Vasyl Lomachenko scored a sensational 4th round stoppage over Anthony Crolla to retain the WBA/WBO Lightweight titles in front of 10,101 fans at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Lomachenko was flawless as he took a couple of rounds to figure out Crolla, who did little more then move around the ring.  He started to ramp up the activity at the end of round two.  In round three, Lomachenko was credited with a knockdown as he landed a hard combination that referee Jack Reiss ruled that the ropes kept Crolla up.  In the next round, Lomachenko continued to batter Crolla until he landed a perfect right hook to the temple that sprawled Crolla face-first to the canvas and the fight was stopped at 49 seconds.

Lomachenko, 134.6 lbs of Ukraine is now 13-1 with 10 knockouts.  Crolla, 134.8 lbs of Manchester, UK is 34-7-3.

“I want to fight with Mikey Garcia, but we’ll see. I don’t know,” Lomachenko said. “I stay at 135 as long as it’s possible, and I want to unify all {the} titles.

Gilberto Ramirez announced himself to the light heavyweight division as he stopped Tommy Karpency at the end of round four of a scheduled ten-round bout.

Ramirez dominated the fight as he landed thunderous body work.  Ramirez was effective with the straight left that drew blood from Karpency’s nose.  Karpency could not continue at the end of the 4th frame citing a broken rib.

Ramirez, 174.6 lbs of Mazelton, MX is 40-o with 26 knockouts.  Karpency, 174.6 lbs of Adah, PA is 29-7-1.

“I feel more comfortable at 175 pounds than 168,” Ramirez said. “I’m looking for all the champions at 175. I want to be a pound-for-pound fighter.

“I struggled making 168 for a very long time. We’ll see what’s next, but my body felt great at 175. My new head trainer, Julian Chua, did an excellent job preparing me for this fight. Karpency was a tough guy.”

Arnold Barboza Jr. stopped former world champion Mike Alvarado in round three of a scheduled ten-round super lightweight bout.

Barboza rocked Alvarado with a hard right and knocked him down with a follow up punch.  Alvarado tried to get to his feet, but was wobbly and the fight was stopped at 49 seconds.

Barboza, 140 lbs of South El Monte, CA is 21-0 with eight knockouts.  Alvarado, 139 1/2 lbs of Denver, CO is 40-5.

“That was a good fight, and now I want Jose Ramirez. I want Maurice Hooker,” Barboza said. “That’s what I want in my future. Alvarado is a tough guy, and I stopped him in three rounds. Hopefully, this performance will catapult me to a world title opportunity. To perform like I did in front of my hometown fans, it doesn’t get better than that.”

Said Alvarado: “He caught me with a clean, surprising shot. He just caught me. It’s boxing. Some just sneak in and do the job, you know?”

Janibek Alimkhanuly won a 10-round unanimous decision over Cristian Olivas in a middleweight fight.

Alimkhanuly, 160 lbs of Almaty, KAZ won by scores of  100-90 twice and 99-91, and is now 6-0.  Olivas, 159 1/4 lbs of San Diego, CA is 16-5.

It was a short night at the office for Italian heavyweight Guido Vianello (3-0, 3 KOs), who knocked out Lawrence Gabriel (3-2-1, 2 KOs) at 49 seconds of the opening round. Vianello represented his homeland at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

“I believe this was my strongest performance to date, and I’m only going to get better and better,” Vianello said. “My power is improving with every fight.”

Guido Vianello destroyed Lawrence Gabriel inside of a minute of their scheduled six-round heavyweight bout.

Vianello landed a hard right that hurt Gabriel.  A few more hard shots put Gabriel down, and the fight was stopped in 49 seconds.

Vianello, 244 1/2 lbs of Rome, ITA is 3-0 with three knockouts.  Gabirel, 208 lbs of Syracuse, NY is 3-2-1.

Alexander Besputin won a 10-round unanimous decision over awkward Alfredo Blanco in a welterweight bout.

Besputin was cut over the right eye in the first frame from a couple of wild shots that got through from Blanco.

In round nine, he was cut on his forehead.

Those did not matter as Besputin landed hard and quick combinations, and won by scores of 100-90 twice and 99-91.

Besputin, 147 lbs of Oxnard, CA is now 13-0.  Blanco, 146 1/2 lbs of Pigue, ARG is 20-8.

“He had a very uncomfortable, awkward style, which made it difficult for me to find my rhythm,” Besputin said. “Most importantly, I got the win, and we can move on to bigger fights. I am a top contender now, and I am ready to fight for a world title next. Bob Arum says I can beat the top welterweights, and I know I can.”

Ruben Rodriguez won a four-round majority  decision over Rumel Snegur in a welterweight bout.

Scores were 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38.

Rodriguez, 144 3/4 lbs of Indio, CA won by scores of   and is now 6-0.  Snegur, 142 lbs of Portland, OR is 3-4-1.

LOS ANGELES (April 10, 2019) – WBO/WBA lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko came to Los Angeles to defend his titles. Anthony Crolla hopes to shock the world.

Lomachenko and Crolla faced off for the first time Wednesday at the final press conference two days before their STAPLES Center showdown, which will stream on ESPN+ starting at 11 p.m. EST/8 p.m. PST. In the co-feature, WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez will make his light heavyweight debut against Tommy Karpency in a 10-rounder.

And, in the featured bout on the undercard stream (ESPN+, 8 p.m. EST/5 p.m. PST), former 140-pound world champion Mike Alvarado will take on the unbeaten Arnold Barboza Jr. in a 10-rounder.

This is what the fighters and Top Rank chairman Bob Arum had to say.

Vasiliy Lomachenko

“I saw his fights with Linares. Anthony Crolla has a very defensive style. I have my strategy, and I plan on showing it Friday night. I will find the key to his defense. I have to be aggressive and throw a lot of punches. I want to win and I don’t like to lose. That is my motivation. I always think about the fans and putting on a show in the ring.”

“I need two more belts to become undisputed champion. In my next fight, maybe I will unify with Richard Commey. Everyone asks me about Mikey Garcia, but can he make 135? If he vacates his belt, we will see what happens. If he can cut the weight, I’m ready.”

Bob Arum

“I think this is going to be a very good and interesting fight, but I have to say that any Loma fight is worth watching. It’s the equivalent of watching Picasso do a painting. What a great thrill that would be. It’s a great thrill for people who love boxing to watch this guy fight. It’s something that’s unique. It’s something that we won’t see again for many years. All fans should come out and watch this because this is an artist at work.”

Anthony Crolla

“We always knew the April 12 date was penciled in with the Top Rank team for {IBF lightweight champion} Richard Commey to fight Vasiliy. We also knew it was a very quick turnaround from the Commey-Isa Chaniev fight {on Feb. 2}. I was watching it, and people think I had only seven weeks’ notice, but {trainer} Joe {Gallagher} always stresses the importance of staying in the gym, staying ready. A lot of people think to have only seven weeks to prepare for a guy like Lomachenko isn’t long, but we had a full 12-week camp just in case this popped up. And, lo and behold, after Commey stopped Chaniev, we saw an interview after the fight and his hand was wrapped up. And we thought, ‘Oh, there’s a chance of this happening. I’m thankful for the opportunity, like {Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn} said. And I prepared the best I possibly can. I’m in, without a doubt, the best shape of my life physically and mentally. That’s what it should be in a fight like this.”

“I’ve been loving it over here. I’ve trained here lots of times in the Wild Card and boxed in Las Vegas, but never in LA, so it’s brilliant to be fighting here.”

“This would be the pinnacle of my career and then some. I think we’ll see a bit of everything on the night. I know I am prepared to leave everything in the ring. I’ve got fans, family, friends and gym mates coming to LA to cheer for me and that just spurs me on even more.”

Gilberto Ramirez

“I feel very blessed for all that’s happened. It’s the right moment for me in my career. I am grateful.”

“I can’t wait to put on a great show at STAPLES Center. I’m ready to show the fans what I bring to the ring.”

“I know Tommy is an experienced guy, but if Bob gives me a big fight with Callum Smith at 168, I can make the weight. That would be a fantastic fight.”

Tommy Karpency

“I expect an action-packed fight. He’s an undefeated world champion moving up. I’ve fought a lot of world champions and elite challengers at light heavyweight. Also, I expect an action-packed fight because he lets his hands go and I let mine go a little bit. We’re both southpaws, so that makes for a better flow than righty versus lefty. And we’ll see what happens.”

“Any fight at this level, this is the best in boxing. It can catapult you to whatever. Options are endless {after} winning a fight like this. I’m really not looking past this. These are elite guys all around, so beating him is like beating a world champion from any other division. It’ll be a huge win and a huge opportunity.”

Arnold Barboza Jr.

“We know what Mike brings. I think his time has passed. It’s my time now. Friday night, you’re going to see what we’ve been working on. We’re going to showcase our skills.”

On a potential world title shot in the near future should he win

“This fight is everything to me. A win over Alvarado will assure me that I belong with the top guys. We’re ready to go on Friday.”

“I’m not getting caught up in the moment. At the end of the day, I’m here for business. We can worry about that after.”

Mike Alvarado

On his comeback to boxing after overcoming personal issues

“After God reinvented me and gave me another opportunity {at a} shot at peace, I could’ve never thought {I’d be here}, but being here makes sense. I was born, and I was meant to be here. I’m here, and I’m giving it another shot. I’m going after it.”

On if a win would lead to a world title shot

“I know getting past Barboza would open the doors up and would catapult me to that next level. I’m excited, and I’m focused, and I’ve been working hard. I had great preparation, so everyone will find out. Friday night.”

“It’s going to be a good fight. We’re going to put on a good show.”

ESPN+, 11 p.m. EST/8 p.m. PST

Vasiliy Lomachenko (champion) vs. Anthony Crolla (challenger), 12 rounds, Lomachenko’s WBO/WBA lightweight world titles

Gilberto Ramirez vs. Tommy Karpency, 10 rounds, light heavyweight

ESPN+, 8 p.m. EST/5 p.m. PST

Mike Alvarado vs. Arnold Barboza Jr., 10 rounds, Barboza’s NABF jr. super lightweight title

Alexander Besputin vs. Alfredo Blanco, 10 rounds, Besputin’s USBA welterweight title

Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Cristian Olivas, 10 rounds, vacant WBO Global and WBC Continental Americas middleweight titles

Guido Vianello vs. Lawrence Gabriel, 6 rounds, heavyweight

Ruben Rodriguez vs. Ramel Snegur, 6 rounds, welterweight

Christopher Zavala vs. Sergio Gonzalez, 4 rounds, super featherweight

Elvis Rodriguez vs. Kevin Luna, 4 rounds, super lightweight

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Matchroom Boxing USA, tickets priced at $310.50, $207, $103.50, $77.65, $51.75 and $25.90 (including facility fees) are available now and can be purchased by visiting AXS.com.

For more information visit: www.toprank.com, www.espn.com/boxing; Facebook:facebook.com/trboxing; Twitter: twitter.com/trboxing.

Use the hashtag #LomaCrolla to join the conversation on social media.

About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. It reached 2 million subscribers in less than a year and offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, along with premium editorial content.

Programming on ESPN+ includes hundreds of MLB and NHL games, exclusive UFC, Top Rank boxing and PFL fights and events, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, UEFA Nations League, EFL Championship, EFL Carabao Cup, Eredivisie, and more), thousands of college sports events (including football, basketball and other sports), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, new and exclusive series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and can cancel at any time.

ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. They are the industry-leading all-in-one digital sports platform, delivering a rich, personalized experience to tens of millions of fans every month.

LOS ANGELES (April 9, 2019) — WBA/WBO lightweight world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko felt right at home Tuesday at the Ukrainian Culture Center, site of Tuesday’s media workout. Lomachenko (12-1, 9 KOs) won a pair of Olympic gold medals (2008 and 2012) for his native Ukraine.

For the first time as a professional, Lomachenko will headline a STAPLES Center card, a short drive from his United States training base in Ventura County.

Lomachenko will defend his world titles against the hard-charging Anthony Crolla (34-6-3, 13 KOs), while longtime WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (39-0, 25 KOs) will dip his toe in the light heavyweight waters versus veteran Tommy Karpency (29-6-1, 18 KOs) in the 10-round co-feature.

