According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former world champion Orlando Salido un-retired after announcing his retirement last Saturday night after being stopped by Miguel Roman in Las Vegas.

“I am just an old fighter now,” the 37-year-old Salido said in a heartfelt manner.

“On Saturday night I let my emotions and my frustration get the best of me,” Salido said from his home in Phoenix. “It was a tough fight, and I was not able to do some of [the] things [I’ve] always been able to do in the ring that I attributed to my age and wear and tear on my body from so many wars.

“But after coming home and reviewing my camp and the fight, I realized that my weight issues were also part of the problem on Saturday night. I came into camp at the highest weight ever, and our focus became the weight and the boxing became secondary during training camp.”

“I felt that I left my fight at the scale,” Salido said. “No excuse, but one fight in 18 months did not help me stay in shape, and getting to the weight was the biggest concern for my fight, and while I am happy with the fight that I gave the fans, I truly believe that I can do better, so I am keeping my options open to returning in 2018 at 130 or 135 pounds. Sometime after a fight and in the heat of the moment, things are said that, upon reflection, are not the correct things to say. I want to get back into the ring to give my fans some more thrills as I believe I still have some good boxing left.”

By Bart Barry-

Saturday on ESPN Ukrainian super featherweight champion Vasyl “Hi-Tech” Lomachenko made undefeated Cuban super bantamweight champion Guillermo “The Jackal” Rigondeaux quit after six rounds. On HBO Mexican journeyman Miguel “Mickey” Roman beat to a crumple Mexican journeyman and former champion Orlando “Siri” Salido. ESPN’s match comprised two fighters with four Olympic gold medals. HBO’s comprised two fighters with 25 professional losses. While any aficionado might’ve predicted which match would be more entertaining, few of us predicted exactly how much more entertaining Roman-Salido’d be than Lomachenko-Rigondeaux.

Saturday’s mainevents hadn’t a unifying thread that springs to mind but Salido, HBO’s counterprogramming ace, representing the one loss on Lomachenko’s record. It’s a proper loss, too, no matter how a commentator and ring announcer now revise it.

No sooner do we threaten to start a new era in which undefeated ledgers are not all there is to a fighter’s dossier but we try to unblemish Lomachenko’s record retroactively – else we’ll compromise what words like “otherworldly” we now include in the subtitle of his brochure. This straining for symmetry is what happens when we see ourselves as storytellers, not journalists, a point of ongoing and massive struggle for television as a medium.

Television was built on images that flicker to mesmerize and entertain. When this wasn’t enough to grow revenues television endeavored to get serious and journalistic and in a small corner of itself did so successfully enough subgenres got born. But television is too topical to be sober or intellectual as the written word – with its frowzy dressers, doughy faces, hard drinkers and thousandhours spent in front of library stacks instead of mirrors – and television knows this about itself and too knows it’s not glorious or beautiful as cinema or it wouldn’t have to sell its every fifth minute to advertisers. Television is best when it tries to be a little of both, more intellectual than cinema, more fun than print.

Television is frankly awful when it tries to lecture. There were some moments of it Saturday.

Something about Lomachenko, starting with his silly nickname, makes aspiring Homers of every speedreader and street philosopher; the mean feat of making smaller men quit fighting in frustration ascends to the historic when Lomachenko does it. Much of this, again, is his topicality; Lomachenko’s promoter, Bob Arum, knows better than any man alive if you can get your guy in front of a camera against weak opposition television’s salesmanship reliably fills every vacuum in realtime; commentary crews involuntarily enter a hyperbole duel with one another, earnestly wanting to be able to say theirs was the first to perform a historic inventory of this historic figure’s every historic quality. Some writers sometimes do this, too, especially those who hope to make it to television someday, but writing polices its own – as it did for centuries before television’s invention – dealing in credibility more than ratings.

Something about the very nature of words makes it harder to write “Lomachenko may someday be considered greater than Muhammad Ali” than it is to say it.

If there’s some tension between a pursuit of truth and a fun experience, television has to err on the fun side of things, selling the experience in a way print does not: nobody, after all, in 30 years will say he remembers the first time he read about Lomachenko, while plenty of folks now hope to have occasion to say they remember the first time they saw him. There are plenty of smart professionals in television, of course, and after thinking a bit on the proposition they realize the risk to credibility of calling every fighter the next Ali, Marciano or Robinson (or Pernell Whitaker) is dwarfed by the reward of being the first to recognize a future legend.

“Predicting,” as they say, “10 of the next two great champions.”

At the risk of losing a reader or two, I can happily report I found Miguel Roman’s victory multiples more compelling than Lomachenko’s. Wait, get back here, you two; I watched Lomachenko-Rigondeaux live, not Roman-Salido. If I wasn’t nearly first on the Rigondeaux bandwagon I did cover from ringside his sixth, ninth and 10th prizefights and recognized, with the help of a local San Antonio trainer, his multitude of talents. I wasn’t ringside for his defining win against Nonito Donaire (I was at a Natalie Merchant concert in Fort Worth, instead, and do not regret it a little) but was thrilled with the result, annoyed as I was by the hyperbole by then accrued to Donaire.

Since then I’ve been unimpressed by Rigondeaux as the rest of you. But he did do Saturday what we ask prizefighters to do once they’ve declared themselves too-feared to find opponents in their proper weightclasses. And the result was predictable. Fruity as his comportment often is, Lomachenko gives refreshingly honest postfight analyses, and his saying a corner quittage by an undersized man did not rate was my favorite thing Lomachenko did Saturday.

There’s no need to rehash the action because, over and again, it’s awfully easy to look sensational and do outlandish against a man once you know he can’t hurt you, which is why Canelo and GGG made none of the highlights against each other in September they make against smaller men.

Anyway it would be malpractice to commit any more space to that unexceptional and unsatisfying fare after a weekend when Miguel Roman retired Orlando Salido in a gorgeous attritioning of Salido’s noble spirit. Each man planned to retire if he lost, and neither man said so beforehand, which compares most favorably with the lucrative twofight sendoff HBO and Miguel Cotto just threw Miguel Cotto, no?

Roman probably won’t win his next fight without he barefoots another pathway of hot coals, which is fortunate for us and unfortunate for him. After what Roman just did to Salido at 130 pounds, with a different marketing team and promoter and momentum he might otherwise be allowed to make shortfilms about his reflexes and do otherworldly things against a bantamweight.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

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The bright lights of Las Vegas shine on the junior lightweight division when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: ORLANDO SALIDO VS. MIGUEL ROMAN, TEVIN FARMER VS. KENICHI OGAWA AND FRANCISCO VARGAS VS. STEPHEN SMITH is seen SATURDAY, DEC. 9 at 10:20 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from Mandalay Bay Events Center. The HBO Sports team will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

The fights will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO, HBO On Demand and affiliate portals.

In a night of three 130-pound clashes, the main event features four-time world champion Orlando Salido (44-13-4, 31 KOs) from Ciudad Obregón, Mexico, now living in Phoenix, taking on Miguel Roman (57-12, 44 KOs) of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico in a 10-round bout.

With 130 fights between them, veterans Salido and Roman are known for tenacity and fan-friendly styles. Salido was last seen on HBO in June 2016 when he fought Francisco Vargas in an evenly pitched consensus Fight of the Year, resulting in a majority draw decision. Roman was last seen on HBO in January, suffering a memorable hard-fought loss to Takashi Miura.

The co-main event spotlights Philadelphia’s Tevin Farmer (25-4-1, 5 KOs) and Tokyo’s Kenichi Ogawa (22-1, 17 KOs) in a 12-round world title contest. Farmer was on an 18-bout win streak until he was shot in the hand while attempting to break up an altercation at a party. Now recovered, he seeks to resume his championship quest. Fighting in the U.S. for the first time, Ogawa has won 14 straight bouts following his only loss, in 2012. The fight marks the first shot at a world title for either man.

The night opens with Francisco Vargas (23-1-2, 17 KOs) from Mexico City, Mexico taking on Stephen Smith (25-3, 15 KOs) of Liverpool, UK in a 10-round contest. Vargas looks to get back on a win streak following a majority draw against Orlando Salido and a KO loss to Miguel Berchelt in a brutal fight seen last January on HBO. Smith has knocked out more than half his opponents and is fighting in the U.S. for just the second time.

The action-packed night of boxing action continues on the HBO Latino service starting at 1:05 a.m. ET or immediately following the HBO Boxing After Dark telecast. The HBO Latino Boxing doubleheader (tape-delayed) is headlined by a scheduled 10-round junior lightweight fight between Russia’s Denis Shafikov (38-3-1, 20 KOs) and Nicaragua’s Rene Alvarado (27-8, 19 KOs). The opening bout on HBO Latino Boxing pits undefeated prospect Jaime Mungia (25-0, 21 KOs) of Tijuana, Mexico, against Paul Valenzuela (20-6, 14 KOs) of Baja, Mexico, in a scheduled eight-round matchup in the junior middleweight division.

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

The executive producer of HBO Sports is Rick Bernstein; producer, Jonathan Crystal; director, Johnathan Evans.

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

The abuse of power has once again hit our sport in a dramatic way, as Orlando Salido and Micky Roman will be prevented of accomplishing their dream of winning the WBC title due to a decision taken by a man sitting on a desk mandating terms of their bout.

HBO has mandated their fight to be only for 10 rounds.

The promoters have no say in the matter, and simply take the orders from the Power force of the sport, the TV Network. Tom Loeffler, Fernando Beltran, and Oswaldo Kuchle simply have to bow down and remain quiet and accept to go against the essence of our sport. I wonder how will they look into the eyes of their fighters to explain that they will not be competing for the WBC green belt, that their fight is a simple 10-round fight with no meaning whatsoever. It will be like watching a pre-season game of the NFL.

HBO will be airing a 10 round main event next Saturday night from Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay.

The WBC will not disrespect the sport and sanction a world title fight for 10 rounds. That would have been easy to do and join the bandwagon, but the WBC Board would not favor such, as there is no real explanation of the change from 12 to 10.

The WBC accepted a request for Salido to fight Miguel Berchelt in a title defense of the WBC super featherweight championship, which was accepted by HBO. Then, when Berchelt injured his hand, the WBC, supporting the card, accepted to sanction a fight for the WBC interim title between Salido and Roman.

I am very sorry for Salido, as he has expressed countless times his dream of becoming WBC champion. I am very sorry for Roman, who has done the same, and I am very sorry for boxing, as a main championship fight has been downgraded to a 10-round fight with nothing at stake.

On to a better note, to what the real world is and matters.

I am sitting in my hotel room in Chicago simply thinking of the great memories that these past four days have given me. The WBC Amateur committee supported a five-state amateur boxing tournament at Cicero Stadium in Illinois.

