According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, undefeated Featherweights Julian Ramirez and Abraham Lopez will be the televised co-feature to the much anticipated showdown between WBC Super Featherweight champion Francisco Vargas’defense against Orlando Salido at StubHub Center in Carson, California and on HBO.

Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya told ESPN.com on Monday that the rumored fight has been finalized.

“These are two of our young, undefeated kids and they fight in the same weight class as two of our other prospects in the same weight class,” De La Hoya said, referring to his nephew, Diego De La Hoya, and 2012 U.S. Olympian Joseph Diaz. “So, eventually, the winner will be facing off with one of those fighters. At some point we want to match them all up.”

“It’s an action fight,” De La Hoya said. “Both guys don’t how to take a step backwards. Both guys have good punching power. Both guys throw a lot of punches, so it should call for an exciting fight. Neither of these guys hesitated when we said we wanted to make this fight. We strongly feel with developing these kids in L.A., there’s a like a turf war going on. They want to prove they are the best in Los Angeles in that weight class and they will have the chance.”

LOS ANGELES (March 31, 2016) – WBC Super Featherweight World Champion Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) and fellow Mexican warrior and former three-time world champion Orlando “Siri” Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs, 1 NC) today hosted a Los Angeles press conference to discuss their 12-round battle set for June 4 for Vargas’s title at the Stub Hub Center in Carson, Calif. and to be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark®.

Below is what the fighters, their trainers, managers and promoter had to say at today’s press conference:

FRANCISCO VARGAS, WBC Super Featherweight Champion:

“I’m very grateful to HBO, Golden Boy Promotions and my managers for this opportunity.

“I’m very motivated to be fighting a great warrior like Orlando Salido.

“I’m going to be in the best shape in order to give you a war.

“Everybody knows when two great Mexican warriors get in the ring, not one of them will take a step back.”

ORLANDO SALIDO, Mexican Boxing Warrior and Former Three-Time World Champion:

“Thank you to the WBC and Team Vargas for giving me this opportunity.

“I am going to be ready; I am preparing myself for a war. We know it’s going to be a great fight.

“I need to prepare myself for ‘Fight of the Year.'”

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions:

“This fight between two Mexican warriors is sure to be a sight to behold in the ring on Saturday, June 4 at the Stub Hub Center in the City of Carson and live on HBO Boxing After Dark.

“The Stub Hub Center in Carson, California has been home to some of the most epic fights of this era and on Saturday, June 4 another chapter will be added to its action-packed history when Francisco ‘El Bandido’ Vargas fresh from his Fight of the Year victory over Takashi Miura in November 2015 on the Cotto-Canelo undercard, will defend his WBC Super Featherweight World Title for the first time against former three-time world champion Orlando ‘Siri’ Salido in a 12-round bout presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Zanfer Promotions.

“This fight will surely be a ‘Fight of the Year’candidate, making it a can’t-miss fight. You hear that, Southern California fight fans? You can’t miss this exciting event so be sure to get your tickets now while they last.

“The fans are going to win and Mexico’s going to win.”

RALPH HEREDIA, Manager for Francisco Vargas:

“Thank you to HBO for this great opportunity for this big stage. Francisco is very excited and he knows what is at stake.

“Orlando Salido is a great fighter. He has been a champion and in a few nominations for ‘Fight of the Year.’

“When two Mexican fighters come together, not one of them will take a step back. Most Latinos grew up watching boxing or soccer so this is a great event for us. It’s going to be a tremendous fight.”

MOSES HEREDIA, Co-Manager for Francisco Vargas:

“We have got another ‘Fight of the Year’ coming in 2016 with this for Francisco Vargas.

“Thank you to HBO for the presence and stage for this fight.

“Come June 4 there will be fireworks and explosions and we will make somebody dance and it’s not going to be my fighter. On June 4, we will remain the champion.”

JOSE SANTOS MORENO, Trainer for Orlando Salido:

“The way these guys fight, you’re going to see a lot of action. Thank you to Team Vargas for this opportunity.”

SEAN GIBBONS, Manager for Orlando Salido:

“Thank you for everyone coming out today. We have a great turnout today so I can only imagine what June 4 will look like.

” I would pay to see this fight; I would buy a ticket for it. Hope to see everyone June 4.”

TONY WALKER, Director of HBO Sports:

“Thank you to Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions for putting together such an outstanding card.

“Thank you Francisco and Orlando. When everyone talks about this being a ‘Fight of the Year’ candidate and no one disagrees, you know you have a good fight on your hands.

“We promise you a great broadcast on HBO. A second fight will be adding to the broadcast, to be named soon.”

“Who will win? That is everyone’s question. The world deserves these kind of matches: the best against the best.

“May the best fighter win because us, the fans, already have.”

JOSE “PEPE” SULAIMAN JR, CEO of the WBC’s Los Angeles Office:

“The WBC wishes to acknowledge Oscar De La Hoya, Golden Boy Promotions, Zanfer Promotions, HBO and Stub Hub Center, which has hosted some of the most intense wars in boxing.

Brendan Hannan, Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Digital at LA Galaxy and Stub Hub Center:

“We are thrilled to host another premiere boxing event at the premiere boxing venue in California at the Stub Hub Center on June 4. We look forward to seeing you all there.”

Tickets for Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido are priced at $200, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges and 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.

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, 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

LOS ANGELES (March 10, 2016) – The StubHub Center in Carson, California has been home to some of the most epic fights of this era and on Saturday, June 4 another chapter will be added to its action-packed history. Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs), fresh from his Fight of the Year victory over Takashi Miura, will defend 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®.

Tickets for the epic showdown between two of Mexico’s most notable warriors will go on sale tomorrow, Friday, March 11 at 10:00 a.m. PT and are reasonably priced starting at $25. Fans will get to enjoy a great night of exciting fights where every seat is a great seat at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif.

“I want to fight the best fighters and Orlando Salido is one of the top fighters in the sport,” said Francisco Vargas. “I intend to retain my title and will be prepared to the best of my ability to dominate in the ring and give the fans a fight they will remember. I know it will be a tough fight, Salido brings a lot of experience, but I promise not to disappoint. In the end the fans will win on June 4, they will witness a battle between two Mexican warriors who will give it their all in the ring, it’s a can’t miss event.”

“I was 12-years-old when I saw my first fight on television,” said Orlando Salido. “It was the great Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. and I watched him knockout his opponent and earn the prestigious green and gold belt. It was then that I knew then that’s what I wanted to do, become a world champion boxer just like my idol Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. So here I am, 23 years later looking to win the WBC belt and fulfill my lifelong dream of putting it around my waist. I want to give special thanks to the WBC President, Mauricio Sulaiman, son of the great Don Jose Sulaiman, HBO, Zanfer Promotions, Golden Boy Promotions and Francisco Vargas for giving me the chance to fight for the WBC Championship on June 4. I look forward to giving the fans an epic fight that will be remembered for years to come.”

“Francisco Vargas will make his much anticipated return to the ring on June 4 following his magnificent victory over Takashi Miura on the Cotto vs. Canelo undercard and let me say this: the fans will not be disappointed,” said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “Francisco engaged in a bloodbath with Miura to claim the WBC Super Featherweight title, and he will not give that over easily to any opponent including Orlando Salido.”

“Hispanic fighters have played a very important role in boxing in the past 20 years,” said Fernando Beltran, President of Zanfer Promotions. “I have been blessed to promote some greatest Hispanic fighters including Julio Cesar ‘J.C.’ Chavez Sr., Erik ‘El Terrible’ Morales, Juan Manuel ‘Dinamita’ Marquez, Jose Luis ‘El Temible’ Castillo, Marco Antonio ‘Baby Faced Assassin’ Barrera. Now with the help of HBO and Golden Boy Promotions, we are able to carry on this great tradition of giving the fans what they want to see. Orlando ‘Siri’ Salido and Francisco ‘El Bandido’ Vargas are two of the best warriors that we have from Mexico and come June 4 the real winners of this fight will be fans that will witness this epic match-up at the Stub Hub Center, live on HBO.”

“On June 4 boxing fans are in for a real treat when Francisco Vargas meets Orlando Salido in a showdown that has all corners of the boxing community energized with anticipation,” said Peter Nelson, Executive Vice President, HBO Sports. “It’s a can’t miss battle that will have an electric atmosphere outdoors on fight night at the StubHub Center.”

“This is truly a fan friendly event,” said Ralph Heredia, Manager of Francisco Vargas. “All fans will witness an action-packed fight with two of Mexico’ most notable warriors. Francisco is known for his exciting style and is a fighter that gives every fight 110%. I know he will be ready to defend his title against Orlando Salido. He will be ready to prove he is the best in the division.”

“First I would like to thank HBO for having the vision to bring this fight to HBO Boxing After Dark,” said Sean Gibbons, Manager of Orlando Salido. “There are fights that need no hype and Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido is one them. These are two real Mexican warriors who will give it their all inside the ring and I believe that we have here is a can’t miss Fight of The Year on June 4.”

“StubHub Center is the top outdoor boxing venue in the country and has hosted some of the best fights during our history,” said General Manager of StubHub Center Katie Pandolfo. “We are excited to showcase another world-class boxing event in what will be an electric atmosphere at our facility.”

“We are excited to host another world-class event at the premier outdoor boxing venue in the United States,” said Katie Pandolfo, General Manager of StubHub Center. “StubHub Center has been the site of a number of great fights and we look forward to an electric atmosphere for the June 4th event.”

Tickets for Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido are priced at $200, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges will go on sale on tomorrow, Friday, March 11 at 10:00 a.m. PT. 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.

A member of the 2008 Mexican Olympic team, Francisco “El Bandido” Vargas has continued to represent his country well as a professional, striking gold in 2015 by winning the WBC Super Featherweight World Championship on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto vs. Canelo Alvarez on Nov., 21. A former NABF and WBO International Super Featherweight Champion, the 31-year-old, Mexico City native soared to the top of the 130-pound weight class with wins over Brandon “Untouchable” Bennett, Jerry “The Corpus Christi Kid” Belmontes, Abner “Pin” Cotto, Juan “Juanma” Manuel Lopez and “Wild” Will Tomlinson. But the biggest win was yet to come, as Vargas rose from the canvas to drop and stop Japan’s Takashi Miura in a classic championship bout on Nov. 21 that was named ESPN.com, Sports Illustrated, The Ring Magazine and The BWAA 2015 Fight of the Year.

No stranger to thrilling wars in the ring, 35-year-old Orlando “Siri” Salido is a three-time former world featherweight champion who has had one of the most impressive resumes in the sport today. A professional since 1996, Ciudad Obregon’s Salido, has traded punches with the best of this era, including Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, Yuriorkis “El Ciclon de Guantánamo” Gamboa, Mikey Garcia and Vasyl “Hi-Tech” Lomachenko. Best known for his memorable two-fight series with Juan Manuel “Juanma” Lopez and Roman “Rocky” Martinez, Salido is looking forward to celebrating his 20th year in the sport by winning another world championship.

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.

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, visit www.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

Saturday’s welterweight world championship between Floyd Mayweather and Andre Berto will premiere on SHOWTIME® next Saturday, Sept. 19. The delayed telecast of Mayweather vs. Berto will include the junior lightweight world championship bout between Roman Martinez and Orlando Salido II and will be immediately followed by the premiere of ALL ACCESS: Mayweather vs. Berto Epilogue. The Sports Emmy Award-Winning “Epilogue” shines the spotlight on fight week and takes viewers inside the ropes and into the mind of a prizefighter like no other show on television.

LAS VEGAS – Floyd Mayweather Jr. said it was his last dance. If it was, he also got the last laugh.

In what he promised was his farewell fight Saturday night, Mayweather mocked Andre Berto. Beat him. too, for most of 12-one-sided rounds for a unanimous decision that put him alongside Rocky Marciano in the historical ledger at 49-0.

Everything, including his body language, said he would not fight again. He hugged and kissed his father, Floyd Mayweather Sr., on the cheek before the start of the 12th and perhaps his final round.

After the 118-110, 117-110 and 120-108 scores were announced, he knelt at the center of the ring, pointed one of his green-gloved hands toward the ceiling and look up as if he were saying a goodbye prayer.

“My career is done,’’ Mayweather said.

After the ninth, he complained to his father about an injury to his left hand.

“It doesn’t matter whether I hurt my left hand or my right hand,’’ said Mayweather. who collected another $32 million guarantee in the sixth and final fight on his Showtime contract. “My career is over.’’

As definitive as his statement was in the wake of his victory over Berto, speculation will continue about whether he will pursue a 50th victory sometime in the spring, perhaps at a brand new Las Vegas arena scheduled to open next spring.

His decision to face Berto had been mocked the day it was announced. In the end, Mayweather managed to mock Berto, if not the mismatch, himself.

Sometimes, he moved robotically as if to mimic a tiring and clueless Berto. Sometimes, he moved as if had been hurt. He wasn’t. Mostly. He just made fun of Berto. At the strta of the 10th, Mayweather talked non-stop at Berto. Finally, referee Kenny Bayless called timeout and warned both.

“Just trash talk,’ said Mayweather, who hasn’t knocked anybody in eight years.

Berto was cheered for just about anything he attempted from the 13,395 in a crowd that began to fill a Grand Garden Arena that about 90 minutes before opening bell appeared to be nearly half empty.