Lomachenko-Crolla and Ramirez-Karpency will stream exclusively Friday, April 12 at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on ESPN+ — the leading multi-sport streaming service.

The undercard broadcast (ESPN+, 8 p.m. EST) will feature unbeaten 140-pound contender Arnold Barboza Jr. (20-0, 7 KOs) against former world champion Mike Alvarado (40-4, 28 KOs) in a 10-rounder and welterweight contender Alexander Besputin (12-0, 9 KOs) versus Alfredo Blanco (20-7, 11 KOs) in a 10-rounder for Besputin’s USBA belt. Besputin is ranked No. 1 in the world by the WBA.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Matchroom Boxing USA, tickets priced at $310.50, $207, $103.50, $77.65, $51.75 and $25.90 (including facility fees) are available now and can be purchased by visiting AXS.com.

Three days before taking center stage at STAPLES Center, this is what the fighters had to say.

Vasiliy Lomachenko

On fighting Crolla

“I anticipate a good and entertaining fight. I want to enjoy {myself} during the fight. All of my fights, I have enjoyed.”

“Before the fight, you’re nervous a little bit, but when you step in the ring, it’s your place. You step into your house, relax and enjoy the fight.”

On headlining in Los Angeles

“On April 12, I am going to show my best style and give the fans a great show. I am excited to fight at STAPLES Center. The fans in Los Angeles are special and appreciate my boxing style.”

On a potential Mikey Garcia fight

“I still want that fight, 100 percent, but it is up to Mikey. Can he cut the weight? I don’t know. But if he can make 135, I want to fight.”

“My goal is to unify all the titles. If it’s {IBF champion Richard} Commey later this year, that would be a great fight. Any champion, I would want to fight. I want IBF and WBC belts. I want to go down in history as a great champion.”

Anthony Crolla

“It’s been a long camp and the hardest of my career, physically and mentally, but I am in a great place and I’m raring to go.”

“He’s seen by many as the best fighter on the planet and I know that I have a huge challenge ahead of me, but these are the kinds of fights that I got into the sport for at the age of 10. I’ve dreamt about nights like this and it’s almost time.”

“He’s a very unique fighter, his movement is exceptional and he creates great angles. You can see what all the praise is about. He’s one of the greatest amateurs ever and he’s taken that into the pro ranks. It’s unbelievable what he’s done in a short space of time in the pros, but I am here not just to test myself against the very best but to give it everything I have to shock the world.”

“People aren’t giving me a chance, but that doesn’t matter to me. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. The motivation to me is attaching my name to one of the biggest upsets in British boxing history, without a doubt, and I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn there. As a boxing fan and someone that lives and breathes the sport, that’s all the motivation I need. I’ve been the underdog all throughout my career and I know that this is by far the biggest challenge I’ve faced, but it’s one I can’t wait to get stuck into.”

“I’ve boxed at the elite level before, I’ve been boxing at the world title level for years and I’ve earned this shot, it’s not been given to me. I know that I have to pull off something massive, but I do belong at this level and I’ll prove it. I won’t be in awe. I’ve worked far too hard to let that happen and I am confident. It’s just me and him in the ring. Like any sport you need that little bit of luck, but I have worked immensely hard to get as lucky as I can, but we’re going in with a good game plan and I cannot be better prepared.”

Gilberto Ramirez

On his move to 175 pounds

“It had become more difficult for me to make 168 pounds. I spent most of my career at that weight and my body was maturing. I’d return to super middleweight if there was a really big fight available to me, like Canelo or Golovkin.”

On working with new trainers Julian Chua and Joel Flores

“I have changed my entire team. This is a new beginning for me. Julian and Joel have brought a new element to my game. and the result of this training will show on April 12.”

“I was the first Mexican fighter to win a super middleweight world title. Now, I want to become the second Mexican to win a light heavyweight world title {the late Julio Gonzalez was the first}. I want to make history in boxing. Whether it’s at 168 or 175 pounds, the future is bright for me.”

Arnold Barboza Jr.

“This is a great fight for me on a great stage like the STAPLES Center and against a warrior like Mike Alvarado. He is a great fighter, but I come well prepared and ready to win this fight.”

“We accepted this fight because I want to show the world that I am ready for the big fights. I want to show that I am ready to fight for a world title. I want to face the guy from Fresno. I want to take the title from Jose Ramirez or Maurice Hooker. ”

Mike Alvarado

On the irony of being the veteran fighting the young contender

“I was thinking about that the other day. I was fighting Cesar Bazan on the Margarito-Cotto 1 undercard in Las Vegas. I was like, “This guy is hungry.’ I knew then and there that I have to be more focused and dial in with my technique.”

On what he expects from Barboza

“He’s going to try and be real crafty and slick and whatnot. He’s going to have to put on his goggles because we’re going into deep waters. I’m going to bring in a different type of tactic, a whole different type of technique along with relentless pressure.”

On returning to a big stage near the top of the bill

“It means a lot. I know in my heart that I’m ready for it. I deserve it. I’ve won six in a row, and I’ve earned my way back to this level. This fight will solidify that I’m ready to be a world champion again.”

Alexander Besputin

“I am the WBA’s top contender, and I want a title shot soon. This is a great opportunity for me on a big card to show everyone why I am a top welterweight. After I win this fight, I want all the big names. The time for me is now.”

“I am not overlooking Alfredo Blanco. He has won four fights in a row and views me as his shot to earn a top world ranking.”

“I hope to see my Russian fans at STAPLES Center on Friday. It’s been a long time since I’ve fought in Los Angeles. Los Angeles has some of the greatest fans in the world, and I want to put on a show for them.”

About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. It reached 2 million subscribers in less than a year and offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, along with premium editorial content.

Programming on ESPN+ includes hundreds of MLB and NHL games, exclusive UFC, Top Rank boxing and PFL fights and events, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, UEFA Nations League, EFL Championship, EFL Carabao Cup, Eredivisie, and more), thousands of college sports events (including football, basketball and other sports), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, new and exclusive series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and can cancel at any time.

ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. They are the industry-leading all-in-one digital sports platform, delivering a rich, personalized experience to tens of millions of fans every month.

LOS ANGELES (March 18, 2019) —Undefeated super lightweight Arnold Barboza Jr. is a young contender closing in on a world title shot. Mike Alvarado wants another taste of world championship glory. Barboza, from South El Monte, California, will take on former 140-pound world champion Alvarado in a 10-round super lightweight bout on Friday, April 12 at Staples Center as part of the Vasiliy Lomachenko-Anthony Crolla undercard.

Lomachenko-Crolla and the 10-round light heavyweight battle between longtime WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto Ramirez and Tommy Karpency will stream live and exclusively in the United States beginning at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on ESPN+, the direct-to-consumer sports streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment and ESPN, which will mark its one-year anniversary since launching on the day of the fight. The entire undercard, including Barboza-Alvarado, will stream live on ESPN+ starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Matchroom Boxing USA, tickets priced at $310.50, $207, $103.50, $77.65, and $51.75 (including facility fees) are available now and can be purchased by visiting AXS.com.

“I am excited for this opportunity. We know it’s a dangerous fight and that Alvarado possesses power in both hands, but we are going to be ready for whatever he brings,” Barboza said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve fought at home, but I am ecstatic to fight here at Staples Center. It’s a dream come true. We are also excited to fight a former world champion like Mike, and we know he is going to be at his best.”

“Fighting on this card is an honor, and come April 12, the world is in for an exciting show,” Alvarado said. “I’m taking full advantage of this opportunity to bring me one step closer to securing my legacy as a champion.”

Barboza (20-0, 7 KOs), ranked No 3 by the WBO at 140 pounds, turned pro following a 95-fight amateur career and a stint as a fullback/linebacker at South El Monte High School. He went 3-0 in 2018, including a hard-fought 10-round decision over Mike Reed (23-1 at the time). In Alvarado (40-4, 28 KOs), he is facing a modern-day action hero who has thrilled boxing fans with his willingness to go toe-to-toe. He was one half of the 2012 Fight of the Year versus Brandon Rios, won by Rios via seventh-round TKO. Alvarado scored a unanimous decision in the immediate rematch but proceeded to lose three in a row versus Ruslan Provodnikov, Juan Manuel Marquez, and Rios in the rubber match.

After overcoming personal demons, Alvarado returned to the ring in March 2016 ready for one final run. Since then, he is 6-0 with 5 knockouts. In his previous bout, Oct. 13 on the Terence Crawford-Jose Benavidez Jr. undercard, he blasted out Robbie Cannon with a vicious overhand right in the second round.

Also on the card:

Top welterweight contender Alexander Besputin (12-0, 9 KOs) will defend his USBA title against Alfredo Blanco (20-7, 11 KOs) in a 10-rounder. Besputin is currently ranked No. 1 by the WBA.

“I am a top welterweight, and now that I’m ranked No. 1 by the WBA, I can’t be avoided by the champions for long,” Besputin said. “I am ready to put the welterweight division on notice.”

Janibek Alimkhanuly (5-0, 2 KOs), a former amateur standout from Kazakhstan, will face the rugged Cristian Olivas (16-4, 13 KOs) in a 10-rounder for the vacant WBO Global and WBC Continental Americas middleweight belts. Two of Olivas’ four losses have come via split decision, and he has never been knocked out as a pro.

“I am training hard with Buddy McGirt, and I know that Olivas is a tough customer who will come forward and make for a great fight,” Alimkhanuly said. “It is a dream come true to fight at Staples Center, and I want to give all of the great fans in Los Angeles a spectacular show. I will show everyone what Qazaq boxing style is all about.”

Super middleweight contender and three-time Indian Olympian Vijender Singh (10-0, 7 KOs) will make his United States debut against Calvin Metcalf (9-1-1, 2 KOs) in an eight-rounder. Singh captured a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics, becoming the first Indian boxer to claim an Olympic medal.

Italian heavyweight Guido “The Gladiator” Vianello (2-0, 2 KOs), who represented his homeland at the 2016 Rio Olympics, will fight Lawrence Gabriel (3-1-1, 2 KOs) in a six-rounder.

Los Angeles native Chris “The Boy” Zavala (3-0, 2 KOs) will face Sergio Gonzales (2-2, 1 KO) in a four-rounder at super featherweight.

Dominican-born bantamweight prospect Elvis Rodriguez (1-0, 1 KO) will take on Kevin Luna (1-2, 1 KO) in a four-rounder.

To subscribe to ESPN+, visit www.espnplus.com.

About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. It reached 2 million subscribers in less than a year and offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, along with premium editorial content.

Programming on ESPN+ includes hundreds of MLB and NHL games, exclusive UFC and Top Rank boxing events, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, UEFA Nations League, EFL Championship, EFL Carabao Cup, Eredivisie, and more), thousands of college sports events (including football, basketball and other sports), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, new and exclusive series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and cancel at any time.

ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. They are the industry-leading all-in-one digital sports platform, delivering a rich, personalized experience to tens of millions of fans every month.

OMAHA, Neb. (Oct. 1, 2018) — Shakur Stevenson, the 2016 U.S. Olympic silver medalist, will face his steepest test as a professional when he takes on Duarn “The Storm” Vue for the vacant WBC Continental Americas featherweight title on Saturday, Oct. 13 at the CHI Health Center Omaha. Stevenson vs. Vue will be televised on ESPN at 10:30 p.m. ET before pound-for-pound great Terence Crawford’s WBO welterweight title defense against Jose Benavidez Jr.

All undercard bouts will stream live in the United States at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+ – the new multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN.

Promoted by Top Rank, tickets to this world championship event are on sale now. Remaining tickets, priced at $178, $103, $63, and $38, not including applicable fees, can be purchased at the CHI Health Center Omaha box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 800-745-3000, or online at ticketmaster.com.

“The world is going to see the real Shakur Stevenson on Oct. 13,” Stevenson said. “With my team, Top Rank, and ESPN behind me, I should be world champion in 2019.”

“I am very thankful for this opportunity,” said Vue, who is promoted by Greg Cohen Promotions and Supreme Hits. “Get ready because ‘The Storm’ is coming!”

