be added to the blockbuster show at a sold-out Wembley Stadium, topped by the huge Heavyweight showdown between Anthony Joshua MBE and Wladimir Klitschko.

Former World Super-Bantamweight king Scott Quigg continues his quest to become a two-weight champion by facing Viorel Simion at Featherweight and three GB Olympians are on the bill in the shape of Lawrence Okolie, Joe Cordina and Josh Kelly.

Jorge Linares retained his WBA Lightweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Anthony Crolla in a rematch of their September fight (also won won by Linares) at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

Linares mixed up his body attack and landed some good straight rights.  Linares was spot on with his uppercut over the first half of the fight.  In round six, Crolla was cut over his left eye from a right eye.

In round seven, Linares landed a blistering uppercut that sent Crolla to the canvas.  Crolla showed his champions mettle and heart and made a stand offense over the end of round seven and eight, but that was all he could muster as Linares was the class in this fight as he won by scores of 118-109 on all cards.

Linares is now 42-3.  Crolla is now 31-6-3.

Follow all the action as Jorge Linares and Anthony Crolla fight in a rematch of their terrific fight that took place last September.  The bout, which will be for Linares’ WBA/Ring Magazine Lightweight title will begin at 6 pm ET / 10 PM in Manchester

NO BROWSER REFRESH NEEDED.  THE PAGE WILL UPDATE AUTOMATICALLY

Round 1: Crolla lands a body shot..Right hand..Linares lands a right to the body..Body shot..Right..

Round 2 Body shot from Crolla…Overhand right from Linares..

Round 3 Linares lands a right..uppercut

Round 4 Linares lands a good right..uppercut,,Good right..Left from Crolla..

Round 5 Body shot from Linares..Hard body shot..

Round 6 Uppercut from Linares..Right..Crolla is cut over his left eye..left from Linares..

Round 7 HUGE LEFT UPPERCUT AND DOWN GOES CROLLA…Big combination on the ropes..Right from Crolla

Round 8 Right from Crolla..3 big uppercuts from Linares..Body shots from Crolla..Body shot from Linares..Body and head from Crolla..Uppercut from Linares..

Round 9 Right over the top from Crolla..Hard uppercut from Linares..

Round 10 Combination from Crolla

Round 11 Good uppercut from Linares..Good right

Round 12 Linares boxing and moving

118-109 ON ALL CARDS FOR JORGE LINARES

Anthony Crolla says that he’s done everything he can to make sure he’s in the shape of his life for his rematch with Jorge Linares for the WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine World Lightweight titles tomorrow night at the Manchester Arena, live on Sky Sports.

The Lightweight stars clash again following their epic battle in September that Linares edged. The Venezuelan star returns to place the straps on the line against the hometown hero, looking for a third win in the UK after defeating Kevin Mitchell in another fight of the year contender.

‘Million Dollar’ Crolla has heeded the advice of trainer Joe Gallagher and locked himself away from friends and family to get in the best shape possible – and the Manchester hero believes that will pay off tomorrow night.

“I feel fantastic,” said Crolla, who scaled 9st 8lbs 8oz, 4oz heavier than the defending champion. “I feel better than I have ever felt. Camp has gone really well and there will certainly be no excuses tonight. I have had no distractions outside of camp and everything is good. It is a matter now of showing in the ring the improvements I have been showing in the gym.

“For fight week I have been living in a hotel, no distractions. I am covering all bases. After this fight I can say I have given everything, not just in training but outside of camp too. I have had no social life for the past few months and I will walk to the ring knowing that, knowing I have prepared in the best way I possibly can. There will be no ‘what if I had done this’, ‘what if I had done that’ – I have prepared the best I possibly can.

“I understand what Joe was saying and I think in the past I have been a bit stupid. I was running around with tickets at the last minute and stressing over things. I have been told it isn’t a good thing to do and I haven’t done that this time.

“It isn’t in any way used as an excuse for last time – I was here, there and everywhere not just with tickets but with lots of other things. That is only my fault – I didn’t want to let people down but I should have been concentrating on other things. This time I am a lot more relaxed and I believe I have prepared better.”

Crolla’s clash with Linares is part of a huge night of action in Manchester where there’s a crossroads battle of Blackpool as Middleweights Brian Rose and Jack Arnfield lock horns.

Martin J. Ward defends his British Super-Featherweight title against Maxi Hughes in their third clash in the paid ranks, Marcus Morrison defends his WBC International Middleweight strap against Jason Welborn, while his Joe Gallagher gym-mate Hosea Burton looks to bounce back into title contention from his epic battle with Frank Buglioni, Irish sensation Katie Taylor fights for the fourth time as a pro, while there’s also action for Tomi Tatham, Ben Sheedy, Nathan Wheatley and Sean McGoldrick.

Tickets are on sale priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from www.manchesterarena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for March 25 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.
ENDS

Running order and weights

5.10pm 4 x 3 mins Bantamweight Contest
SEAN McGOLDRICK v BRETT FIDOE
(Newport, Wales) (Evesham)
Followed by
6 x 3 mins Middleweight Contest
BEN SHEEDY v ROB BROWN
(Manchester) (Bulford)
Followed by
8 x 3 mins Light-Heavyweight contest
HOSEA BURTON (13st 3oz) v TAMAS KOZMA (12st 13lbs 3oz)
(Manchester) (Hungary)

FLOAT/SWING 4 x 3 mins Super-Middleweight Contest
NATHAN WHEATLEY v CHRIS JENKINSON
(Warrington) (Bolton)

6/8 x 3 mins Light-Heavyweight Contest
TOMI TATHAM v KAREL HOREJSEK
(Bentham) (Czech Republic)

LIVE FLOAT
4 x 3 mins Cruiserweight Contest
LAWRENCE OKOLIE (14st 5lbs 4oz) v GEOFFREY CAVE (13st 13lbs 1oz)
(Hackney) (Hammersmith)

LIVE 7pm on Sky Sports 1

12 x 3 mins British Super-Featherweight Championship
MARTIN J WARD (9st 3lbs 5oz) v MAXI HUGHES (9st 3lbs 8oz)
(Brentwood) (Rossington)
Followed by
10 x 3 mins WBC International Middleweight Championship
MARCUS MORRISON (11st 5lbs 4oz) v JASON WELBORN (11st 5lbs 3oz)
(Manchester) (Tividale)
Followed by
8 x 2 mins Super-Featherweight contest
KATIE TAYLOR (9st 8lbs 8oz) v MILENA KOLEVA (9st 6lbs 2oz)
(Bray, Ireland) (Sliven, Bulgaria)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins WBA International Middleweight Championship
BRIAN ROSE (11st 5 & 1/2lbs) v JACK ARNFIELD (11st 4lbs 7oz)
(Blackpool) (Blackpool)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins WBA, WBC Diamond & Ring Magazine Lightweight Championship
JORGE LINARES (9st 8lbs 4oz) v ANTHONY CROLLA (9st 8lbs 8oz)
(Venezuela) (Manchester)

Jorge Linares and Anthony Crolla held a final press conference on Thursday in Manchester, England, for their rematch this Saturday for the WBA Lightweight World Championship, live on SHOWTIME (6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT) from Manchester Arena.

Linares (41-3, 27 KOs) dethroned Crolla (31-5-3, 13 KOs) in a close, back-and-forth battle last September in Manchester to capture the WBA crown. The Sept. 24 match was the first time the three-division titlist Linares was pushed the 12-round distance in his nine career world title fights.

Crolla has had success in immediate rematches. In 2015, he challenged Darley Perez for the WBA Lightweight Title and fought to a draw. Four months later, he knocked out Perez in five rounds to win the 135-pound title.

WBC Lightweight World Champion Mikey Garcia will join the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL announce team as a guest analyst alongside host Brian Custer and analysts Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi.

Garcia (36-0, 30 KOs), who won the WBC belt in emphatic fashion this January on SHOWTIME, may be scouting his future opponent – the WBC has mandated that the winner of Linares-Crolla II must face Garcia.