In the early rounds, however, Berto must have felt like he was playing dodge-ball with a target always close enough to hit, yet always elusive enough to make him miss.

“He a great fighter,’’ said Berto, who didn’t call him greatest when as if he thought Mayweather was The Best Ever.
Berto will let history decide that one.

The rematch was supposed to settle the argument. It didn’t.

Instead, Orlando Salido and Roman Martinez have more to fight about after battling to a draw Saturday night in junior-lightweight bout on the Floyd Mayweather Jr .-Andre Berto card at the MGM Grand.

“I won this fight,’’ said Martinez (29-2-3, 17 KOs), a Puerto Rican who scored a unanimous decision over Salido in April

Salido (42-13-3, 29 KOs) was credited with a knockdown in the third. Martinez complained to no avail. Turns out, Martinez was right and referee Vic Drakulich wrong in ruling it a knockdown. Video replay showed that Salido stepped on Martinez’ foot, knocking him off balance and onto the canvas.

Later in the third, Martinez scored a legit knockdown, landing a big right that sent Salido back on his heels and onto his rear end. Salido was clearly hurt. But he was able to survive and then managed to drag the fight into the kind of bruising exchange he so often wins. He threw 1,037 punches. Martinez threw 691.

“I should have won,’’ Salido said. “That’s not fair.”

Anybody for a trilogy?

Badou Jack scored a first-round knockdown that proved to the key to a split-decision over George Groves in the first defense of his WBC super-middleweight bout.

Jonathan Oquendo of Puerto Rico and Johnny Gonzalez of Mexico opened the PPV part of the card in a super-featherweight bout that began with fireworks and then settled down into a battle of wits, survival and some blood. In the end, Oquendo (254, 16 KOs), prevailed, winning a 10-round majority decision after suffering a knockdown in the first round, knocking down Gonazlez (58-10, 49 KOs) in the second and sustaining a nasty cut on his legs ye;id in the sixth.

The Floyd Mayweather-Andre Berto show opened Saturday during the noon hour, or probably before Mayweather rolled out of bed.

In an empty MGM Grand Garden Arena, Atlanta junior-welterweight Trakwon Pettis didn’t waste any time in his pro debut. Pettis stopped Devante Seay (0-1) of Martinsville, Va., at 2:24 of the first round. He was done in time to catch a late lunch.

In the afternoon’s second matinee, London junior-welterweight Ashley Theopane (39-6-1, 11 KOs) outworked Steven Upsher (24-5-1, 6 KOs), winning a one-sided decision over the Philadelphia fighter who lost to Berto last year.

Then, Baltimore lightweight prospect Gervonta Davis (12-0, 11 KOs) took over with a fast and furious beating of Filipino Recky Delay (8-2, 5 KOs), who was down twice in the first and signaled to referee Russell Mora that he was done at 1:34 of the round.

In another afternoon beating, Romanian super-middleweight Ronald Gavril (13-1, 9 KOs) punished Scott Sigmon (25-7-1, 14 KOs) before the ringside physician ended it before the ninth.

A disciplined, patient Vanes Martirosyan waited as if he knew Ishe Smith would leap and lunge. Smith did. Not once, but twice. Martirosyan (36-2-1, 21 KOs), a middleweight from Glendale, Calif., capitalized both times, scoring knockdowns with well-timed counters late in the third round and again in the eighth for a majority decision over Smith (27-8, 12 KOs), a Mayweather-promoted fighter.

Dayton middleweight Chris Pearson (13-0, 10 KOs) rocked Canadian Janks Trotter (9-2-1. 9 KOs) repeatedly in the sixth and finally floored him in the seventh for a stoppage at 2:59 of the round.

In the last fight before the pay-per-view portion of the card, Uzbekistan junior-welterweight Sanjarbek Rakhmanov (2-0, 1 KO) rocked an overmatched, yet durable Farkhad Sharipov (4-5, 1 KO) of Kazakhstan repeatedly in scoring six-round unanimous decision.

Follow all the action as Floyd Mayweather fights in his final fight of his career against Andre Berto.  The action kicks off at 6:30 PM ET / 3:30 PM PT with a 4 fight undercard that will feature 2 world title bouts

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Round 1 Mayweather suing the left..lead left hook.

Round 2 Right from Berto..

Round 3 Mayweather landing rights to body..Double jab from Berto

Round 4 Jab from Berto..Lead left from Mayweather..body..Hard right..

Round 5 Counter right from Berto..Right from Mayweather..

Round 6 Good counter left from Berto…Hard body shots from Mayweather..left uppercurt…right hand..

Round 7 Right uppercut in inside from Mayweather..Berto works the body with the left hook..Left from Berto..

Round 8 Mayweather lands a left uppercut…terrific combination..1-2..Counter left from Berto…

Round 9 Berto jabs to the body…Right over top from Mayweather…

Round 10 Both guys are talking to each other..

Round 11 Lead left hook from Mayweather,,good uppercut..Nice combination…

Round 12 2 huge uppercuts on the inside from Mayweather,,counter right..jab to the body…right over the op…left uppercut…

117-111, 118-110 and 120-108

Punch Stats

Mayweather  232 of 410    Berto 83 of 495

Round 1 Uppercut on inside from Martinez..Salido lands a combination…Combination from Martinez

Round 2 Hard right from Salido..combination..

Round 3 Right FROM SALIDO AND RULED A KNOCKDOWN..Jab from Martinez…LEFT AND DOWN GOES SALIDO..Big right from Martinez

Round 4 Huge right buckles Salido..Counter right from Salido..

Round 5 Hard right from Salido and a left hook..Jab from Martinez..

Round 6 terrific action…Salido pressing

Round 7 Jab from Salido..another jab..hook…

Round 8 Hard right from salido..

Round 9 Right from Martinez..Right from Salido on the inside..uppercut in the inside..Martinez lands a right..Hard combination by Salido…Hard combination,..

Round 10 Martinez landing hard shots in the counter…counter left hook and right from Salido..terrific exchange..

Round 11 Big right from Salido

Round 12 great infighting..Martinez lands a left hook….

115-113 Martinez, 115-113 Salido, 114-114—-DRAW

Punches Martinez: 189- 691    Salido 285- 1037

Round 1: Jack lands a jab..Double left hook and right from Groves..right..Good right…HUGE RIGHT AND DOWN Goes groves…

Round 2 Jack lands a jab..combination from Groves..Body and right..Combination from Jack…Counter from Groves..

Round 3 Body shot from Goves…Trading jabs…1-2 from Jack..

Round 4 Groves lands a right over the top..right uppercut

Round 5 Right from Jack..Good right from Groves..

Round 6 1-2 from Jack..Jab and right from Groves..another right..

Round 7 Body shot from Jack…Hard right from Groves

Round 8 Hard right from Groves

Round 9 Good right from Jack…

Round 10 Groves lands a jab that buckles Jack..Sharp right from Jack..

Round 11 Left to the body from Jack..left hook to the jaw..

Round 12 Body work from Jack…Groves lands a right…trading good rights..Groves lands a hard right that sets off a great exchange

114-113 Groves; 115-112 Jack; 116-111 Jack

Punch stats: Jack 210- 506    Groves 154- 721

Round 1: Uppercut by Gonzalez..BIG UPPEERCUT AND DOWN GOES OQUENDO…

Round 2 Right uppercut from Gonzalez…3 punch combination…Blood over the right eye of Gonzalez..right from Oquendo…HUGE RIGHT AND DOWN GOES GONZALEZ…Big left staggers Gonzalez…

Round 3 Good body work from Gonzalez..Straight right from Oquendo..Left hook…Combination from Gonzalez..Oquendo switches southpaw..Body shot from Oquendo..

Round 4 Combination from Oquendo..left hook..Jab to the body..left hook..right

Round 5 Left to body from Oquendo

Round 6: Overhand right from Oquendo..Triple Jab…Good right from Gonzalez..Nice Left

Round 7 Left hook from Gonzalez..Jab..Oquendo working the body…Gonzalez lands a hard right..

Round 8: Gonzalez cut over left eye from accidental headbutt…Left and right from Gonzalez..Jab…Jab from Oquendo drives Gonzalez to the corner..

Round 9 Doctor looking at cuts on Gonzalez…

Round 10 

94-94; 95-93 and 98-90 for Oquendo

Punch stats:  Gonzales –139 of 502    Oquendo: 100 of 455

Round 1: Good left from Smith

Round 2  Jab from Martiroysan…Combination..Right to the body..Counter left from Smith

Round 3:  2 shots to the body from Martirosyan..Left from Smith..Counter left..RiGHT FROM MARTIROSYAN AND RULED A KNOCKDOWN

Round 4:  Jab from Martirsyan…right…right to body from Smith,,,Nice right from Martirosyan..

Round 5:  Good combination from Smith..Good uppercut..Good combination..right lead..3 punch combination..counter right…

Round 6:  Good combination..right to body and left to the head..Body…Combination..

Round 7: Smith lanleft to head and left uppercut..lands a left..right

Round 8: Huge LEFT AND DOWN GOES SMITH

Round 9 Nice combination from Smith..good left to body and head..Swelling under the right eye of Martirosyan..Left..

Round 10  Good right from Smith

95-95; 97-91 two times Martirosyan

DORADO, PR (Sept. 1, 2015) – WBO Junior Lightweight Champion Roman “Rocky” Martinez (29-2-2, 17 KOs) and WBO/IBF featherweight world-ranked Jonathan “Polvo” Oquendo (25-4, 16 KOs) worked out for the press in Puerto Rico on Monday, Aug, 31 in advance of their SHOWTIME PPV® fights against former world champions Orlando “Siri” Salido (42-13-2, 29 KOs) and Jhonny Gonzalez (58-9, 49 KOs), respectively. The event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 12 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas highlighted by HIGH STAKES: Floyd Mayweather vs. Andre Berto.

Martinez and Oquendo worked before the media at the Dorado Municipal Gym in Dorado, Puerto Rico. Both fighters completed a full training session with their respective trainers Raul Torres and Dennis Pantojas.

This is what the fighters had to say during Monday’s workout:

Román “Rocky” Martínez
“I’m preparing for a big fight on September 12. Everyone saw that the first fight against Salido was a true ‘War.’ This time around, I’m planning to give my fans the same type of fight. I predict a non-stop action slugfest.

“My team and I are working and have been working really hard in training camp. I believe that we are doing everything that needs to be done. I’m in the best shape of my career and I’m planning to win once again, either by knockout or decision, but I’ll win.

“We have worked more on side-to-side and in-and-out movement. If I see him hurt early I’m going to finish him.”

Raul Torres, Martinez’s Trainer
“Rocky is a 100 percent prepared for [Orlando] Salido. I have no doubt that we will emerge victorious once again.

“[Orlando] Salido is a fighter that likes to go forward. He stands in front of you and he goes at it. He’s tough, but we are tougher. We are ready.”

Jonathan Oquendo
“This is very important fight for me. This is my opportunity to put myself in the world title landscape. I’m not going to let this opportunity slip away from me.

“Jhonny Gonzalez is a veteran of 60 fights, so you can’t take him lightly. Preparation is key.

“This will be the first fight at 130 pounds for me and I can say that the training camp has been very good, better than expected.

“I’m feeling strong. I think this is a good weight for me, I’m comfortable because I don’t have to lose much weight and can train better.”

Dennis Pantojas, Oquendo’s trainer
“We have had a very good training camp. Jonathan [Oquendo] has not had any problems and he’s right on weight that we want.

“I see Jonathan [Oquendo] more focused and stronger than ever. We are not only hitting the gym, we are also swimming a lot and that has helped him lots. “

# # #

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Mayweather Promotions LLC., are priced at $1,500, $1,000, $750, $500, $300 and $150 and are on sale now. Tickets are limited to eight (8) per household for all ticket prices except the $150 ticket category, which is limited to four (4) per household. To charge by phone or with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

“HIGH STAKES: Mayweather vs. Berto,” a 12-round welterweight world championship bout for Mayweather’s WBC and WBA 147-pound titles, is promoted by Mayweather Promotions LLC. The event will take place Saturday, September 12 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas and will be televised by SHOWTIME PPV. The undercard features a WBO Junior Lightweight World Championship fight, which is a rematch between Roman Martinez and Orlando Salido, which is promoted in association with PR Best Boxing. Also featured on the PPV telecast will be a WBC Super Middleweight title bout between Badou Jack and George Groves, which is promoted in association with Team Sauerland. The opening PPV bout pits former world champion Jhonny Gonzalez against Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Oquendo in a 10-round junior lightweight bout.

Kelly Swanson
Thanks everybody for calling in. We appreciate it. We know it’s a busy week, but we wanted to kick it off with this conference call and on the line today we have two bouts from the HIGH STAKES: Mayweather vs. Berto Pay-Per-View undercard, taking place Saturday, September 12.

The two bouts that we’re talking about today are Jhonny Gonzalez versus Jonathan Oquendo
and also Roman Martinez versus Orlando Salido, in their rematch. We’re going to start with Gonzalez and Oquendo and then we will move into the Martinez-Salido portion of the call. To make the introductions and MC the call I’d like to introduce Leonard Ellerbe, Chief Executive Officer of Mayweather Promotions.