Stevenson (8-0, 4 KOs) was one of the most highly touted amateurs coming out of the 2016 Olympics, and less than 18 months since turning pro, he has acclimated seamlessly to the paid ranks. He is 4-0 thus far in 2018, including second-round stoppages against Roxberg Patrick Riley and Aelio Mesquita. The Mesquita victory included five knockdowns and came on the undercard of Crawford’s title-winning June 9 stoppage victory against Jeff Horn in Las Vegas. In his most recent bout, Aug. 18 in Atlantic City, N.J., Stevenson scored an eight-round unanimous decision against Carlos Ruiz, who has never been stopped as a professional.

Vue (14-1-2, 4 KOs), from Madison, Wis., is 2-0 since his only defeat, an eight-round unanimous decision loss to Alejandro Salinas. In his last bout, April 28 in Oshkosh, Wi., he notched a 12-round unanimous decision versus former WBA super bantamweight world champion Nehomar Cermeño.

The ESPN+ undercard broadcast is as followed:
Mikaela Mayer (7-0, 4 KOs) will take on fellow unbeaten Vanessa Bradford (4-0-2, 0 KOs) in an eight-rounder for the vacant NABF super featherweight title. Mayer is coming off a third-round stoppage on Aug. 25 against former world title challenger Edina Kiss.

Carlos “El Caballo Bronco” Adames (14-0, 11 KOs) will face Josh “Young Gun” Conley (14-2-1, 9 KOs) in a 10-rounder for the vacant NABF super welterweight title. Adames last fought as the ESPN co-feature May 12 on the Vasiliy Lomachenko-Jorge Linares card, winning a unanimous decision against Alejandro Barrera.

Former 140-pound world champion Mike Alvarado (39-4, 27 KOs) will look to make it six wins in a row when he faces Robbie Cannon (16-13-3, 7 KOs) in a 10-round welterweight fight.

Omaha native Steve “So Cold” Nelson (11-0, 9 KOs) will clash with the durable Oscar Riojas (17-10-1, 6 KOs) in an eight-round light heavyweight bout.

Ismail “Sharp Shooter” Muwendo (19-1, 12 KOs) will look to rebound from his first career defeat against Andre Wilson (15-11-1, 12 KOs) in an eight-rounder at lightweight.

Welterweight prospect Keeshawn Williams (3-0-1, 1 KO) will fight Ramel Snegur (2-2-1, 1 KO) in a four-rounder.

Seattle native and amateur standout Jose Valenzuela will make his pro debut in a four-round super featherweight bout.
For more information visit: www.toprank.com, www.espn.com/boxing; Facebook: facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/espndeportes; Twitter: twitter.com/trboxing.

Use the hashtag #CrawfordBenavidez to join the conversation on social media.

About ESPN+

ESPN+ is the premium multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International (DTCI) segment in conjunction with ESPN. ESPN+ offers fans two exclusive, original boxing programs The Boxing Beat with Dan Rafael (Tuesdays, weekly) and In This Corner (twice monthly). In addition to exclusive Top Rank boxing content, programming on ESPN+ includes hundreds of MLB, NHL and MLS games, thousands of college sports events (including football, basketball and multiple other sports from more than 15 conferences), UFC (beginning in 2019), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby, cricket, new and exclusive documentary films and series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and cancel at any time.

Gilberto Ramirez defended the WBO super middleweight championship with a 12-round unanimous decision over Alexis Angulo at The Chesapeake Energy Center in Oklahoma City.

Ramirez was more consistent throughout the affair as he boxed nicely, while the challenger seemed to be looking for one shot that would turn the tide. Angulo got in a few decent power shots, but it was not enough as Ramirez took the bout 120-108 and 119-109 twice.

Ramirez of Mazaltan, MEX is now 38-0. Angulo of Bogota, COL is 23-1.

Alex Saucedo stopped Lenny Zappavigna in a seven furious round in a junior welterweight bout.

In round two, Zappavigna was cut around the right eye.  In round three, Saucedo landed a big right that dropped Zappavigna to a knee.  In round four, Zappavigna landed about 10 hard and flush right hand that opened up a bad cut around the right eye of Saucedo.  Saucedo showed a tremendous chin in order to survive the round.

Zappavigna was bleeding very badly around both eyes, tried but kept getting drilled with overhand rights and finally bowed out of the fight at 2:31 of round seven.

Saucedo of Oklahoma City is 28-0 with 18 knockouts.  Zappavigna of Leppington, AUS is 37-4.

Said Saucedo, “Tonight I proved it. That was a very tough 4th round, but I got through it because I’m mentally strong. It was a very long training camp and I thought of all the sacrifices I made to prepare for this fight. I did it. I got a big win against a great fighter and in front of my fans. We gave them an exciting fight. Now I’m ready to move on to bigger and better things. I want to become a world champion”

Robson Conceicao registered five knockdowns en-route to a 3rd round stoppage over Gavino Guaman in a scheduled six-round super featherweight bout. 

The end came at 53 seconds for Conceicao of Bahia, BRA, who is now 8-0 with 5 knockouts.  Guaman of River Falls, WI is 5-3.

Conceicao dropped Guaman twice in round one.  Conceicao dropped Guaman twice more in round two

Mikaela Mayer scored a 2nd round knockdown en-route to a six-round unanimous decision over Sheena Kaine in a lightweight bout

In round two, Mayer dropped Kaine with a perfect right to the jaw

Mayer of Los Angeles won by scores of 60-53 on all cards to raise her mark to 6-0.  Kaine of Edmonton, CAN is 5-1.

“It was definitely a different fight than I’ve ever had. She was taller than me and had more strength than most of the girls I’ve fought. She’s not technically sound, but when she did throw her shots, it was a good things my hands were up because I could definitely feel them. This was a great learning experience,” said Mayer

Trey Lippe Morrison kept his perfect knockout record intact by dropping five inside of three rounds of their heavyweight bout.

In round one, Morrison dropped Polley with a right hand.  Morrison dropped Polley with a perfect straight right to the head which caused a cut over his left eye.  Morrison sent Polley to the canvas in round two with another right hand.  In round three, it was a left that sent Polley down for a 4th time.  Morrison finished the deal with a leaping left hook that was reminiscent of his father, Tommy Morrison that left Polley flat on his back, and the fight was stopped at 1:39.

Morrison of Tulsa, Oklahoma is 15-0 with 15 knockouts.  Polley of St. Joseph, MO is 30-23-1.

“I was looking for some big shots in the first round that I shouldn’t have been. I saw that right hand was really hurting him, so I tried to throw that a little more than I probably should have. In the third round, I tried to pace myself and box a little more, rely on my jab. When the jab started hitting him, I started seeing other openings off my jab,” said Morrison.  “This was the most amazing experience of my life. Not only was it in front of my home crowd, but it was in the {Oklahoma City} Thunder arena. I grew up being a big sports fan, basketball, football. Just to be able to know I stood in the ring where Russell Westbrook and everyone runs down, that’s amazing to me.”

Former world champion Mike Alvarado stopped Martin Angel Martinez after round nine of their scheduled 10-round welterweight bout.

Alvarado was cut on the forehead, while Martinez was cut over the left eye.

The cut on Martinez was dripping badly as the 9th round came to a close and the bout was stopped after the round.

Alvarado of Denver, CO is 39-4 with 27 knockouts. Martinez of Empalme, MEX is 17-15-1.

“I felt like I did good. I was strong. It’s just that he was real awkward. I had been off for a long time, and I know what adjustments I have to make. I know what I got to do when I get back in the gym. I’m fine. I’ll be good. I’ll redeem myself. Time to get back to business,” said Alvarado

Christopher Zavala made a successful pro debut with a four-round unanimous deicison over Tyler Pacheco in a super featherweight bout.

Zavala of Los Angeles won on two cards by 40-35 scores while a 3rd card was 39-36. Pacheco of Abilene, Texas is 1-2.

“This was my first experience as a pro fighter. The atmosphere is different. I’m ready and hungry to keep improving with each fight that passes. I’m happy with my performance, but I know that I can do better. It was a good learning experience and it will help me to continue to grow as a fighter,” said Zavala

Aaron Morales remained undefeated by winning a four-round unanimous decision over David Martino in a bantamweight bout.

Morales, 118 1/4 lbs of Oklahoma City won by scores of 40-36 on all cards and is now 3-0. Martino, 118 1/2 lbs of San Felipe, MEX is 5-5

OKLAHOMA CITY (June 27, 2018) – The Azteca Boxing Gym in Oklahoma City hosted a media workout for the biggest fight card to hit the city in years.

In the main event, Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (37-0, 25 KOs) will defend the WBO super middleweight title against fellow unbeaten Alexis Angulo (23-0, 20 KOs). And, in the special co-feature, Oklahoma City native Alex “El Cholo” Saucedo (27-0, 17 KOs) will fight veteran Lenny Zappavigna (37-3, 27 KOs) in a 140-pound slugfest.

Ramirez-Angulo, Saucedo-Zappavigna, and Robson Conceicao-Gavino Guaman will be televised live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at 9 p.m. ET. The undercard (6:15 p.m. ET, ESPN+) will include appearances by Mike Alvarado, female fighting sensation Mikaela Mayer, and heavyweight knockout artist and Oklahoma native Trey Lippe Morrison.

This is what the fighters had to say.

Gilberto Ramirez

“I am very excited to be in Oklahoma because since I arrived in the city I have been feeling the love and good vibes of my countrymen, from the fans and from the family of Saucedo. Everyone has shown their support.”

“The weather in OKC is like the warm weather of my hometown of Mazatlan, Mexico.”

“I feel that there will be a lot of Mexicans fans supporting me in the arena on Saturday night and that motivates me a lot. I come well prepared to defend my title and bring it back to my country.”

“I want to give the fans a good fight, and I want to show that I am the best fighter in the division.”

Alex Saucedo

“I grew up on the south side of town, right near the arena, so this is truly a homecoming for me. I used to ride my bike past the arena and go to basketball games and monster truck events here. I can’t wait to get in there, get the win, and feel the support of the home fans. It has been a long time coming.”

“I want any of the champions at 140 pounds. I want a title shot, and I know beating Lenny Z will help me earn a title shot.”

“I had a 12-week training camp in Big Bear, which was the longest camp of my career. All I did was eat, sleep, and train. In order to become a champion you have to make the sacrifices. I put in the work alongside my trainer, Abel Sanchez.”

Alexis Angulo

“I’ll give my best. I can assure that the fans will be very happy with the fight. We’ve worked to take the title to Colombia. It’s a long trip and it’s been a strong preparation, so taking the title home is the least we expect.”

“Ramirez is a great world champion, which is why I think it will be an interesting fight. I’m sure he will also be prepared to give his best. I know it will be an excellent fight.”

Lenny Zappavigna

“This is a great fight. Out of all my fights, this is one of the ones I’m really excited about. ESPN, it’s on a great card. Winning this fight will give me great opportunities after. This is massive for me. This is a fight I need to win to get back there on top of the world.”

“When you overcome {a hostile environment} to win, it makes it that much better. That gives me more adrenaline. It’ll be good. The crowd will be there for Saucedo, as they should be. When this opportunity came my way, I knew what I was up against. I’m ready.”

Mikaela Mayer

“Boxing is repetition, so we’re working on the same things we did last camp. {Trainer Al Mitchell} really wants me to start sitting down on my punches, stay behind my jab, and make the small but really important changes from the amateurs.”

“My opponent {Sheena Kaine} is the tallest fighter I’ve faced as a pro. I might be looking up a little bit this time around. I like fighting tall people. They’re open. She seems to be pretty straight up.”

Trey Lippe Morrison

“I’m so excited. Not only is the fight in Oklahoma, but it’s in the biggest arena. Just to step foot on the floor where the Oklahoma City Thunder play is incredible.”

“The hand injury kind of sucked and was kind of awesome at the same time. It sucked because I was out for so long, but it was awesome because I had a chance to learn. I never took any time off at the beginning of my pro career. The whole time my left hand was in a cast, I used my right. I worked on a lot of things that I needed to learn, since I didn’t have an amateur career. I’ve improved a lot, and I can’t wait to demonstrate it on Saturday.”

“I’m lucky my father {Tommy Morrison} did what he did. I admit I wouldn’t have much of a following if it wasn’t for him. I’d have to come up the same way any other fighter does. For me, as far as getting fans, it’s been a little easier because of who my dad was.”

Mike Alvarado

“My passion to have another opportunity in what I love to do is driving me. I’ve always loved boxing. I’ve cleaned my life up. I’ve had a lot of ups and downs and crazy episodes in my life that took a lot to overcome. I did it, and I praise myself and praise God. As I surrendered my life over to him, he opened the door. I am doing what I’m meant to do. I’m doing it 100 percent now.”