It was great to be with the kids and their families during this four-day event which crowned some talented boys and girls after sensational matches.

Amateur boxing is so important, and it is often ignored by most in the boxing community and supported by very few. It all starts here, at the amateur level. Muhammad Ali, Ray Leonard, and almost all fighters began their journey with a solid amateur career which led to glory in the Olympics and then into the professional world of boxing. They all started as young kids, hungry and dedicated. Their families following their steps day after day, going to competitions, learning, growing, dreaming.

I saw great talent this past few days and saw the reality of our sport. It is the greatest sport in the world. It was all family gathering around a boxing competition, all fair play and respect.

I had the opportunity to meet with Mike McAtee, executive director of USA Boxing and discussed the future of Amateur boxing in this great country, the USA. I am extremely happy to learn that USA Boxing, which is the entity in charge of regulations of amateur boxing in the USA, shares most of the concerns that most in the world have regarding the practices of AIBA which have hurt the sport in recent years and will not allow such practices to take place in the USA, including the rejection of professionals in the Olympics and making head gear mandatory in all amateur bouts.

WBC lightweight champion Mikey Garcia was here with us as “The Godfather” of the tournament, and he keeps on making me feel so proud of him every time I see him. He was there for all the fights, enjoyed every second of it, and took pictures and signed autographs with a sincere smile. Mikey is a class act, a true role model and ambassador of our sport.

The boxing commission of Illinois is a true example of excellency and support. Nancy Illg has a tremendous team with Joel Campuzano and all the members who participated in support of this event with passion for the betterment of the youth.

November is gone, so is my mustache!

The WBC dedicates the month of December to HIV/AIDS awareness and Safe Driving!

LAS VEGAS (November 10, 2017) – It was announced today by Zanfer Promotions, Golden Boy Promotions and Tom Loeffler that the Boxing Capital of the World, Las Vegas, will host another spectacular event Saturday, Dec. 9. Four-Time World Champion in two weight divisions, ORLANDO “Siri” SALIDO (44-13-4, 31 KOs), of Sonora, MX, will face off against fellow Mexican warrior MIGUEL “Mikey” ROMAN (57-12, 44 KOs), of Chihuahua, MX, in a 12-round lightweight clash for the vacant WBC Interim Junior Lightweight Title from the Mandalay Bay Events Center. The bout will be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:20 p.m. ET.

Tickets priced at $250, $200, $150, $100 and $50 are On Sale Today At 12:00 p.m. PT and can be purchased at AXS.com or in person at the Mandalay Bay Events Center Box Office.

Also featured on the card is a bout between TEVIN “American Idol” FARMER (25-4-1, 5 KO’s), of Philadelphia, PA as he squares off against KENICHI OGAWA (22-1-0, 17 KO’s), of Tokyo, Japan for the vacant IBF Junior Lightweight World Title. Farmer vs. Ogawa is presented in association with DiBella Entertainment and Teiken Promotions.

Opening the telecast is former WBC World Super Featherweight Champion FRANCISCO “El Bandido” VARGAS (23-1-2, 17 KOs) who will return to the ring once again to make a case for title contention when he takes on former two-time world title challenger STEPHEN “Swifty” SMITH (25-3, 15 KOs) in a 12-round super featherweight fight. Vargas vs. Smith is presented in association with Matchroom Boxing.

“Roman is a good fighter but honestly I don’t care who is in front of me. I always come to fight, this is no exception. I’m rested and ready for another fight,” said Orlando Salido.

Miguel Roman said, “The fans will not be disappointed when I get inside the ring with Salido – I’m going to knock him out. I’m preparing for what could be a tremendous test with Salido because he is a tough fighter. But that doesn’t scare me, and I know that ultimately I will be the fighter to raise his hand in victory.”
Zanfer Promotions’ Fernando Beltran said, “Salido vs. Roman is a great fight. It reminds me a lot of Morales vs. Barrera I: two Mexicans who we knew how they fought and that it would be the Fight of the Year. We have the same feeling for this fight, and we believe we have another Fight of the Year.”

Oscar De La Hoya, chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, said, “Orlando Salido and Mickey Roman are both fighters who won’t back down in the ring so I expect to see a great event when they enter the ring. Salido is an action-packed fighter who has shown us time and again that he will take two punches to give one. Roman is a warrior who has tremendous power. The fans always come out on top when you have two veteran Mexican fighters that like to brawl so I expect a very entertaining event next month.”

“Francisco Vargas is a fighter that I’ve never worried will be in a boring fight because he brings aggression and action to the ring with every opponent. When he fights Smith on December 9, I think you’ll see a stronger, smarter and more aggressive Vargas than we’ve ever seen before.”

Tom Loeffler said, “We’re looking forward to promoting this sensational triple header featuring three great matchups all in the same weight class with boxing fans being the true winners on December 9.”

“Having promoted numerous events at Mandalay Bay and with Gennady “GGG” Golovkin making it his host hotel for fight week in September, it’s a pleasure to work with their great team once again and with the strong relationships which have been built over many years.”

In June 2016, Salido and Francisco Vargas engaged in the consensus “Fight of the Year” telecast on HBO from the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., as they both clashed in a fight that had the huge crowd on their feet throughout. At the end of the twelve memorable rounds the bout was declared a majority draw.

On March 1, 2014, Salido welcomed current world champion and pound-for-pound contender Vasyl Lomachenko to the professional ranks with a 12-round decision victory in San Antonio, TX. Lomachenko was seeking to capture Salido’s WBO Featherweight World Title in only his second professional bout, but was turned back by the skilled, hard-punching Mexican veteran in San Antonio.

Boxing professionally from the age of 15, the 36-year-old Salido has competed against numerous world champions and top contenders including Mikey Garcia, Lamont Peterson, Roman Martinez, Juan Manuel Lopez, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Robert Guerrero.

The 31-year-old fighter, Roman, a professional since 2003, had compiled a 19-bout winning streak prior to facing Japanese warrior Takashi Miura on January 28, 2017 in Indio, Calif. Telecast on HBO, both combatants engaged in a memorable fight through the first 11 rounds before the bout was stopped in Miura’s favor.

Roman followed up the disappointing loss with a 12-round knockout of Nery Saguilian on June 24, 2017 in Chihuahua, MX. The victory earned Roman the vacant WBC FECOMBOX Lightweight Title.

Said Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertaiment, “Tevin Farmer is truly the American Dream. Fighting inside the ring through hard work and uncommon perseverance has created this opportunity for him to challenge for a world title. Outside the ring, Tevin recently suffered a gunshot wound while serving valiantly as a peacemaker during a domestic incident in his hometown this past July.”

“I’m honored to work with Tevin and promote this long-awaited opportunity for him to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a world champion.”

Tevin Farmer said, “I’ve been waiting a long time for an opportunity like this and I’m happy that it’s now here. I’m going to seize the moment and become a world champion on December 9. Training camp has been going as planned. I’m already in shape and we still have a month left before the fight. Ogawa comes to fight and he won’t lay down. He’s coming for the victory, too, but it’s my job to do what I do best and make it look easy.

“I’ve been through a lot of adversity to reach this point in my career and it taught me how to dig deep and become a better person and better fighter. I know not to take this opportunity for granted. I’m bringing the title home to Philadelphia.”

Kenichi Ogawa said, “I am honored to be fighting for the IBF title and very excited that it will be in Las Vegas. I know Tevin Farmer is a tough opponent and I will be ready for him on December 9. This will be my first fight outside of Japan. I am training very hard to put on a good performance in my U.S. debut.”

Victorious in his last seventeen bouts, the 27-year-old southpaw Farmer has taken on all comers throughout his seven-year career, continuing to improve with each fight. Following four victories last year including a sensational victory over contender Ivan Redkach, Farmer defeated Arturo Reyes by decision on April 29, 2017 in his hometown.

Fighting for the first time in the United States, 29-year-old Ogawa is also riding a very impressive 14-bout winning streak dating back to 2012.

With two victories in 2017, most recently Ogawa stopped Hirotsugu Yamamoto on July 1 in Tokyo, Japan.

Said Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing, “This is a great opportunity for Stephen Smith on a huge platform. He has put in some great performances for a world title, and badly wants another crack at the crown. A win against Francisco Vargas would 100% do that. It’s a great division and this is a great card on December 9.”

Francisco Vargas said, “Stephen Smith and the fans should expect nothing less than non-stop action from a warrior like me. On December 9, people are going to remember the reasons why I was in two Fight of the Year events as I make a comeback to the ring. I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions, Ralph Heredia Management, Matchroom Boxing and Stephen Smith for putting together this fight that I know the fans will enjoy.”

Said Stephen Smith, “It’s a great opportunity for me. Francisco Vargas always comes to fight, which I’m sure will make for an entertaining clash on December 9. The way he fights, it’s always tough. The last two years he’s been involved in the Fight of the Years against Salido and Miura, which shows the level he’s at and excitement he brings. But you don’t know how many miles are now on his clock. That’s a big unanswered question. We’re both highly ranked with the WBC so at this stage it looks on paper to be the best route back to a world title.”

Vargas, of Mexico City, is the former WBC World Super Featherweight Champion who earned the title in a spectacular Fight of the Year performance against Takashi Miura on the Cotto-Canelo undercard in November 2015. Vargas followed the victory with yet another Fight of the Year contender against Salido in June 2016 that was ruled a majority draw. Vargas will return to the ring to face Roman after the first and only loss in his career against current WBC World Super Featherweight Champion Miguel “El Alacran” Berchelt in January of this year.

The 32-year-old Smith has challenged for a world title in two competitive occasions and faced some of the best fighters in the featherweight and super featherweight divisions. Smith’s taken on current IBF World Featherweight Champion “Lightning” Lee Selby, former IBF Super Featherweight Champion Jose “Sniper” Pedraza and former WBA World Super Featherweight Champion Jason “El Canito” Sosa. The native of Liverpool, England will look to earn a third title opportunity if successful against Vargas.

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According to Dan Rafael of eson.com, former world champion Orlando Salido will take on Miguel Roman on December 9th on an HBO Boxing After Dark show at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

“I am little disappointed that I am not fighting (Miguel) Berchelt for the WBC belt, but injuries are part of boxing and these things happen all the time,” Salido said at a media lunch in Los Angeles to announce the fight on Wednesday. “But a fight with Miguel Roman is a good fight and it should be an all-action Mexican war between two guys that will fight from start to finish.

“I’m very happy that I will be in the main event in Las Vegas, and I want to give the fans another great fight. I know I need to beat Roman to stay on course to fight for a world championship next year and that is what I intend to do on Dec. 9.”

“Roman is a good fighter, but, honestly, I don’t care who is in front of me. I always come to fight,” Salido said. “This is no exception. I’m rested and ready for another war.”