Leonard Ellerbe
Thank you Kelly. I’d like to thank everyone for calling in to our first of two conference calls. It’s exciting to present these great fights on the Pay-Per-View televised portion of the Mayweather versus Berto event. This call is extremely special because we have not only one, but two classics – Mexico versus Puerto Rico matchups which we’ll be discussing. Before we get into the fight details and fighters I’d like to introduce Chris DeBlasio, he’s the Vice President of Sports Communications for SHOWTIME.

Chris DeBlasio
Thank you to all the press for getting on and Kelly for setting this up. I won’t take much of your time. I know you want to hear from the fighters today, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t share some of the exciting programming that we have coming up. As Leonard mentioned, the two fights that we’re going to talk about today are special in the classic rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico and we do expect this to be a very exciting and fun undercard. So we’re excited to get to it.

As such, SHOWTIME Sports, in keeping with our tradition with the Mayweather events that we have been fortunate enough to work with Mayweather Promotions since 2013, we have a strong lineup of programming that comes in advance of the Pay-Per-View. The lynchpin of that is, of course, our Sports Emmy Award winning “ALL ACCESS” series.

We will premiere the first of a four episode series this Friday, August 28, on SHOWTIME. That is chronicling Mayweather and Berto as they prepare for the main event on September 12. In addition we have the first fight of Orlando Salido versus Rocky Martinez from April of this year. We believe many of you have already called this a leading candidate for fight of the year for 2015. That first fight in its entirety is airing on SHOWTIME EXTREME. It airs on the CBS Sports Network, our sister cable television network. It is also available in full on the internet. If you haven’t seen that fight or you want to relive some of the excitement or share with your readers and viewers, please do. That fight was excellent and we expect a great one in the rematch as well.

Our typical compliment of programming during fight week will be available as expected and as you’ve seen before from SHOWTIME in partnership with Mayweather Promotion. You’ll see a main event press conference streaming live on Wednesday of fight week. The undercard press conference we will also stream live that week. Weigh-in Live on Friday will air on SHOWTIME network, on CBS Sports Network and on many other platforms, including the internet.

We also have a very special “COUNTDOWN LIVE” on Saturday, September 12. COUNTDOWN LIVE is going to be a 90-minute show on SHOWTIME leading up to the Pay-Per-View. That’s going to include a live 10-round fight between Mayweather Promotions’ Ishe Smith in a super welterweight bought against Vanes Martirosyan. So lots of great programing coming up.

I know you guys have lots of other live action to cover as well. So I’m not going to take up any more of your time. I wish you luck and thanks for the time.

L. Ellerbe
Okay, thank you Chris. Mayweather versus Berto is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and as Chris mentioned it will be live on SHOWTIME Pay-Per-View. Just a reminder the Pay-Per-View telecast will start at 5 PM PT/8 PM ET. This event will be sponsored by Tecate.

Also, just a reminder tickets are on sale now at the MGM Grand and the ticket prices are $150, $300, $500, $750, $1000 and $1500. Mayweather versus Berto will be shown live in select movie theaters all across the country with our partners Fathom Events. Tickets are on sale now at www.fathomevents.com. In the main event, obviously, you have Floyd “Money” Mayweather versus hard hitting former champ Andre Berto. In the co-main event we have WBO Junior lightweight title fight between Roman “Rocky” Martinez and Orlando Salido. This will be a rematch of their fight of the year from this past April.

The Martinez versus Salido fight will follow Mayweather Promotions own Badou Jack “The Ripper” making his first title defense of his WBC Super Middleweight World Championship and he’ll be fighting “Saint” George Groves. The Jack vs. Groves fight is in association with Sauerland Events. And as announced last Tuesday the first Pay-Per-View television fight will be a 10 round Junior Lightweight showdown featuring Mexican power puncher Jhonny Gonzalez against Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Oquendo. I’d like to acknowledge Peter Rivera of PR Best Boxing

Peter Rivera
Hi, Leonard. Hi everybody. Once again, thanks for the opportunity to SHOWTIME and Mayweather and we’re looking forward to being part of this great event.

L. Ellerbe
Thank you. I would like to introduce and first the opening televised bout on the Pay-Per-View portion. Jonathan Oquendo, fighting out of Bayamon, Puerto Rico. He’s won 11 of 13 fights and will fight for the sixth time in his career at the MGM when he faces Jhonny Gonzalez on September the 12. Coming to us with a record of 25-4 with 16 KOs. Jonathan, would you like to make a few comments?

Jonathan Oquendo
I want to thank the press. I want to thank everyone for this opportunity. I’m very excited. I’m very focused and looking forward to the match up.

L. Ellerbe
Next up I’d like to introduce a very very exciting fighter from Mexico City, Mexico. He has won world championships at 118 and 126. One of his most memorable fights is his fight against Abner Mares in a very very exciting fight he ended with the first round KO to grab the WBC featherweight title. He defended it twice because eventually losing to Gary Russell Jr. Jhonny Gonzalez comes in with with a 58-9 record with 49 big KOs

Jhonny Gonzalez
I’m very happy for this opportunity. I’m extremely excited for the chance to fight on such a big stage that is important to fans around the world and I’ve really picked up my training and I’m extremely focused and looking ahead towards September 12.

Q
Jonathan, why did you accept this fight at this stage of your career?

J. Oquendo
I feel like this is a great opportunity. I want to be a great champion. I want to go ahead and showcase my talents on the card that Floyd Mayweather is headlining because there is a lot of attention when he fights. I feel that the training and that we’ve been doing in camp has been fantastic and I do believe that I have enough to defeat somebody of the caliber of Jhonny Gonzalez.

Q
Jhonny, what do you expect out of Jonathan Oquendo?

J. Gonzalez
He is very complicated and difficult to fight. I know that for Jonathan it’s a great opportunity. I’m awaiting a very stiff and strong challenge and I believe that Jonathan will bring his best coming up on September 12.

Q
Johnny, you just fought earlier this month. Did you already know that this fight was in the works if you won?

J. Gonzalez
I’m very happy that I took the previous fight and came out fine and it’s allowed me to just keep up the same training. I feel terrific at 130 pounds. I understand how important this is for all the Mexicans to be able to celebrate during this time on September 12 and during the month of September. At the end of the day I want to come out with my hand raised on September 12.

Q
How important is it to you to keep up the tradition of always fighting on or near your birthday, which of course is also the Mexico Independence Day?

J. Gonzalez
It’s very important for me to fight during this time of the year. I have had the opportunity to compete during this time of the year on various occasions and also more than anything I’ve learned from my defeats. Sometimes I’ve came up short but I have looked back and figured out the reasons why. And at the end of the day, most importantly, I want to go out and I want to fight for one more world title.

Q
Jhonny, do you believe you’re done at featherweight or would the right opportunity prompt you to drop that kind of weight?

J. Gonzalez
No, I’m done. My days are over fighting at 126. My focus is strictly on 130 pounds. I want to fight for a world title and I want to fight the best at 130. I get that opportunity to do so on September 12 against Jonathan Oquendo.

Q
This question is for Jhonny. Are you going to put on another action-packed fight or will this be a more conservative Jhonny?

J. Gonzalez
I feel that the face that I’m back with my father will make me better than ever. I feel better at 130 instead of at 126 and my mindset is more to focus on boxing and that ability to focus on boxing, is going to allow me to land harder shots against Jonathan Oquendo.

Q
Do you plan on making a title run at 130?
J. Gonzalez
I want to put on exciting fights, but I also want to focus on my campaign at 130 step-by-step. I feel that I will be ready to fight for a world title if the opportunity presents itself, but I’m more focused on handling things one by one and step-by-step.

Q
Having been through the process of rebuilding after a loss, do you feel more comfortable going through it?

J. Gonzalez
I always learn from my losses. I’m going to come back stronger and my mindset is to fight for a world title at 130 pounds. I understand the adjustments I need to make and I’m going to put that on display against Jonathan Oquendo.

Q
Jonathan, how do you feel fighting at 130 pounds?

J. Oquendo
I’m in excellent condition right now. I understand the opponent that I have against me in Jhonny Gonzalez and I think I’m going to be totally fine conditioning wise and physically against Jhonny Gonzalez.

K. Swanson
Great. Thank you so much. Okay, now we’re going to transition over to Orlando Salido and Rocky Martinez.

L. Ellerbe
This next bout, which will be the second part of this great Mexico versus Puerto Rico rivalry, we have a very exciting fight. It’s a fight that the fans are really looking forward to and I’d like to introduce first Roman “Rocky” Martinez. He comes to us with a 29-2 record with 17 KOs and he’s fighting out of Puerto Rico. He’ll be making the first defense in his third stint as the WBO Junior Lightweight champ. He survived a desperate late rush to unanimously out-point Salido in a hard fought action packed fight this past April and it was a classic Puerto Rico versus Mexico battle. Roman, would like you to say a few words?

Roman Martinez
I’m very prepared. My team has done a terrific job in training camp. I want to put on an amazing fight and I’ve worked extremely diligently to be able to defend his title on a spectacular card like this one that is headlined by Floyd Mayweather.

O. Salido
I’m very happy and it means a lot for me to be included on such a great card like this that is headlined by Floyd Mayweather and I want to prove to everybody that I still have a long career in front of me and I want to go out and recapture the world title.

Q
Orlando, what will be different in this fight coming up?

O. Salido
I’ve been training with guys that are very mobile that like to move a lot and I know that Roman is going to constantly be on the move, but the difference with this fight is that during his last fight in training camp I did not spar with guys that are very mobile and moved around the ring. But in this fight I’m very focused and prepared to go head and seek Roman Martinez in every single corner of the ring.

Q
For both fighters, what is your mentality of going back into the ring immediately with an opponent you just fought in what was a very very hard, physical, tough fight. How do you mentally prepare yourself for that knowing you’re probably going to be standing across the ring from a guy who is going to put you through another 12 rounds or maybe less of all out warfare?

R. Martinez
My training has been excellent. To be able to come out and put on a show on a card like this, I want to not only look good, but I want to look spectacular. The difference is that I’m going to use my intelligence more. I know Orlando is a terrific fighter and is going to leave it all inside the ring, but I’m going to use my brains more in this fight compared to the last.

O. Salido
Training has been going very well. I understand that we went toe-to-toe in our last match, but honestly, mentally I feel fantastic. What I’m looking at in this fight is not to leave anything behind. To give it my all and he understands that Roman Martinez is a great fighter, but I want to go out and recoup the title for all of Mexico on September 12.

Q
Roman did you think at any point that you could finish him in that fight and did you think that because you were able to drop him two times that perhaps this time you could finish him off in the rematch?

R. Martinez
I understand in the first fight I feel like I didn’t start as strong and in this fight I’m going to fight with pressure of from the outset and I do have a lot of confidence understanding that I could hurt Orlando Salido, but in this fight it’s all about starting faster and stronger and really going ahead and putting the pressure on Orlando Salido early. I definitely feel I can go ahead and finish off Orlando Salido. Orlando is a very valiant fighter and very courageous, but if I have the moment and I have the opportunity, if it is there then I will certainly oblige and finish off Orlando Salido.

Q
Leonard, could you talk about how this fight ended up on the undercard of Floyd’s show?

L. Ellerbe
We’re always looking to put on exciting fights on our undercards and this was the best fight out there that we could make. I’m truly excited, not only as the promoter of the event, but as a fan to be able to witness another great fight. We know the first fight was a hardcore fight and I suspect nothing else in this fight. I went out and I tried to make the best fight I could on the card and that’s what we got.

Q
Roman do you believe that you have the advantage mentally heading into the rematch?

R. Martinez
Orlando is a veteran. We had an amazing fight back in April, but I’m not going to get over confident because Orlando Salido is a dangerous fighter and I understand I must bring 100% and my absolute best on September 12.

Q
Orlando did you want the rematch immediately?

O. Salido
The first fight was in Roman’s backyard out in Puerto Rico. I did not fight well, but I craved an opportunity to regain my title and I will do so for all of Mexico.

Q
Orlando how do you feel being able to fight very close to Mexican Independence Day and all that it represents?

O. Salido
It’s such an honor to be fighting so close to this day for the Independence of Mexico. I am so just overjoyed by the opportunity to be able to regain my title for all of Mexico during that time of year.

Q
Orlando do you think that this is the last time you will be fighting for the world title?

O. Salido
I do not know whatsoever. You can’t tell and you can’t know for sure. Anything can happen in the ring. But what I do know is that I am focused and coming up on September 12 I will, once again, regain my world championship for all of Mexico.

Q
The first fight that you had was very close and a lot of people felt that real difference in the decision was the two knockdowns. What happened with those knockdowns and how are you going to work in this fight to prevent something like that from happening again?

O. Salido
Mentally I feel great. Roman hit me with great shots, but the second knock down he hit me with an amazing show. In the first fight I lost the fight mentally and in this fight everything is different mentally, spiritually. I just feel so much better and I thought that in the first fight that everyone was for Roman. This time everything is different and I think that the results will be different as well.

Q
Roman, could you tell us what led up to the knockdowns and how you will try to repeat that in the rematch?

R. Martinez
The first fight, it was just an amazing matchup. I went ahead and I saw an opportunity. I took advantage of it. I’m training very hard to go out there and get the finish that I was looking for in the first match up.

Q
In the back of your mind have you thought at all about a trilogy?

O. Salido
If the fans want a third fight after I am victorious then so be it. Let’s make it happen. But in my mind I’m coming out only thinking about this fight. That is my only focus at the moment. I want to come out and fight an intelligent fight. I know Roman is going to be at his best, but when he steps inside the ring on September 12 I want to put on a spectacular performance for all the fans and everyone watching on Pay-Per-View.

