San Jose, Costa Rica (July 15, 2019) This Wednesday night, July 17, world ranked super featherweight O’Shaquie “Ice Water” Foster (15-2, 9 KOs), of Houston, TX, and undefeated heavyweight prospect Trey Lippe-Morrison (15-0, 15 KOs), of Tulsa, OK, will be in featured bouts from San Jose, Costa Rica, streamed live internationally on UFC FIGHT PASS®, the world’s leading digital subscription service for combat sports (8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT), as part of a stacked DiBella Entertainment Broadway Boxing event.
The card, held at the Gimnasio Nacional, is headlined by the highly anticipated homecoming of WBA Female Super Welterweight World Champion Hanna “La Amazona Black” Gabriels defending her title against undefeated challenger Abril Vidal (8-0, 3 KOs), of Neuquen, Argentina, scheduled for 10 rounds.
Following his final training session in the summer heat of Houston under the watchful eye of longtime trainer Bobby Benton, the 25-year-old Foster was excited to hit the ring again this Wednesday night against Jesus “Lightning” Bravo (19-1-1, 17 KOs), of Lima, Peru, competing for the WBA Fedecentro Super Featherweight Title in a 10-round contest.
“It’s a bit of a business trip, but I plan to make the most of it. I’ve never been to Costa Rica and I’m really looking forward to it,” said Foster, who returns to action following a third-round stoppage of Fatiou Fassinou on February 23, in Beaumont, TX.
“Ideally, after this fight, I’d like to challenge for a world title against any of the titleholders; Miguel Berchelt, Gervonta Davis, Tevin Farmer or Jamel Herring,” continued Foster, who is world ranked #10 by the World Boxing Council and holder of their Silver Super Featherweight Title. Foster seized the WBC Silver Title with a dominant victory against previously unbeaten Jon Fernandez on September 21, 2018.
Discussing his training camp for this fight, Foster stated, “I’m always in the gym, always learning. For this fight, it was about getting better each day, so when that world title opportunity comes, I’ll be ready. I sparred with Shakur Stevenson for this camp and we gave each other great work. We really pushed each other to become better with every round.”
The 24-year-old Bravo returns to battle following a second-round knockout of undefeated prospect Cesar Diaz on April 27, in Lima, Peru.
Trey Lippe-Morrison, the son of former heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison, has consistently turned heads since his pro debut with his show-stopping knockouts in all of his professional bouts. Fighting on Wednesday night in a scheduled eight-rounder, Lippe-Morrison will seek to keep his knockout streak intact against Pedro Martinez (10-1, 4 KOs), of Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela. The upset-minded Martinez will look to rebound from his first defeat against Artem Suslenko on March 23, in Russia.
Lippe-Morrison has finished up his training camp with Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach in Hollywood, CA, and is excited for the fight and to be traveling outside of the US for the first time.
“It’s an exciting journey for me. Most of my fights have been in Oklahoma, so this is a special opportunity to fight in Costa Rica. This has been my fourth camp with Freddie and I’m becoming a better boxer each time, always learning different things, not just focusing on a specific opponent but becoming a more well-rounded fighter.”
Speaking of his impressive knockout streak, Lippe-Morrison said, “It looks great on paper and I’m glad to finish impressively, but I never go into a fight thinking of when or how I’m going to stop the other fighter. I just do my thing, break down my opponent and if there’s an opportunity to finish inside the distance, I take advantage of it.
“For now, it’s just one fight at a time, keep learning, keep getting better and knowing that at the appropriate time, we’ll make a big move.”
Rounding out the UFC FIGHT PASS streaming event in an eight-round super welterweight clash, Abram Martinez (6-0, 5 KOs), of Las Vegas, NV, clashes with Jorge Mendez (4-4-1, 3 KOs), of Escazu, Costa Rica. The 23-year-old Martinez hits the ring following a first-round knockout of Carlos Cruz on March 17.