“I guess in a way I am competing against Lomachenko, who is also on a TV card that night, but anyone that knows about fighting will know which fight will have drama and excitement and which one will have dancing,” said Salido, who turned down offers to fight Lomachenko in a rematch for career-high money.

“I know this is a tough fight and I am going against a tough fighter, but I know what I am capable of and I believe that I will beat Salido,” Roman said. “This is not an easy fight for either one of us, and the biggest winners will be the fans. This is a great opportunity for me and will take full advantage of it.

“I’m going to knock him out. I’m preparing for what could be a savage war with Salido because he is a tough fighter. But that doesn’t scare me and I know that ultimately I will be the fighter to raise his hand in victory.”
“It reminds me a lot of [Erik] Morales versus [Marco Antonio] Barrera I, two Mexicans fighting at Mandalay Bay,” he said of the legendary junior featherweight unification fight in 2000 that served as the first match of their epic trilogy. “We knew it would be fight of the year. We have the same feeling for this fight. We believe we have another fight of the year.”

Former world champion Orlando Salido will return on May 27th in his native Mexico, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Salido will take on Amphon Suriyo in a scheduled 10-round bout at a contract weight of 132 pounds in Bacum, Mexico, just a few minutes from Salido’s hometown of Cuidad Obregon, Sean Gibbons, Salido’s manager told ESPN on Sunday. The fight will be televised on beIN Sports Español in the United States.

“The idea is to shake the rust off against Suriyo and if all goes well to fight Vasyl Lomachenko later in the year and settle things once and for all with that fight,” Gibbons said.

“Salido needs to do something before he can fight Lomachenko again. He needs to fight,” Gibbons said. “Orlando hasn’t had a homecoming fight in a few years so the timing was right to have a fight at home.”

“We believe the time is correct to make the Lomachenko fight,” Gibbons said. “Our goal is to fight May 27, have Orlando shake off the rust and have a deal in place with Top Rank for a Lomachenko fight. I don’t want to overlook this fight or call this a tune-up, but Orlando really wants the Lomachenko rematch. He wants it financially and he also wants it for pride. He’s tired of hearing about low blows, the weight, the referee. Enough with the excuses.

Orlando Salido will take on Takashi Miura on December 17th at the Forum in Inglewood, California, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“It’s signed, sealed and delivered,” said Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya. “It’s not complicated matchmaking, but it goes to show you that we at Golden Boy want to make the best fights. We want to go out with a bang to close the year. We’re hopefully going to do a tripleheader on HBO. We’re talking to [HBO Sports executive vice president] Peter Nelson about it, because we want to give the fans a special treat for the holidays.”

“All I can say is that boxing fans and subscribers to HBO are the absolute winners here,” said Sean Gibbons, Salido’s manager. “Orlando Salido has already delivered one fight of the year candidate this year, and he is looking to close the year by delivering another one. We want to thank Peter Nelson for seeing and understanding this is a fight the fans want. It’s a win-win for boxing and HBO.”

De La Hoya has special memories of The Forum because it is where he turned pro on Nov. 23, 1992, almost 24 years to the day when Salido-Miura will take place.

“I had my professional debut there, and I haven’t been there since [for boxing],” De La Hoya said. “It will be a special treat for me to promote a fight of this caliber in the arena where I initiated my professional career. To go back 24 years later is really exciting, especially when you have a fight like this.

“Their styles are made to create World War III. This is a can’t-miss fight. The fans are in for a special treat. I can’t wait.”

Gibbons said Salido also loves that the fight will take place at The Forum, site of many famous fights before it closed to the sport for more than a decade before reopening in 2014.

“A lot of his idols fought there,” Gibbons said. “There is so much beautiful history in that building, so for Salido to fight there, it will raise the level of his game.”

“I think Miura is the bigger guy and maybe the bigger puncher,” De La Hoya said. “So I guess he’s the slight favorite, but Salido looked sensational against Vargas, strong and durable.”

“Whatever we do we want to make sure we give the fans a great show to end the year with,” he said.

LOS ANGELES (June 2, 2016) – WBC Super Featherweight World Champion Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) and former three-time world champion Orlando “Siri” Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs, 1 NC) today hosted the final press conference ahead of their 12-round showdown Saturday, June 4 at the StubHub Center and televised live on HBO® Boxing AfterDark.

They were joined by undefeated Julian “El Camaron” Ramirez (16-0, 8 KOs) and Abraham “Chamaco” Lopez (20-0-1, 15 KOs), who will meet in the ring for the vacant NABA Featherweight Title in the co-main event on June 4. Undercard fighters were also on hand for today’s final press conference including “King”Gabriel Rosado (22-9, 13 KOs) of Philadelphia and Tijuana’s Antonio “Tony” Gutierrez (20-1-1, 9 KOs) who will face off for a 10-round middleweight bout; Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (13-0, 12 KOs) of Buena Park, Calif. who will fight for his first title, the WBC Youth Super Featherweight Title in an eight-round bout; Nick Arce (7-0, 6 KOs) who will battle in a six-round super featherweight bout; Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro (5-0, 4 KOs) who is scheduled for a six-round super lightweight bout; Genaro Gamez (1-0, 1 KO) of San Diego who will fight in a four-round lightweight bout; Oscar Duarte (4-0, 2 KOs) of Parral, Mexico who will face off in a four-round lightweight bout; and Cesar Diaz of Palmdale, Calif. who will make his professional debut.

Below is what the fighters had to say at today’s final press conference

FRANCISCO “EL BANDIDO” VARGAS, WBC Super Featherweight World Champion:

“We know that June 4 is nearly here. I know Orlando has trained hard like I have to give the fans a great fight. You definitely do not want to miss this fight.

“If you can’t be there in person, tune in to HBO Boxing After Dark on Saturday night.”

GUILLERMO BECERRIL, Trainer to Francisco Vargas:

“The time is here. We are ready and prepared very well. We will see you on Saturday night.”

RALPH HEREDIA, Manager to Francisco Vargas:

“Thank you to Golden Boy, HBO and the WBC family. I want everyone to know that we respect Salido. He is a great warrior and has been in great fights. We know he will be ready.

“This also shows the commitment HBO has to make great fights with Golden Boy. The fans have responded because this is guaranteed to be an action-packed fight.

Not just as a manager but also as a fan of the sport, I am excited for this fight.”

ORLANDO “SIRI” SALIDO, Former Three-Time World Champion:

“Thank you to Golden Boy, HBO and everyone involved and to Team Vargas for giving me this opportunity. I’m sure I am going to take this title to Ciudad Obregon in Mexico.”

FERNANDO BELTRAN, President and CEO of Zanfer Promotions:

“It’s a real pleasure to be here. This is going to be a war. It’s a tremendous fight. We have a great fighter and a great champion with Orlando Salido. We believe he won the fight against Rocky Martinez.

“We want to bring the belt home. A lot of great Mexicans have had this belt, and Orlando wants to add his name to the list.”

JOSE SANTOS MORENO, Trainer to Orlando Salido:

“With a little luck and a hard training camp, Orlando should be the winner of the fight on Saturday night.”

SEAN GIBBONS, Manager to Orlando Salido:

“Thank you to the best comission in boxing, California State Athletic Commission and Andy Foster. Thank you to HBO and Peter Nelson. Saturday night, Orlando Salido will add his name to list of many great fighters in the sport.”

JULIAN “EL CAMARRON” RAMIREZ, Undefeated Featherweight Contender:

“I’m ready for this fight. I trained hard and I know Abraham did, too. I want to give credit to Abraham for stepping up to take this fight and put his undefeated record on the line.

“Fighting on HBO is a dream come true. It’s going to be a great night of boxing on Saturday. See you there.”

ABRAHAM “CHAMACO” LOPEZ, Undefeated Featherweight Contender:

“I’m here and I’m ready. I know Julian and I will give a great performance for the fans. It’s going to be a fantastic fight.”

“KING” GABRIEL ROSADO, Top Middleweight Contender:

“Thank you to my trainer Fernando Vargas. We had a good camp. I’m not taking my opponent lightly.”

ANTONIO “TONY” GUTIERREZ, Top Middleweight Contender:

“Fans – don’t miss this fight. It’s going to be great.”

CHRISTIAN “CHIMPA” GONZALEZ, Top Super Featherweight Prospect:

“Thank you to the media, Golden Boy Promotions, my manager and family. I’m excited and motivated for this fight. I’m ready. Get your tickets and I’ll wait for you guys on June 4.”

NICK ARCE, Top Super Featherweight Prospect:

“Thank you for making the time to be here today. I’d like to thank my team for always pushing me 100 percent and to Golden Boy for always putting me on great undercards. I feel strong and happy and ready to go for Saturday.”

JONATHAN “THUNDER” NAVARRO, Top Super Lightweight Prospect:

“Thank you for supporting this event and thanks to Golden Boy for the opportunity. I had a great training camp, and I’m ready to give the fans what they want and that is an action-packed fight.”

ROBERT GASPARRI, Chief Operating Officer at Golden Boy Promotions:

“Here we are at the StubHub Center, home of some of the most epic fights of this era, and on Saturday we will witness two Mexican warriors face-off in the ring as WBC Super Featherweight champion Francisco Vargas makes his first title defense against former three-time world champion Orlando Salido.

“We have also put together an action-packed undercard featuring many SoCal boxing fan favorites leading up to the main event. One thing is for certain, Saturday will be a real fiesta for all of our Mexican boxing fans.”

PETER NELSON, Executive Vice President of HBO Sports:

“We are privileged these fighters stepped up to face each other. StubHub is a great venue for us. It is our 14th time here for a fight. There is something about the energy in the arena here that makes the fighters step up. This fight is a tremendous event.

“Vargas is a former Olympian, world champion. He sowed us last November that he has great boxing skills and the ability to pull of a great upset. Salido – everyone knows he has been a warrior for a long time. When he was coming up as a young kid, by the time he was 17 he has a record of 18 pro fights. It’s never been a easy road for him but no one is counting him out.

“Lopez-Ramirez will also be a great fight along with other great fights on the undercard. If you can’t be there, watch it on HBO.”

ROBERT DIAZ, Head Matchmaker at Golden Boy Promotions:

“When you have two Mexican warriors in the right like we will on Saturday night, we are guaranteed fireworks. Saturday night will be special. When Vargas and Salido enter the ring, they will enter with pride for their country.”

ANDY FOSTER, Executive Officer of the California State Athletic Commission:

“I look forward to watching this event. California regulates more boxing than any other athletic commission in the country. When this came across my desk, I was excited to see that Golden Boy had made this fight.”