Here’s what the fighters had to say at Thursday’s press conference:

JORGE LINARES:
“I know once again I have everyone against me in his backyard, but that’s why I trained hard.

“I’m not coming in here feeling like the champion. I’m coming in here feeling like the challenger because I know I have to win very clear to go back home with a win.

“It’s going to be a different Crolla this time. I have to perform like I know I can to defend my belts.

“I had a great camp. I’m anxious. I can’t wait to show you on Saturday night, put it all together and return home with my belts.”

ANTHONY CROLLA:

“I’ve always been better going in as the underdog. I know on Saturday night I’m going to need to be the very best Anthony Crolla to beat Jorge Linares. I really believe that if I show the improvements that I’ve made in the gym then I’ll get my belt back.

“I hope he comes in looking for the knockout. If Jorge comes looking for the knockout he breaks away from what he’s best at. And, if he does so, I believe it falls right into my hands.

“I’ve got to be cutting off the ring quicker this time. I’ve got to respond in bunches a little bit more. There are so many obstacles that are going to be put in front of me from Jorge Linares, but I believe I will have an answer for every one of them.

“It was one of the fights of the year last time. I can certainly see us both being even better this time.

“There’s a lot of people out there who think there is no way I can beat Jorge Linares, but I believe on Saturday night I’ll prove an awful lot of people wrong.”

LOS ANGELES (March 22, 2017) Returning to the Manchester Arena for part two of the highly anticipated rematch for the WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine World Lightweight Championship on Saturday, March 25, both current Champion Jorge “El Niño de Oro” Linares (41-3, 27 KOs) and former champion Anthony “Million Dollar” Crolla (31-5, 15 KOs) have vowed to come back into the ring at full force, ready to take home the belts both fighters claim belong to them. Linares vs. Crolla II will be live from Manchester Arena in Manchester, England and available to U.S. fans on Showtime, beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET/PT.

Here is what the fighters had to say at the conclusion of their training camps:

JORGE “EL NINO DE ORO” LINARES, Current WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine World Lightweight Champion:

“I feel extremely prepared for this fight. I have been training since January 10 of this year, kicking off my training camp in Okinawa, Japan. I would run 10 miles in the morning, 10 miles in the afternoon, and even did training doing hard labor. I then returned to Las Vegas at the end of January, to keep training for three hard months in the mountains, running a total of 30 miles a day at an altitude of 9,000 miles.

“I have had more than 150 rounds of sparring, and I am honest when I say this is the best training camp I have ever had. I am at 100 percent physically and mentally. I am honestly so happy because we are right where we want to be for this fight, ready to show the world who I am inside the ring.

“Crolla could come better prepared than last time. Maybe he will throw more punches, maybe he will box more, I don’t really know. The most important thing is I hope he has worked really hard and comes in great condition so there are no excuses and no doubts after the fight.

“I really think coming to train with Ismael Salas made the difference. It’s what helped me really establish myself as a professional fighter and to gain more experience. We learn ‘old school’ as Salas always says. It really has worked well for me in the two years I’ve been with him.

“I’m happy to be back here in England again and have another opportunity. I get treated very well, I feel comfortable fighting here. The fans here have a lot of boxing knowledge and they know me well. It’s nice, I feel at home.”

ANTHONY “MILLION DOLLAR” CROLLA, Former WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine World Lightweight Champion:

“We’re both bringing different game plans to the ring and there’s no doubt that we’ll both leave it all in the ring again, like we did last time. I did everything I could to win last time but I came up short; the right man won but there wasn’t a lot in it. This time I am going to make sure that doesn’t happen. It’s a second chance to win those belts and a second chance to beat a great fighter like Jorge, and I’ve prepared myself physically and mentally to be better than him this time.

“There’s a lot of respect between Jorge and I, there was for the first fight and there will be again. He’s a gentleman, a great fighter and a great guy; but this is business, and I’ve got no problem getting in the ring with him again and going to war.

“I have had no social life for the past few months, and I will walk to the ring knowing that, knowing I have prepared in the best way I possibly can. There will be no ‘what if I had done this’, ‘what if I had done that’ – I have prepared the best I possibly can.

“I feel better than I have ever felt. Camp has gone really well and there will certainly be no excuses. I have had no distractions outside of camp and everything is good. It is a matter now of showing in the ring tonight the improvements I have been showing in the gym.

“The rematch was always top of my list. Linares is at the top of the pile in the lightweight division and if there was a chance of having a rematch, that was always more important to me than any other fight. I want to fight the best and be involved in the big fights and that’s what this is.”

Linares vs. Crolla II is a 12-round lightweight bout for the WBC Diamond, WBA and Ring Magazine Lightweight World Championship on March 25 at the Manchester Arena presented by Matchroom Boxing in association with Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Betfred.

Photos and videos are available to download by clicking here. Credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions for photos and videos used.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.matchroomboxing.com; follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @MatchroomBoxing, @OscarDeLaHoya @JorgeLinares, @ant_crolla; become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing; and follow on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @MatchroomBoxing, @OscarDeLaHoya, @jorgelinaresofficial, and @ant_crolla86.

WBA Lightweight World Champion Jorge Linares and former champion Anthony Crolla participated in a public workout at National Football Museum in Manchester, England on Tuesday in preparation for their rematch this Saturday, live on SHOWTIME (6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT) from Manchester Arena.

Linares (41-3, 27 KOs) dethroned Crolla (31-5-3, 13 KOs) in an action-packed battle last September in Manchester to capture the WBA crown. Crolla and Linares were neck-and-neck going into the sixth round until Linares rocked the hometown favorite with a series of shots that galvanized the Venezuelan toward a close 115-114, 115-113 and 117-111 unanimous decision.

The Sept. 24 match was the first time the three-division titlist Linares, who also holds the WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine lightweight belts, was pushed the 12-round distance in his career.

The WBC has mandated that the winner of Linares-Crolla II must face undefeated WBC Lightweight Champion Mikey Garcia, who will join host Brian Custer and analysts Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi in New York for the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL presentation.

Below are fight week quotes from Linares and Crolla:

JORGE LINARES:

“Crolla could come better prepared than last time. Maybe he will throw more punches, maybe he will box more, I don’t really know. The most important thing is I hope he has worked really hard and comes in great condition so there are no excuses and no doubts after the fight.

“I can fight even better this time. Before the first fight I had a broken right hand and I hadn’t fought for a while. That’s always a factor, you know? Inactivity. I haven’t had any issues physically or mentally, so the preparation has been great. We did 129 rounds of sparring and everything has gone well up to this point.

“I know he has been quiet in the build-up, I don’t mind if he hasn’t spoken much lately. Let’s just hope it’s a clean fight like the first one.”

“The plans are in the future to get the biggest fights. Obviously the priority right now is to stay focused on Saturday but then I’ll look towards the big fights like against Mikey Garcia.

“I really think coming to train with Ismael Salas made the difference. It’s what helped me really establish myself as a professional fighter and to gain more experience. We learn ‘old school’ as Salas always says. It really has worked well for me in the two years I’ve been with him.”

“I feel really good because this time we had a lot more time to prepare. We did some of the training camp in Japan and then eight weeks in Las Vegas.

“I’m happy to be back here in England again and have another opportunity. I get treated very well, I feel comfortable fighting here. The fans here have a lot of boxing knowledge and they know me well. It’s nice, I feel at home.”

ANTHONY CROLLA:

“It will be another good fight, that’s for sure. Our styles gel really well and I don’t see how it can’t be another good fight, but this time I see a different winner. The key will be adapting. I might need to adapt a number of times in the fight but it is something I have trained for.

“I learned a lot from that fight. Linares has very good speed, very good ring craft and he used his big fight experience for when to take a rest, when to turn it on for the judges.

“This time I know I need to deal with the flashy combinations better, cut the ring off better and capitalize when he is open for shots.

“He has said he will come with another game plan but so will we. Last time I gave it everything, left it all in the ring, but I came up short. The right man won on the night and now I have a second chance at winning back the belt and beating a great fighter.