R. Martinez
I know it’s going to be a great fight and that if the fans want a third fight then I’m willing to oblige, but it will have to be on my point because I’m going to be victorious yet again over Orlando Salido. So if it is another great fight where I am victorious it will certainly be up to me and I would be willing to go ahead and consider the option of fighting a third time against Orlando Salido.

“HIGH STAKES: Mayweather vs. Berto,” a 12-round welterweight
world championship bout for Mayweather’s WBC and WBA 147-pound titles, is promoted by Mayweather Promotions LLC. The event will take place Saturday, September 12 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas and will be televised by SHOWTIME PPV. The undercard features a WBO Junior Lightweight World Championship fight, which is a rematch between Roman Martinez and Orlando Salido. Also featured on the PPV telecast will be a WBC Super Middleweight title bout between Badou Jack and George Groves, which is promoted in association with Team Sauerland. The opening PPV bout pits former world champion Jhonny Gonzalez against Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Oquendo in a 10-round super featherweight bout.

For more information visit www.mayweatherpromotions.com, www.SHO.com/Sports andwww.mgmgrand.com and follow on Twitter at @floydmayweather, @AndreBerto, @BadouJack, @StGeorgeGroves, @Romancito77, @sirisalido, @jhonnygbox, @JonathanOquen @mayweatherpromo, @SHOSports and @Swanson_Comm or become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FloydMayweather,www.Facebook.com/TheRealAndreBerto,www.facebook.com/MayweatherPromotions and www.facebook.com/SHOsports.

LOS ANGELES (August 6, 2015) – Accredited media members from around the world came out to the JW Marriott at L.A. Live in Los Angeles Thursday as Floyd “Money” Mayweather (48-0, 26 KOs) and two-time welterweight champion Andre Berto (30-3, 23 KOs) officially announced their SHOWTIME PPV matchup with taking place Saturday, September 12 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Also in attendance Thursday were pay-per-view undercard fighters featured on the stacked four-fight telecast. In a rematch of their epic April 11 world-title fight Roman “Rocky” Martinez (29-2-2, 17 KOs) will defend his WBO Junior Lightweight title against four-time world champion Orlando “Siri” Salido (42-13-2, 29 KOs) while WBC Super Middleweight Champion Badou Jack “The Ripper” (19-1-1, 12 KOs) will take on his mandatory challenger “Saint” George Groves (21-2, 16 KOs). A fourth fight on the pay-per-view telecast will be announced soon.

Further undercard action features a super welterweight showdown between Ishe “Sugar Shay” Smith (27-7, 12 KOs) and Vanes “The Nightmare” Martirosyan (35-2-1, 21 KOs), who were also in attendance Thursday to announce their fight.

Promoted by Mayweather Promotions, the four-fight pay-per-view telecast will be produced and distributed live by SHOWTIME PPV and is the sixth and final fight of a record-breaking deal between Mayweather and Showtime Networks Inc. SHOWTIME Sports® will support the event with the Sports Emmy® Award-winning series ALL ACCESS premiering Friday, August 28.

Here is what the fighters and participants had to say Thursday:

FLOYD MAYWEATHER, 12-Time World Champion

“I’ve had a remarkable career. I wouldn’t change anything. We all make mistakes. We live and we learn but I wouldn’t change anything.

“My dad is a remarkable trainer, Virgil Hunter as well. But when it comes down to it, it comes down to the two fighters in the ring.

“Andre Berto is a tough competitor, a former world champion. Every time he goes out there, he gives it 100 percent.

“I chose Berto because he’s very exciting. Andre Berto is going to push Floyd Mayweather to the limit. That’s one thing I do know.

“Berto always gives an exciting fight. If he gets knocked down he gets back up. He always give 100 percent. Fast hands, good boxer.

“I know what it takes when it’s a fight of this magnitude, because I’ve been fighting on pay-per-view for over 10 years. Berto is a very tough guy, he’s hungry and he’s not going to lie down.

“September 12th is my last dance. On September 13 I just want to sit back and watch some football. I want to watch my children get the best education. And I want to spend every day with my kids. These are the best days of my life.

“The difference between Andre Berto and Pacquiao is you guys [to the media] put hype behind Pacquiao. My job was to go out there and be Floyd Mayweather and be a chess player and that’s what I did. I found a way to win.

“Number 49, this is it. I’ve had a tremendous career. I’m older, wiser and my health is more important than anything. September 12 is my last fight. All 48 fights played a key, but number 48 was the most important.

“This dream all started with just two people. Me and my father. Just the two of us.

“When you look at the two divisions I fight in, there’s one man who stands all alone. I looked at the division and asked who’s always in a tough exciting fight, who has quick hands and who always gives it 100 percent, it was Andre Berto

“This is a guy I can’t overlook. He’s dedicated to the sport just like myself and he’s going to push me.”

ANDRE BERTO, Two-Time Welterweight World Champion

“It’s a long time coming. Now we’re here. Anybody that knows me has seen great things but at the same time they’ve seen me go through some real trials. What comes with that is a lot of hard work and perseverance.

“Two years ago I was in the hospital bed having surgery on my shoulder and not knowing if I could come back from that. At the end of the day it was a blessing. We stayed focused and now we’re here.

“I know I’m going to come in there fast and strong. I’m 152 pounds right now. At the end of the day you’re going to see a kids who’s had his highs. Or who’s had his falls. And now we’re right back to making it happen.

“This is a fight that I felt Floyd still wanted to make happen. Him coming off of the Pacquiao fight, of course it’s easy for people to downplay me. I can’t worry about that and I’m not worried about that.

“Have you ever seen a boring Andre Berto fight? At the end of the day we work our butt off, I’ve been working for a long time. Right now, the harvest is coming. We sowed the seeds and the time is now.

“I bring that rare combination of speed, power and explosiveness to the table. The last person he bought with that combination was Zab Judah. I’m younger, I’m hungry; I’m strong and fast. I’m focused on what I’m coming to get.

“I felt like I went through what I went through for a reason. My time is now. There’s no better day than the present. Floyd is no stranger to me. We’re already deep into camp. You definitely do not want to miss this one.”

ROMAN MARTINEZ, WBO Junior Lightweight World Champion

“I’m so happy to be part of this great show. I’m preparing very well for this fight. Everybody who saw the first fight knows this was a war and this will be the same thing. I’m in great shape and I’m ready to keep my belt.

“I need to work to the body more in this fight and see if I can finish him early this time.

“I’m in really good shape for this fight and I’ve been working to make adjustments to get the knock out but if we have to go the distance, we’ll be ready.

“I feel the rematch is a very exciting fight for television, the kind fans love.

“Everybody who saw the first fight knows it was a war and this will be the same thing. For me, it gives me a chance to leave no doubt in anybody’s mind that I am the champion.

“Salido can say what he says, I hope he’s in good condition because I am. In the end the best man will win this fight and that will be me.”

ORLANDO SALIDO, Four-Time World Champion

“Now I know his weaknesses, I am going to attack from the very first moment, I know what to do for the victory.

“I have to refocus mentally and physically, I’m not going to do much different other than to gain the victory this time

“I’m definitely going to regain this title for Mexico. I don’t feel it. I know it.

“I am very happy we are fighting in a neutral territory for our rematch, not in Puerto Rico again. I was very prepared for the first fight but the referee wouldn’t let me fight my fight. It seemed the referee was talking to me the whole 12 rounds. I was trying to focus only on my opponent, but I couldn’t.

“I’m very excited about this fight. This is a very special month for Mexico and in particular because of that, I’m going to get this victory.

“There’s always a very special rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico and I feel it, which is why I so badly want to win this title for Mexico.”

BADOU JACK, WBC Super Middleweight World Champion

“I’ve been in camp for about two months now. It’s been a very good training camp and I’m ready right now to fight. We still have a month to go and we’re ready.

“I’ve always been strong mentally but I get some extra confidence from having that green belt. You still have to stay humble and keep working hard.

“Groves is a pretty good fighter. I definitely think it’s going to be an exciting fight. I know he’s coming to get what’s mine and he’s coming to fight.

“He’s fought in the UK in front of a lot of people, but it’s a different stage in Vegas.

“I think I’m the overall better fighter. He’s going to try to knock me out and I’m going to try to knock him out. It’s going to be a great fight. I’m definitely going for the knockout.

“It’s a dream come true to be part of such a big event at MGM Grand for Floyd’s last fight, it’s a blessing.

“It’s no different to me being the main event or on the undercard. There will be even more people seeing my fight which is great.

“I just have to listen to my corner, be smart and be myself. If I do that I’ll walk out of there with my belt intact.”

GEORGE GROVES, Top 168-Pound Contender

“Everything in training camp has been perfect. We’re adjusting to the time difference and the altitude, which takes a couple of days, but everything is going really well. We’re ahead of schedule.

“We’ve been training all year for this fight so I’m feeling really good. I can’t wait to get in there and start punching.

“I think I know more than enough about Jack. I’ve seen him box live against Anthony Dirrell and I’ve studied him on tape. There’s a lot to like about him. I like the fact that he’s come to the U.S. and has made a home out here, there’s bravery in that. He’s latched on to a successful camp but ultimately you have to stand on your own two feet in the ring.

“I think I’m better than him in most aspects. If I go out and perform it’s an easy night’s work for me.

“It’s nice being on a undercard because I’ve dealt with the pressure of the main event. It’s nice to just be able to enjoy the fight. It’s a massive fight but the only thing I have to worry about it fighting. It’s a great opportunity for me.

“Rust is more mental than anything. You only hear a fighter talk about ring rust after a fight because it’s an excuse. We’re in the gym performing, sparring partners are getting beat up and there’s no excuse to not take it into a real fight.

“I’m pleased to be here in America. The third time going for the title will be lucky. We’ve prepared diligently. We’re ready for action.

“I’ve seen Badou up close and personal and as of yet, we can’t find anything that will cause me a problem. We plan to take the belt back to the UK.

“He’ll have comfort being at home and with his stable mates, but that all goes away when you step in the ring and a guy is trying to take your head off.

“Since I was seven years old I’ve dreamed of becoming a world champion. I’ve had ups and downs in boxing but it’s all come full circle.

“We have ourselves in a great place in training camp and I literally cannot wait to get in there.”

ISHE SMITH, Former Super Welterweight World Champion

“I asked for the toughest fights and the toughest challenges. I just want to fight the best. No matter what people think or what people say about me, we put together good fights.
We’ve had three champions at Mayweather Promotions so we’re doing something right.

“Vanes Martirosyan is a good fighter, I have nothing but respect for him. We’re putting together the necessary work in the gym to be successful.

“This fight could probably have been a main event somewhere but I’m happy to be a part of history and Floyd’s finale. I’m looking forward to a great night of boxing.”

VANES MARTIROSYAN, 2004 U.S. Olympian and 154-Pound Contender

“This is a big fight for me. My last fight I left in the judges’ hands and it went the other way.

“September 12 I’m not letting the judges get in my way. I’m going for the knockout and you’re going to see the best Vanes you’ve ever seen.”

VIRGIL HUNTER, Berto’s Trainer

“I’m glad to be a part of this historic event. It’s these moments that I reflect on what these young men go through. I’ve seen some of the great fighters that came before us. When I see some of the negative attitudes on this event, it’s from people who don’t know what those fighters go through at the gym.

“We’re told never to quit and to never give up. Being 48-0 is not an easy job. Particularly when you go back to day one and the obstacles and the hills you have to climb. That’s the spirit of the sport. I think once Floyd Mayweather is gone, we’ll feel the presence that this man had on the sport. I witnessed the same thing with Muhammad Ali.

“Andre Berto has overcome a lot in his life and I’m glad to have made his acquaintance. He epitomizes what a fighter is. He’s overcome and he’s earned this opportunity based off that.

“When you look at that pack in that welterweight division there’s only one that stands out, everyone else is in that pack.

“We intend to give this the best job that we’re going to give it. I think the champ himself respects that. We come to win, but we have to respect what he’s done for the sport.

“I’m glad to be a part of this. It’s a big thrill for me to be on the opposite side of legends and we’re anticipating everything turning out just right for us on fight night.”

LEONARD ELLERBE, CEO of Mayweather Promotions

“Welcome everyone to what will be Floyd Mayweather’s last kick off press conference of his amazing career. We are so excited to be working together to bring another stacked PPV card to boxing fans on SHOWTIME PPV.

“We have a great lineup with three world championships fights.

“Tickets will go on sale tomorrow at 10 am P.T./1 pm E.T. Prices range from $1,500, $1,000, $750, $500, $300, $150.

“Once again Floyd will be putting his WBC titles and WBA title on the line. He will be facing Andre Berto, who will be looking to erase the 0 off Floyd’s record on September 12.

“’Rocky’ Martinez vs. Orlando Salido will be a rematch of the Fight of the Year candidate from April. We know that will be a war.

“These are the kinds of challenges that Floyd needs to push him the way that he needs to be pushed. Andre Berto is a guy we were supposed to fight years ago. He’s a two-time world champion. We know he’s going to bring it. He’s going to give it his best. On September 12 we’ll see if it’s good enough.

“With the storied career that Floyd Mayweather has had, we are truly witnessing history. You better take a good look at him, because the thing’s he’s accomplished in this sport, we’ll never see again.