JOSE SULAIMAN, JR., Director of Operations for Los Angeles Office, World Boxing Council:

“Mexico is a producer of champions and this fight is an example of one where the fighters will give everything for the fans. Boxing needs these kinds of matches. This is the kind of fight the fans appreciate; two warriors in the ring.

“I wish the best to both fighters. May the best man win.”

BRENDAN HANNAN, Vice President, Marketing, Communications and Digital at LA Galaxy and StubHub Center:

“StubHub Center is the premier outdoor venue for boxing in the united states. We are excited to see these two fighters face off. We expect but the best.”

Tickets for Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido priced at $200, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges are available for purchase at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425.

Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido is a 12-round battle for the WBC Super Featherweight Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Zanfer Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila and HANDS OF STONE: The True Story of Roberto Duran, in theaters this August. The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. The RingTvLive.com live stream begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.zanfer.mx, www.hbo.com/boxing and www.stubhubcenter.com; follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @ZanferBox, @HBOBoxing, @StubHubCenter, @ElBandido130, @Siri_Salido, @El_Camaron23 and @TeamAbeLopez; become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/zanferpromotions, www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing and www.facebook.com/StubHubCenter; and visit us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing,@El_Camaron23, @TeamAbeLopez and @HBOBoxing. Follow the conversation using #VargasSalido.

LOS ANGELES (June 1, 2016) -WBC Super Featherweight World Champion Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) and former three-time world champion Orlando “Siri” Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs, 1 NC) hosted today, a Los Angeles media workout ahead of their upcoming in a 12-round battle that will take place June 4 at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. and televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark. They were joined by undefeated Julian “El Camaron” Ramirez (16-0, 8 KOs) and Abraham “Chamaco” Lopez (20-0-1, 15 KOs), who will meet in the ring for the first time to battle for the vacant NABA Featherweight Title in the co-main event on June 4 along with undercard fighters “King” Gabriel Rosado (22-9, 13 KOs) of Philadelphia; Tijuana’s Antonio “Tony” Gutierrez (20-1-1, 9 KOs); Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (13-0, 12 KOs) of Buena Park, Calif.; Nick Arce (7-0, 6 KOs); and Santa Ana, Calif.’s Alexis Rocha (2-0, 2 KOs).

Also at today’s workout were fighters featured on the June 3 LA FIGHT CLUB card including Ronny Rios (25-1, 10 KOs) who headlines the Belasco Theater on Friday for a 10-round featherweight battle; local favorite Rafael “El Alikin” Gramajo (7-1-1, 2 KOs) who will return to the ring in a six-round bantamweight bout; Tenochtitlan “T-Dog” Nava (1-0) will fight in a four-round super featherweight brawl; Pablo “The Shark” Rubio Jr. (5-0, 3 KOs) who will fight in a four-round super bantamweight fight; and Seniesa Estrada (6-0, 1 KO) who will fight in LA FIGHT CLUB’s first female bout opening up the televised broadcast.

Below is what the fighters on the Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido card had to say at today’s workout:

FRANCISCO “EL BANDIDO” VARGAS, WBC Super Featherweight World Champion:

“I’m ready to give another incredible fight to the fans. I have always said I want to fight the best, and Salido is one of the best.

“The only thing on my mind is to win this fight on Saturday. It’s up to the fans to decide if I’m number one. I’m a technical fighter but it will come down to my intelligence. This will be a very difficult fight on Saturday.”

ORLANDO “SIRI” SALIDO, Former Three-Time World Champion:

“I’m a warrior and Vargas is a warrior. The ones who will win will be the fans.

“When you get in to boxing, you are mentally prepared to get knocked down. Every time I’ve been knocked down, I just get back up again and fight. I like to prove everyone wrong and that’s what I plan to do when I go in and fight this young undefeated fighter.”

(L-R: Gabriel Rosado, Julian Ramirez, Abraham Lopez, Antonio Gutierrez)

JULIAN “EL CAMARRON” RAMIREZ, Undefeated Featherweight Contender:

“I’m at 125 lbs. right now, and I feel great. My mindset going into this is confidence. I’ve trained for three months with four sparring partners.

“I look at every opponent the same. I just want to win. Lopez is just another guy I’m fighting. It’s nothing personal, just another fight. Now that I’m with a new trainer, there’s no games-just training hard.”

ABRAHAM LOPEZ, Undefeated Featherweight Contender:

“Every fight is just another day for me, like another day in the office. I’ve known Julian since his amateur days, and we have sparred together. There’s no heat between us. We just need to handle business in the ring. I’ll do whatever it takes to prepare for this fight.”

“KING” GABRIEL ROSADO, Top Middleweight Contender:

“Training camp has been going great. I’ve been staying ready since the fight with Joshua Clottey. I’m assuming he is coming into this fight with his A game.

“This training camp we are a lot more familiar now (with new trainer Fernando Vargas). The thing about Fernando is he is a former world champion so I believe him; whatever he tells me, I believe him.

“This fight sets us up for a better opportunity and a bigger name in the future.

“Fernando is a savage like me; we have a lot in common. Fernando doesn’t have to show me how to fight; he is just sharpening me. He is building my confidence. He expects the best out of me.”

ANTONIO “TONY” GUTIERREZ, Top Middleweight Contender:

“This has been the toughest training camp of my career. I have trained mentally and physically for this. My opponent Rosado is a very tough fighter, and we have to be very intelligent to win. Fighting Rosado is very big for my career and defeating him would put me at a whole new level. This is going to be a great fight. Another Classic Puerto Rico vs. Mexico fight, and we’re going to go all out in the ring.”

(L-R: Nick Arce, Christian Gonzalez, Alexis Rocha)

CHRISTIAN “CHIMPA” GONZALEZ, Top Super Featherweight Prospect:

“Little by little, it’s become reality that my career has been growing. I’ve been training very hard and am counting down the days until my fight on Saturday. I know the fans like to see action and my fighting style delivers that. My goal is to fight two or three more times this year. This Saturday, everyone can expect me to put on a show in the ring.”

NICK ARCE, Top Super Featherweight Prospect:

“I can’t wait to fight at The StubHub Center this Saturday. This has been a great training camp with my stable mates. They [Nava and Rafael] have fights on Friday and we have been preparing together every step of the way. My camp and I do a lot for our community and that’s why I think the fans will come out on Saturday.”

ALEXIS ROCHA, Top Welterweight Prospect:

“I’m not looking for it, but if the knockout comes, I’ll be ready take it this Saturday. My brother [Golden Boy fighter Ronny Rios] and I are used to training and fighting together. It was very exciting to fight the day before the Canelo vs. Khan fight at the Toshiba Plaza, and if the matchmakers allow it, I hope to move on up to the biggest fights I can.”

Below is what the fighters on the June 3 LA FIGHT CLUB card had to say at today’s workout:

(L-R: Tenochtitlan Nava, Seniesa Estrada, Ronny Rios, Rafael Gramajo, Pablo Rubio Jr.)

RONNY RIOS, Top Featherweight Contender:

“I’m very comfortable at my weight of 126 going in to this fight. I’ve been training hard and staying healthy. For me, it’s not about being undefeated it’s about fighting the best and being the best. This is the first fight week my brother (Golden Boy fighter Alexis Rocha) and I both have fights. I’m glad I fight first because I get more nervous when he fights than when I do.”

RAFAEL “EL ALIKIN” GRAMAJO, Bantamweight Prospect:

“I’m not too focused on my opponent. I go in to every fight focusing on training and improving my style. Every fight is a progression. My dream is to hopefully sign with Golden Boy Promotions and I hope this fight brings me closer to that. I always say, ‘one fight at a time.'”

SENIESA ESTRADA, Flyweight Prospect:

“I feel very comfortable going into this fight knowing I just fought six weeks ago. I know my opponent has fought many former world champions and has the experience to fight very hard. I expect her to be a very tough opponent.

“Personally, I feel very blessed and grateful to be the first woman ever opening the televised fight this LA FIGHT CLUB. This is the start of something that hasn’t been done before, and it feels really amazing. I hope to pave the way for other female boxers in the sport and to move on up to the biggest fights.”

PABLO “THE SHARK” RUBIO, JR., Super Bantamweight Prospect:

“I know that my opponent will probably put pressure on me, but I also know he was stopped at the last fight club and I have been training really hard to defeat him. My goal is to fight three more times this years and I will keep going back to the gym and training hard to accomplish that.”

Tenochtitlan “T-Dog” Nava, Super Featherweight Prospect:

“This is my second fight at LA FIGHT CLUB, and I’ve trained hard with my stablemates. We have been pushing each other very hard to prepare for our fights and I feel very good about Friday.”

Tickets for Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido priced at $200, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges are available for purchase at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425.

Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido is a 12-round battle for the WBC Super Featherweight Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Zanfer Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila and HANDS OF STONE: The True Story of Roberto Duran, in theaters this August. The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. The RingTvLive.com live stream begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.zanfer.mx, www.hbo.com/boxing and www.stubhubcenter.com; follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @ZanferBox, @HBOBoxing, @StubHubCenter, @ElBandido130, @Siri_Salido, @El_Camaron23 and @TeamAbeLopez; become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/zanferpromotions, www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing and www.facebook.com/StubHubCenter; and visit us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing,@El_Camaron23, @TeamAbeLopez and @HBOBoxing. Follow the conversation using #VargasSalido.

HBO Boxing presents one of the most highly anticipated events of the year when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: FRANCISCO VARGAS VS. ORLANDO SALIDO AND JULIAN RAMIREZ VS. ABRAHAM LOPEZ is seen SATURDAY, JUNE 4 at 10:30 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from StubHub Center in Carson, Cal., 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: June 5 (10:00 a.m.) and 6 (11:50 p.m.)

HBO2 playdates: June 5 (4:15 p.m.) and 7 (midnight)

The doubleheader will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO and HBO On Demand.

The 12-round main event is a can’t-miss super featherweight title showdown featuring undefeated champion Francisco Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) and former titleholder Orlando Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs). Vargas, 31, captured his first world title in November when he knocked out Takashi Miura in the BWAA’s 2015 Fight of the Year. The Mexico City native has knocked out his last four opponents before the tenth round, including a dominating performance against two-time world titleholder Juan Manuel Lopez.

Salido, 35, has held five world titles during his impressive 21-year professional career, battling some of sport’s top talents, including future Hall of Famer Juan Manuel Marquez. Both fighters have a come-forward style that guarantees action in this 130-pound clash.

In the evening’s opening bout, two unbeaten featherweight prospects face off when Julian Ramirez (16-0, 8 KOs) and Abraham Lopez (20-0-1, 15 KOs) meet in a ten-round contest. Ramirez, 23, and Lopez, 28, are Southern California natives both making their HBO debut.