“I was disappointed I lost – you should never be happy with losing – but I was satisfied I gave everything on the night. When I watched it again there were things in the fight where I thought, ‘why didn’t I do this, why didn’t I do that’, but that is what I did do in the heat of the battle.

“You see people online saying Linares is a level above and that he outclassed me – he obviously didn’t outclass me because two of the judges only had a point in it. The right man won and now I need to show my improvements and make sure the result is different.

“Last time out in Manchester I lost a close fight but with the improvements I have been making in the gym I believe this time it will be a different result.

“The rematch was always top of my list. Linares is top of the pile in the lightweight division and if there was a chance of having a rematch that was always more important to me than any other fight. I want to fight the best and be involved in the big fights and that’s what this is.

“I want the chance to stake my claim as the best lightweight in the world by going out there and beating him.

“I wasn’t going to turn down a rematch to try and ease myself back into title contention. I want these big fights; these big nights in Manchester are what I thrive on.

“I feel better than I have ever felt. Camp has gone really well and there will certainly be no excuses. I have had no distractions outside of camp and everything is good. It is a matter now of showing in the ring tonight the improvements I have been showing in the gym.

“I have had no social life for the past few months and I will walk to the ring knowing that, knowing I have prepared in the best way I possibly can. There will be no ‘what if I had done this’, ‘what if I had done that’ – I have prepared the best I possibly can.”

NEW YORK (March 20, 2017) – WBC Lightweight World Champion Mikey Garcia will join the SHOWTIME announce team as a guest analyst for the rematch between WBA Lightweight World Champion Jorge Linares and Anthony Crolla on Saturday, March 25 live on SHOWTIME at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.

Three-division world champion Garcia, (36-0, 30 KOs), will join host Brian Custer and analysts Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi in New York for the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® presentation of Crolla vs. Linares II, which will air live from Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

“I’m excited to participate as guest analyst for this rematch,” said Garcia. “These are two of the most competitive boxers in my division. Jorge Linares won the first fight, but Crolla can create a different outcome.

“Linares has good hand speed, timing, reflexes and has power in both hands. Crolla has a good right hand and has shown some solid body work in his recent fights. While Crolla is getting better with each fight, Linares is likely still the better boxer, and should edge him out in a close fight.”

Linares (41-3, 27 KOs) dethroned Crolla (31-5-3, 13 KOs) in a thrilling battle last fall in Manchester to capture the WBA crown. The Sept. 24 match was the first time the three-division titlist Linares, who also holds the WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine lightweight belts, was pushed the 12-round distance in his career.

The WBC has mandated that the winner of Linares-Crolla II must face the hard-hitting Garcia, who knocked out defending champion Dejan Zlaticanin on Jan. 28 on SHOWTIME in just his second fight back following a 30-month layoff.

Linares-Crolla II is the second lightweight world title bout on SHOWTIME in 2017 and an important fight toward potentially unifying the resurgent 135-pound division.

Anthony Crolla says he is flying in his camp for his World Lightweight title unification rematch with Jorge Linares at the Manchester Arena on March 25, live on Sky Sports.

Crolla was told in no uncertain terms by trainer Joe Gallagher that he had to lock himself away as he prepared to meet the Venezuelan for the second time following their tight first encounter in September, where Linares added Crolla’s WBA strap to his WBC Diamond belt and the Ring Magazine crown.

‘Million Dollar’ is looking to reclaim the belt he won in stunning fashion in his Manchester fortress in a rematch with Darleys Perez before KOing Ismael Barroso, and the 30 year old believes that paying heed to Gallagher’s impassioned plea in their press conference to stay focussed on training will pay dividends in a fortnight’s time.

“I understood what Joe meant in the press conference,” said Crolla. “I think in the past I have been a bit stupid and that’s been my fault. I run around with tickets and stress over things, I’ve been told it for years but this time it’s been different and I’m flying in camp. It’s been a load off my shoulders and I am just concentrating on getting my belt back.

“We’re both bringing different game-plans to the ring and there’s no doubt that we’ll both leave it all in the ring again, like we did last time. I did everything I could to win last time but I came up short, the right man won but there wasn’t a lot in it. This time I am going to make sure that doesn’t happen. It’s a second chance to win those belts and a second chance to beat a great fighter like Jorge, and I’ve prepared myself physically and mentally to be better than him this time.

“I was disappointed that I lost, and you should never be satisfied with losing, I was happy that I gave everything on the night but there was things that I did that I was annoyed about and I won’t be making them this time.

“He didn’t outclass me because two of the judges only had one point in it, so we’ve made the adjustments that I need to do to make sure the result is different.”

Crolla’s clash with Linares is part of a huge night of action in Manchester where there’s a crossroads battle of Blackpool as Middleweights Brian Rose and Jack Arnfield lock horns.

Martin J. Ward defends his British Super-Featherweight title against Maxi Hughes in their third clash in the paid ranks, Marcus Morrison defends his WBC International Middleweight strap against Jason Welborn, while his Joe Gallagher gym-mate Hosea Burton looks to bounce back into title contention from his epic battle with Frank Buglioni, Irish sensation Katie Taylor fights for the fourth time as a pro, while there’s also action for Tomi Tatham, Ben Sheedy, Nathan Wheatley and Sean McGoldrick.

Tickets are on sale priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from www.manchesterarena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for March 25 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

ENDS

Katie Taylor’s fourth professional fight will take place on the undercard of Anthony Crolla’s World Lightweight title unification rematch with Jorge Linares at the Manchester Arena on Saturday March 25, live on Sky Sports.

Taylor made it three fights unbeaten in the paid ranks on Saturday night at The O2 with her second stoppage win after clinically dispatching Italian fifth round Monica Gentili on the undercard of Tony Bellew’s rollercoaster win over David Haye.

The Irish amateur sensation has already boxed in Manchester having gone the distance with Vivienne Obenauf there in December, and Taylor is ready to put on another scintillating display as the 30 year old gets into her groove as a pro.

“The Linares Crolla fight rematch is a brilliant fight and another massive event. It was a great atmosphere at The O2, but every fight is a big one. You can’t afford to slip up in the pro game so every fight is like an Olympic final.

“Saturday was the first time as a pro that I had a proper camp, I got great sparring in America with seasoned pros every day so I am learning all the time and I feel more than ever that the pro game is made for me. The body work was good and overall it was a very effective performance and getting a stoppage over a durable girl like that was the icing on the cake.

“It was great to get another stoppage win, it’s all gone well so far and the opponents are going to step up now as we kick on this year for a World title.”

Taylor’s fourth pro fight is part of a huge night of action in Manchester, topped by Linares and Crolla going toe-to-toe for the second time.

There’s a crossroads battle of Blackpool as Middleweights Brian Rose and Jack Arnfield lock horns and Martin J. Ward defends his British Super-Featherweight title against Maxi Hughes in their third clash in the paid ranks.

Marcus Morrison defends his WBC International Middleweight strap against Jason Welborn, while his Joe Gallagher gym-mate Hosea Burton looks to bounce back into title contention from his epic battle with Frank Buglioni, while there’s also action for Tomi Tatham, Ben Sheedy, Nathan Wheatley and Sean McGoldrick.

Tickets are on sale priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from www.manchesterarena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for March 25 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND (Jan. 24, 2017) – WBA Lightweight World Champion Jorge Linares and former titlist Anthony Crolla held a press conference on Tuesday in Manchester, England, to formally announce their upcoming rematch on Saturday, March 25 live on SHOWTIME from Manchester Arena.

Linares (41-3, 27 KOs) narrowly outpointed defending champion Crolla (31-5-3, 13 KOs) last September in a thrilling battle in Crolla’s hometown of Manchester.

The WBC has mandated that the winner of Linares-Crolla II must face the winner of this Saturday’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING matchup between WBC Lightweight World Champion Dejan Zlaticanin and undefeated two-division titlist Mikey Garcia.

Here’s what the fighters had to say on Tuesday:

JORGE LINARES:
“I wasn’t supposed to win the first fight, but I’m glad I did so I can come back and do it again.

“The belts mean so much to me and my country, and I am going to work very hard to make sure that I take them home again.