“We always knew that Floyd would be here, many years ago. When a guy accomplishes these kinds of things, everything he does is historic. When you look around the landscape, this gentleman right here is why the game has been changed.”

STEPHEN ESPINOZA, Executive Vice President & General Manager SHOWTIME Sports

“Boxing is a tough sport. It’s a tough sport to cover, it’s a tough sport to do business in and it’s a tough sport to make a living at. When you find someone who has been participating in the sport as a professional for 19 years, not just participating but practicing the sport at an elite level, one that’s rarely been seen, that’s something special.

“Two decades at the top of the sport, but you know what’s most impressive? It’s work ethic. Almost 20 years of a work ethic that is unmatched in the sport of boxing. Never in his 19 years has Floyd showed up less than 100 percent prepared, 19 years of unwavering discipline. Once he got to the top level, the work ethic didn’t change. That will be the legacy of Floyd in this sport, it is something I will likely never see again in my lifetime.

“It all comes to an end September 12, it’s our last opportunity to enjoy his incredible skill.

“Andre Berto has a chance to make history himself. If he does that, nothing else will matter. Berto will become known as the guy who finally beat Floyd Mayweather.

“One thing we know about Andre Berto, he’s never lacked for action. There’s only one way he knows how to fight and that’s all out aggressive.

“I’ve seen what Andre can do in the ring, I’ve seen him fight round after round. Fighters like Andre Berto will always be welcome, because no one fights harder than Andre Berto.”

MAURICIO SULAIMAN, WBC President

“I am very happy to once again represent my father and to see the WBC back in a great event. September 12 is a national Mexican holiday and Floyd has taken it over and represented Mexico so well. Andre Berto is a former WBC champion who will for sure bring a great challenge to Floyd Mayweather.”

* * *

For more information visit www.mayweatherpromotions.com, www.SHO.com/Sports andwww.mgmgrand.com and follow on Twitter at @floydmayweather, @AndreBerto, @BadouJack, @StGeorgeGroves, @sirisalido, @mayweatherpromo, @SHOSports and @Swanson_Comm or become a fan on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/FloydMayweather,www.Facebook.com/TheRealAndreBerto,www.facebook.com/MayweatherPromotions and www.facebook.com/SHOsports.

LOS ANGELES (April 10) – Marvin “Cachorro” Quintero (26-5, 22 KOs) of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico takes on Jose “Chelo” Gonzalez (23-1, 18 KOs) of Toa Baja, Puerto Rico in a 10-round, co-main event part of Martinez vs. Salido Pay-Per-View quadruple header on April 11 from the Coliseum of Puerto Rico in San Juan. Co-promoted by PR Best Boxing Promotions, Inc. and Golden Boy Promotions, the heavy handed contenders, combined they have an 80 percent knockout ratio, will battle it out in hopes of becoming the next WBO Latino Lightweight Champion.

In the main event of the night, Ramon Martinez (28-2-2, 17 KOs) will face Orlando Salido (42-12-2, 29 KOs) in a 12-round match up for the WBO Super Featherweight Title. Also, Victor Ruiz (13-6-1, 5 KOs) of Mexico City will face McWilliams Arroyo (15-2, 13 KOs) of Fajardo, Puerto Rico in a 10-round flyweight bout for the WBO Latino Flyweight Title. Opening up the telecast, Yoandris “El Nino” Salinas (20-1-2, 13 KOs) of Miami, Florida, will face Ricardo “Alacran” Alvarado (7-4, 6 KOs) of McAllen, Texas in a 10-round featherweight bout.

Undefeated fighters John Karl Sosa (12-0, 6 KOs) of Caguas, Puerto Rico and Zachary “Zungry” Ochoa (10-0, 5KOs) of Brooklyn, New York will be featured in respective bouts in the non-televised undercard. Sosa is scheduled to fight Joaquin “Chico” Chavez (9-14-3, 2 KOs) of Los Angeles in an eight-round welterweight bout, while Ochoa will face the heavy-handed Moises Rios (5-2, 4 KOs) of Aarcibo, Puerto Rico in a junior welterweight six-round brawl.

Marvin “Cachorro” Quintero of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico has had a long and impressive career as a professional boxer. The knockout artist has faced tough veterans Walter Estrada and Miguel Vazquez and had a shot at the IBF World Lightweight title when he faced Vasquez in 2012. Quintero is coming off of a win last September when he faced Carlos Mario Sanchez via second round knockout. Now he is looking at a chance to capture the WBO Lightweight Title when he faces Jose Gonzalez on April 11.

Fighting out of Tao Baja, Puerto Rico, Jose “Chelo” Gonzalez has kept busy year after year since his professional debut in 2008. The rising Puerto Rican star is known to be a hard puncher having won most of his bout via knockout. In his last professional bout, Gonzales faced Antonio Joao Bento in December winning the fight via second round knockout. Now the contender is ready for his first title bout when he goes up against Marvin Quintero at the Coliseum of Puerto Rico.

Yoandris “El Nino” Salinas of Miami, Florida has been very successful fighter who has stayed busy since his professional debut in 2009. He has faced Scott Quigg, Jhon Alberto Molina and Nehomar Cermeno and along the way has acquired the WBC Latino Super Bantamweight Title, WBA-Fedebol Super Bantamweight Title and the WBA-NABA Super Bantamweight Title.

Durango, Mexico’s, Ricardo “Alacran” Alvarado, who is now fighting out of McAllen, Texas is a relative newcomer looking to make an impression in the featherweight division. Having fought twice in 2014 and recently faced Luis Castor in February of this year, Alvarado is determined to add a victory to his record when he goes up against Yoandris on April 11.

Puerto Rico native John Karl Sosa is a highly regarded welterweight Caguas prospect that won four fights against solid competition in 2014 beating Antonio Sanchez, Victor Perez, and Luis Bello. Most recently, Sosa faced Brooklyn’s Jason Thompson in December in an eight-round matchup, winning the bout via unanimous decision.

Joaquin “Chico” Chavez from Los Angeles is an experienced fighter with more than 25 fights under his belt in his short career. A professional since 2011, the 27-year-old has kept busy fighting six bouts in 2014 with impressive victories against Luis Cruz and Jessie Roman in August. Now, Chavez is looking to keep up his winning streak in his first bout of 2015.

Brooklyn native Zachary “Zungry” Ochoa is a promising 22-year-old talent who has gone undefeated since his professional debut in 2011. Most recently, Ochoa took on near-shutout wins in 2014 over Luis Cervantes in August and Jose Miguel Castro in December. In his first fight of 2015, the impressive Ochoa maintained his record intact after he defeated Engelberto Valenzuela via first-round knockout. In his first fight in the land of his heritage, Puerto Rico, Ochoa will look to impress fans as he faces Moises Rios in his second fight of 2015.

Fighting out of Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Moises Rios began his professional career in 2009 against Humbero Ayoroa winning the bout via knock out. The fighter last fought William Lorenzo in 2012 winning the bout. Now in his first bout in almost three years, the Puerto Rican brawler is looking to reignite his career when he faces off against one boxing’s most exciting prospects, Zachary Ochoa.

“The War” Martinez vs. Salido is 12-round super featherweight bout for the WBO Super Featherweight Championship presented by PR Best Boxing Promotions, Inc and Golden Boy Promotions. The Pay-Per-View event broadcast begins at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.prbestboxing.net follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing and visit on Facebook at Golden Boy Facebook Page, www.facebook.com/PRBestBoxing and visit us on Instagram on @GoldenBoyBoxing.

SAN ANTONIO – In this city’s Alamodome on Saturday, before Mexican Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. could whup Austin’s Bryan Vera and position himself for a match with undefeated Kazakhstani Gennady Golovkin, Mexican Orlando Salido took undefeated Ukrainian Vasyl Lomachenko to school and found him wanting, decisioning him by split scores of 113-115, 116-112, 115-113. Salido also forced upwards a number of tardily raised eyebrows about the propriety of his vacated title even being available to such an untested challenger.

What was lost on most, prefight, and understandably so, was the injury to Orlando Salido’s pride the Lomachenko match inflicted. There were other matters that needed consideration, of course: Vasyl Lomachenko was in pursuit of an ambiguous sort of history, one that came with editorial disclaimers galore of the sort that sparks proportionate debate among insiders as yawns among fans; the ongoing invasion of boxers from the former Soviet Union was set to continue; and Orlando Salido didn’t care enough to defend the WBO title, one he won from Orlando Cruz in 2013 after losing it to Mikey Garcia in 2013 after winning it from Juan Manuel “Juanma” Lopez in 2011, to come within 2 1/2 pounds of the featherweight limit.

For the second time in about as many months, one is put to remembering Mexican Marco Antonio Barrera’s 2001 victory over Englishman Naseem Hamed, or at least the disproportionate attention the business of boxing paid the sparkly object that was “Prince Naseem” at the expense of a former world champion and possessor of 52 professional victories. Lomachenko was polished to be another of our sport’s sparkly objects, a man of incomparable sparring prowess, one who emerged from behind an Iron Curtain that exists, anymore, solely in the collective imagination of what ageing generations still buck giddily round allusions to the Cold War.

Salido had earned his featherweight title, though, and if he was unable to retain it at Friday’s weighin that did not change what natural resentment he harbored for a rival and boxing infrastructure that allowed a man in only his second fight since turning “pro” the sort of title-challenging opportunity Salido was not afforded till his 34th prizefight. In some sense, it is not unlike what distrust and faint derision an autodidact feels for a degreed colleague, whichever their field. One man toiled in obscurity, often doing a number of coincidental other jobs in the hopes of someday having but one, learning his craft quietly and passionately, delaying indefinitely a wholly unguaranteed reward, while the other enjoyed an academy’s protection and comfort, longer in others’ expectations, yes, but much much shorter in risks.

If Salido and an army of other veteran fighters did not give voice to what resentment they surely felt for Lomachenko – going from headgear, spongy gloves and a cutiepie points system straight to a title challenge, via a 12-minute way station named Jose Ramirez in October, and getting a chance to wear a world championship belt without first navigating others’ elbows and heads and shoulders and skinned gloves and irregular calendars and hometown favoritisms – they surely felt the resentment in their collective marrow and cheered unsilently at home for Salido. Or as the Mexican journalist to my left said about the entire idea of the fight, after round 4, when it appeared Salido had a very real chance of beating Lomachenko: “¡Que insulto!”

That sense of insult was expressed best and most graciously by the aforementioned Juanma Lopez, a man twice vanquished by Salido, who nevertheless called Salido in his Alamodome dressing room before Saturday’s match.

“I’m with you 200-percent,” Juanma told his surprised former rival. “Go win the fight!”

And it was a fight for Salido, from the opening bell, in the sort of personal sense December’s match with American Adrien Broner was a fight for Argentine Marcos Maidana. Salido fouled Lomachenko continuously. He used a rangefinder hook to Lomachenko’s protective cup in the first round, and when that went undetected by referee Laurence Cole, he drove the knuckles of his right fist, bolo-style, at the front of Lomachenko’s left hipbone whenever Cole meandered over to break them. Salido’s awareness of Cole’s positioning was fantastic and very much better than Cole’s awareness of Salido’s positioning, which is a special sort of indictment when one considers Salido was extrapolating Cole’s position while calculating, at once, the acceleration and trajectory of another man’s onrushing fists.

Lomachenko had little idea what to do with Salido for much of the fight. The Ukrainian’s defense of Salido’s body blows, and later Salido’s mere feints, was a jackknifing sort of motion that involved throwing his abdomen backwards to where his spine had been and causing a forward-folding that anticipated no chance of retaliation. Salido might not have seen such amateurishness since he was a teenager in Sonora, if ever, but 54 previous fights told him one thing: This man is not in a position from which he can strike me. The American journalist to my right, happily enough my favorite Monday columnist, recognized early the surprising fact Lomachenko did not know how to use an uppercut to discourage Salido’s attack on his abdomen (and hips, and cup, and thighs, and right knee).

Lomachenko deserves plaudits, nevertheless, for comporting himself like a fighter, realizing in round 1 he was in a state where fights are often barely sanctioned things and reserving his complaints only for Salido’s most egregious infractions. After the fight, one that ended with Lomachenko very nearly stopping Salido, who made a four-limbed poncho of himself when hurt in the final 90 seconds, reveling in what lawlessness governed the small blue patch of Texas territory policed by Sheriff Cole, Lomachenko shrugged away questions of Salido’s tactics with an appeal to the profession both chose.

Sometime before Lomachenko’s 0 had to go, Saturday’s press section rippled with news that, mourning the recent death of his father, undefeated Kazakhstani middleweight titlist Gennady “GGG” Golovkin would be unable to make his unofficially scheduled next match, affording Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., in town primarily for Friday’s weighin, one chance at least to proctor for Golovkin the sort of stern test Salido gave Lomachenko. GGG’s legion of enthusiasts should welcome it.

Bart Barry can be reached at bart.barrys.email (at) gmail.com

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. registered his 2nd victory over Bryan Vera in 7 months by scoring am entertaining 12 round unanimous decision in a Super Middleweight bout at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

Chavez was much better then the lethargic version of himself in September as he started quickly being much more active. He was dominant with body punches and hard right hands to the head. Vera showed an incredible heart and chin as not only did he withstand the Chavez assault but he came back with flurries of his own. It was a fast paced and exciting fight that saw a lot of contact. Vera was docked a point in round eight after being warned by referee Rafael Ramos for different fouls. The point was a dubious deduction as it looked like Vera did not do anything to warrant the point loss but Chavez complained several times and the referee “bought” those complaints. Chavez outlanded Vera in every round and then coasted in the 12th as he refused to engage and stay out of harms way and won by scores of 117-110 twice and 114-113.