Launched 20 years ago, HBO BOXING AFTER DARK was the network’s initial platform for a host of exciting talents, including Floyd Mayweather, Arturo Gatti, Marco Antonio Barrera, Fernando Vargas, Terence Crawford, Felix Verdejo, Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin. The arena in Carson has been the site of some of boxing’s most memorable brawls in recent years.

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.

LOS ANGELES (May 25, 2016) – Golden Boy Promotions is taking it up a notch for the Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido fight night with the addition of fan favorite contender and prospect boxing stars for the June 4 undercard at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif.. Headlining the Ring TV Live stream and the international broadcast, Creed film star and boxing top contender “King” Gabriel Rosado (22-9, 13 KOs) of Philadelphia, is set to take on Tijuana’s Antonio “Tony” Gutierrez (20-1-1, 9 KOs) in a classic Puerto Rico vs. Mexico 10-round middleweight showdown.

Also featured on the live stream, undefeated knockout artist Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (13-0, 12 KOs) of Buena Park, Calif. will face Jhon “Baki The Disaster” Gemino (12-6-1, 5 KOs) in an eight-round fight for the WBC Youth Super Featherweight Title, and Los Angeles fan favorite Nick Arce (7-0, 6 KOs) will take on Francisco Dominguez (8-9, 2 KOs) of Cuidad Juarez, Mexico in a six-round super featherweight event. Opening up the live stream, East Los Angeles native Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro (5-0, 4 KOs) will take on McAllen, Texas’s pride Marc Torres in a six-round super lightweight battle.

In the non-televised action, Santa Ana, Calif.’s Alexis Rocha (2-0, 2 KOs) will face Anthony Woods (0-4) from Americus, Georgia. Also, San Diego, Calif.’s Genaro “El Conde” Gamez (1-0, 1 KO) will make the second appearance of his professional career in a four-round lightweight bout against Juan Bryand (1-3,) of Laredo, Texas., while stable mate Oscar Duarte of Parral, Mexico will engage in an four round lightweight fight. Finally opening up the night, newly signed Golden Boy Promotions fighter Cesar Diaz of Palmdale, Calif. will make his professional debut in a four-round super bantamweight fight. Opponents will be announced shortly.

The main event of the night will feature Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs), fresh from his Fight of the Year victory over Takashi Miura, defending his WBC Super Featherweight World Title for the first time against fellow Mexican warrior and former three-time world champion Orlando “Siri” Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs, 1 NC) in a 12-round Fight of the Year candidate televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark®.

Since making his film debut in last year’s Creed,the latest installment of the internationally recognized Rocky franchise, “King” Gabe Rosado is fresh off of an exciting victory over Joshua “Grand Master” Clottey this past December 2015. Looking to keep the momentum going, Rosado will be looking for another exciting victory over the tough Antonio “Tony” Gutierrez of Tijuana, Mexico. Rosado has established himself as one of the most entertaining fighters to watch in the sport taking on some of the toughest and elite fighters in the middleweight division. Having held titles such as USA Pennsylvania State middleweight title and WBO Intercontinental light middleweight title, one thing is for certain-Rosado never disappoints in the ring.

Antonio Gutierrez is coming in to his middleweight match against Rosado high off of a victory against past double wins over Alejandro “Iron Man” Alonso. A true Tijuana fighter, Gutierrez’s relentless spirit has shown with his nearly perfect record, including a knockout over Mexican knockout artist Gilberto “Gil” Flores Hernandez. With 20 wins under his belt, Gutierrez can’t wait to get back into the ring and prove he has what it takes to move up to become a top contender in the middleweight division when he faces “King” Gabriel Rosado on June 4.

Boxing’s next big thing, Buena Park’s Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez won his first seven bouts in Mexico by first-round knockout. Since then, he has defeated his past four opponents in the U.S. by way of knockout, including seasoned fighters David Rodela, Alejandro Ochoa, and Luis Ruiz Lizarraga Jr. Come Saturday, June 4, “Chimpa” will have his fans on edge as he fights for his first title against Recky “The Terror” Dulay for the WBC Youth World Super Featherweight Title.

Filipino featherweight all-star and GAB Super Bantamweight Title holder Jhon “Baki the Disaster” Gemino of Batangas, Phillipines is ready to add another bantamweight to his collection when he faces Christian Gonzalez for a fight over the WBC Youth Super Featherweight title. Having fought almost all of his fights in the Phillipines, Gemino has been training hard to make his boxing debut in America.

Having established quite the growing fan base among Southern California boxing enthusiasts, Nick Arce has impressed every step of the way with an impressive 85 percent career knockout rate. Fighting out of Westside Boxing Club in Los Angeles, Arce will be fighting for the second time this year and the second time at the StubHub Center in what is to be a fantastic show in front of his home town crowd.

Hailing from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Francisco “Panchito” Dominguez will be fighting for the first time in over a year. Having been a professional boxer for ten years, “Panchito” has so far taken on the likes of Alex “El Diablo” Becerra and the undefeated Roberto Marroquin showing that he isn’t afraid to challenge anyone in the ring.

Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro representing East Los Angeles has lived up to his nickname thus far, as the 19-year-old has ended three of his four wins by knockout. Loyal to LA FIGHT CLUB and having fought all professional bouts at The Belasco Theater, this fan favorite is hungry to make a name for himself in the East L.A. boxing scene by fighting on the Vargas vs. Salido undercard at The StubHub Center. As the nephew of former boxing Olympian Jose Navarro, “Thunder” has boxing his in his blood and hopes to keep up the family tradition of big victories and sensational knockouts on June 4 when he faces Marc Torres.

Coming back from a killer knockout over opponent Mark Rojas this year, McAllen, Texas fighter Marc Torres can’t wait to have an action-packed year of boxing as he fights for the first time in SoCal after a series of South Texas bouts. After becoming a professional boxer four years ago, the 22-year-old is sure to light up the super lightweight division when he faces rising knockout artist Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro.

The youngest fighter to ever take home the gold from the Junior Olympics in 2012, Alexis Rocha has been the talk of the boxing world as he continued on to become a six-time national champion during his amateur career. As the younger brother of current WBC Silver Featherweight Champion, Ronny Rios, this six-time national champion signed a promotional contract with Golden Boy Promotions at the start of this year and has so far ended both of his professional bouts by knockout.

Anthony Woods of Americus, Georgia has fought all over the United States from the Lifestyle Pavilion in Columbus, Ohio to the Grand Ballroom in Atlanta, Georgia. This welterweight fighter fears no one and has built up his experience in the ring by taking on the likes of undefeated, rising stars Nathan Howard and Leandre “Blue” White. Come June 4, Woods is ready to go to war against Alexis Rocha in the 4-round welterweight division.

After leaving behind a highly decorated amateur career, including being ranked as the number one lightweight in the United States, Genaro “El Conde” Gamez has quickly become of boxing’s top prospects. A 2014 USA Boxing National Champion, San Diego’s Gamez is currently coached by renowned former world champion Robert Garcia. Since breaking into his professional career with a catastrophic first round knockout over Archie Weah, Gamez is sure to do the same to his soon to be named opponent in a 4-round lightweight bout.

Laredo’s boxing pride Juan Bryand will be giving The StubHub Center a big Texas welcome when he fights for the first time in Southern California in the lightweight division. Since turning professional two years ago, this 31 year-old fighter began his career with a bang with he won by unanimous decision against Daniel Sanchez.

Oscar Duarte of Parral, Mexico is eager to become a big name in the sport of boxing. In his U.S. debut, Duarte defeated Alejandro Salinas in August 2015, landing himself a promotional contract with Golden Boy Promotions. Currently co-managed by Latin star Gabriel Soto and Guillermo Roacha, Duarte was last seen at LA FIGHT CLUB this February defeating Archie Weah via unanimous decision. Duarte has shown that he has the power to outbox any opponent and will look to do so on Saturday, June 4 when he makes his debut at The StubHub Center in Carson, Calif.

Opening the Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido undercard and ready to take on anyone willing to step up in the ring, Cesar Diaz is set to make his exciting professional debut as a new member of the Golden Boy Promotions stable in a 4-round super bantamweight bout.

Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido is a 12-round battle for the WBC Super Featherweight Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Zanfer Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila and HANDS OF STONE: The True Story of Roberto Duran, in theaters this August. The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. The RingTvLive.com live stream begins at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT

Tickets for Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido are priced at $200, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges will are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425.

ABOUT STUBHUB CENTER
StubHub Center is southern California’s home of world-class competition and training facilities for amateur, Olympic, collegiate and professional athletes. Managed by AEG Facilities, the $150 million, privately financed facility was developed by AEG on a 125-acre site on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) in Carson, California. StubHub Center features an 8,000-seat tennis stadium, a 27,167-seat stadium for soccer, football and other athletic competitions and outdoor concerts; a 2,000-seat facility for track & field and a 2,450-seat indoor Velodrome – the VELO Sports Center – for track cycling. StubHub Center is home to Major League Soccer’s LA Galaxy, the five-time MLS Cup Champions. StubHub Center is also home of the United States Tennis Association’s (USTA) High Performance Training Center, the national team training headquarters for the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) and EXOS, an international training center for elite and professional athletes. For additional information, please visit www.stubhubcenter.com.

For more information, visitwww.goldenboypromotions.com,www.zanfer.mx, www.hbo.com/boxing and www.stubhubcenter.com; follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @ZanferBox, @HBOBoxing, @StubHubCenter, @ElBandido130, and @siri_salido; become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/zanferpromotions, www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing and www.facebook.com/StubHubCenter; and visit us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @HBOBoxing. Follow the conversation using #VargasSalido

Eric Gomez: Good afternoon to everyone and good morning to some of you west coasters. Welcome to the Francisco Vargas Orlando Salido international media call. We are rapidly approaching what would be a thrilling fight between Mexican Warriors on Saturday, June 4th at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. Francisco ‘El Bandido’ Vargas versus Orlando ‘Siri’ Salido will battle in what will sure to be a candidate for fight of the year for Vargas’ WBC Super Featherweight Championship live on HBO Boxing After Dark. HBO is by far the best network in boxing and the StubHub Center is one of the best venues to watch live boxing in southern California. The StubHub is no stranger to great fights and this fight is surely going to down as one of the best fights of the year and it will add to the book at the StubHub Center.

Before the exciting main event, I just want to make a quick reminder announcement. The co-feature will be Julian ‘El Camaron’ Ramirez 16-0 with 8 knockouts and he’s going to be facing Abraham ‘Chamaco’ Lopez who is 20-0 with knockouts. They’ll be meeting each other at the featherweight division to fight for the NABA title.