“It’s a new year and a new day. Anthony is going to be better and hungrier, and that means I will work harder, come with more skill and an even better game plan to win.

“I hope to see another huge crowd in Manchester and we’re going to provide the fans with another beautiful fight.”

ANTHONY CROLLA:
“I want the belt back, simple. Fighting for these prizes in front of us is huge. I’m so lucky to have a second chance and it’s one I have to take.

“It was a special night last time, great crowd and it’ll be even bigger this time. The setting was perfect but I lost my belt. I lost to a great fighter but I don’t celebrate losing, I don’t want to feel it again and I want to go down in history by beating a great fighter.

“I am better in rematches and I’m locking myself away to work harder and smarter to make sure these belts stay here.

“Jorge is the best and I want to be the best – beating him stakes my claim. I didn’t win the first one but I had success and I can work on that.

“We’ve both got great teams behind us, and I believe if I make the right changes for the fight I will take the titles.”

EDDIE HEARN:
“The first fight was a hell of a fight. Anthony was the favorite and now Jorge is the favorite.

“Anthony is the challenger in this rematch. He’s had success in rematches before – he did it against Darleys Perez and he came back better. He needs to do that again against Jorge, No. 1 in the division.

“It gives me huge pleasure to announce that the fight will be on SHOWTIME in the U.S. and I want to thank Stephen Espinosa and his team for making this happen.”

JOE GALLAGHER:
“I need a nasty Anthony Crolla for this fight. Jorge is the best in the world so I need to keep him locked away and getting nasty – he won’t be doing any fan signings or selling tickets. If you like Anthony and care about him, leave him alone, let him work, and come and watch him win on the night.”

ROBERT DIAZ:
“I didn’t know how Jorge was going to react to the fans as I know that Anthony has great fans. I think that Jorge won a lot of fans that night and he’ll have his share in the rematch.

“Anthony didn’t have to take the fight, he could’ve gone elsewhere and got some wins, but that shows what a man this guy is. He wants the belts and we expect a better Anthony. I said you would see the best Jorge ever and you did – he’s going to be even better this time.”

Anthony Crolla will meet Jorge Linares in a rematch for the WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring magazine World Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena on March 25, live on Sky Sports and sponsored by Betfred.

Crolla and Linares met in the same venue for the belts in September with the Venezuelan coming out on top in an enthralling contest, ending the brilliant winning run of ‘Million Dollar’ who claimed the title with a stoppage win over Darleys Perez in November 2015 before destroying dangerous Ismael Barroso in May.

The 30 year old is delighted to get a second crack at the classy Linares, and believes he’s better placed to regain his title following their first meeting.

“There had been lots of talk on the rematch since the first fight with Jorge so I’m delighted to finally get this announced,” said Crolla. “I’ve been in the gym right the way up to Christmas even though the fight is a little bit of a while off. I’m working hard and making improvements, I will have to show improvements in the rematch if I am to win. I came up short on the night against the better man – with those improvements I believe I can change the result this time around.

“I see Jorge as the best Lightweight in the world and I want to be the best Lightweight in the world. It is always up for discussion that label of course, he is seen as the man at the moment and I want to test myself against the very best, even though I have already been in with him. These are the fights that I want to be involved in.

“No excuses from me from the first fight, I had a great camp – I came up short against a great fighter. I thought the fight itself was going well, I felt like I was in control up until the sixth round, he caught me with a great shot and buzzed me. I felt that in the next round it took a bit of zap out of my punches and legs. Fair play to Linares he used his experience and won the last few rounds, which is usually what I do!

“I’ve got to be in these big fights now. The last four fights have been the biggest fights of my career, all tough opponents. I’m up for this big nights and people start expecting them. The motivation is always there for me, walking out at that arena with that crowd – it’s the level I feel I’m at now.

“The better the opponent, the better I will perform. I’m approving still as a fighter and athlete despite turning 30 recently. I want to be remembered as being someone who took on the best around and being mentioned in the same breath as them.”

“I am really excited to be going back to Manchester,” said Linares. “I was treated very well by everyone and gained a lot of new British fans. Crolla is a tremendous fighter with a lot of heart so I know I must train twice as hard for another tough fight. I want to thank Eddie Hearn at Matchroom, my promoters at Golden Boy Promotions and Teiken. I promise another great performance and assure that the belts are returning home with me”

“I’m delighted Anthony will get a chance to win his WBA title back along with the WBC Diamond and Ring magazine belts,” said promoter Eddie Hearn. “The last fight was a Fight of the Year contender and Linares boxed out of his skin but one thing we know about Anthony is his ability to bounce back and he is so determined to win this fight. He has created some wonderful atmospheres at the Manchester Arena over the last few years and I believe March 25 will be the best yet.”

Betting giants Betfred backed the brilliant first clash between the Lightweight stars, and Betfred boss Fred Done is delighted to be backing the rematch.

“Following the fantastic first fight I had no hesitation in sponsoring the rematch of Anthony Crolla versus Jorge Linares,” said Done. “As a proud Mancunian I hope and believe I will be celebrating with Anthony this time.”

Tickets go on sale at midday on Monday January 9 to Matchroom Fight Pass members at insert link and on general sale at midday on Tuesday January 10 from www.manchesterarena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000.

Tickets are priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 while VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for March 25 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Newly crowned WBA Lightweight champion Jorge Linares injured his right hand in his bout with Anthony Crolla and will be out for a period of time, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“Linares injured his right hand in the sixth round of the ferocious battle versus Anthony Crolla, and after analyzing the situation and confirming with Dr. Jedediah Jones, it has been concluded that Linares will not be able to fight for some time,” WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said on Thursday. “The WBC is hereby confirming that Dejan Zlaticanin is free to make a voluntary title defense of his WBC lightweight title.”

“It’s still swollen, but thankfully there is no break,” Diaz said. Linares’ injury is in a different spot on his right hand than the previous one that led to the 11-month layoff, said Golden Boy Promotions matchmaker Robert Diaz.

“Right after the fight Eddie and Crolla were saying they want the rematch next but a couple of weeks have passed, and sometimes things change,” Diaz said. “So next week I’ll send Eddie an email and see what they want to do and get it in writing. The most important thing is to see when Linares’ hand is ready to go. If Eddie and Crolla want the rematch, Jorge will be available for it.”

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.– Jorge Linares won a twelve round unanimous decision over Anthony Crolla to win the WBA/Ring Magazine and retain his WBC Diamond Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

The bout, which took place this past Saturday, headlined a card that was broadcasted live all over the United States on AWE- A Wealth of Entertainment and streamed on www.klowdtv.com.

“The fight lived up to expectations and was a terrific contest,”said Charles Herring, President of AWE-A Wealth of Entertainment.

“This is another in the long line of great fights that have come to the network and we should be announcing some more great fights real soon.”

“We were ecstatic and extremely happy about the response we had for this fight,”said Chris Schickedanz, KlowdTV Managing Director.

“We had an overwhelming turnout, and we will continue to show the biggest and brightest fights from all over the globe.”

It was a tough grueling fight that saw Linares ump out to an early lead on the strength of his quick combinations and handspeed.

In round five, Linares was cut over his left eye. In round six, Crolla was starting to take charge of the bout with his work to the body and uppercuts inside, until Linares hurt Crolla badly with a right hand that wobbled the Manchester native on the ropes.

Both guys had their moments down the stretch as Linares, at times seemed like he was losing his stamina, only to come back with hard combinations and he was able to eek out rounds.

Linares of Venezuela won by scores of 117-111, 115-114 and 115-113 and is now 41-3. Crolla is now 31-5-3.

Jack Arnfield won a twelve round unanimous decision over John Ryder in a middleweight bout.

Arnfield won by scores of 117-114, 118-110 and 115-114 and is now 21-2. Ryder is 23-3.

Callum Johnson scored a 9th round stoppage over Wilbeforce Shihepo in a scheduled twelve round light heavyweight bout.

In round five, Shihepo was docked a point for holding. Shihepo kept holding and was deducted another point in round seven. Later in the round, Johnson dropped Shihepo with a body shot. Johnson finihed things with a huge right that dropped Shiphepo in the 9th round. Shihepo could not beat the count at 2:07.