“I’ve always had the heart. I’ve always had the natural warrior in me. I know how to go to war. I know how to fight with all of my heart. That’s just the way I was raised and the type of person I am. I’ve released all of the distractions from my life. I’m more content.”

Robson Conceicao

“I fight for my Brazilian people, and I am looking forward to showcasing my talents on ESPN. This is an opportunity for boxing fans to see the real Robson Conceicao.”

“Brazil won today {2-0 over Serbia} in the World Cup, and just like my countrymen, I will be victorious come Saturday night.”

Promoted by Top Rank, tickets to this world championship extravaganza are ON SALE NOW. Priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25, not including facility and service fees, tickets may be purchased at the Chesapeake Energy Arena box office, online at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster outlets or by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

About ESPN+

ESPN+ is the first-ever multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN. ESPN+ offers fans two exclusive, original boxing programs The Boxing Beat with Dan Rafael (Tuesdays) and In This Corner (twice monthly). In addition to boxing content, fans can watch thousands of additional live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks. This includes hundreds of MLB, NHL and MLS games, Grand Slam tennis, Top Rank boxing, PGA TOUR golf, college sports, international rugby, cricket, the full library of ESPN Films (including 30 for 30) and more. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and cancel at any time.

# # #

OKLAHOMA CITY (June 15, 2018) — Former WBO junior welterweight champion Mike Alvarado, female fighting sensation Mikaela Mayer, and 2016 Olympic gold medalist Robson Conceicao will see action on the June 30 undercard at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City. The card will be headlined by WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez’s title defense against Alexis Angulo and 140-pound contender Alex Saucedo’s homecoming bout against the hard-hitting Lenny Zappavigna.

Alvarado (38-4, 26 KOs) will fight Martin Martinez (17-4-1-1, 10 KOs) in a 10-round welterweight bout, Mayer (5-0, 3 KOs) will face fellow unbeaten Sheena Kaine (5-0, 1 KO) in a six-round lightweight contest, and Conceicao (7-0, 4 KOs) will take on Gavino Guaman (5-2, 1 KO) in an eight-round super featherweight bout.

Promoted by Top Rank, tickets to this world championship extravaganza are ON SALE NOW. Priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25, not including facility and service fees, tickets may be purchased at the Chesapeake Energy Arena box office, online at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster outlets or by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

Ramirez-Angulo and Saucedo-Zappavigna will be televised live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at 9 p.m. ET, while undercard action will stream live and exclusively in the United States on ESPN+ starting at 6:00 p.m. ET. ESPN+ is the recently launched multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN.

“I’m really excited to be fighting alongside the champ, Zurdo Ramirez!” Mayer said. “Top Rank continues to put me on amazing cards with the best talent in boxing. Fighting in Oklahoma City is the perfect opportunity to meet more boxing fans and give them an exciting show as I continue my journey to a world championship!”

“I’ve been reconstructing my entire organization over the past three years. I am training now with one of the finest professors of the sweet science, Tony Aguilera,” Alvarado said. “I’m excited to showcase what I’ve stayed dedicated to working hard for. Come June 30, I’ll be one step closer to securing my legacy against anyone who stands in my way.”

“I am very confident of fighting in OKC. I’m having a great high-level training camp in Miami,” Conceicao said. “I’m evolving every day and I’m sure I will put on a great show for all the fans in OKC and those watching live on ESPN+.”

Also appearing on the undercard will be heavyweight knockout sensation Trey Lippe Morrison (14-0, 14 KOs) of Tulsa, Oklahoma; former amateur standout Chris Zavala making his professional debut in a four-round super featherweight bout against Tyler Pacheco (1-1, 0 KOs); Oklahoma City native Aaron Morales (2-0, 2 KOs) in a four-round bantamweight contest; and unbeaten 140-pound prospect Julian Rodriguez (16-0, 10 KOs) against Alejandro Barbosa (11-2, 7 KOs) in an eight-rounder.

Alvarado has turned his career and his life around since personal problems derailed his career, as he’s won four consecutive fights (three by knockout). In his last bout, he scored one of 2017’s best one-punch knockouts with a third-round KO over Sidney Siqueira on the Terence Crawford vs. Julius Indongo undercard in Lincoln, Nebraska. Alvarado has been involved in multiple ‘Fight of the Year’ candidates, including the first fight of his trilogy against Brandon Rios, which won Sports Illustrated ‘Fight of the Year’ honors in 2012. Alvarado lost that fight via seventh-round TKO, but less than six months later, he outboxed Rios to win a unanimous decision.

Mayer, who is making her third ring appearance of 2018, is on the fast track to a world title shot. In her last bout, May 12 on the Vasiliy Lomachenko-Jorge Linares card in New York City, she shut out the game Baby Nansen over six rounds. The Los Angeles native opened her 2018 campaign on March 10 in Carson, California, with a 35-second knockout over Maria Semertzoglou.

In 2016, Conceicao became the first Brazilian boxer to capture Olympic gold. He is 2-0 with a pair of decision wins in 2018, with his last bout coming April 28 in Philadelphia. On that evening, he shut out the game Alex Torres Rynn over six rounds.

For more information visit: www.toprank.com, www.espn.com/boxing; Facebook:facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, facebook.com/espndeportes; Twitter: twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, @ESPN @ESPNBoxeo, @ESPNDeportes. Use the hashtags #ZurdoAngulo and #SaucedoZappavigna to join the conversation on social media.

—30—

About ESPN+

ESPN+ is the first-ever multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN. It offers fans thousands of additional live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks.

The ESPN+ lineup includes 18 exclusive, live Top Rank events per year, dozens of fights from other Top Rank undercards, an unmatched library of the greatest fights in boxing history, and two exclusive, original boxing programs: The Boxing Beat with Dan Rafael (Tuesdays) and In This Corner (twice monthly).

It also features hundreds of MLB, NHL and MLS games, Grand Slam tennis, PGA Tour golf, college sports, international rugby, cricket, the full library of ESPN Films (including 30 for 30) and more. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and cancel at any time.

ESPN+ is an integrated part of the completely redesigned ESPN App. Already the leading sports app, the new ESPN App is the premier all-in-one digital sports platform for fans and is a showcase of the company’s culture of innovation. With a richer, increasingly more personalized experience, the new ESPN App curates all of ESPN’s incredible content into an experience unique to each fan’s individual tastes. ESPN+ is also available through ESPN.com.

After being widely rumored to be heading to Madison Square Garden, The proposed Pay-Pew-View card featuring Jeff Horn defending his WBO Welterweight title bout between Jeff Horn and Terence Crawford will be staged at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

Although the fight, long in the works, has not been officially announced, Bob Arum said it is now agreed to on both sides. The site, though, will be Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas as the main event of a pay-per-view card Top Rank is putting on in conjunction with ESPN as part of their long-term deal.

“Mandalay Bay is a great venue and we’re happy to put this card on there,” Arum said. “You’ve got a lot of boxing in New York coming up, so it made sense to move the fight to Las Vegas when Mandalay Bay became available.”

Arum said that he is in the process of finalizing the co-feature between Filipino legend Manny Pacquiao, the former eight-division world champion, and former junior welterweight titlist Mike Alvarado (38-4, 26 KOs), 37, of Denver.

Arum said there would also be another world title bout on the card. It will pit junior featherweight world titleholder Jessie Magdaleno (25-0, 18 KOs), 26, of Las Vegas, in his mandatory defense against hard-hitting Isaac Dogboe (18-0, 12 KOs), 23, of Ghana.

Arum said he initially was going to make that fight the main event of his April 28 ESPN card but decided to move it to the April 14 show to beef up the pay-per-view.

“That’s going to be a really good fight,” Arum said. “It’s a 50-50 fight, I think. Both guys can really hit.”

CHICAGO (May 4, 2017) – Ireland’s Olympic hero MICHAEL “MICK” CONLAN spent Wednesday meeting with media and fans to promote his first fight since making his pro debut on St. Patrick’s Day at a sold-out Theater at Madison Square Garden. He returns to the ring in a six-round featherweight bout on Friday, May 26, headlining an all-action card at UIC Pavilion,. The event will also feature former world champion “Mile High” MIKE ALVARADO and undefeated Top-10 welterweight contender ALEX “El Cholo” SAUCEDO in separate 10 and eight-round bouts, respectively.

Conlan (1-0, one KO), from Belfast, spent Wednesday hosting a press conference luncheon followed by a fan meet and greet at the Irish-American Heritage Center and seeing the sights, since this was his first visit to the Windy City. The following are his quotes from the day as well as from Carl Moretti, vice president of Top Rank, who accompanied him:

MICHAEL CONLAN

“It’s unbelievable to represent my country in the ring.

“I got to California to start training with Manny Robles on January 10. I love the weather in Southern California, love the heat.

“New York was something I couldn’t even dream of, just a great night. That was my first performance as a professional. I just know I can do better and look forward to a better performance in my second fight. I know how good I want to be and I know I can improve on a lot more. After New York City I took some time off and spent some time with my family and just relaxed.

“This is the next step. My preparation will be the same. It’s my job and I look forward to fighting here in Chicago.

“I loved what I’ve seen of Chicago, my first time here, it’s got a huge Irish population and it’s always nice to be surrounded by locals. A lot of people have contacted me by way of social media who live here in Chicago. It should be a great crowd.

“No stage fright for me at all, I enjoy the whole package, including talking to the media and meeting with fans I’ve always had a lot of attention on me.

“The amateurs and the Olympics are all in the past, it’s all about the future now. I want to stay as active as possible.”

CARL MORETTI

“New York City was an event. I have never seen a pro debut explode like that.

“One day he will sell out Madison Square Garden in the big room, there’s no question. It’s something we feel is attainable.

“He needs experience and is getting great experience training and sparring with world champions. He’s doing everything the right way but there’s nothing like getting rounds in without headgear and with eight ounce gloves.

“The more fights he gets the better he’ll become.

“Boston, New York, Chicago will be the best places to host Michael’s fights. But we are fielding calls from a lot of venues all over the U.S. He is an attraction.

“Especially in boxing, representing their countries while fighting in the United States is so important.

“If all goes well, he’ll fight on July 2 (July 1 in U.S.) in Brisbane, Australia on Manny Pacquiao’s world championship undercard. There is a large Irish community in Australia.”

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

Promoted by Top Rank®, remaining tickets to Conlan’s Chicago debut are priced at $102, $52 and $32, including the facility fee. They can be purchased at the UIC Pavilion Box Office (located on Racine in between Gate 3 and 4), Ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster retail locations. To charge by phone call 800-745-3000. The box office is open Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The box office accepts, cash, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover. They do not accept personal checks, or American Express.

For his pro debut, Conlan (1-0, one KO), from Belfast, was led into the ring by UFC superstar Conor McGregor. But once the bell rang to start the fight, it was all Conlan, out-boxing and out-slugging the more experienced Tim Ibarra (4-5, one KO), of Denver, winning the fight by a third-round knockout. Conlan, 25, from Belfast, produced one of the most memorable moments during last summer’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. A loss in the bantamweight quarterfinals to Russia’s Vladimir Nikitin was arguably the most controversial of the boxing tournament. In fact Conlan hurt Nikitin so badly that the Russian forfeited his semifinal fight because he wasn’t able to recuperate from the injuries he suffered from the pasting he received from Conlan. After the decision was announced, Conlan saluted the judges with both middle fingers followed by a series of post-fight interviews ripping the decision and accusing the International Boxing Association (AIBA), which oversees amateur boxing, of corruption. AIBA sent the judges who worked that fight home in the wake of the immediate public outrage. Conlan further added to his legend by sending a Tweet to Russian president Vladimir Putin, “How much did they charge you bro???” A former amateur standout who was a 2012 Olympic Bronze medalist and 2015 World Amateur Champion — a first for a male Irish fighter — Conlan trains in Los Angeles with Manny Robles and spars regularly with Robles’ champion fighters.