Tickets are still available. This fight is surely going to be a sellout. We have about, a little over 1,000 tickets left. Ticket prices start at $25. You can purchase tickets on AXS.com, by phone, or at the StubHub Center box office. Fans can come out and enjoy a great night of boxing or obviously you can watch it on HBO. Lastly, I want to thank the sponsors that are involved in this great event Cerveza Tectate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila, and Hands of Stone: The True Story of Roberto Duran in theaters August.

And now let’s get to the fighters. First up is team Salido. I want to introduce a good friend and the person who was very instrumental in helping make this fight. He’s the manager for Orlando Salido and that’s Mr. Sean Gibbons. Sean?

Sean Gibbons: Yes, thank you, Eric. We’re just here right now in Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, Orlando’s hometown, where we’ve been training for the last about 45 days. Everything’s going perfect. We’re very happy with the way everything is right now.

Eric Gomez: Great. Thank you, Sean. Thank you very much. Now if we can get a few comments from his trainer, his longtime trainer, Santos Moreno, who’s done a great job with Salido and he’s been there for all the title fights. Santos, can you please make a few comments in how everything is, training?

Santos Moreno: [Speaking Spanish].

Eric Gomez: Yes, in Spanish.

Santos Moreno: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): Yes, Moreno, we are working very hard getting ready for this fight. We’re trained to win this fight and that’s what we’re working on, almost done here to close it out in just one more week. We’ll work real hard, and then be ready to go.

Eric Gomez: Thank you very much. Gracias, Santos, mucho gracias. Okay, so now.

Santos Moreno: [Speaking Spanish].

Eric Gomez: Gracias. So now he’s no stranger to thrilling wars, Orlando ‘Siri’ Salido is a three-time former world champion. He’s been a professional since 1996. He’s fought some of the best fighters in our era including Juan Manuel Marquez, Robert Guerrero, Yuriokis Gamboa, Mikey Garcia, Vasyl Lomachenko; but he’s probably best known for his two fight series with Juan Manuel Lopez and Rocky Martinez. And obviously on June 4th, Salido’s looking to become a champion once again, and when he faces ‘Bandido’ Vargas.

If I can have Orlando Salido say a few words, please.

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): Yes, I’m happy to have this opportunity working with real hard. I know it’s going to be a real tough fight. I’m looking forward to it to give our fans a great fight. I’ll be really looking to get the upset win here over Vargas.

Eric Gomez: Great. Thank you, Ricardo. Gracious, Orlando. [Speaking Spanish]. Okay, now let me introduce real quick, team Vargas. He’s headed by his manager, Ralph Heredia, who’s done a great job with him for the last year or so.

And Ralph, if you can please say a few words about this fight and about your fighter.

Ralph Heredia: Thank you. Good morning and good afternoon to everybody. I just wanted everybody to know that we’re very excited. We have located camp in California now. Everything is going well. We had three tests and they all came back negative, so we’re very excited about that and we know that this fight is right around the corner.

I believe, not only as a manager, but as a fan, like Eric mentioned is definitely going to be a candidate for fighter of the year. We respect Salido. We know he’s a tough veteran warrior that has the experience and you cannot underestimate his heart. So excited and can’t wait for June 4th.

Eric Gomez: Great. Thank you very much. Thank you for the nice words, Ralph. Now, to his fighter, he’s a member of the 2008 Mexican Olympic Team, Francisco ‘El Bandido’ Vargas has continued to represent his country as a professional. He struck gold in 2015 by winning the WBC Super Featherweight World Title and was considered by most the writers the fight of the year.

He’s a former NABF and WBO International Super Featherweight Champion. And at 31 years old, he’s pretty much on top of the division. His biggest win, again, came last year against Takashi Miura. If I can have him say a few words with a great record of 23-0, 1 draw, 17 knockouts, Francisco ‘El Bandido’ Vargas. Francisco.

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): Good morning and good afternoon to everybody. I’m very excited. I know that June 4th is right around the corner and I know that I’ve done everything to prepare for this veteran, this great ex-champion. And the winners from this fight will be the fans. They’re going to get a very exciting fight.

Eric Gomez: That’s great. Thank you. Thank you very much. Gracias, Francisco. Okay, so now, Ellen, let’s open it up to questions.

Operator: Thank you. We will now begin the question and answer session. If you have a question, please press star then one on your touchtone phone. If you wish to be removed from the queue, please press the pound sign or hash key. If you are using a speakerphone, you may need to pick up the handset first before pressing the numbers. Once again, for any questions press star then one.

Our first question is from Dan Rafael with ESPN.

Dan Rafael: Thank you very much. Hello, everybody. Eric, could you ask Francisco when he won the title against Miura in what was the 2015 fight of the year for most people, he comes back and he takes on a fight that most people are going to think is going to be another knockdown, drag out, kind of brawl. I want to know from Francisco, why this fight in his first defense and does he expect the same kind of fight, also, Eric, that many of us expect?

Eric Gomez: Okay. Okay, I’ll ask him the question, then Ralph, you can translate. [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): I had always said I want to fight the best and I consider Salido one of the best. And I believe that both of our styles match very good in the ring and is going to make a very exciting fight and that’s the reason I’m excited. And I want to continue to be the best; in order to be the best, you have to fight the best, and I consider him one of the best. And I know that it definitely could be a candidate for fight of the year.

Dan Rafael: All right, Eric, could you—thank you for that, Ralph—could you also ask Francisco, obviously we’ve heard and written about what happened with his drug test from Mexico, can he address that and talk about when he came back to California? I think you said in the introduction that since his return to California, where he’s been tested by VADA three times, is that correct? And how much of a distraction has that been having the additional testing since what happened occurred?

Eric Gomez: I think it might’ve been more by now; it might’ve been four or five times by now. Ralph can answer that as far as the testing. But let me ask him. [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): First of all, I have always been a clean fighter. I’m going to continue to be a clean fighter.

Ralph Heredia: We’re the ones that requested the testing and here are some facts, Dan Rafael. Francisco Vargas was tested in California on April 15th, no, I’m sorry, before that. Yes, I’m sorry, he was tested on April 15th in California. Tests came back negative. He goes to Mexico City on April 16th.

His mom makes one of his favorite dishes, which is carne asada with bone and it’s made in broth. He has dinner on Wednesday and there’s leftovers and he eats them Thursday. Thursday evening, VADA knocks on his door; he gets tested. Okay, and that was on the, I believe it was on the 21st—five days later. That test came back positive for clenbuterol. But here’s the thing. I want you to focus on this, Dan Rafael, on the doses, as far as how much he tested it, because I did my own research with Victor Conte, that I believe is one of [indiscernible] and I just wanted to get his input.

He tested back for clenbuterol 1.3. What does that translate? I was not educated to know. He told me that most laboratories do not even test for anything under 0.20. He was very surprised that VADA picked up 1.3. When I had a conversation with Victor I asked him, “If you have a dirty athlete, within that grace period, what should he test?” He says, “Ralph, any individual that tries to do something deliberate, once he will test 50, 5, 0.” So he replied and he said that basically the dosage that Francisco showed had to be some contaminated food, which was the meat.

Since then, Dan Rafael, Francisco was tested in Mexico three times right after that. All three times it came back negative for clenbuterol. Since then he has been tested in California two more times, okay, and those tests we’re still waiting for the results because he was tested Sunday morning and Monday afternoon. But rest assured, if he was dirty and doing something deliberate, not only would’ve the doses been much higher, but he would’ve tested positive on the first test when he was in California, which was the 15th.

Also, something that Francisco mentioned, and I was in the same boat as he was, I used to hear these stories; never believed it. Never. But like Francisco said, you don’t believe it til it happens to you. And believe me when I tell you, these are facts. I’m glad that it happened because I believe this is not only going to help Francisco, but it’s going to help a lot of athletes that are clean. And hopefully the technology will be there or that it can distinguish when somebody does something deliberate—

Dan Rafael: So, Ralph, part of the question that I had for him, I’m not sure if there was an answer there, was just—and by the way, I happen to believe what you guys say. Most of the time I’m thinking a guy that gets tested positive is dirty. In this particular instance because of the many, many factors, I happen to believe you guys. So my question to you is how much of a distraction has it been, both going through that situation, having it come out, going to deal with the Commission to get special permission to still have this fight still not get taken down, and then to have to undergo additional testing than you would normally have to go? Has it been a distraction? Can you ask Francisco to answer that?

Ralph Heredia: You know what, I’m sorry, Dan. He did answer that when Eric asked him the question. He said, “No.” He said, “He is willing to do to anything, any test. You can test me every hour on the hour. It doesn’t bother me. Why? Because I’m clean and I have nothing to hide.” So to answer your question, there has been no distraction because he knows that he’s clean and he wants the opponent to be clean, also. He wants a clean sport. That’s why we’re doing this.

Dan Rafael: All right. That’s great. Thank you very much for that, guys. I have a couple of questions for Orlando.

Ricardo, if you’re translating, I’d appreciate that. My question, one question for Orlando is he has had three fights and he’s had a whole bunch of significant, very action-packed, hard, tough fights, but in specific he’s coming off three in a row against the Thailand fighter with multiple knockdowns and then the two wars with Rocky Martinez. I’m wondering from Orlando, here he goes again, another fight that most people expect to be that kind of fight. What is it about Orlando Salido that keeps putting him in these unbelievable fights and how excited or concerned is he that this is going to be another one of these kinds of wars?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): He says, no, I’ve never been a protected fighter. I have to take the fights that are offered to me, but it’s very exciting to me. I like those kinds of fights. I love going in there and fighting those kinds of fights. It’s what I like to do. And yeah, I’m very excited about this type of fight because I think it’ll be just like the other ones.

Dan Rafael: Ricardo, I think about this fight on paper, I think about Coralis Costello, I can’t help it. Does he have any opinion about that? Does he think—?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): I think so. I think if you go in there it might be even better. It think our styles are made perfect for each other. I think we’re going to go in there from minute one and just start throwing punches. There’s not going to be any speculation out there. There’s going to be a lot of entertainment for the fans.

Dan Rafael: And just one other question for him, can you ask him if he heard what Francisco Vargas and Ralph were saying as related to the positive clenbuterol test? What is his opinion about that and does he think that his opponent is a dirty fighter or does he believe the situation that they claim that it’s a contaminated meat, that the dosage that was found was extremely low? What’s his perspective on the guy that’s got to get in the ring and fight the guy that had a bad test?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): You know, it’s not really my concern. That’s why we have a Commission. That’s why we test them, what they do, what they need to do. All I know is getting ready for the fight, tell me the fight is on, then I’m getting ready, and I’m going to fight him. You know, it doesn’t matter to me. That’s why we have a Commission that takes care of this.

Dan Rafael: All right. Great. Thank you very much, everybody. I appreciate your time. And I look forward to seeing you guys in a couple of weeks. Thank you.