Chaveez Jr., 167 1/2 lbs of Culican, MX is now 48-1-1-1. Vera, 167 1/2 lbs of Austin, TX is now 23-8.

Orlando Salido bucked history and scored a 12 round split decision over amateur star Vasyl Lomachenko in a Featherweight bout.

Lomachenko was trying to make history by winning a world title in just his 2nd pro bout. Salido, who was the reigning champion missed weight at Friday’s weigh-in making and then putting on another 19 pounds overnight Lomachenko the only fighter eligible to win the title.

Salido used both his size and experience advantages to the fullest in the fight as he bullied Lomachenko with body shots, which more than a handful strayed extremely low but was not called by referee Laurence Cole. Salido surged ahead in the middle rounds by his activity level and effective body work where Lomechenko was resigned to one shot and holding. Lomachenko made it interesting in the final frame when he hurt Salido with hard left and then a body punch of his own. Salido was able to hold on and by scores of 116-112 and 115-113 while Lomachenko won a card at 115-113.

Salido, 128 1/4 lbs of Ciudad, MX is now 41-12-2-1. Lomachenko, 125 1/4 lbs of Ukraine is now 1-1.

Julio Cesar Chavez 167.5 – Bryan Vera 167.5
Orlando Salido 128.25 – Vasyl Lomachenko 125.5
Juan Diaz 134.5 – Gerardo Robles 134.5
Oscar Valdez 127.5 – Samuel Sanchez 127.75
Ivan Najera 136.5 – Angel Hernandez 133.25
Alex Saucedo 146.5 – Gilberto Venegas 1498.5

SAN ANTONIO – What may well prove to be the most suspenseful moment of Saturday’s Chavez Jr.-Vera II card happened a day early when, framed by a clever prop, Mexico’s former middleweight titlist “Son of the Legend” Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. made the super middleweight limit by a half pound. In so doing, Chavez demonstrated an often-absent professionalism, and returned the need to prove one’s professional merits to Austinite Bryan Vera’s corner.

Saturday’s fight, a rematch of Chavez’s controversial decision win in September, may well turn out to be a savage thrashing of a Texan in Texas. Unless Vera’s approach to defending has improved more than Chavez’s approach to weightloss, in the last five months, Vera is likely to need his corner’s help both early and late.

Early Friday afternoon at a makeshift stage outside the host venue Alamodome’s south entrance, an apparently motivated Chavez (47-1-1, 32 KOs) made weight easily, weighing 167 1/2 pounds and confirming, officially, an easy-make of the weight he foreshadowed hours earlier in a photo on his own Instagram page. Austin’s Bryan Vera (23-7, 14 KOs), who made an identical 167 1/2 and enjoyed a considerably larger organic following than Chavez – as opposed to a less-authentic contingent of Chavez fans waving overhead wooden noisemakers and cheering at a volume that belied their collective scarcity – looked on amusedly at a large placard the Chavez camp unveiled as Chavez took the scale.

“Voided” read the red stamp across the fake check that represented what $250,000 fine Chavez was contractually obligated to pay Vera in the event of Chavez’s missing weight, a thing he managed to do a few times before their first fight. “168 LBS. MAX” read the Memo portion in the bottom left corner of the fake check, and Chavez alternately smiled and grimaced ferociously as he enjoyed more of the good-natured banter that has marked the promotion of this rematch. If “Son of the Legend” and Vera share any feelings of mutual animosity, none was displayed Friday.

Less enthusiastic about his visit to the scale was co-main-event Mexican Orlando “Siri” Salido (40-12-2, 28 KOs), the WBO featherweight titlist whose main role Saturday was to provide undefeated Ukrainian Vasyl Lomachenko (1-0, 1 KO) a world title in only his career’s second match. Salido will not be able to serve that role, exactly, as after marking 128 1/4 pounds, more than two pounds over the featherweight limit, and looking dry and gray as a result of his having tried, Salido did not make any effort to lose any further weight, losing his title officially about 30 hours before he could have it beaten out of him by Lomachenko.

Other notables making weight Friday were Houston’s former lightweight world champion Juan “Baby Bull” Diaz (38-4, 19 KOs), who will fight Mexican Gerardo Robles (18-12, 9 KOs), and Oklahoma’s Alex “El Cholo” Saucedo (12-0, 9 KOs), who will in all probability decimate Illinois welterweight Gilberto Venegas (12-12, 4 KOs).

Finally, though, Saturday’s most probable decimation will come in its main event. While Chavez and Vera looked nearly comparable in size Friday afternoon, Chavez’s long frame is expected to add 15 or so pounds to it before opening bell rings on his rematch with Vera. Boxing is ever an unpredictable entity, but one hopes if Chavez is able to body Vera with his left shoulder early, cornering the Austinite and lashing him with overhand rights, Vera’s corner will not be stubborn or proud as its charge – and will stop the fight too early, rather than too late.

First bell is scheduled to ring at Alamodome at 5:00 PM CT. 15rounds.com will have full undercard coverage from ringside.

SAN ANTONIO, TX (February 26, 2014) — Fight Week in San Antonio for the eagerly- anticipated boxing doubleheader featuring the historic challenge by two-time Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist and 2013 Prospect of the Year, VASYL LOMACHENKO, in only his second professional fight, of World Boxing Organization (WBO) featherweight champion ORLANDO SALIDO continued its hot path in earnest today as both participated in Media Workouts. In front of a packed Zarzamora Street Boxing Gym, the fighters trained for over three hours as they fine-tuned for their upcoming encore battle. The world championship event will be headlined by the rematch between former World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion and Son of the Legend JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR. and Top-Five contender and two-fisted Texan BRYAN VERA.

Both fights will take place This Saturday! March 1, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT.

SALIDO
“I have being an underdog all my professional career and this fight is no different. I come to fight and do the best I can and I don’t pick my opponents and never have.
I know why Lomachenko is getting this opportunity. He was one of the best amateur boxers and has two gold medals. I came up the hard way and I worked hard for everything I have.”

When asked if Lomachenko was ready for an experienced fighter like him:
“I guess we will find out on Saturday night. He does have skills. He has fast hands, moves well in the ring, but we will see in the ring if he can take my pressure and constant work rate that I will dish out to him.”

LOMACHEKNO
“I am not nervous at all. I am the one who chose this path to a world title fight.
All of this was my decision. Salido has fought the best of the best. He will be a hard fighter to defeat. I like fighters like him with the tough Mexican style. It makes it so much more challenging. Salido is a great champion because he is calm, never talks trash, is cold-blooded and has beaten the best. This is a real fight, a battle.”

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Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Banner Promotions, Foreman Boys Promotions and Tecate, remaining tickets to Chávez vs. Vera II, priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25 (plus applicable taxes and fees), can be purchased at the Alamodome box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.

HBO Presents “Road to Chavez Jr./Vera II”. HBO playdates include: February 27 at 4:30 p.m. ET/PT, February 28 at 1:00 a.m. ET/PT and March 1 at 12:15 p.m. ET/PT.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, www.banner-promotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, facebook.com/banner-promotions or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, twitter.com/bannerboxing or twitter.com/hboboxing.

CULIACÁN, MÉXICO (February 19, 2014) – Former World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR is in his final days of training camp in México as he prepares for his 12-round super middleweight rematch against Top-Five contender and two-fisted Texan BRYAN VERA. Chávez Jr. – Vera II will take place next week – Saturday, March 1 – at the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX. It will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT. The telecast will open with two-time Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist and 2013 Prospect of the Year, VASYL LOMACHENKO, in only his second professional bout, challenging World Boxing Organization (WBO) featherweight champion ORLANDO SALIDO.

Here is what Chávez Jr. had to say today:

“I have been training for four months for this fight because I need to be at my best to win this fight and win it in an impressive fashion. I must eliminate all doubts about the outcome.

“I know that I will be much better than the first fight. I believe that Bryan Vera will come very confident after what happened in our first fight which will make this fight much better than the first one and one that the fans will remember for a long time.

“I owe the fans a great performance and that is what they will get on March 1 at th Alamodome and on HBO. I have had a lot of success in San Antonio and I look forward to going there and putting on a good show for them.

“I will make the 168 pound limit with no problem and I will be able to do the things I could not do in first fight. I will have better movement, I will be more consistent and I will fight 12 hard rounds if that is what it takes to win this second fight. Vera is a tough guy with a good chin, but I will do my best to send him home early.

“I know that we are fighting in his home state but inside the ring is just the two of us and the fans can stay in the stands and enjoy a great battle between two guys that will not give an inch in the ring.

“I am looking forward to a great night of boxing and to getting back on the road to another world championship run.”

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Banner Promotions, Foreman Boys Promotions and Tecate, remaining tickets to Chávez vs. Vera II, priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25 (plus applicable taxes and fees), can be purchased at the Alamodome box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.

The first Chávez Jr.-Vera fight took place on September 28, 2013, at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. It was action-packed from the opening bell, with Vera giving a career-best performance. The Texan outlanded Chávez Jr. in overall punches while the former world champion connected with the heavier artillery. The judges scored it unanimously for Chávez Jr., a decision that was met with disbelief by fans and media. And thus a rematch was born.

HBO Presents “Road to Chavez Jr./Vera II”. HBO playdates include: February 27 at 4:30 p.m. ET/PT, February 28 at 1:00 a.m. ET/PT and March 1 at 12:15 p.m. ET/PT.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, www.banner-promotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, facebook.com/banner-promotions or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, twitter.com/bannerboxing or twitter.com/hboboxing.

SAN ANTONIO (February 12, 2014) — Two-time Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist and 2013 Prospect of the Year VASYL LOMACHENKO (1-0, 1 KO), is in a hurry to make his mark, and in only his second professional fight, he will be challenging three-time world featherweight champion ORLANDO “Siri” SALIDO for Salido’s World Boxing Organization (WBO) featherweight title. The Salido-Lomachenko world championship fight will be televised live from the Alamodome, Saturday, March 1, on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT. The telecast will also feature the eagerly-anticipated 12-round rematch between former World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion and Son of the Legend JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR. and Top-Five contender and two-fisted Texan BRYAN VERA.

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Banner Promotions, Foreman Boys Promotions and Tecate, remaining tickets to Chávez vs. Vera II / Salido vs. Lomachenko are priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25 (plus applicable taxes and fees). They can be purchased at the Alamodome box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.

“It has been a long, hard ride to get to this world title fight,” said Lomachenko. “I may have only one professional fight on my resume but I have been boxing all my life, dreaming that one day I would be fighting the best fighters. And now I am fighting a world champion who is one of the best in featherweight division. Salido is a very good veteran fighter and he has been in the ring with toughest opponents. He puts a lot of pressure on you inside the ring and he comes to fight. Defeating this kind of fighter would mean a lot to me. It would also add my name to boxing history and get me one step closer to joining the sport’s all-time best. Thank you to Top Rank and a special thank you to Bob Arum for making this fight happen — for making my dream come true. Tune into HBO World Championship Boxing on March 1st. You will remember the Alamodome that night.”

Salido (40-12-2, 28 KOs), of Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, México, completed a hat trick last year by winning a world featherweight title for the third time. He captured the vacant WBO featherweight title by knocking out No. 1 contender Orlando Cruz in the seventh round of their September 12, 2013 fight. Salido captured his first world title in his third attempt. After a No Decision to Robert Guerrero in 2006 and a split decision loss to Cristobal Cruz in 2008, Salido finally captured the International Boxing Federation (IBF) featherweight title in 2010, avenging his loss to Cruz by winning a split decision. His title reign was short-lived, losing a unification fight to World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa later that same year. Salido bounced back in a big way, stopping undefeated WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez in the eighth round in 2011 to capture his second world championship crown. Salido successfully defended that title twice, knocking out Kenichi Yamaguchi and Lopez in a rematch during his two-year reign, before losing it to Mikey Garcia last January. He enters this title defense having won six of his last seven fights by knockout.

Two-time Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist Lomachenko jumped into the deep end of boxing’s international-sized swimming pool when he made his professional debut in a 10-round featherweight bout against the WBO’s No. 7-rated featherweight contender Jose Luis Ramirez last September 12. It didn’t take Lomachenko long to take to the water. He knocked out Ramirez (24-2-2, 15 KOs) in the fourth round to become the new WBO International featherweight champion. He ended the year as the WBO’s No. 5 world-rated featherweight contender as well as being proclaimed the 2013 “Prospect of the Year” by the majority of the major boxing media. Lomachenko first gained international renown by winning gold medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Games as a featherweight and a lightweight, respectively. Known for his all-out aggressive style of boxing, Lomachenko is equally aggressive in plotting his professional boxing plan to a world title where he insisted on making his pro debut in a 10-round bout against a seasoned Top-10 rated contender where a victory could propel him to a world title shot in his next fight.

HBO Sports presents “The Road to Chavez Jr./Vera II,” premiering Monday, February 17, at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, www.banner-promotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, facebook.com/banner-promotions or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, twitter.com/bannerboxing or twitter.com/hboboxing.