Johnson is now 16-0 with 11 knockouts. Shiphepo of Namibia is 23-9.

Conor Benn remained undefeated by scoring a 6-round decision over Ross Jameson.

The score was 60-55 for Benn, who is now 5-0. Jameson is 1-2.

Hosea Burton scored two knockdowns in the 3rd round and stopped Fernando castaneda in the same round of their scheduled ten round light heavyweight bout.

The stoppage came at 2:18 of round three, for Burton, who is now 18-0 with nine knockouts. Casteneda is 24-11.

Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares is a 12-round fight for the WBA, WBC Diamond and the Ring Magazine Lightweight World Championships presented by Matchroom Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Akihiko Honda’s Teiken Boxing Gym.

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

Jorge Linares won a twelve round unanimous decision over Anthony Crolla to win the WBA/Ring Magazine and retain his WBC Diamond Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

It was a tough grueling fight that saw Linares ump out to an early lead on the strength of his quick combinations and handspeed.

In round five, Linares was cut over his left eye. In round six, Crolla was starting to take charge of the bout with his work to the body and uppercuts inside, until Linares hurt Crolla badly with a right hand that wobbled the Manchester native on the ropes.

Both guys had their moments down the stretch as Linares, at times seemed like he was losing his stamina, only to come back with hard combinations and he was able to eek out rounds.

Linares of Venezuela won by scores of 117-111, 115-114 and 115-113 and is now 41-3. Crolla is now 31-5-3.

Jack Arnfield won a twelve round unanimous decision over John Ryder in a middleweight bout.

Arnfield won by scores of 117-114, 118-110 and 115-114 and is now 21-2. Ryder is 23-3.

Callum Johnson scored a 9th round stoppage over Wilbeforce Shihepo in a scheduled twelve round light heavyweight bout.

In round five, Shihepo was docked a point for holding. Shihepo kept holding and was deducted another point in round seven. Later in the round, Johnson dropped Shihepo with a body shot. Johnson finihed things with a huge right that dropped Shiphepo in the 9th round. Shihepo could not beat the count at 2:07.

Johnson is now 16-0 with 11 knockouts. Shiphepo of Namibia is 23-9.

Conor Benn remained undefeated by scoring a 6-round decision over Ross Jameson.

The score was 60-55 for Benn, who is now 5-0. Jameson is 1-2.

Hosea Burton scored two knockdowns in the 3rd round and stopped Fernando castaneda in the same round of their scheduled ten round light heavyweight bout.

The stoppage came at 2:18 of round three, for Burton, who is now 18-0 with nine knockouts. Casteneda is 24-11.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.– Below are weights for tomorrow’s world championship card from Manchester, England that will be capped off by the Anthony Crolla – Jorge Linares WBA/WBC Diamond/Ring Magazine Lightweight title bout. The fights listed will be the fights shown on AWE- A Wealth of Entertainment and www.klowdtv.com beginning at 2:30 PM ET / 11:30 AM PT

Anthony Crolla 134.5 – Jorge Linares 134.2 lb
(WBA/WBC Diamond/Ring Magazine Lightweight titles)
John Ryder 159.6 – Jack Arnfield 159.4
Callum Johnson 174.5 – Wilberforce Shihepo 172.8
Conor Benn 147.9 – Ross Jameson 142.8
Hosea Burton 176.8 – Fernando Castaneda 175.2

Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares is a 12-round fight for the WBA, WBC Diamond and the Ring Magazine Lightweight World Championships presented by Matchroom Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Akihiko Honda’s Teiken Boxing Gym.

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

Anthony Crolla wants to continue his incredible run of wins going and defeat Jorge Linares as they clash in a Lightweight unification blockbuster at the Manchester Arena tomorrow night, live on Sky Sports.

Crolla puts his WBA crown on the line for the second time against the three-weight great, who brings his WBC Diamond strap to the UK. The vacant Ring magazine title is the third prize on offer to the winner, offering Crolla the chance to become the first English Lightweight to win that belt.

With Crolla bettering his last performances in each of his three World title fights – a draw against Darleys Perez followed by KO wins in the rematch and against Ismael Barroso – ‘Million Dollar’ knows that he has to raise his level once again and he’s ready to prove that he is the elite man in the 135lbs division.

“I never stopped believing but it’s been a mad ride,” said Crolla, who today scaled 9st 8lbs 5oz, three ounces more than Linares. “If someone had said a few years ago that this night was going to happen, I might not have believed them, it’s a ride I’ve enjoyed every minute of.

“I have to pull out another career-best performance again. Anything less is not going to be enough. He’s the best fighter that I’ve shared the ring with and you only have to look at his record to know the level he’s operated at for a long time and see how big a task it is. I bring something different to the table that he’s seen before and I believe I’ll have too much for him.

“Winning the Ring belt is one of the ultimate prizes in the sport, not many Brits have done that and it’s only right that I am fighting a great fighter for it. I’m humbled and blessed by both fighting Jorge and fighting for the Ring belt, but that’s not the end of my ambitions, I’ll be happy when I have the belt on my mantelpiece and then get back in the gym and go on and do more great things.

“I’m just so proud that I’ve been able to pay the fans back for their incredible support I’ve received. I’m not the kind of fighter that will run his mouth at press conferences or call people out, but I will happily fight anyone. You can’t want it more than me, no-one does. I’m still taken aback by it all really, I’m just a normal lad that trains hard, but things are going well and the harder you train, the luckier you get.

“There’s a lot more talented lads than me. But my will to win matches anyone’s. I think I’m improving as a fighter as well. I rarely come out really banged up now. Nine times out of 10 in any sport, the team or person with the best defence wins. But a lot of it comes down to my will and how I prepare for a fight. I train very hard and my engine has always been good.”

Crolla’s clash with Linares is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.

Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

[ENDS]

Running order and weights

5.05pm 6 x 3 mins Light Heavyweight Contest
LIAM CONROY (12st 8lbs 5oz) v BAPTISTE CASTEGNARO (12st 3lbs 1oz)
(Barrow-in-Furness) (France)

5.30pm 4 x 3 mins Middleweight Contest
NATHAN WHEATLEY v DAN BLACKWELL
(Warrington) (Trowbridge)

5.50pm 4 x 3 mins Middleweight Contest
MARK JEFFERS v BEN HEAP
(Chorley) (Swindon)

6.25pm 8 x 3 mins Middleweight Contest
MARCUS MORRISON (11st 6lbs) v MATIOUZE ROYER (11st 4lbs 4oz)
(Manchester) (France)

7pm 4 x 3 mins Light-Heavyweight Contest
LYNDON ARTHUR v ANDY NEYLON
(Manchester) (Hull)

LIVE on Sky Sports 1 from 1930

10 x 3 mins Light-Heavyweight Contest
HOSEA BURTON (12st 8lbs 7oz) v FERNANDO CASTANEDA (12st 7lbs 2oz)
(Manchester) (Mexico)
Followed by
6 x 3 mins Welterweight Contest
CONOR BENN (10st 7lbs 9oz) v ROSS JAMESON (10st 2lbs 8oz)
(Ilford) (Middlesbrough)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins Vacant Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight Contest
CALLUM JOHNSON (12st 6lbs 5oz) v WILLBEFORCE SHIHEPO (12st 4lbs 8oz)
(Boston) (Namibia)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins WBA International Middleweight Championship
JOHN RYDER (11st 5lbs 6oz) v JACK ARNFIELD (11st 5lbs 4oz)
(Islington) (Blackpool)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins WBA, WBC Diamond and Ring magazine Lightweight Championship
ANTHONY CROLLA (9st 8lbs 5oz) v JORGE LINARES (9st 8lbs 2oz)
(Manchester) (Venezuela)

TO BE SCHEDULED
6 x 3 mins Featherweight Contest
ISAAC LOWE (9st 8oz) v ELVIS GUILLEN (9st 8oz)
(Morecambe) (Nicaragua)

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.– Anthony “Million Dollar” Crolla (31-4-3, 13 KOs) and Jorge “El Nino de Oro” Linares (40-3, 27 KOs) hosted their final press conference today, in Manchester. The fighters are set to go head-to-head for in a unification battle for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring Magazine Lightweight Championships at the Manchester Arena on Saturday September 24, live on AWE-A WEALTH OF ENTERTAINMENT AND www.klowdtv.vom

The start time of the show will 2:30 PM ET / 11:30 AM PT.