Alvarado (34-4, 23 KOs) of Denver, has several notable fights on his impressive resume, including a rematch victory over Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios, on March 30, 2013, which not only avenged Alvarado’s loss to Rios in 2012’s Fight of the Year, but also made Alvarado the new World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior welterweight world champion. Notable Alvarado knockout victims have included Breidis Prescott, Ray Narh, Emmanuel Clottey and Cesar Bazan. In 2012 Alvarado fought in two Fights of the Year-nominated fights. On April 14, 2012, Alvarado went toe-to-toe for 10 brutal and exciting rounds winning a unanimous decision over Mauricio Herrera (18-1, 7 KOs). Herrera entered that fight world-rated No. 7 and riding a two-year, five-bout winning streak, highlighted by victories over future world champion Ruslan Provodnikov (17-0) and Mike Dallas, Jr. (17-1-1). That was followed by his first fight with Rios in October. Alvarado’s world title reign ended in his first defense, on October 19, 2013, where he suffered a12th-round TKO to Ruslan Provodnikov in front of a sold-out crowd in his Denver homecoming.

Saucedo, (24-0, 15 KOs), from Oklahoma City, is world-rated No. 8 by the WBO. Trained by 2015 BWAA Trainer of the Year Abel Sanchez, Saucedo returns to the ring fresh from dishing out a second-round TKO to Johnny Garcia in a bout that took place on the undercard of Conlan’s pro debut. Saucedo, 22, is co-managed by Churchill Management, which includes filmmaker Peter Berg as a principal.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, or facebook.com/trboxeo,and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, or twitter.com/trboxeo, Use the Hashtags #MickConlan and #TheConlanRevolution to join the conversation on Twitter.

CHICAGO (April 27, 2017) – Chicago fight fans will have a chance to get their Irish up when Ireland’s Olympic hero MICHAEL “MICK” CONLAN comes to town. Hot from his high-profile professional debut, a literal knockout performance which took place on St. Patrick’s Day at a sold-out Theater at Madison Square Garden, Conlan continues his U.S. tour, going from the Big Apple to the City of the Big Shoulders. He will headline a nationally-televised event on Friday, May 26, at UIC Pavilion, in a six-round featherweight bout. The card will also feature former world champion “Mile High” MIKE ALVARADO and undefeated Top-10 welterweight contender ALEX “El Cholo” SAUCEDO in separate 10 and eight-round bouts, respectively.

Promoted by Top Rank®, tickets to Conlan’s Chicago debut go on sale Tomorrow! Friday, April 28, at Noon CT. Priced at $102, $52 and $32, including the facility fee, tickets can be purchased at the UIC Pavilion Box Office (located on Racine in between Gate 3 and 4), Ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster retail locations. To charge by phone call 800-745-3000. The box office is open Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The box office accepts, cash, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover. They do not accept personal checks, or American Express.

“I’m delighted to be boxing in Chicago,” said Conlan. “Chicago being heavily populated with Irish, I’ve already had a huge amount of people contacting me about the fight. And for Top Rank to have me as a main event again with a fantastic undercard is great. I’m looking forward to going there and putting on a great show for the fans!”

“Michael is looking better and looking sharper in the gym. You will definitely see an even greater fighter in the ring in Chicago,” said Manny Robles, Conlan’s trainer. “Michael is eager to grow and learn each day. He understands his responsibility not only to his management and promoter but to his people and entire country. He wants to become a world champion and make his country proud. It is my job to help get him there.”

“I’m really looking forward to Michael’s next fight in Chicago. His debut was a huge success and I’m sure he will be receiving a similar reception from the Irish community in Chicago and from the Chicago fight fans,” said Matthew Macklin, a former three-time world champion challenger and Conlan’s manager. “Michael took a week off and was back in the gym sparring Jessie Magdaleno and working on all aspects of his game. He’s very much a work in progress but he has all the talent in the world and is very dedicated. I expect him to settle down more in this fight and put on a great performance.”

“The road to Mick’s long-term success as a global boxing star stops in Chicago on May 26. And like Mick, Chicago is second to none as an international stage for expanding his fan base,” said Todd duBoef, president of Top Rank. “His embedded fan base in Chicago makes it a natural for him to headline an internationally-televised event.”

For his pro debut, Conlan (1-0, one KO), from Belfast, was led into the ring by UFC superstar Conor McGregor. But once the bell rang to start the fight, it was all Conlan, out-boxing and out-slugging the more experienced Tim Ibarra (4-5, one KO), of Denver, winning the fight by a third-round knockout. Conlan, 25, from Belfast, produced one of the most memorable moments during last summer’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. A loss in the bantamweight quarterfinals to Russia’s Vladimir Nikitin was arguably the most controversial of the boxing tournament. In fact Conlan hurt Nikitin so badly that the Russian forfeited his semifinal fight because he wasn’t able to recuperate from the injuries he suffered from the pasting he received from Conlan. After the decision was announced, Conlan saluted the judges with both middle fingers followed by a series of post-fight interviews ripping the decision and accusing the International Boxing Association (AIBA), which oversees amateur boxing, of corruption. AIBA sent the judges who worked that fight home in the wake of the immediate public outrage. Conlan further added to his legend by sending a Tweet to Russian president Vladimir Putin, “How much did they charge you bro???” A former amateur standout who was a 2012 Olympic Bronze medalist and 2015 World Amateur Champion — a first for a male Irish fighter — Conlan trains in Los Angeles with Manny Robles and spars regularly with Robles’ champion fighters.

Alvarado (34-4, 23 KOs) of Denver, has several notable fights on his impressive resume, including a rematch victory over Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios, on March 30, 2013, which not only avenged Alvarado’s loss to Rios in 2012’s Fight of the Year, but also made Alvarado the new World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior welterweight world champion. Notable Alvarado knockout victims have included Breidis Prescott, Ray Narh, Emmanuel Clottey and Cesar Bazan. In 2012 Alvarado fought in two Fights of the Year-nominated fights. On April 14, 2012, Alvarado went toe-to-toe for 10 brutal and exciting rounds winning a unanimous decision over Mauricio Herrera (18-1, 7 KOs). Herrera entered that fight world-rated No. 7 and riding a two-year, five-bout winning streak, highlighted by victories over future world champion Ruslan Provodnikov (17-0) and Mike Dallas, Jr. (17-1-1). That was followed by his first fight with Rios in October. Alvarado’s world title reign ended in his first defense, on October 19, 2013, where he suffered a12th-round TKO to Ruslan Provodnikov in front of a sold-out crowd in his Denver homecoming.

Saucedo, (24-0, 15 KOs), from Oklahoma City, is world-rated No. 8 by the WBO. Trained by 2015 BWAA Trainer of the Year Abel Sanchez, Saucedo returns to the ring fresh from dishing out a second-round TKO to Johnny Garcia in a bout that took place on the undercard of Conlan’s pro debut. Saucedo, 22, is co-managed by Churchill Management, which includes filmmaker Peter Berg as a principal.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, or facebook.com/trboxeo,and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, or twitter.com/trboxeo, Use the Hashtags #MickConlan and #TheConlanRevolution to join the conversation on Twitter.

Former world champion Mike Alvarado won an eight round majority decision over Josh Torres at The Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas.

Alvarado, 147 1/2 lbs of Denver, Colorado won by scores of 78-74, 77-75 and 76-76 and is now 36-4. Torres, 147 1/2 lbs is 15-5-2.

Matt Korobov won an eight-round unanimous decision over Bryan Vera in a middleweight bout

Vera was dropped in the first twenty seconds from a right hand. About a minute later, Vera hit the canvas again with a right hook.

Korobov, 162 1/2 lbs won by scores of 78-70 and 79-69 twice and is now 26-1. Vera is 23-11.

Former world junior welterweight champion Mike Alvarado will take on Josh Torres on June 25 in Dallas, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Henry Delgado, Alvarado’s manager and co-trainer, told ESPN.com on Monday that Alvarado has been clean and sober for a little over a year, and “he’s doing everything right. This is the first time he’s really training seriously since the [Mauricio] Herrera fight. That’s why I’m looking forward to see this Mike fight again.”

“Mike finally has his life together, and he’s taking care of business. He recently got married, and he’s doing great,” Delgado said. “He won a world title in spite of everything he was doing. Imagine Mike clean and focused 100 percent? Now he beats me to the gym, and I have to tell him to slow down and take it easy sometimes so he doesn’t kill himself in the gym.”

By Bart Barry-

HOUSTON – In the good times there was a lameness to this city that didn’t make the brochures; places closed early, nothing opened Sundays, and when folks told you how proud they were of their city it felt strained. That lameness has been replaced by a sort of anger that happens to cities that once boomed then stopped booming then stopped telling others how much they were booming (salesmen necessarily being the most oblivious of rejection) and then resigned themselves to settling in, and whose transplants now look about and realize they didn’t want to live here in the first place.

We were gathered in this city, just the same, for an eight-match Top Rank card that featured the returns of hometowner Juan Diaz and Colorado’s Mike Alvarado, and both men won by knockout, but only one of them, Diaz, should continue fighting.

No one ever told me he moved to Houston and loved it. There was money here, though, and that money calmed the slight uneasiness one feels when he’s uprooted himself for something that isn’t quite-quite. Two years ago crude oil was trading over $100 per barrel. Today it is heaving to return to $40. This city’s humor rises and falls with those prices, and right now its humor is lower than it has been anytime in the last decade – except last month; oil is up $10 since then, and it’s springtime after all, so how about them green shoots?

The boom times are not reflective times, and what a city does with its wealth while it booms sets a floor of sorts for where it goes when it busts (except in prolonged cases like Detroit, the one ever-busting American city of the last halfcentury). This city did some Texas tackiness, big hair and sparkly things, sure, though nothing that approached Dallas’ scale, and its skyline remains alluring, but it neglected wholly its infrastructure. With all the money that sloshed about, one wonders, and did wonder, why are its surface streets barely fit for urban attack vehicles (ah, the Hummer – enduring symbol of a different bust: Phoenix housing market) and otherwise unfit for any sensible car?

Back when Austin, this state’s capital, was actually weird – not “keep Austin weird” weird – it got by with a hippy sensibility like: we’re all in this together, so yield the right of way when you know I can’t see round the tree at the intersection. Houston’s eroding infrastructure is making it weirder every day, though without any sensibility but greed to bind its citizenry; in Houston, now, you drive like a maniac because some primal intuition tells you you’re safer that way, and you are – because when you’re moving faster than the loons on either side, you regain half your attention by no longer needing a rearview mirror.

Arena Theatre was a fine, if well-hidden, venue to watch a fight Saturday, and only a sucker paid for better than the cheapest seat, since there wasn’t a distant view in the entire bowl, and the ring sat up shiny in the venue’s very center. Heard in the Top Rank section: “Small rings make for great matchmakers.” The ring was tiny; no one larger than a middleweight set foot in it during the card’s eight matches, and everyone looked large.

There’s a slapdash South American-mercado feel to much Spanish-language television, the don Francisco style of having the host perform commercials onstage during a show, and it interrupted the pleasure of Saturday’s card, some. Television owns boxing, of course, the programming director tells the commission when it may ring the opening bell, but the delays of a show performed for Spanish-language television are, even by the known standard, a touch gratuitous. Seated a few rows behind the UniMás commentary team with a clear view of their monitors, one sees the main event is being delayed by week-old commercials advertising the co-main event that already went off; it’s a sloppy, sales-blitz mentality wherein the host sees himself as an emcee, not a journalist, and his target demographic meanwhile slumps its shoulders and trudges back to the beerline.

Saturday’s crowd was the usual mix of hometown fight figures and familiars and friends and hangerson, and local businessmen reveling in others’ danger. A lawfirm gathered in the row behind me, and when they weren’t hellbent on outnamedropping one another, they were admonishing the fighters to “punch him in the neck” or “knock his head off” or “finish him”! And so.

Mile High Mike looked exactly the same Saturday as he did the last time you saw him, and that’s a problem, obviously, because the last time you saw him he was stopped by a limited fighter, albeit a former champion, and this time he plied his wares against a lighthitter with 10 knockouts and six losses in 25 matches. Eventually Alvarado bludgeoned him down with wild righthands, but Mile High Mike and his rehabby salespitch, “I’ve been fighting my demons as much as my opponents,” are through with major championship prizefighting.