Operator: The next question is from Lance Pugmire with Los Angeles Times.

Lance Pugmire: Okay, Orlando, just following up on that real quick. I know what you’re saying that there’s Commission in place to deal with this, but you had your own issue in the past and you paid a pretty serious penalty for that. Do you think that justice has truly been served here given that in baseball, in the NFL, in the Olympics, a positive test like this would result in a very lengthy suspension for the athlete?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): You know, the only thing I have to say, or anymore that I have to say about this is if it would’ve been me that it would’ve come up positive, you know, the fight would’ve been cancelled and it would’ve been all over. It would’ve been done. It would’ve been done with. You know? Is that justice, I don’t know. I’m just telling you that that’s all I got to say about that.

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): They would’ve never have given me an opportunity to prove otherwise.

Lance Pugmire: Right. Francisco, from your standpoint, what do you think sports fans’ view of this is? Obviously in the other sport, it can result in a very lengthy suspension. Do you think the fans look at this like, that’s just boxing or do you think—what exactly is your opinion of how this positive test was treated in this sport?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia: Let’s look at some facts here, Lance. Facts. First of all, he tested positive for clenbuterol. Okay? And for those individuals who don’t know clenbuterol, look into it, clenbuterol was a drug that was used back in the days for body builders to lose weight. This gentleman did not have to lose weight. Unfortunately in Mexico they use that for cattle. Why? I don’t know. I don’t know if you have read, but last year they tested 200 slaughter houses, 58 were tested positive.

Also let’s look at some facts here. The doses were very low of clenbuterol. I believe the other gentleman that got fined was tested positive for testosterone and they can distinguish synthetic testosterone or real testosterone. What does that mean? If your body produces natural testosterone, it doesn’t matter how high it is. Now they have the technology where they can distinguish with synthetics.

Francisco did not test positive for testosterone; that’s why the fight is still continuing and that’s why we’re still here. Now if it would’ve been testosterone like Nebido, which that other gentleman tested positive for, the fight would’ve definitely been cancelled. You’re comparing apples to oranges, okay. Testosterone and clenbuterol are two different things, my man. So just because some writers happen to put steroids, it is not a steroid. It’s to lose weight.

This gentleman, I don’t know if you know this or not, but he weighed 140, 30 days out, okay. He don’t have a weight problem and if you’re going to use that, you’re going to use that as the fight gets closer. What does that mean? Seven to ten days prior to the fight, not six or seven weeks to the fight, okay. So facts are facts. Clenbuterol is not a testosterone. The dosage was 1.3, okay. The other gentleman, Nebido. Look it up. It’s testosterone. It’s a steroid. Simple as that and is a fact.

Lance Pugmire: Yes, I understand that, Ralph, but there’s also the contention out there that clenbuterol can be used for weight cutting measures early in camp if a fighter is experiencing any kind of weight issues. And additionally—

Ralph Heredia: One point three?

Lance Pugmire: We know. Listen, there’s also examples of micro dosing that are used in performance enhancing drug use. So both of those issues, obviously the California Commission said it’s probably okay to proceed with the fight, but both of those issues could also be a play if you’re going to be completely skeptical of this test.

Ralph Heredia: Well listen, I’m not going to argue with you. I’m not going to argue with you on that.

Sean Gibbons: They used this in race horses in Mexico. It’s used to open up the breathing and have more strength for your conditioning, not just for cutting weight. It absolutely does give you a benefit if he was using them; we’re not saying that he was, maybe it was tainted meat, maybe someone Ralph didn’t even know someone and gave him a supplement, someone gave him something.

So if this happened 7-10 days out from the fight, we would have serious issues about going forward with the fight, but thank god it happened when it happened. So now we feel it was caught far enough out by VADA that we feel we’re going to go with their reasoning and their mistake; same issues we had years and years ago, but we didn’t get the benefit that he’s getting because of the different tests and stuff. But it definitely is used as a performance enhancing if they’ve used it in horses here, for the breathing, for the opening up of lungs; it definitely helps you.

So it’s not something to tread lightly like he just happened to be . It’s a very serious thing. We’re not taking it lightly, but we feel it was caught far enough out that whatever way it got into his system that it won’t enhance his performance now. So that’s all we want to say, but we’re taking it very seriously. We’re not taking this lightly.

And we appreciate Ralph studying and Ralph going into it. Because like Ralph, I did this in 1997 with Guerrero. I called all the doctors, I called the people, I presented the case in Nevada; $25,000 later, you’re a steroid user, you used nandrolone. Nandrolone’s a naturally producing in your body already. Our levels were elevated a bit. We passed another test two days later, but Nevada wanted to hear nothing about it. So we understand exactly what Ralph’s saying because we made this same speech to people, but nobody would listen to us back in the day. We’re branded as steroid users. So that’s it. But it’s very serious. I’m glad VADA—it happened when it happened.

Ralph Heredia: We’re good. We’re good. Sean, I’d like to talk to you outside the conference call, but just remember the dosages. This is a conference call and I don’t want to take too much time from the media, but I respect you, Sean, and I’d like to talk to you—

Sean Gibbons: We don’t want to waste any more time on this. We’re here to fight. Orlando’s here to fight. He’s not worried about no clenbuterol, whatever. He’s just here to fight. We’ll move past this and let’s just go have a great fight. We’re past this now.

Ralph Heredia: Thank you, Sean.

Sean Gibbons: You got it.

Operator: The next question is from Bernard Fernandez with SureDie.com.

Bernard Fernandez: Yeah. Well I’m going to take a break from the drug thing. Obviously Francisco won fighter of the year for the Miura fight last year from several media organizations, including the Boxing Writers Association of America. The dinner, the BW dinner will be in New York on June 24th. Does he anticipate going there and how much does it mean for him to get that recognition?

Ralph Heredia: Excuse me, did you say the dinner was June 24th?

Bernard Fernandez: That’s correct.

Ralph Heredia: Okay. [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): You know I’m honored and excited, and they finally got to see and recognize my hard work, and of course if I’m in invited, I’m definitely going to be there, without a doubt.

Bernard Fernandez: Okay, and I’m looking at the list of past winners or the past participants and fighters of the year, it’s heavily dotted with Mexican fighters, Marco Antonio Barrera, and Mexican-American fighters, Erik Morales, Jose Luis Castillo, Rafael Marquez, Manuel Marquez. Yes, what is it about—there’s a great pride factor with Mexican fighters. And I’ll ask both fighters here, what is it that makes Mexican fighters almost like a special breed that they’re all considered to be such great warriors?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): Well the reason for that is because we give it all we got. Not only do we give everything in training, but when it’s fight time, we fight with our heart, we give it everything that we have, and I believe that that will make the Latinos, and especially the Mexican fighters, special that they give it all, whether you’re going to die or not, you give it all you got. The only thing that matters is win, win, win because you want to win and no cost, and you don’t hold nothing back, and I believe that’s what makes us the warriors that we are and the champions because we don’t settle for nothing less but give it all we got.

Bernard Fernandez: All right. Thank you.

Ricardo Jimenez: Orlando [Speaking Spanish]. Orlando? Orlando?

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): You know, we is warriors. We go in there and give it our all, fight with our with all our might, and you know what happens, win or lose, you know, you’re going, we just give it our all. We’re just going to give it everything we have each and every time we get into the ring.

Bernard Fernandez: Thank you, also.

Operator: The next question is from Mitch Abramson with RingTV.com.

Mitch Abramson: Thanks. My question is for Sean. Hey, Sean, are you there?

Sean Gibbons: Yeah, I’m here.

Mitch Abramson: Sean, was there any thought about pulling out of this fight once you became aware of the positive drug test for Francisco?

Sean Gibbons: No, I mean, first of all I ran it all by Orlando, Orlando’s fighting, I’m not; I’m not the guy getting hit in the head. So no, we felt that, again, like I said earlier, it all came up far enough out that if it was something going on, you know, it’ll be out of his system. It won’t give Vargas any more stuff like it would the week of the fight or something. If you come across something the week of the fight, and something was being used, that could’ve caused a big problem, but everything happened far enough out that Orlando wanted to go through with the fight.

I left it all up to Orlando, he’s the one putting his life on the line, he’s the one that gets in the ring, he’s the one taking the punches, so he feels comfortable with where everything was at.

Mitch Abramson: Were you guys given any kind of compensation from the Vargas camp to go ahead with the bout?

Ricardo Jimenez: Repeat the question, please.

Mitch Abramson: Did you guys work out any kind of deal regarding compensation on going ahead with the bout, not pulling out?

Eric Gomez: No not at all. No, Mitch, not at all. Everything’s fine. We have a contract. We discussed it like gentlemen, and Sean and his team were good, our team was good, so we’re good. Everything’s been good, and there’s a great explanation for it and everything’s fine now.

Mitch Abramson: Okay, thanks, Eric. And then I have a question for Francisco, just that if he was aware of the problem with meat in Mexico before he had his mom’s stew, and if that thought had crossed his mind before he began to eat the meat there? Can you just ask him if he was aware of that issue with the contaminated meat in Mexico beforehand?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): He said, well, l first of all, why the hell would I eat the meat if I had knowledge it was contaminated. I challenge everybody that’s listening to this conference call to eat some meat that’s contaminated and test the next day, see what the doses will be, and he guarantee you, you will test positive for clenbuterol. But of course I didn’t know, I would’ve never ate that if I would’ve known. Never.

Mitch Abramson: No, the question was whether he was aware of the problem in Mexico regarding contaminated meat, and if he was aware of the problem, why he chose to eat his mother’s stew if he was aware of the problem. That was my question.

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): He said, I have heard of it through the news but I never believed it. I thought that they were lying and they were dirty, but once it happened to me, now I believe it.

Mitch Abramson: And there’s one last question for Francisco, is he afraid that this might follow him for the rest of his career or did he think it’s just a one-off and that after this situation, he’ll be able to move on without having to deal with people whispering that he’s not a clean fighter?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): No I’m not worried or concerned because I had always been a clean fighter. I had always been tested, came out clean, and I continue to be tested, and I’m still coming out clean, so no. Once I found out what the problem was, my diet consists of nothing but fish, soup, and vegetables, and that proves that it was the meat. So no, it does not worry me at all. I’m a clean fighter.

Mitch Abramson: Okay, thanks for that. Good luck in the fight.

Operator: The next question is from Rigo Cervantez with ESPN Digital.

Rigo Cervantez: Hello. [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez: The question is with all the experience that you had fighting all those great fighters all of your career, do you think that’s going to be a fact that you’ve experienced a new level of opponent?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): No I don’t know if it’ll be an advantage or not, my experience or not, I’m just getting ready for the fight. The advantage will be the preparation to getting ready. I know I’ve got a very tough fight in front of me, I know I’m fighting the guy that’s going to come to fight me at every moment, and I think the fans are going to be the winners here because it will be a great fight.