Fans who do not have AWE, can access the channel via www.klowdtv.com

www.klowdtv.com will be FREE for the month of September, so boxing fans can witness this can’t miss fight on Saturday.

Crolla destroyed Barroso with a now-trademark body shot in the seventh round of the first defence of his WBA crown at the arena in July, soaking up the early pressure from the hard-hitting challenger before imposing himself and knocking out the dangerous Venezuelan in style.

Linares believes that his fellow countryman was too aggressive too early in the fight, and that he is ready to tough it out for 12 rounds to take the titles back home.

“Ismael is a very good fighter but he made a big mistake in the fight,” said Linares. “He came out too strong and too fast and too aggressive, trying to KO Anthony, and when you are at this level, you cannot go looking for the KO because when you do that, you end up receiving the KO, and that’s what happened.

“Anthony worked to fight for 12 rounds but Ismael didn’t. He came rushing out and Anthony absorbed the early attack and imposed himself on Ismael and won the fight in style. The difference is that I prepare to go the distance and that’s what you need to do at this level.”

Saturday’s fight is special to Linares for more than the titles on offer as he looks to fulfil a promise to the late president of the WBA, Gilberto Mendoza.

“It’s not who is the more difficult or complicated fighter in the division, all the champions are great fighters,” said Linares. “We can all box and punch hard, so no one fight is any harder or easier than the other, the only fight that counts is the one in front of you, and for me that’s Anthony. Fights with Terry Flanagan and Dejan Zlaticanin can come next year but this fight is personal to me, not because of Anthony, but because of the WBA.

“Prior to Mr Mendoza passing away, I told him I would win the WBA title back for him to Venezuela, so this really means a lot to me because of that. All the belts are on the line, the WBC Diamond belt is beautiful and not many people have won it, so to be added to that list would mean so much.

“The Ring magazine belt is very prestigious and not many win that either because number one and two in the world need to fight to have it on the line, like it is here, that adds so much and the personal promise from the heart to Mr Mendoza for the WBA makes this fight so special.”

Linares’ clash with Crolla is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.

Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.

Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares is a 12-round fight for the WBA, WBC Diamond and the Ring Magazine Lightweight World Championships presented by Matchroom Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Akihiko Honda’s Teiken Boxing Gym.

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

Ricky Hatton has backed Anthony Crolla to become the first Englishman to win the Ring Magazine Lightweight title in his unification blockbuster with Jorge Linares at the Manchester Arena on Saturday night, live on Sky Sports.

Hatton landed the Super-Welterweight strap in the same arena in April 2006 when he forced Kostya Tszyu to quit after 11 thrilling rounds.

The ‘Hitman’ will be ringside on Saturday night where Crolla aims to become Britain’s 18th Ring magazine king and join Scottish legends Ken Buchanan and Jim Watt as winners of the prestigious strap in the 135lbs division.

Hatton’s fighting days are as memorable for his fanatical supports as his achievements in the ring, and the Manchester legend is delighted to see Crolla’s support growing as his remarkable story continues.

“Where Anthony has come from is a great example,” said Hatton. “It’s not where you start in boxing, it’s where you finish. He lost a six rounder early in his career and to Derry Mathews later on, everyone wrote him off and to achieve what he has is test of his character. I’m very proud of him.

“Anthony is lovely kid, some say he is too nice to be a boxer but there is a mean streak there. He has developed in to a good all round fighter, he has a very exciting style and is brutal body puncher.

“I know he can do the business against Jorge Linares and I’ll be beaming with pride to see him lift that Ring Magazine belt.

“My proudest achievement was my fan base in my career above everything. Anthony has an amazing following now and it’s great to see a fellow Mancunian being such a big draw in our city

“I became the first Brit to win the Ring Magazine fighter of the year award. Which was a huge honour. I won the Ring Magazine belt 10 years ago and it is the accolade that proves you are the best in your weight division, it is the ultimate achievement. It looks like the belt from the Rocky movies and its very old school which adds to the glamour of it.”

“There’s only one Ricky Hatton and there will only ever be one,” said Crolla. “If I can get a bit of the support and success that Ricky had I’ll be over the moon. The crowds at the Perez and Barroso fights were unbelievable and I am sure it’s going to be rocking on Saturday too.

“I’m just so proud that I’ve been able to pay the fans back for their incredible support I’ve received. I’m not the kind of fighter that will run his mouth at press conferences or call people out, but I will happily fight anyone. You can’t want it more than me, no-one does. I’m still taken aback by it all really, I’m just a normal lad that trains hard, but things are going well and the harder you train, the luckier you get.”

Crolla’s clash Linares with is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.

Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.- September 21, 2016 – – Anthony “Million Dollar” Crolla (31-4-3, 13 KOs) and Jorge “El Nino de Oro” Linares (40-3, 27 KOs) hosted a public media workout today at the National Football Museum, in Manchester ahead of their unification blockbuster for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring Magazine Lightweight Championships at the Manchester Arena on Saturday September 24, live on AWE-A Wealth of Entertainment & www.klowdtv.com

The start time of the show will be 2:30 PM ET / 11:30 AM PT.

Fans who do not have AWE, can access the channel via www.klowdtv.com

www.klowdtv.com will be FREE for the month of September, so boxing fans can witness this can’t miss fight on Saturday.

Photos are now available of the fighters, Click HERE to Download. Mandatory photo credit: Mark Robinson Photography/Matchroom Boxing.

Crolla welcomes Linares into his hometown fortress where he’s been so impressive in his last two outings – unleashing a pair of fiendish bodyshots to KO Darleys Perez to win the WBA crown in November and then destroyed the dangerous Ismael Barroso in May.

Linares wowed UK fight fans with his epic rollercoaster battle with Kevin “Mitghy” Mitchell at The O2 last May, climbing off the canvas in the fifth round before stopping the Londoner in the tenth.

Linares’ clash with Crolla is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield. Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.

Below is what the fighters had to say about their upcoming mega-fight:

JORGE “EL NINO DE ORO” LINARES, WBC Lightweight World Champion:

“I’m excited to be here. Believe it or not, I feel like I’m at home because the fans received me well.

“We’ve been here before, on a similar stage, when we fought Kevin Mitchell. Manchester is different, but the love and respect I’m getting is admirable.

“It’s a special night. It’ll be a war, and that’s what we’re prepared for. It’s something very special what Crolla and I are doing, it’s something we love to do, and we’re proud representing. That’s what’s going to steal the show and give the fans a beautiful fight.

“Every fight you learn more and gain experience. I feel much better than I did with Mitchell – I’ve had a better camp with more sparring, more conditioning.”

ANTHONY “MILLION DOLLAR” CROLLA, WBA Lightweight World Champion:

“I rate Linares very highly, he’s technically brilliant. Everyone in the gym loves to watch him fight, and he’s the kind of fighter young kids should watch.

“He likes to fight at his pace and I can’t allow that. I don’t want to give too much away, but I’ve got to take advantage of some weaknesses that I think I’ve seen there. I’m confident I can do that.

“I’ve got to be switched on from the opening bell. He’s a very good counter-puncher, so I know I can’t be lazy at any stage. But I genuinely believe I’ll have an answer for whatever he shows me.

“I thought a lot of his win over Kevin was down more to Kevin’s eye getting so bad really. Jorge has had better performances than that, he looked good last time out again Ivan Cano, but I can take a lot from Kevin’s fight. Kevin and I are different fighters but he put on a great performance and was seconds away from winning really, but Jorge dragged himself off the floor and came from behind to get the stoppage and that’s what true champions do. It was a great fight.”

Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares is a 12-round fight for the WBA, WBC Diamond and the Ring Magazine Lightweight World Championships presented by Matchroom Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Akihiko Honda’s Teiken Boxing Gym.