The Baby Bull looked about the same, too, and that’s a really good thing. Never the bearer of a pinup physique, Juan Diaz still weighs and fights the exact same way at 32 as he did at 22. He does not set on any punch so he does not have concussive power, but he doesn’t need it: Because he’s somehow stayed in the same weightclass, where his chin is proven, and because he possesses more belief in his own conditioning than just about anyone in the game today, and because there’s exactly no chance of another Nate Campbell or Juan Manuel Marquez or even Paulie Malignaggi showing up at lightweight in the next five years, Diaz will make a competitive and fun title match with anyone he fights.

It was good to see Juan Diaz do so well in front of his friends and family.

The best sight of all, though, was Israel Vazquez, the color guy on the UniMás broadcast team, being as unassuming in retirement as ever he was vicious in the ring. The fans queued up for photos with him, and Izzy lost himself in their adoration, requiring several times the program director to scold him for nearly missing cues. Vazquez’s delta – violence in combat to gentleness in society – is the greatest I’ve seen in our sport that has so very few happy endings, and how properly joyful it makes me to think Israel might be one of them.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

Former Lightweight champion Juan Diaz stopped Fernando Garcia in round nine of their scheduled 10-round super lightweight bout at the Arena Theater in Houston, Texas.

Diaz, 136 1/2 lbs of Houston, Texas stopped Garcia at 2:24 of round nine to raise his mark to 41-4 with 20 knockouts. Garcia, 136 1/2 lbs of Tijuana, MX is 30-8-2.

Former world champion, Mike Alvarado scored a 3rd round stoppage over Saul Corral in a scheduled 8-round welterweight bout.

Alvarado landed a big right hand in round three that set off a big barrage in the corner. One more big right hand sent Corral down and the fight was stopped at 1:25

Alvarado, 147 1/4 lbs of Denver, CO is now 35-4 with 24 knockouts. Corral, 146 1/4 lbs of Monterrey, MX is 19-7.

Arturo Marquez made a successful pro debut with a 2nd round stoppage over Justin Henderson in a scheduled 4-round battle of Houston based welterweights.

Marquez dominated the fight and dropped Henderson in the 2nd round. Marquez continued to pour on the pressure until referee Laurence Cole stopped the bout at 2:50.

Marquez, 146 1/2 lbs is the son of former junior middleweight world champion Raul Marquez. Henderson, 146 1/4 lbs is 0-2.

By Bart Barry-

Saturday at Arena Theatre in Houston, Juan “Baby Bull” Diaz and “Mile High” Mike Alvarado will return to prizefighting on an UniMás telecast. Diaz will fight a Mexican lightweight named Fernando Garcia, and Alvarado will fight a Mexican welterweight named Saul Corral. Garcia and Corral appear to be statement-type opponents; Diaz and Alvarado will either use such men to make flattering statements about their futures by dominating them, or there will be statements made by others about overdue retirements.

I’ll be there because I did not expect to be ringside again for a fight featuring either man, let alone both, and I do not expect to have such a chance again, and I wish our sport comprised more men like Diaz and Alvarado once were.

I have been ringside for four of Juan Diaz’s last six fights, and while I did not realize it till time came to write this column, in retrospect, I’m glad it’s been that way. I knew little about the Baby Bull when I sat ringside for his 2006 match against Fernando Angulo at Chase Field, but his activity was infectious, and his selfbelief exceptional for a fluffy lightstriker. Volume punchers, men like Diaz and Timothy Bradley, are compelling fighters because of their limitations, because their offenses are more pesky than concussive, unlike sluggers’, and their defenses are steady applications of offense with a dusting of head movement, unlike boxers’.

There are few fighters whose style I enjoy more than Diaz’s – and one of those few is Juan Manuel Marquez, the man whose style ruined Diaz in one of the very best matches I’ve covered from ringside. That match happened in Houston more than seven years ago, a fact that dates this column sympathetically or ruthlessly whatever one’s philosophy of time, and it marked an apogee of sorts for Marquez, a moment of lightweight supremacy just before his own greed and his promoter’s greed and guilelessness got him humiliated in a sparring match with the world’s best welterweight, Floyd Mayweather. (The lesson from that match: Tossing boulders at altitude and drinking your own piss, training in the naturalest way possible in other words, is dimwitted; a year or so later, Juan Manuel contacted Memo and things got supernatural for his second campaign at welter.)

By the time Diaz fought Marquez the first time, in a Toyota Center that was full and loud, he was no longer undefeated, having been beaten by Nate Campbell in a Don King-special event conducted in a Quintana Roo bullring, the culmination of a weird promotional relationship initiated in 2006 when King, realizing he’d never sellout a Phoenix baseball stadium with a Belarusian and Shannon Briggs, heard a Latino ticketseller named Diaz might be about to sign a contract with Golden Boy Promotions, and finding Diaz’s pen dangled cautiously over his new Golden Boy contract, King slipped a King contract in its stead.

Diaz and King were not a sensible match, and eventually Diaz was with Golden Boy Promotions, and through fifteen minutes appeared ready to devour Marquez at Toyota Center. Those of us ringside fretted openly about the cost of Marquez’s pride; Diaz did not strike hard enough to unseam Marquez with one punch or 20, and as Marquez looked old and worn and Diaz appeared much the larger man, we verily worried something tragic might befall Marquez before the 12th round concluded.

Goodness, but we were wrong. Marquez made of Diaz his most gorgeous finish (until the Pacquiao icing years later), stubbornly wagering his straight punches would best Diaz’s crooked ones no matter their quantitative disparity. Diaz fell prey to the uppercut like every volume puncher must, tallying shots on Marquez so feverishly he neglected to notice his weight fully spilled overknee, and Marquez, his era’s master closer, brought Diaz’s unconsciousness with a customary precision and lack of ruth.

Their rematch was a dud fought in a soulless casino while the Vegas economy experienced gravity in a vacuum. And with that the Baby Bull was finished with boxing and ready to become a lawyer. Initially I didn’t care when he returned because it felt, like most of our sport’s comebacks, a fated mix of betrayal and desperation.

Writing of which, “Mile High” Mike will be in Saturday’s co-main, his first ringside sighting since the autohumiliation he perpetrated on himself and his fellow Coloradoans 14 months ago in his second rematch with Brandon Rios. The standard ploy, changing trainers and promising rededication, was not going to be enough for Alvarado to sell his return, and so he attended rehab and got married.

Promoter Top Rank forgives Alvarado his numerous transgressions because Alvarado atones properly; Alvarado has fought five times since 2012, when his career was reresurrected after legal issues aplenty, and what fights were not with Rios were with the aforementioned Marquez and Ruslan Provodnikov – five consecutive fights with any combination of Provodnikov and Rios and Marquez exceeds in peril the product of every 2015 PBC main event multiplied by 50, and so Alvarado gets forgiven. The beating Alvarado took from Provodnikov in 2013 was mansized and vigorous; it was the only time I recall seeing at ringside a defending champion wince in the first round of a title fight, as Alvarado did after several of Provodnikov’s facinorous blows befell him.

I’m an unapologetic fan of Diaz and Alvarado both; I’ve traveled to Nevada and Colorado to see prime versions of the men and consider those trips time and resources well-consumed. Neither is good enough, anymore, for me to leave the state of Texas to see, but either is worth the 200-mile drive to Houston, and the two of them together, a treat. This nostalgia tour continues along happily.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

Former world champions Mike Alvarado and Juan Diaz have their opponents set for the March 19 fights in Houston, Texas, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Former unified lightweight titleholder Diaz (40-4, 19 KOs), known as the “Baby Bull,” will face Mexico’s Fernando Garcia (30-7-2, 19 KOs) in a 10-round lightweight match.

Former junior welterweight titleholder Alvarado (34-4, 23 KOs), of Denver, will face Saul Corral (19-6, 10 KOs), of Mexico, in an eight-round welterweight fight that will open the Unimas telecast.

“It was a serious rotator cuff injury that caused the long layoff and this is the first step back,” Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti told ESPN.com. “He’s hoping to regain the momentum he had before the layoff when he was on the verge of a world title shot. Diaz is ready to go. He feels 100 percent. He’s really amped up to get back in the ring and get this going again. Because the fight is in Houston, there’s more motivation for him to perform as best as he can. The place holds about 3,500 and I think we’ll be full, and Diaz has always loved to fight at home.”

Alvarado has since been to rehab and is said to be clean and sober as he attempts to salvage his career.

“His issues were outside the ring, not an injury like Diaz had,” Moretti said. “But all indications are that he’s taken care of them and he’s been in the gym. We’ve had no calls or reason to doubt him. He’s stayed on the straight path and he knows he has a lot to prove to himself and to his fans. This is the first step to doing that.

“He doesn’t want to go out like he did against Rios. He has pride. It’s a different situation that Juan Diaz’s situation but how do you not give [Alvarado] another opportunity?”

By Bart Barry-

Ring the bell already, fool.

I’ve written so many great columns in the past. That’s why you read me. And I’m more prepared for this column than any of those. This is the column for not just readers but writers, too, because they know what hard writing looks like. It’s for the readers also, don’t misunderstand, especially readers in the 210, Alamo City – throw up the Spurs sign, y’all!

First time I covered “Mile High” Mike Alvarado, I didn’t listen to my editor, and I got too aggressive, went on and in about what an athlete he is, and then he lost to Brandon Rios, and I found a way of not admitting I was wrong. Real writers call that semantics. Haters call it hypocrisy. Whatevs, dude.

All I know is that it takes a lot to put yourself out there in print every damn Monday for readers to judge you, always with the niggling about three or four disagreeable words of a 1,000, none of the critics able to make a coherent toddler’s thought in 140 characters, not words, characters, but full of advice for a writer who brings it every time his hands bless a keyboard. Real recognize real, though, and real readers know real writers don’t need to read or worry grammartical about, like, because being a writer is something you either got inside you or don’t, and I’m a writer to the bone because I came up round real wordsmiths, eloquent folk, creative types unconstrained by deadlines.

Really, with the deadlines thing again? Fine. Here we go:

Technically my column is due on Sunday nights. Christians, you see, treat Sunday as the day of the Sabbath. My editor is on the East Coast. I’m in the 210 – for life, playa! – and there’s this time difference. And I don’t mean daylight savings, either, OK? So if it’s midnight in Alamo City, then it’s not midnight on the East Coast. Simple mistake. I’m sure lots of writers make it.

All I know is this: I’m a writer, I make sentences from words, paragraphs from sentences, pages from paragraphs, and sometimes runon sentences when prepositional phrases get mixed in later and forget to correct them, in there, go back, and I’m not saying I’m perfect because nobody’s perfect, and y’all can’t judge me.

Mail in this column like I don’t give a, um, dickens? Not me:

When even the noblest fighters begin to . . . nah. When a fighter who once frequently boasted he’d not been felled, amateurs or pros, in . . . whatever. It’s a new thing, this punching effect, and as luck would have it, being concussed can compromise ocular . . . next time. To sabotage the rudimentary how-many-fingers quiz, yell out an even multiple – seeing double! – evinces a brain unscrambled enough to know its times-tables, and reveals a bit of the roguish . . . later.

No, well going? Probably should an have outline tried. thought Even a few moments private of or. Something to who loyally my readers show came to this with the page expectation, right wrong under, write hard I could, as true, and prepared work to be all that it takes day, what! I’m a little unhappy for myself with. My editor is with for myself for way unhappy me. This very is badly. see Got it published too SOON. my mom, my sisters, people I came up with, other writers, anybody reading this! peeps in the 210,,

Can I get a word count?

Damn. There’s no way 573 makes 1,000.

*

This column was not my best work. My readers know this wasn’t the real me. They know I’ll return. I’ve got to go back to the usage dictionary. Yes, I’m angry with myself! There, I wrote it. That means y’all better not be mad with this effort or you’ll look like bullies for piling-on a man when he’s down.

Clever, eh?

Wait, I got lots more.

Where were these words, this clarity, when I was supposed to be writing an original commentary in my weekly column?

(Editor’s note: One more nasty, sarcastic or satirical comment about Bart’s writing, and I’ll block you. After what he’s given this column? Show some damn respect!)

One bad column. One column, one, where maybe I was distracted by assembling that Ikea chair I got yesterday. A column where maybe there’s a weighin this afternoon, 20 minutes away, for a Monday night card, and it’s at 1 P.M., and I’ve already got plans for tonight, and so there may not be time to give this column my everything.