Operator: The next question is from Jake Donovan with BoxingScene.com.

Jake Donovan: Yeah, my first question is for Francisco. He kind of touched on this earlier where he has changed his diet for this fight. I just want to know if he’s going to permanently change his diet moving forward because he said it was his favorite meal and that’s what led to the positive drug test. But what happens if he happens to eat that, then the next day he gets a big fight, and two days later he gets tested by VADA?

M: Okay, excuse me, you kind of broke up. Sorry about that, did you say that—

Jake Donovan: I just want to know if he’s going to change his diet permanently moving forward. Now especially being aware of the contaminated meat [indiscernible] that’s plaguing Mexico. If he’s going to change his diet moving forward?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): He said, basically, absolutely I’m going to change my diet after going through this experience, and I’m going to continue to be a clean fighter. I love the VADA program. I believe that being the clean fight and I want to continue being tested. But of course I love meat, but if it’s going to result in the positive test, damn right I’m going to change my diet, absolutely. And if you can see once I’ve changed my diet and Mexico and I’ve changed my diet, you see how I came out clean and that was the only one that came up dirty with the meat, so absolutely, I will not touch meat while I’m in Mexico and I’m clean.

Jake Donovan: Okay, great, thank you very much .

Sean Gibbons: Jake, Salido wanted to make sure that’s Mexico City. Signora, [ph] the beef is the best. Signora, get that [indiscernible] no problem. Mexico City—

Ricardo Jimenez: I may have to get some reporters [ph], Sean.

Sean Gibbons: [Indiscernible] from Mexico.

Jake Donovan: Sorry, and then on Eric—okay, Eric, you still on the phone?

Eric Gomez: Yes, I’m here.

Jake Donovan: Hey, Eric, I just wanted to know from your perspective, and I think you’ve handled this situation great, especially during the commission hearing, but from a promotional standpoint, I just want to know how that changed on your end because going in this was like, I can’t miss of the year, that’s all anyone cared about. Then this drug test came about, and you guys moved past it, but how did you guys change up on the promotional front?

Eric Gomez: Obviously when you have such a great fight like this fight, and most of you guys in the media and most of the fans are calling it, potential fight of the year, you don’t want any bad publicity, you don’t want any hiccups, no speed bumps; unfortunately, it happened. We have experience with this Golden Boy Promotions, myself in particular, because it happened to us when we did the Danny Garcia fight with Erik Morales and he tested positive for the same thing. And it was consistent with what happened to Erik Morales. He was clean, he ended up coming down from the mountain in Mexico City, he ate somewhere in Mexico City, and then that’s when he tested positive. He had been clean before that.

So we had some experience with it, we had done research, and the good thing is that I’m dealing with professionals. Sean Gibbons is a professional and he’s been around, he’s got experience, and he went through the same thing and he knew about it and he did his own research. So when I talk to those—two professionals talking to each other, so he knew what it was all about. That’s the reason why we didn’t lose the fight, that’s the reason why there’s no real damage done. It was a mistake and that’s it, and we’ve got him past it, and I think it’s going to be a terrific fight. Both fighters are going to be at 100%, and you guys are going to be in for a treat. It’s going to be an early 4th of July treat.

Jake Donovan: Well my birthday’s two days before, so I’ll consider it a belated birthday present. Thank you very much, Eric, and best of luck to, everyone, on June 4th.

Eric Gomez: Thank you.

Jake Donovan: All right.

Operator: The next question is from Gayle Falkenthal with Communities Digital.

Gayle Falkenthal: Good morning, gentlemen. This is not a drug testing question, this is a question about the rise of the lower weight classes getting a lot more attention than they have in several years, but there are still a lot of fans, especially in the United States, that are really focused, maybe obsessed, on the heavyweights, big guys. What would both of you, Orlando, and, Francisco, say to them about giving you guys a chance to entertain, and what they can expect from seeing action in the lower weight classes?

Ralph Heredia: I can go first. [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): First of all thank you for asking a question related to boxing and not drugs because I’m a clean fighter. And to the question, I’m very, very excited; very excited. Why? Because know we’re [indiscernible] getting the attention. And we are very exciting fighters, not only do we throw more combinations, we interchange, and we just give it all we got, and I’m very honored that we’re getting the attention. And I believe that our weight class, and the lower weight classes, are very entertaining, and now the individuals and people in the United States are starting to realize it, so it makes me excited and happy and to give the fans more entertaining fights.

Gayle Falkenthal: Very good.

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): I think when you see the lower weights, you see guys movement, you see a lot of movement, you see a lot of punches; it is the more entertaining fight because that’s the way we fight, that’s the way we have to fight, and I think that gives the fans something more enjoyable to watch, and I think this lower divisions give you that, the entertainment value.

Gayle Falkenthal: Well I find the big guys slow, so I agree with you. I do have a follow-up question, unrelated. We have an Olympian among you, and there’s been a lot of discussion about allowing professionals back into the Olympics in boxing. What do you think about that, and if it was ever done, would you consider it?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): In my opinion I don’t think that’s a good idea. As you know I went to the Olympics in 2008, and to be honest with you I can’t see myself after fighting for a title for 12 rounds to becoming the world champion, I can’t see myself going back and fighting 3 rounds, and I just don’t think it’s right. I think we should give the amateurs the chance to compete, and I just don’t think it’s fair for a professional to compete with the kids that are coming up. And in my opinion I wouldn’t do it, I’ve been there, and I wouldn’t do it. I just don’t think it’s right for [indiscernible] trying to do what they’re doing as far as having professionals compete with amateurs. How are you going to have grown man compete with kids? It’s not fair in my opinion.

Gayle Falkenthal: Thank you. Good luck to both of you.

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): I think that you’re mixing different things together because allowing professionals and amateurs, and if you want a proof of that, look what happened to Lomachenko, the best amateur fighter when he fought me, a professional; it was a win for me. So I think that proves right there that it shouldn’t be mixed.

Operator: The next question is from Victor Garcia with RealCombatMedia.com.

Victor Garcia: [Speaking Spanish] Good afternoon. My first question is for Francisco. You fought an incredible and exciting fight with Miura back in November, but you also take a lot of punishment. Orlando is a strong and experienced come forward fighter who is also a two-time world champion, a former world champion. Do you plan on fighting the same way you fought Miura or are you coming in with a different game plan, perhaps maybe fighting him at a distance, boxing him a little bit more?

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): First of all I’m honored to fight a great Mexico Warrior, like Orlando Salido. I respect him. I know he’s a hell of a fighter, and he’s going to bring it all, and I will be ready. And first of all, as far as how I’m going to fight, and what’s down, you’ll find out the night when I fight the night. You’ll see what kind of stuff. I’m not going to say nothing until that night, and you’ll see. You can know what kind of style I’m fighting that night.

Victor Garcia: Thank you. Next question is for Orlando. You’re coming off a draw with Martinez and in which a lot of people had you winning the fight. Knowing Vargas is the champion of the world, what are you going to do differently to try and secure the victory?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): I know you have to be well prepared to fight; you have to be well prepared and that’s what I’m getting ready for a tough fight. And I’m just going to go in [indiscernible] throw a lot of punches up and down, you know everything it can do, and that’s what I’m—I need to pressure him, throw a lot of punches, and then see what happens with that.

Victor Garcia: Do you feel like you need a knockout to secure the victory or you think you can actually win the fight by points?

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): You know I’m just going out there throwing punches, win round-by-round. The knockout counts great, if we get it done that way, it would be excellent, but you know I’m just going to do my job then other people have to do theirs. They have to see what I did in the ring and then decide. I’m not going to go in there thinking that I need to get a knockout to win the fight; I’m just going to go in there to do the best that I can and let the results lay where they lay.

Victor Garcia: Okay, thank you. [Speaking Spanish].

Cecilia Zuniga: All right. Thank you, everyone, for joining us on this conference call today. This is Cecilia from Golden Boy. I’m going to introduce the fighters one more time for final comments. Francisco, [Speaking Spanish]. Hello?

Ralph Heredia: I’m sorry.

Cecilia Zuniga: Ralph?

Ralph Heredia: Yes.

Cecilia Zuniga: Ralph?

Ralph Heredia: Yes. [Speaking Spanish].

Cecilia Zuniga: Yes, for Francisco, if he has any final comments he wants to say to the press? We’re still on this call; we’re closing it up.

Ralph Heredia: [Speaking Spanish].

Francisco Vargas: [Speaking Spanish].

Ralph Heredia (Interpreting): Well the only thing I have to say is that on June 4th, there’s going to be a very, very exciting fight. I can’t wait, and I believe that the fans are going to get a very, very entertaining, action-packed fight, and I can’t wait for June 4th.

Cecilia Zuniga: Thank you, Francisco. Orlando, [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez: [Speaking Spanish].

Orlando Salido: [Speaking Spanish].

Ricardo Jimenez (Interpreting): I just want to let everyone know that to cancel everything: no weddings, no business, no Quinceanera, no nothing, just go watch this fight. You’re going to enjoy it, we’re going to give you a great, great fight, something you’re going to remember for a long, long time.

Cecilia Zuniga: Gracias, Orlando. Now I’ll turn it over to Eric Gomez to give any final comments in regards to the fight. Go ahead, Eric.

Eric Gomez: Thank you very much, Cecilia. Just I want to thank everybody, all the media that were on the call. It’s sure to be a great fight, no doubt about it. Many of you are predicting fight of the year, and I have to agree. Both fighters are champions, one is the current, the other wants to be the current, as well former three-time champion.

Tickets are still available, selling out fast. This is probably the best selling card we’ve had at StubHub for Golden Boy Promotions, so you don’t want to miss it, you want to be there. Tickets start at $25, you can go to the StubHub box office or you can go and purchase them on AXS.com or you can just call by phone. But again I hope to see every one of you there, and whoever gets there from the media, first round of [indiscernible] will be on Sean Gibbons, so make sure you’re there. Thanks.

Cecilia Zuniga: All right. Thank you, everyone, for joining this call, and we hope to see you guys all at the fight.

Vargas vs. Salido is a 12-round battle for the WBC Super Featherweight Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Zanfer Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD and Casa Mexico Tequila. The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.zanfer.mx, www.hbo.com/boxing and www.stubhubcenter.com; follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @ZanferBox, @HBOBoxing, @StubHubCenter, @ElBandido130, @Siri_Salido, @El_Camaron23 and @TeamAbeLopez; become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/zanferpromotions, www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing and www.facebook.com/StubHubCenter; and visit us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing,@El_Camaron23, @TeamAbeLopez and @HBOBoxing. Follow the conversation using #VargasSalido.