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.- September 20, 2016 – One of the most anticipated bouts in boxing will take place this Saturday afternoon, September 24th as Anthony Crolla and Jorge Linares will square off for the WBA/WBC Diamond/Ring Magazine Lightweight championship that will be televised LIVE on AWE-A WEALTH OF ENTERTAINMENT & www.klowdtv.com

The start time of the show will be 2:30 PM ET / 11:30 AM PT.

Fans who do not have AWE, can access the channel via www.klowdtv.com

www.klowdtv.com will be FREE for the month of September, so boxing fans can witness this can’t miss fight on Saturday.

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

Anthony Crolla says he’s Jorge Linares is the best fighter he’s faced – but believes there are flaws he can exploit as they clash for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring magazine Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena on Saturday night, live on Sky Sports.

Crolla welcomes Linares into his hometown fortress where he’s been so impressive in his last two outing – unleashing a pair of fiendish bodyshots to KO Darleys Perez to win the WBA crown in November and then destroy the dangerous Ismael Barroso in May.

‘Million Dollar’ would love to complete a hat-trick of KO wins in consecutive World title fights, but knows the three-weight Venezuelan star represents his hardest job to date in the paid ranks.

Linares wowed UK fight fans with his epic rollercoaster battle with Kevin Mitchell at The O2 last May, climbing off the canvas in the fifth round before stopping the Londoner in the tenth.

Crolla and his Joe Gallagher gym-mates are all fans of the visitor, but Crolla believes that Mitchell’s ding-dong battle with El Nino de Oro showed vulnerabilities that Crolla can take advantage of to secure another momentous win.

“I rate Linares very highly,” said Crolla. “He’s technically brilliant. Everyone in the gym loves to watch him fight, and he’s the kind of fighter young kids should watch.

“He likes to fight at his pace and I can’t allow that. I don’t want to give too much away, but I’ve got to take advantage of some weaknesses that I think I’ve seen there. I’m confident I can do that.

“I’ve got to be switched on from the opening bell. He’s a very good counter-puncher, so I know I can’t be lazy at any stage. But I genuinely believe I’ll have an answer for whatever he shows me.

“I thought a lot of his win over Kevin was down more to Kevin’s eye getting so bad really. Jorge has had better performances than that, he looked good last time out again Ivan Cano, but I can take a lot from Kevin’s fight. Kevin and I are different fighters but he put on a great performance and was seconds away from winning really, but Jorge dragged himself off the floor and came from behind to get the stoppage and that’s what true champions do. It was a great fight.

“I’m going to have to exchange with him at times and I’m going to have to be cute and make him fall short. Kevin showed that he has weaknesses and there will be times that we trade but I’ve been working hard on my boxing ability and my angles because he’s too good to walk in straight lines, I have to use my brain in the fight – I’ve got to drag every last ounce out of myself to win, and that’s exactly what I am going to do.”

Linares’ clash with Crolla is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.

Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Jorge Linares has told Anthony Crolla that his fans cannot help him in their unification blockbuster for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring magazine Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena on Saturday September 24, live on Sky Sports.

Three-weight World king Linares brings his all-action style to Manchester for the mouth-watering contest, as he looks to halt Crolla’s remarkable rise to the top of the 135lbs division.

‘Million Dollar’ has thrilled the Manchester Arena with stunning wins over Darleys Perez and Ismael Barroso in the last year, and is aiming to cement his place as the number one fighter in the division in his latest outing at the famous fighting fortress.

Linares has other ideas though, and the Venezuelan star plans to wreck Crolla’s run and use all of his experience of winning huge fights all around the world on his latest visit to England, having beaten Kevin Mitchell in an epic battle at The O2 in London in May 2015.

“I love fighting in my opponent’s back yard with all the noise that comes with it from their fans,” said Linares. “The supporters cannot get in the ring with their fighter, it’s just me and him.

“When I first started to fight all over the world it took some time to adjust but now, it’s easy and I am confident doing it.

“The fans are excited for this one. We’re both World class fighters and World champions that are willing to fight each other, as we’re proving in this one. There’s no need to trash talk or build the fight up, it’s a great fight and there’s lots of respect between us.

“The best fighter on the night is going to win, and I think that’s going to be me.”

Linares’ clash with Crolla is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.

Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, Isaac Lowe defends his Commonwealth Featherweight title against Tshifhiwa Munyai, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks with an appearance first at The O2 in London on September 10.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF.- September 6, 2016 – One of the most anticipated bouts in boxing will take place on Saturday afternoon, September 24th as Anthony Crolla and Jorge Linares will square off for the WBA/WBC Diamond/Ring Magazine Lightweight championship that will be televised LIVE on AWE-A WEALTH OF ENTERTAINMENT.

For boxing fans who don’t have AWE, you are in luck because the fight will be streamed live on www.klowdtv.com

“We are thrilled to be able to show this major bout. This is for the lightweight championship of the world and we have two great champions willing to put it on the line. This fight is for supremacy and the fans will see a great fight on September 24,”said AWE President, Charles Herring.

“If your cable system doesn’t carry AWE, we’re offering the fight to everyone in the United States via www.Klowdtv.com. KlowdTV is a new 24/7 streaming service that offers AWE and this upcoming unification world title fight, plus several other great channels including Fight Network, GolTV, FNTSY Sports, and other exciting sports programming. We’re ecstatic to be able to service all boxing fans across the country via KlowdTV as we continue to showcase the best fights from all over the world.”

The monthly cost of www.klowdtv.com is just $7.99 and with that, fans can enjoy a total of fourteen channels currently with more slated to join the lineup this month. KlowdTV is offering a free viewing during the entire month of September.

Crolla of Manchester, England has a record of 31-4-3 with 13 knockouts.

He turned professional on October 14, 2006 with a win over Abdul Rashid (1-0).

The 29 year-old has amassed wins over 4-time world title challenger Michael Brodie (36-3-1), Andy Morris (19-3), John Watson (13-1), Willie Limond (34-3), Syephen Jennings (5-1-1), Kieran Farrell (14-0), former Junior Welterweight world champion Gavis Rees (37-2-1), Stephen Foster (31-4-1) & Former world title challenger John Murray (33-2).

On November 21, 2015 he won the WBA Lightweight title with a one-punch body shot knockout over reigning champion Darleys Perez (32-1-1).which thrilled his hometown fans at the Manchester Arena.

On May 7th, Crolla scored an exciting 7th round stoppage over Ismael Barroso, when he landed yet another body shot to make his first title defense.

“Sometimes I pinch myself to see myself how I’ve got here,” Said Crolla “Everyone in the gym are fans of Jorge Linares and I think he’s a great fighter, but on the night that respect goes out the window and we’re fighting for one of the great prizes in the sport. The Arena is going to be rocking and that’s my house, and I want to keep those three belts in Manchester.

This is a legacy fight for me, every young kid wants to become a World Champion and I’ve done that now. I don’t want people to think I’ve settled with that, I’m hungrier than ever and I like the huge nights way too much to let it go now – I’m happy to win the belts and go to Vegas for the rematch though!

We’re working so, so hard in the gym because Jorge Linares is a phenomenal fighter, and I’m honoured to be fighting him in my house.

I’ve done that ring walk so many times in front of a huge crowd and you can’t beat that feeling, the energy the crowd will give me is going to help me produce the career-best performance I will need to beat Jorge Linares”

Linares of Tokyo, Japan via Barinas, Venezuela has been dubbed one of the most fluid fighters to watch. From the outset of his career, he was destined to be a world champion.

The 30 year-old Linares won his first 27 bouts which included capturing the WBA Featherweight title with a 10th round stoppage over classy defending champion Oscar Larios. Larios defended the belt twice with stoppages over future world champion Gamilel Diaz and Whyber Garcia.

Linares was stunningly stopped in one round by Juan Carlos Selgado. That loss prompted Linares to move up in weight and score wins over former world champions Francisco Lorenzo and Jesus Chavez as well as as multiple time world title challenger Rocky Juarez.