I’ll be back. Next Monday. Y’all gonna see. The readers who stand by me, I give them nothing but love from the 210. The doubters ain’t gonna win this one. Hell no, I’m not about to stop writing. I’m a write till the day I die.

There’s nothing else in the world I’m good at. And I’ve got too much free time.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

Brandon Rios scored a emphatic 3rd round stoppage over Mike Alvarado in their contest that was a scheduled 12-round Welterweight bout at the 1stBank Arena in Broomfield, Colorado.

Rios busted up Alvarado in the first round from a shots with both hands by Rios. Rios continued the assault in round two as he wobbled Alvarado with a right and then followed up with solid body work. Rios continued to drill Alvarado in round three and finally sent him to the deck with an uppercut.

After the round, Alvarado had enough and called a halt to the bout.

Rios, 146 3/4 lbs of Oxnard, CA is now 33-2-1 with 23 knockouts. Alvarado, 146 1/2 lbs of Thornton, CO is now 34-4.

Gilberto Ramirez scored a 10-round unanimous decision over Maxim Vlasov in a Light Heavyweight bout.

Ramirez, 170 1/2 lbs of Sinaloa, MX won by scores of 97-93 twice and 96-94 and is now 31-0. Vlasov, 170 lbs of Russia is now 30-2.

BOB ARUM: Thank you. Everyone is looking forward to what should be a great, great fight. The previous two fights were classics and this one will probably top them all. I am really looking forward to Saturday night in Denver and now I would like to put the fighters on. These are two gladiators. These are two guys that make the sport of boxing proud the way they perform in the ring.

BRANDON RIOS: How is it going everybody? I hope everyone had a good Christmas and a great New Years. We are ready for Saturday to give the fans a great show.

MIKE ALVARADO: Training is going good and I am ready to put on a great show. I am ready to start the year off right and put a great trilogy on for the fans. I am ready and excited for this fight.

Do you go into this fight thinking you will fight the same way or do you try to add a wrinkle?

MIKE ALVARADO: I will let the fight go how it goes and make adjustments accordingly to how we fight. Our styles clash and we know each other so well that we know what’s going to happen then make adjustments. There are going to be a lot of adjustments that we will make as we compare each others styles and how we react to them. So it is going to be very interesting to see how this fight plays out as it goes along.

BRANDON RIOS: I see it the same way – we are going to both make adjustments. Like Mike said we are both similar and fight the same way. We both have heart and wear our hearts on our sleeves. It all depends on how the first round goes – that’s how I see it. However the first round goes, that’s how the fight is going to be, and we are ready. We are ready for war, we are ready for boxing and ready for everything that we are going to make adjustments for. I know it’s going to be a great fight and the fans are going to love this one.

What type of a relationship do you have with each other?

BRANDON RIOS: There is no animosity between Mike and me, we are cool. We are the same kind of people. We are the same person. We know what it takes to be where we are at. We both have our problems outside the ring and we both have our problems inside the ring. We know that and at the end of the day we are both the same person. We are both from the hood – we both grew up like that. We understand ‘real’ and we recognize ‘real,’ and that’s what we are we are real fighters. We are cool outside the ring but once we get in that ring we hate each other. We want to kill each other and that’s what makes this sport and that’s what makes these fights more exciting because everyone thins that ‘these guys are too close, the have fun together, but once they get in the ring they kill each other.’ It’s like the Army, all of the soldiers are your brothers. Alvarado is like my brother and we fight – we fight until somebody gets hurt.

MIKE ALVARADO: Brandon said it pretty clear. We have nothing against each other and once we get in the ring we know what we gotta do. We know what type of fight we are getting into with each other. That is the warrior that is going to come out of us that night because we know what kind of fighters we are – we both have heart and power and we are both warriors. There is no reason for us to add more to it. Everybody know what kind of fight they are going to get out of us. We didn’t get to this third fight against each other by accident.

Are you guy’s friends?

MIKE ALVARADO: I would say we are. We don’t really communicate on a day-to-day basis but when we see each other we are cool and have that mutual respect and we understand each other.

BRANDON RIOS: I feel the same way too. Like he said, we don’t talk a lot but once we see each other of course we are going to shake each others’ hand and joke around while we see each other. I live in California and he lives in Denver so it is hard to communicate. We do have that mutual respect for everything that we do inside the ring and outside of the ring.

BOB ARUM: The best trilogies are the ones where the fighters respect one another so much that they consider each other friends. After the trilogy is over they continue to be friends. Recently we saw that with Gatti and Ward. Before Gatti’s untimely death they were really close. I’m sure the Mike and ‘Bam Bam’ will be close for the rest of their lives because they have been through hell together.

The opposite would be Barrera and Morales who still can’t stand to be in the same room with each other…

BOB ARUM: They were different people – they came from different social strata in Mexico. Barrera was much more Spanish and Morales had a lot more Indian blood. They taunted each other with that, and you are correct, there was a lot of animosity and unfortunately, there still is. But these guys are like two peas in the pod. They are really alike. They are fun-loving guys, who when they get in the ring are absolutely fearsome.

Brandon, can you talk about your last two fights?

BRANDON RIOS: From the Pacquiao fight, it is what it is. He showed why he is one of the greatest in the world and I am proud to have lost to one of the greatest in the world. I was confident going into that fight and I thought I was going to win that fight, but I lost and there is nothing I can take away from that. And that controversial win (Chaves) – how is that controversial? Because the guy is eye-gouging me? And keeps eye-gouging me and eye-gouging me – that is controversial? Because he was winning? I still had another round to come back – I was down a point on the cards. It wasn’t like I was losing the whole entire fight. I was down one point and still had a round to go. That’s why he was eye-gouging me because he felt the pressure and the power so he had no other choice than to do his dirty tactics, which he did. I read that in Argentina he is doing all kinds of dirty (stuff) – he bit a British kid in the amateurs. This guy is a dirty guy. You might think it is controversial then you can think that, but at the end of the day I don’t really care what anybody says about it. A win is a win and I still got the win.

I meant controversial meaning what happened in the fight – not the win…

BRANDON RIOS: OK then, you didn’t explain your self right.

Do you like knowing that this will be an exciting fight no matter what happens?

BRANDON RIOS: Yes, no matter what happens it will be. People always say ‘Brandon can’t fight fighters that box.’ I can’t get too comfortable with one person with one style and I got so comfortable with a guy attacking and putting pressure on – taking a shot to give a shot. I got too comfortable. Earlier in my career, I was moving my head and I was moving around, I was boxing and trading punches when I had to. But I just got too comfortable. It is what it is and I learned from the Pacquiao fight. And I learned a lot from the Chaves fight. I reached deep down inside me and did a soul-search and I am ready for whomever now. Fortunately it is Alvarado and we know we are going to put on a great show but it is what it is and now I’m ready.

Mike, people may think you have lost a lot being in the Provodnikov and Bradley fights…

MIKE ALVARADO: I know that those fights didn’t have any wear and tear on me, being in wars like that. I learned a lot since I started in this boxing game. It has been a learning experience as far as my technique and generalship in the ring and everything that goes along with it. Everything that happened in the ring makes me learn more about myself – every situation and every moment in that ring has been a learning experience and I have taken it all with me. I have grown over the past few years as a fighter and as a man inside and outside the ring. It is going to make me a better fighter in the ring. It is on me to make those adjustments and utilize them in that ring.

You have had a couple incidences outside of the ring recently…

MIKE ALVARADO: I have grown so much from all of these learning experiences. I put them behind me. I don’t hold on to them. I don’t bring them with me into the ring and it’s not a distraction. I have learned to be positive through it and be strong and it gives me more confidence to be a better person and a better fighter. On Saturday night it is on us to reach deep inside and make the adjustments that we need to make to overcome this kind of fight.

BOB ARUM: They are both terrific fighters and they have demonstrated that many, many times and there is something about this rivalry that makes them even greater when they face each other and that’s what I look forward to.

Brandon, what type of soul-searching were you doing?

BRANDON RIOS: I got too comfortable at a young age, making all of this money. So I had to do some soul-searching and go back to my roots. Go back to what got me here and not to forget. That’s what I meant by soul-searching.

BRANDON RIOS: We are fighters. We are warriors. We will fight each other and day at any time. I am happy about this. We have to have this trilogy because it’s time. We cannot leave it as a tie. We have to see who is better than whom so we have to have this trilogy.

MIKE ALVARADO: I don’t look at is as a rivalry. We are going to get in there and do what we do. It is what we chose to compete in and it’s 1-1. There has to be a winner to this. It is a trilogy and we have to figure out who wins. I am going to get in there and do what I do – that’s what I do.

What did you think about Bradley-Chaves?

BRANDON RIOS: It was a close fight but I thought Bradley won the fight. Chaves was doing some things but he wasn’t eye-gouging and things like that because Bradley wasn’t letting him. He fought two different guys. Chaves fought guys that he knew could punch and he fought guys that he knew he could stay there and not get hurt. That’s why he fought two different guys and he fought two different styles. It wasn’t the best performance I have seen out of Timothy Bradley.

You have fought Pacquiao so how do you think he would do against Mayweather?

BRANDON RIOS: Right now about 0%. From what I have read Mayweather is saying this and saying that so at the end of the day I am not going to get too excited about it until I see the contract signed and they have a press conference and I will fight on the undercard and that will be a hell of a fight.

Mike, how big of a distraction have the recent legal issues been?

MIKE ALVARADO: There have been no distractions. I am use to something always going wrong in camp. When it is going too good and perfect I know something bad is going to happen because that’s the way it has always been. I have been dealing with adversity my whole life. Adversity has been in my life the whole time so there are not distractions for this fight.

Did you miss any time when this incident happened?

MIKE ALVARADO: No I didn’t miss any training time. I went to jail for one day and I just made up for that day on that Sunday.

Do you think about what a win or a loss will do for your future?

MIKE ALVARADO: The thought goes through my head. I think about it. I know I need this win and we are going to go in there and fight our hearts out. That’s just the kind of fighters we are and the kind of fighter I am. I hate losing so at the end of the day, regardless, I love to win.

BRANDON RIOS: Of course I am thinking about that because we both have a lot on the line right now as far as our careers. I am so focused right now and ready for this fight. It is unbelievable. I had a tremendous training camp and I know what could happen if we lose and what could happen if we win. My mind is set on the prize and for the glory. I am still young in the sport and I have a lot to give to it.

Does your training regimen fit the fact that your fights turn into wars?

BRANDON RIOS: It’s not that I am in wars. It’s just the way I fight. I don’t look for the wars, it’s just the way I fight. Like I said, I got too comfortable fighting one style and forgot about the regimen of boxing and how to get to the top again. So I did some soul-searching and I am ready to get back. I have rejuvenated myself and I am ready. Everybody is going to say what they want to say no matter what. Everybody is going to have their opinion…”this guy’s been in too many wars,’ this and that, but I don’t really care. I know what I can bring and I know what I can provide.

BRANDON RIOS: Making the money at a young age, a kid like me. I grew up poor and never had that much money. I had never seen that much money before. I was always on the street and in and out of jail and causing trouble. That’s how Mike and I can relate and that’s why we get along very well. Having that money made me forget the hunger that got me there. I am ready to get back to the top again. I remember all of that stuff now and I am ready to get back.

You are training in Denver compared to the last fight you trained in California – which is best?

MIKE ALVARADO: There are distractions anywhere, regardless. If there was stuff going on at home, it would distract me. If I was out there in LA – I would still hear about it and still stress about it. But I am comfortable at home. I love training at home so why train away from home? I am focused on training where my main support group is – where my family is and where my kids are. I feel more confident training in my hometown. I love being around my kids

Do your kids sit ringside for your fights?

MIKE ALVARADO: Yes definitely. My oldest daughter will be going into the ring with me and my other daughters will be there as well. I have three girls and they are my number one fans.

How do you make sure you stick to your game plan?

MIKE ALVARADO: I just stay with my game plan that I have already developed and making those adjustments quicker this time around. Sticking to my game plan and not giving in like the first fight. The first fight was a test for that technique – a style against a style. The second fight is where the adjustments come in. Now that I know I was able to adapt to a certain style, I can make the adjustments I need to make to overcome that type of style. I am going to go in there and stick with my game plan.

Is there animosity towards Chaves?