SAN ANTONIO (February 12, 2014) — For three-time world featherweight champion ORLANDO “Siri” SALIDO boxing has been about perseverance and overcoming the odds, and in 17 days his mettle will be tested once more as he puts his world title on the line against two-time Olympic gold medalist, VASYL LOMACHENKO (1-0, 1 KO), considered by many to be the best amateur boxer in the history of the sport. The Salido-Lomachenko WBO featherweight championship fight will be televised live from the Alamodome on Saturday, March 1, on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT. The telecast will also feature the eagerly-anticipated 12-round rematch between former World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion and Son of the Legend JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR. and Top-Five contender and two-fisted Texan BRYAN VERA.

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Banner Promotions, Foreman Boys Promotions and Tecate, remaining tickets to Chávez vs. Vera II / Salido vs. Lomachenko are priced at $200, $100, $60, $40 and $25 (plus applicable taxes and fees). They can be purchased at the Alamodome box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.

“I know people expect Lomachenko to beat me and take my title away, and while I respect all he did as an amateur, professional boxing is not the same. He has had just one professional fight. My experience, strength and hunger will be the difference”, said Salido during his media workout on Tuesday in his hometown of Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, Mexico. He has been training for the fight in Phoenix and Ciudad Obregon under his trainer, Santos Moreno.

“Lomachenko has quick hands and is very fast, but he still has an amateur style that can be exploited and that is what I am going to do on March 1 in San Antonio. This fight is as big as any I had in my career and look forward to the challenge.”

Salido (40-12-2, 28 KOs), of Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, México, completed a hat trick last year by winning a world featherweight title for the third time. He captured the vacant WBO featherweight title by knocking out No. 1 contender Orlando Cruz in the seventh round of their September 12, 2013 fight. Salido captured his first world title in his third attempt. After a No Decision to Robert Guerrero in 2006 and a split decision loss to Cristobal Cruz in 2008, Salido finally captured the International Boxing Federation (IBF) featherweight title in 2010, avenging his loss to Cruz by winning a split decision. His title reign was short-lived, losing a unification fight to World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa later that same year. Salido bounced back in a big way, stopping undefeated WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez in the eighth round in 2011 to capture his second world championship crown. Salido successfully defended that title twice, knocking out Kenichi Yamaguchi and Lopez in a rematch during his two-year reign, before losing it to Mikey Garcia last January. He enters this title defense having won six of his last seven fights by knockout.

Two-time Ukrainian Olympic gold medalist Lomachenko jumped into the deep end of boxing’s international-sized swimming pool when he made his professional debut in a 10-round featherweight bout against the WBO’s No. 7-rated featherweight contender Jose Luis Ramirez last September 12. It didn’t take Lomachenko long to take to the water. He knocked out Ramirez (24-2-2, 15 KOs) in the fourth round to become the new WBO International featherweight champion. He ended the year as the WBO’s No. 5 world-rated featherweight contender as well as being proclaimed the 2013 “Prospect of the Year” by the majority of the major boxing media.. Lomachenko first gained international renown by winning gold medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Games as a featherweight and a lightweight, respectively. Known for his all-out aggressive style of boxing, Lomachenko is equally aggressive in plotting his professional boxing plan to a world title where he insisted on making his pro debut in a 10-round bout against a seasoned Top-10 rated contender where a victory could propel him to a world title shot in his next fight.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, www.banner-promotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo, facebook.com/banner-promotions or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, twitter.com/bannerboxing or twitter.com/hboboxing.

A look back at any year starts with Fighter of the Year. But the 2013 ballot includes an argument against just about every candidate in the conversation. Light-heavyweight Adonis Stevenson is too much of a newcomer. Timothy Bradley’s split decision over Juan Manuel Marquez was debatable. Mikey Garcia’s victory over Orlando Salido was a technical decision, meaning the end wasn’t definitive.

This was a year for many fighters. The collective – no pun intended – face of fighters from the former Soviet Union is this corner’s choice for Fighter of the Year.

Boxing’s resilient ability to re-create itself has always been about different eras identified by fighters from a region or nation, culture or race who have transformed the sport. There have been the African-Americans and Mexicans, the Irish and the Jews.

In 2013, there was middleweight Gennady Golovkin of Kazakhstan, Russian light-heavyweight Sergey Kovalev and Siberian welterweight Ruslan Provodnikov. Their names a few years ago might have been confused with the label on a Vodka bottle. But as the sport enters the New Year, no major promoter is without a fighter from the former Soviet Union. It’s a trend. Major-league baseball wouldn’t be what is today without the Dominican Republic and boxing wouldn’t be what it’ll be tomorrow without the old Eastern Bloc.

In time, Golovkin, or Kovalev, or Provodnikov might be Fighter of the Year in their own right. Between now and that
probable eventuality, however, the trend promises to produce many more names we still can’t pronounce. Vasyl Lomachenko, a Ukrainian featherweight and two-time Olympic gold medalist, is planning to fight for a major title in only his second pro bout since signing with Top Rank.

A Ukrainian super-middleweight named Ievgen Khytrov, who reportedly had about 500 amateur bouts, scored a first-round stoppage in his debut Thursday night in front of sold-out crowd at New York’s Webster Hall just a few weeks after he signed with Dmitry Salita’s company, Star of David Promotions.

America fans are suddenly interested in fighters who were ignored just five years ago, but now are part of a growing number in a group that probably includes more than one Fighter of the Year during the next decade.

MIAMI — November 30, 2013 — On the heels of his spectacular knock-out victory over Puerto Rico’s Orlando Cruz, WBO Featherweight Champion Orlando Salido will appear on Univision’s Republica Deportiva this Sunday, December 1st. The weekly sports program is one of the few Spanish-language shows of its type, and consistently garners high ratings from viewers and critics. “It’s an honor to appear on Republica Deportiva. It is one of the best sports shows on television,” said Salido of the opportunity.

The three-time World Champion departed Phoenix for Miami on Saturday to talk with the top-rated show’s host Fernando Fiore about reclaiming his WBO Featherweight belt. “It was the greatest moment of my career,” said Salido after his October 12th victory, which was broadcast on HBO Pay-Per-View. The WBO Featherweight belt was left vacant when Mikey Garcia failed to make weight ahead of his June 15th bout versus Juan Manuel Lopez.

Salido will also discuss his next fight, a March 1st clash versus Vasyl Lomachenko, which will be broadcast on HBO Boxing. Lomachenko is coming off his professional debut, a knock-out win against Jose Ramirez. The two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner, who hails from Ukraine, is facing stiff competition in Salido, who does not plan to relinquish his belt. Salido has eighteen years experience in the professional ranks, and sports a record of 40-12-2, with 28 knockouts.

Follow all the action as undefeated WBO Welterweight champion Timothy Bradley defends his title against four-division world champion and legend, Juan Manuel Marquez. The action begins at 9pm est / 6 pm pac with a 3 fight undercard featuring Orlando Salido battling Orlando Cruz for the vacant WBO featherweight title. 2 time Olympic Gold Medal winner Vasyl Lomachenko makes his much anticipated pro debut against Jose Ramirez. The show kicks off with a Light Heavyweight scrap between undefeated Seanie Monaghan and Anthony Caputo Smith.

12 ROUNDS–WBO WELTERWEIGHT TITLE–TIMOTHY BRADLEY (30-0, 12 KO’S) VS JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ (55-6-1, 40 KO’S)

Round 1 Marquez lands a left and uppercut..good left hook…Bradley lands a good body shot..10-9 Marquez

Round 2 Bradley lands a body shot..Counter hook..Hard right…left to the body..Jab..Left hook..nig right at the bell..19-19

Round 3 Bradley lands a left hook and left to the body..Counter right from Marquez..Bradley lands a left hook..Left from Marquez..Counter from Bradley..29-28 Bradley

Round 4 Bradley lands a right counter…Hard right drives Bradley back..
Bradley lands a jab and right to body from Marquez..1-2 from Bradley..39-37 Bradley

Round 5 Good left from Bradley..Marquez lands a right..Marquez lands 2 body punches..Right from Bradley after he flashed the jab..Good action with Marquez posing at the end of the round…48-47 Bradley

Round 6 Hard right from Bradley..Counter left from Marquez…good left hook..Bradley lands a left hook…Bradley lands a jab..Marquez lands a hard right..Bradley counters with a right..Bradley working the jab..58-56 Bradley

Round 7 Good jab and right by Bradley…68-65 Bradley

Round 8 Good left from Marquez..Hard right..Uppercut from Bradley..Good left hook..Marquez lands a body shot..body shot…right…77-75 Bradley

Round 9 Marquez lands a right..Hard right from Bradley..trading shots..Hard left lands for Marquez and right stuns Bradley…86-85 Bradley

Round 10 Hard rights rocks Marquez..good right..96-94 Bradley

Round 11 Bradley works the body..Marquez lands a left to the body…Marquez throwing and missing…106-103

Round 12 Hard right from Marquez..a little left to the head..Marquez lands a right..The two trade with Bradley landing a left that made Marquez stumbled at the bell…116-112 BRADLEY

115-113 MARQUEZ; 115-113 BRADLEY; 116-112 BRADLEY—BRADLEY WINS SPLIT DECISON

12 ROUNDS–WBO FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE–ORLANDO SALIDO (39-12-2, 27 KO’S) VS ORLANDO CRUZ (20-2-1, 10 KO’S)

Round 1 not much of anything...10-10

Round 2 Salido lands a body shot..good right and left..Good right hook from Cruz..20-19 Salido

Round 3 Salido lands an uppercut…Cruz lands a hook/..Hard right from Salido…Salido lands about his 4th low blow…Uppercut from Cruz…30-28 Salido

Round 4 Hard right from Salido..hard right..2 more rights..Combination from Cruz..Hard right from Salido and a combination..Good straight left from Cruz..40-37 Salido

Round 5 Cruz lands a right and a combination…49-47 Salido

Round 6 Hard over hand right from Salido…right 59-56 Salido

Round 7 HARD RIGHT AND LEFT UPPERCUT AND DOWN GOES CRUZ…AND THE FIGHT IS OVER

10 ROUNDS–FEATHERWEIGHTS–VASYL LOMACHENKO (PD) VS JOSE RAMIREZ (25-3, 15 KO’S)

ROUND 1 Lomachenko LANDS A RIGHT TO THE BODY AND DOWN GOES RAMIREZ…10-8 Lomachenko

Round 2 Great combination from Lomachenko..Chants of MEXICO…MEXICO from the Crowd…Terrific combination..20-17 Lomachenko

Round 3 Lomachemko lands a good left at the bell…30-26 Lomachenko

Round 4 HUGE BODY SHOT AND DOWN GOES RAMIREZ…FIGHT IS OVER

LOMACHENKO TKO 4 –2:59

10 ROUNDS–LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS–SEANIE MONAGHAN (18-0, 11 KO’S) VS ANTHONY CAPUTO SMITH (14-1, 10 KO’S)

Round 1 Monaghan lands a combination…10-9 Monaghan

Round 2 Smith lands a left hook…Monaghan lands an overhand right…trading uppercuts inside..Monaghan lands 3 uppercuts…good body shot..20-18 Monaghan

Round 3 Good right from Monaghan..Full brawl breaking out with Monaghan getting better…Monaghan drilling Smith with hard shots and FINALLY TONY WEEKS STOPS THE BOUT

MONAGHAN WINS VIA TKO 3 (2:39)

Timothy Bradley 146 – Juan Manuel Marquez 144.5
Orlando Salido 126 – Orlando Cruz 125
Jose Ramirez 126.5 – Vasyl Lomachenko 125
Seanie Monaghan 174 – Anthony Caputo Smith 175.5
Trevor McCumby ???? – Eric Watkins 175
Giovanni Caro ???? – Jun Doliguez 126
Alberto Herrera 147.5 – Mikael Zewski 147.5
Kenny Abril 146.5 – Brad Solomon 146.6

In a great traditional battle between Puerto Rico and Mexico, No. 1 Contender Orlando Cruz, in his first world title shot, will battle former two-time World Champion Orlando Salido for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Featherweight Championship. The two fighters are on the call today from their training camps. Orlando Cruz is in Buffalo, NY and Orlando Salido in Mexico. In three weeks they will face each other in the ring. Also on the call is All Star Boxing’s Tuto Zabala, Jr., who is Cruz’ promoter and Todd duBoef, President of Top Rank, the promoter of the card.

For Cruz (20-2-1, 10 KOs), of San Juan, Puerto Rico, boxing’s first openly gay fighter and a member of Puerto Rico’s 2000 Olympic team, this will be his first world title shot. Salido (39-12-2, 27 KOs), of Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, México, will be looking to complete a hat trick in regaining the title he previously held for nearly two years They will be fighting for the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) featherweight title on the pay-per-view undercard of the Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley, Jr. vs. Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Márquez WBO welterweight championship fight on Saturday, October 12, at the Thomas & Mack Center, on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View®, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

TODD duBOEF: We are getting ready and the fighters are gearing up for an incredible show on October 12 in Las Vegas. We talk about the great rivalry between Puerto Rico and Mexico and this is going to be showcased on October 12 and between the two of them, Salido, a seasoned veteran who has been in with everyone in the featherweight division and Cruz, who has earned his title shot and is a profile in courage.