Linares then challenged for the WBC Lightweight title against Antonio DeMarco.

That bout, which took place on October 15, 2011 on the Bernard Hopkins – Chad Dawson Pay-Per-View undercard in Los Angeles, saw Linares dominate Demarco for ten rounds. Linares had an insurmountable lead until getting caught and stopped in round 11.

In his next bout, Linares was stopped by Sergio Thompson.

Linares is currently riding a 9-fight winning streak, which saw him win the WBC Lightweight championship with a 4th round stoppage over Javier Prieto. Linares has defended the belt twice with a 10th round stoppage over Kevin Mitchell in Mitchell’s home country of England.

In his last bout, Linares, stopped in 4 rounds on October 10, 2015 in Venezuela.

Said Linares, ” It’s another big fight and big event that I’m grateful to God to be a part of. It’s me second time in the UK, we have similar styles, there’s lots of respect between us and we’re working very hard because I know it’s going to be a tough fight but I want to win those belts.”

About AWE LIVE BOXING

AWE LIVE Boxing features live world title championship and elimination bouts showcasing today’s most exciting fighters. Since the inception of AWE’s live boxing events in 2011, and has featured over 50 world class title fight. AWE has earned multiple Boxing Writers Association of America nominations for “Fight of the Year” and has featured over thirty world class boxing events. In 2013, AWE showcased all live bouts featuring heavyweight David Price. AWE aired live the stunning upsets of Tony Thompson over David Price, along with Adonis Stevenson and Tony Bellew cards, who fought each other for the light Heavyweight championship; 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winner James DeGale. AWE brought boxing fans two of the most controversial bouts which saw Ricky Burns keep his Lightweight title against Ray Beltran. AWE fans have witnessed the explosive power of undefeated heavyweight Tyson Fury multiple times on the network, including Fury’s victory over Kevin Johnson. In 2014, AWE televised the crowning of lightweight champion Terence Crawford with his win over Burns as well as the exciting rematches between Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez along with Tony Bellew defeating Nathan Cleverly. In 2015, AWE brought boxing fans on of the most anticipated rematches of the year, Darleys Perez v. Anthony Crolla II for the WBA Lightweight World Title.

In 2016, AWE was the exclusive American boradcaster of Lucas Browne’s stunning knockout over Ruslan Chagaev to win the WBA Heavyweight title.

About AWE – A Wealth of Entertainment
A Wealth of Entertainment (“AWE”) features a wide range of lifestyles and entertainment programming from exotic travel and outrageous homes to live world championship boxing. AWE is featured on over a hundred cable providers, including AT&T U-Verse, ch 147 and 1147 in HD and Verizon FiOS TV, ch 169 and 669 in HD. For more information, please visit www.awetv.com.

Anthony Crolla MBE wants to create a boxing legacy – and says that begins by beating Jorge Linares when they clash for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring Magazine Lightweight World titles at the Manchester Arena on September 24, live on Sky Sports.

WBA king Crolla is hunting a third KO win in World title fights at his hometown fortress having landed brutal body shots to first rip the title from Darleys Perez in their November rematch and then destroy the avoided Ismael Barroso in his first defence in May.

‘Million Dollar’ believes the winner of his clash with three-weight World king Linares will prove they are the best Lightweight in the world, and the 29 year old says that he only wants to fight the best after achieving his World title dream.

“This is a legacy fight for me,” said Crolla. “Every young kid wants to become a World Champion and I’ve done that now. I don’t want people to think I’ve settled with that, I’m hungrier than ever and I like the huge nights way too much to let it go now – I’m happy to win the belts and go to Vegas for the rematch though!

“Sometimes I have to pinch myself to see myself at how I’ve got here. Everyone in the gym are fans of Jorge Linares – Callum Smith isn’t sure who to cheer for on the night! I think he’s a great fighter, but on the night that respect goes out the window and we’re fighting for one of the great prizes in the sport.

“The Arena is going to be rocking and that’s my house, and I want to keep those three belts in Manchester. We’re working so, so hard in the gym because Jorge Linares is a phenomenal fighter, and I’m honoured to be fighting him in my house.

“I’ve done that ring walk so many times in front of a huge crowd and you can’t beat that feeling, the energy the crowd will give me is going to help me produce the career-best performance I will need to beat Jorge Linares.”

Venezuelan star Linares is no stranger to English soil having beaten Kevin Mitchell in London in an epic battle for his WBC strap last May, and the 31 year old is delighted to be back in the UK and looking to add more hardware to his impressive collection.

“It’s another big fight and big event that I’m grateful to God to be a part of,” said Linares. “Anthony and I have similar styles, there’s lots of respect between us and we’re working very hard because I know it’s going to be a tough fight but I want to win those belts.”

A packed undercard in support of Crolla’s meeting with Linares includes John Ryder defending his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield, Isaac Lowe defends his Commonwealth Featherweight title against Tshifhiwa Munyai and Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks with an appearance first at The O2 in London on September 10.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Betting giants Betfred are the title sponsors of the blockbuster World Lightweight unification blockbuster between Anthony Crolla and Jorge Linares at the Manchester Arena on September 24, live on Sky Sports.

Manchester hero Crolla puts his WBA strap on the line as he seeks to continue his fairy-tale rise at the scene of his outstanding World title wins over Darleys Perez and Ismael Barroso, and now faces yet another huge night on his home patch against the three-weight World champion from Venezuela.

Linares puts his WBC Diamond belt on the line having defended it three times inside the distance, including his epic battle in London with Kevin “Mighty” Mitchell last May, climbing off the canvas to stop the hometown favourite in the tenth round of an epic contest that received acclaim as a 2015 Fight of the Year candidate.

The vacant Ring Magazine belt is also on the line in the mouth-watering contest where “Million Dollar” Crolla can become the first Englishman to win the Lightweight version on what promises to be another night of gripping drama in Manchester.

Betfred Chief Executive John Haddock said: “We are delighted to be sponsoring such a high profile night of boxing including what looks to be a cracking unification between two of the most exciting boxers around.”

Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn said: “I am delighted that Betfred are backing this massive night of boxing in Manchester. This is a real 50-50 clash to determine who is the best Lightweight in the World and the fans are in for a real treat on September 24.”

A packed undercard in support of Crolla’s meeting with Linares includes John Ryder defending his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield, Isaac Lowe defends his Commonwealth Featherweight title against Tshifhiwa Munyai and Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks with an appearance first at The O2 in London on September 10.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Conor Benn will be back in action in September when he appears on two huge World title unification bills – Gennady Golovkin vs. Kell Brook at The O2 in London on September 10 and Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares at the Manchester Arena on September 24.

Benn has made an impressive start to life in the paid ranks, making his debut at The O2 in April with a first round KO and added a second first round win in June at the same venue after going the four round distance with Luke Keleher in Glasgow in May.

The 19 year old’s appearances on Brook and Crolla’s special nights will make it five blockbuster World title nights that Benn has appeared on, but the son of British being legend Nigel insists he’s not looking at fighting for titles himself but concentrating on learning his craft.

“It’s brilliant being on these huge shows but I’m not complacent,” said Benn. “I know I have a lot to learn and a lot of improving to do. I want to have four more fights before the end of the year and then seven in 2017 – after that, I’ll be ready to start challenging for titles.

“I’m learning every day in the gym and being on the big shows and seeing how these top fighters like Anthony Joshua, Ricky Burns, Kell Brook and Anthony Crolla go about their business is invaluable to me.”

Benn’s outing in Manchester is part of a huge night of action as Crolla and Linares lock horns in a mouth-watering unification battle for the WBA and WBC Diamond World and Ring Magazine Lightweight Championships, with Isaac Lowe defending his Commonwealth Featherweight title against Tshifhiwa Munyai.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 and available from the Manchester Arena at www.manchester-arena.com or by calling 0844 847 8000. VIPs tickets are exclusively available through www.matchroomboxing.com priced at £250.

Information on tickets for Brook vs. Golovkin on September 10 also featuring a first World title shot for Charlie Edwards against IBF Flyweight champion Johnriel Casimero will be released tomorrow (July 12).