BRANDON RIOS: There is no animosity towards Chaves. I had an eight-month layoff before I had gone back into the gym. Everyone else may talk about that fight but I don’t talk about it. It is what it is. Now I am talking about staying shape and staying in the gym. I literally took eight months off and I did nothing. After the Pacquiao fight I was devastated and down on myself – I was mad and depressed. I have no problem fighting Chaves again. I don’t turn down a fight from nobody. I’ll fight anybody. I am a warrior and I will fight. I’ll fight until I die. I don’t care.

BRANDON RIOS: I was depressed after the Pacquiao fight because I was confident when I went in there but there is a point where you get confident and not cocky confident. What happened is I got cocky confident. It was my fault and I had nobody else to blame. It was my big rodeo for the first time and I didn’t come out and do what I thought I was able to do. Then after that I only fought one time last year and it sucked. And from testing positive for something I never tested positive for before, which I had the wrong guy in my camp and I came out dirty. I wasn’t really dirty there was just a lot of stuff going on in my camp.

In Closing…

BOB ARUM: I can’t wait for Saturday night it is going to be a great fight with two great warriors. Also prior to that fight you will get an opportunity to see Gilberto Ramirez – the undefeated No. 2 super middleweight contender from Mexico. He is something special — I believe he can be the next big thing in boxing — a big knockout puncher and he’s in with a very tough Russian opponent, Maxim Vlasov, a Top-10 contender, and that should be a terrific fight as well.

BRANDON RIOS: Everybody don’t sit on and it don’t wait too long there are still tickets and get your tickets because this is going to be an exciting fight and you want to be there or you are going to be squared. Alvarado is ready and I’m ready and we are going to put on a great show.

MIKE ALVARADO: I am promising that it is going to be a great end to this trilogy. Everybody make sure they get their tickets because it’s going to be a fight.

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

Former world champions and co-stars of one this era’s most intense and exciting boxing rivalries — Denver’s “Mile High” MIKE ALVARADO and BRANDON “Bam Bam” RIOS, of Oxnard, Calif. — are just three days away from authoring Chapter 3 of their amazing trilogy. Boasting a combined record of 66-5-1 (45 KOs), each warrior owns a victory in the series — both of which were candidates for Fight of the Year in 2012 and 2013.

Mexico’s next big thing, undefeated No. 2 super middleweight contender GILBERTO “Zurdo” RAMIREZ and once-beaten Top-10 contender MAXIM VLASOV of Russia, will be featured in the co-main event in a 10-round light heavyweight battle.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Zapari Boxing and Tecate, remaining tickets to the Alvarado-Rios welterweight championship event, priced at $250, $200, $125, $65 and $40, are available at www.AltitudeTickets.com, by phone at 866-461-6556 and at the Pepsi Center box office. The 12-round Alvarado-Rios 3 WBO International Welterweight Championship rumble will take place Saturday, January 24, at the 1STBANK Center in nearby Broomfield and will be televised live on HBO®, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT. The telecast will open with the Ramirez-Vlasov rumble.

The last boxing event hosted by 1STBANK Center was sold out in advance — the October 19, 2013 WBO junior welterweight world championship between Alvarado and Ruslan Provodnikov.

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

The “Road to Alvarado-Rios 3” special will replay on HBO on Thursday, January 23 (6:00 p.m. & 1:30 a.m.) and 24 (11:45 a.m.). All times are ET/PT. The 15-minute special will also be available on the HBO On Demand® service, HBO GO® and at www.hbo.com/boxing.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, or facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, or twitter.com/hboboxing. Use the Hashtag #AlvaradoRios to join the conversation on Twitter.

HBO Boxing begins a new season with the final chapter in a heated rivalry when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: MIKE ALVARADO VS. BRANDON RIOS 3 AND GILBERTO RAMIREZ VS. MAXIM VLASOV is seen SATURDAY, JAN. 24 at 9:45 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colo., exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports team will be ringside for the event, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

Other HBO playdates: Jan. 25 (10:15 a.m.) and 26 (11:30 p.m.)

HBO2 playdates: Jan. 25 (4:45 p.m.) and 27 (11:50 p.m.)

Alvarado and Rios own one victory apiece in a rivalry that would stand out in any era. Their previous encounters, in 2012 and 2013, were memorable slugfests that had fans on the edge of their seats from the opening bell. Now, they’ll meet in 12-round welterweight showdown before a partisan Alvarado crowd.

Boasting a loyal following, Denver’s Alvarado (34-3, 23 KOs) has battled many top talents in the 140- and 147-pound weight classes, including Juan Manuel Marquez, Ruslan Provodnikov, Mauricio Herrera and Mike Dallas Jr. His crowd-pleasing style is an ideal match for Oxnard, Cal. native Brandon Rios (32-2-1, 22 KOs), who never backs down and has squared off recently with Manny Pacquiao and Diego Chaves.

Previewing the bout, is the special “Road to Alvarado-Rios 3,” which replays Saturday, Jan. 24 (11:45 a.m. ET/PT) on HBO and is available on HBO ON DEMAND® and HBO GO®.

Following the first Rios-Alvarado fight, Yahoo! Sports wrote, “Each round was bitterly contested and the advantage would swing from one guy to the other like a pendulum,” adding that it was “one of the most sensational bouts in a long time.”

Opening the telecast, Mexico’s Gilberto Ramirez (30-0, 24 KOs) makes his HBO debut in a ten-round light heavyweight matchup with Russia’s Maxim Vlasov (30-1, 15 KOs). Ramirez, who is moving up in weight to take on Vlasov, relies on knockout power and ring savvy; appearing on HBO Latino in November, he stopped Fulgencio Zuniga in the eighth round. Vlasov has won his last 11 fights.

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

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

The executive producer of HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is Rick Bernstein; producer, Dave Harmon; director, Johnathan Evans.

® HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.

LONDON (21 Jan) – Brandon Rios has labelled his trilogy showdown with nemesis Mike Alvarado a ‘do or die’ affair, admitting he may hang up his gloves if he loses.

The all-action welterweight star will meet the exciting 34-year-old Alvarado in battle for the third time this weekend, following two epic clashes in which they share a win apiece.

Ahead of the edge-of-the-seat matchup, live and exclusive on BoxNation, Rios has predicted fireworks when he steps into the ring, for what could be the last time in his thrilling career.

“I am ready for anything Mike Alvarado brings to the table. I know all his tricks. He can’t surprise me this time. For both of us it’s do or die. If I lose this fight I may just call it a day as a fighter. I’ve been at this a long time,” said Rios.

“This will be the best fight of the trilogy, as it should be. No one should be surprised if this fight ends in a knockout. It’s happened once already. I’m not looking for the knockout but you can bet I won’t be avoiding it if the opportunity presents itself.

“I am so ready for chapter three this Saturday night. This is the ending the fans have been waiting for and I promise you they will not be disappointed,” Rios said.

The duo first met in the ring in October 2012 with Rios coming through as the victor when he stopped Denver born Alvarado in round seven following a relentless toe-to-toe clash, which many experts labelled their ‘Fight of the Year’.

Five months later and they were doing it all again in similarly rousing fashion, this time at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, but it was to be a different outcome with Alvarado stealing the show in a close 12-round unanimous points win.

This time round, however, former WBA lightweight world champion Rios has revealed he has gone back to basics to ensure it is his hand which is raised at the 1stBank Center in Bloomfield, Colorado.

“Our first two fights were exciting and have become legendary. I am proud to be associated with them and with Mike Alvarado,” said Rios.

“We gave the fans and ourselves the best we had to offer and produced spectacular performances. It was so intense and so close. All I kept thinking in each fight was ‘Don’t stop. Keep moving forward.’

“For this one Robert [Garcia] and I are working on using the ring in case Alvarado tries to run. The training method I am using is going back to the basics that I used in our first fight.

“I expect Alvarado to do what he did in the second fight, which is to run and move. He thinks I’m going to follow him like I did in the second fight. We are working on everything we think he will be bringing to the table, but this time we will be 100% ready for him,” said Rios.

The tough and durable Alvarado, though, is of the belief that a leopard doesn’t change its spots and knows full well what to expect from the unrelenting Rios.

“I will not fight his fight. I am sticking to our plan. But you can bet I will shoot the works when I have him in my sights,” said Alvarado.

“I feel great. I know the kind of fight this will be. He’s going to try to cut off the ring and when he does, he’ll open himself up and when he does that I will be cracking him.

“Fighting Brandon Rios has and continues to be an honour. This is a trilogy fans will remember for a very long time. We are entertainers and our fight on Saturday will be the grand finale. I intend to start the fireworks early in the fight,” he said.

Alvarado vs Rios is live on BoxNation (Sky 437/490HD, Virgin 546, TalkTalk 525) this Saturday night. Visit boxnation.com to subscribe.

DENVER (January 14, 2014) — Just 10 days before they write the final chapter of their epic trilogy, former world champions and co-stars of one this era’s most intense and exciting boxing rivalries, Denver’s “Mile High” MIKE ALVARADO and BRANDON “Bam Bam” RIOS of Oxnard, Calif., met with the media today at a media workout at Alvarado’s Denver-based gym. Alvarado (34-3, 23 KOs) and Rios (32-2-1, 22 KOs), of Oxnard, Calif., who each own a victory in the series — both of which were candidates for Fight of the Year in 2012 and 2013 — discussed the upcoming Alvarado-Rios 3, which is scheduled for 12 rounds with the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) International welterweight championship on the line. Taking place Saturday, January 24, at the 1STBANK Center, located in the Denver suburb of Broomfield, CO, Alvarado-Rios 3 will be televised live on HBO, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT. The last boxing event hosted by 1STBANK Center was sold out in advance — the October 19, 2013 WBO junior welterweight world championship between Alvarado and Ruslan Provodnikov.

The telecast will open with undefeated No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender GILBERTO “Zurdo” RAMIREZ of Mexico, facing the toughest challenge of his professional career, when he rumbles with once-beaten Top-10 contender MAXIM VLASOV from Russia, in a 10-round light heavyweight battle.

The four gladiators boast a combined record of 126-6-1 (84 KOS) — a winning percentage of 95% — with two-thirds of those victories coming by way of knockout.

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zapari Boxing and Tecate, remaining tickets to the Alvarado-Rios welterweight championship, priced at $250, $200, $125, $65 and $40, tickets are available at www.AltitudeTickets.com, by phone at 866-461-6556.and at the Pepsi Center box office.

WORKOUT QUOTES

BRANDON RIOS

“This will be the best fight of the trilogy, as it should be.”

“I am ready for anything Mike Alvarado brings to the table. I know all his tricks. He can’t surprise me this time.

“No one should be surprised if this fight ends in a knockout. It’s happened once already. I’m not looking for the knockout but you can bet I won’t be avoiding it if the opportunity presents itself.

For both of us it’s do or die. If I lose this fight I may just call it a day as a fighter. I’ve been at this a long time.

“I’ve been training in Greeley for 30 days to get acclimated to the thin air. I have been staying at a friend’s house. He built a full gym for me in his garage. It’s been great.

“Manny Pacquiao and Mike Alvarado are the two best fighters I have ever faced.

“I am so ready for chapter three on January 24. This is the ending the fans have been waiting for and I promise you they will not be disappointed!”

MIKE ALVARADO

”I feel great. I know the kind of fight this will be. He’s going to try to cut off the ring and when he does, he’ll open himself up and when he does that I will be cracking him.

“I will not fight his fight. I am sticking to our plan. But you can bet I will shoot the works when I have him in my sights.

“Brandon is right about one thing, it IS do or die for us We are both the same person inside the ring and outside the ring.”

“I have not allowed anything to distract me from my training. I am focused and ready.

“Fighting Brandon Rios has and continues to be an honor. This is a trilogy fans will remember for a very long time. We are entertainers and our fight on January 24 will be the grand finale. I intend to start the fireworks early in the fight.”

The “Road to Alvarado-Rios 3” special will replay on Friday, January 16 (9:45 p.m.), 18 (1:15 p.m.), 20 (9:45 a.m. & 11:00 p.m.), 23 (6:00 p.m. & 1:30 a.m.) and 24 (11:45 a.m.). All times are ET/PT. The 15-minute special will also be available on the HBO On Demand® service, HBO GO® and at www.hbo.com/boxing.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, or facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, or twitter.com/hboboxing. Use the Hashtag #AlvaradoRios to join the conversation on Twitter.