TUTO ZABALA: Thanks to Top Rank and to the WBO for giving us a shot. Orlando is preparing himself in Buffalo, NY with Juan Carlos De Leon and he’s going to have a media workout in Manhattan on Tuesday the 24th. When we signed Orlando Cruz he had lost two fights in a row with his former promoter and he was looking for help. We got him four fights on the Telemundo Network and the championship shot within two years. I am very proud of him and the job we have done for him and also embraced how he came out of the closet like he did last October. It has changed a lot and it is amazing the happiness that we have in our team. Finally he has the world title shot and everything is set for him. I now want to hand it over to the WBO Latino Champion from Puerto Rico, Orlando Cruz.

ORLANDO CRUZ: I am very happy. Thank you HBO for the opportunity and Top Rank and my promoter Tuto Zabala, my manger Juan De Leon. I am excited and I am ready for the fight.

ORLANDO SALIDO: It’s been great preparation and I am grateful for the opportunity that Top Rank has given me to win another world title. I know that Orlando Cruz is a very difficult fighter, he’s a great boxer, and I know that he has a lot of abilities. I have been getting real good sparring here because I know it is going to be a very difficult fight.

A lot of people thought you were done after your fight with Mikey and now you have another opportunity…

ORLANDO SALIDO: I know the fight with Mikey I wasn’t myself. It was a tough night. But that’s in the past and I know what I’m capable of doing. Right now I feel like I did before my fight with Juan Manuel Lopez and I think you’re going to see that same type of fight from me on October 12.

You’ve been waiting a long time for this opportunity – how have you been preparing for it?

ORLANDO CRUZ: It’s been a while. I have been working hard and I never said “no” to any opponent. I worked really hard to get to this point and my team has been really good. Everybody is healthy and I am very happy to get this opportunity. I have a lot of respect for Orlando Salido. I am not going in there thinking that it’s an easy fight. I know how hard he has worked to get to where he is. I know how hard I worked to get where I am. I think we are both really hungry and we both want to do a really great job. I want to take the title back to Puerto Rico for all my fans.

Salido, how is your eye?

ORLANDO SALIDO: I have had injuries in the past but I have not had one injury in the training camp. So all I have to think about is this fight against Orlando Cruz and winning that fight.

How do you feel about Cruz’ style compared to [Mikey] Garcia?

ORLANDO SALIDO: They are totally different fighters. Orlando is a boxer and he tries to move around the ring. My job is to put pressure on him. I will try to cut him off and I will be throwing so many punches I will hit him somewhere. Then I will go to the body to cut him down and eventually I will make him fight my fight.

Does you think your experience will be the difference?

ORLANDO SALIDO: Without a doubt I have been in there with some great champions. I won some and I lost some and I did gain great experience fighting them. I just feel for this fight it will be whoever is better prepared. We are both hungry. We both want it. It’s just a question of who is going to be the best that night and I think I will be.

Jim Lampley, who has a gay brother, called you a hero to him…

ORLANDO CRUZ: I am happy with the situation and I have a lot of support from all around the world. It is great news for me to know about Jim Lampley and his brother. I just want to thank all of the people that have supported me. I have been working hard for this, it is something that I have been waiting a long time for. I want to win this fight for Puerto Rico and for my community. I want to dedicate my fight to the LGBT and all of Puerto Rico because they are going to have a new champion.

Are you ready for a fight with Salido’s experience?

ORLANDO CRUZ: I am ready for the challenge to face Orlando Salido on October 12 even with all of his experience. He faced great champions like Juan Manuel Marquez, Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez. I worked very hard for this and am grateful for all of the support that I have, from Tuto, the WBO and Top Rank. Carlos DeLeon, the four-time world champion has been working in the gym with me giving me a lot of experience. People don’t understand how much experience you get while training in the gym. You get experience from working hard and doing what the coach tells me. I have been following what the coach tells me and on October 12 I will become champion for Puerto Rico and for all of my people.

What is the challenge in Salido’s style?

ORLANDO CRUZ: The pressure he will bring. The way he comes that is the way I will fight with Salido. I am not going to run. When I need to fight I am going to fight. When I need to box I am going to box. I am going to be the smartest guy in the ring. I am not taking anything away from Salido but on October 12 we are going to make history.

What do you think about Emille Griffith?

ORLANDO CRUZ: I want to dedicate this fight to Emille Griffith and his family. This fight will be for his community (LGBT) and all the fans of Orlando Cruz.

Mexico vs Puerto Rico rivalry…

ORLANDO CRUZ: The rivalry between Puerto Rico and Mexico, this will be another fight that will bring a lot of excitement in the ring between me and Saldio and I am so happy that it happened because it makes it bigger when I beat a Mexican to bring the belt to Puerto Rico once again.

ORLANDO SALIDO: This is a great rivalry between the two countries and I know when I get in the ring I have to give my best. I always give my best because it’s important to take that victory home. Mexico vs Puerto Rico is always special and a victory over a Puerto Rican is always special for the people of Mexico.

ORLANDO CRUZ: I never refused to fight anybody. Any person Tuto Zabala put in front of me I signed the contract. If they said ‘fight King Kong’ I would fight the person no matter if it was going to be at 126 pounds or above. I don’t care who I fight inside the ring because this is what I love to do – box.

What about Mikey Garcia rematch?

ORLANDO SALDIO: I would love to get a rematch with Mikey Garcia either at 126 or 130. I know I wasn’t myself. I don’t know what happened that night but I wasn’t feeling comfortable in the ring. I would love to fight him again and I feel I would do much better and it would be a much better fight.

Is this going to be the year of Orlando Cruz?

ORLANDO CRUZ: I am sure this is going to be my year. The end of 2013 and going into 2014 will be my time.

How as your life changed since you made the announcement?

ORLANDO CRUZ: My life has changed completely. I am now a different person. I am happy with the support that all of the people have given me and I just want to continue to work hard doing the things that I need to do to make history.

Salido, has Orlando Cruz ever been on your radar for a fight?

ORLANDO SALIDO: It looked to me like he was probably going to be an opponent for me. He has always been there in the top ten. As he was moving up I knew the possibility existed so I was keeping an eye on him.

What have you been thinking about since the loss to Garcia?

ORLANDO SALIDO: After that fight I had a long time to reflect on what happened. I had to take a look at my career to see if this was still what I wanted to do. I still want to do this because I still have a lot left and I think I can still do a lot of things in boxing. But on October 12 I have to show everyone that I am back and what I am capable of doing then go from there. I am not thinking about the future, I just want to show everyone that I am back.

You were supposed to have a fight in June that got canceled – how was that transition to this fight?

ORLANDO CRUZ: All of the work I was doing for June 28 I continued to do. I just changed it up a little because of the type of fighter that Salido is. All I had to do was make some adjustments and I am ready for October 12.

If you win, along with Miguel Cotto and Ivan Calderon, you’d be the only country to boast three world champions from the 2000 Olympic class….

ORLANDO CRUZ: It is going to be great when I become a champion on October 12. It is going to be a great honor for me to be part of the three, to be with Cotto and Calderon, when I become champion to be part of history in Puerto Rico.

Since your announcement, has media demand taken away from your training?

ORLANDO CRUZ: It has not. I have concentrated on the October 12 fight. I understand the press wants to know about my personal life but I have a team I just want to say thank you to all the Puerto Rican people and all of my friends and to not worry, I am going to be ready for the fight. I understand that all of those questions will come and I will answer the best I can but it will not take me away from the focus that I have for Orlando Salido.

After the tough fight in January many people thought you might retire. Did that enter your mind?

ORLANDO SALIDO: As far as I am concerned the opportunity came at the perfect time. I know what I am capable of doing and I know this is one of my last opportunities to win a championship so I worked very hard for this fight. I am going to be ready to win the fight.

You were knocked down a few times in your last fight – is that a worry for you?

ORLANDO SALIDO: You know, everybody in boxing, if you get hit, there are some strong punchers out there. The question is, what are you going to do? I am going to get up and try my hardest. It happens in boxing. You just have to get ready. You prepare yourself by training for each fight – do the best you can in the ring so you can do the best you can in the ring.

What do you think about Mikey [Garcia] going up to 130 especially because it seemed as though you were catching up to him in the later rounds?

ORLANDO SALDIDO: I always thought he was a big guy for 126 and I think he will be even bigger and stronger at 130. I look at him like one of those guys that can go up and have no problem with it.

How do you feel about Salido beating fellow Puerto Rican fight, Juan Manuel Lopez, twice?

ORLANDO CRUZ: I have been working hard and am taking this fight more seriously than any other I have had. I know Salido is a strong fighter and I know every round he becomes stronger and stronger and I am preparing myself for that challenge on October 12.

Since your announcement in October, have the events you have been invited to taken away from your training?

ORLANDO CRUZ: I have been training hard and focusing on this fight for October 12 and nothing will take me away from that. Every day I work harder and harder. I want to thank the WBO President Paco Valcarcel and my promoter, Tuto Zabala, who work hard with me every day to keep me motivated so I will become champion on October 12.

Puerto Rico now only has one champion…

ORLANDO CRUZ: The Puerto Rican community has been supporting me and has respected my decision. Puerto Rico has one champion in Rocky Martinez and now they are going to have a second champion on October 12. Puerto Rico will soon have another champion in Danny Garcia.

There is another fighter on October 12, Lomanchenko who could be a next opponent for him…

ORLANDO CRUZ: The only one I am looking at right now is Mr. Salido. I am not looking at anyone else. When the time comes to look at my next fight, I will sit down with my promoter and my team to discuss. That will be great but my focus right now is on Salido.

What is your opinion on the landscape of Puerto Rico boxing. Mexicans have been successful as of late…

ORLANDO SALIDO: I think about what I have done against Puerto Rican fighters. I am 5-0 against them and looking to make it 6-0. I know how to fight them and my experience helps me to do that and I’ll be ready for anything that happens in the ring based on my experience on what I have done in the ring against them.

TODD du BOEF: It is great to hear this dialogue from these two great warriors as they get ready for the fight. Right now we are going to ramp up an incredible promotion with Timmy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez. A release will be going out this afternoon announcing the rest of the undercard. We will have Seanie Monaghan against Anthony Caputo Smith for the WBC Continental Americas title and the Olympian Lomanchenko fighting in his pro debut in a ten-rounder against top-10 contender Jose Luis Ramirez out of Mexico. There is a lot of interest in all of the competitive fights on the show and the response has been terrific. The main event between Bradley and Marquez is one of those sit-around-a-bar or table and no one can pick a winner. We know how competitive it is and how closely matched it is. In the next few weeks we will have numerous promotional activities. Also, tomorrow I will be in Los Angeles for the Cotto media day, so if you are in LA, show up.

ORLANDO SALIDO: I think you are going to see another great fight between two guys that really want it and leave everything they have in the ring. I want to wish Orlando Cruz luck and you cant’ beat Puerto Rico vs. Mexico in the ring.

TUTO ZABALA: Thank you everyone for joining the call and we are looking for a great fight. We have the greatest promotional team in the world, Top Rank. Two of the best featherweights in the world. You have Puerto Rico vs. Mexico. You have a great main event. I am very proud of Orlando Cruz and Puerto Rico will have a new champion on October 12.

ORLANDO CRUZ: I want to thank all of the press for joining us today. I want to thank All Star Boxing, Top Rank and the WBO. I wish all the luck to Orlando Salido and Puerto Rico will have a new champion on October 12.

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Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with Zanfer Promotions, All Star Boxing, Wynn Las Vegas, Márquez Boxing, and Tecate, remaining tickets to the Bradley vs. Márquez welterweight championship event, priced at $800, $600, $400, $300, $200, $100 and $50, can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office, online at UNLVtickets.com, at UNLVtickets Outlet Town Square Las Vegas Concierge, or by calling 702-739-FANS (3267).

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According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former Featherweight champion Orlando Salido will take on Orlando Cruz for a vacant Featherweight title on October 12th as part of the Timothy Bradley – Juan Manuel Marquez card in Las Vegas.

“We’re very happy to have this fight on the card,” said Top Rank’s Bob Arum. “Sean Gibbons (Salido’s manager) says there is no way Salido is losing and the other side says there is no way that Cruz doesn’t beat Salido because they say he is a shot fighter. I think it’s a good competitive fight and an interesting fight.”

“For Salido, he has fared well against southpaws from Puerto Rico [Lopez] and won’t be at all intimidated by the magnitude of this event,” Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti said. “For Cruz, this is clearly his toughest fight of his career. He is already a champion outside the ring for standing up and proclaiming his openness.”

Arum said Cruz being the first openly gay fighter is no issue for him and has nothing to do with how he will promote the fight.

“I couldn’t give a s— if he’s gay, straight, whatever,” Arum said. “I don’t even give it a second thought. We’re not going to make it part of our publicity. For me, it’s a non-issue. Who cares about his sexual orientation? I care if he can fight. When a guy first comes out of the closet, OK, so maybe it’s a story and I can see why it might be news. But once that happens, it’s not news any more as far as I am concerned.

“It’s a very good opportunity for us,” said All-Star Boxing promoter Tuto Zabala Jr., who promotes Cruz and said he signed the contract for the fight on Monday night. “It’s a great platform to be on. [Cruz] has been in training camp and will be in the best shape in his career. I believe Orlando has all the tools to defeat Salido and become the first gay fighter to win a world title.”

Dan Rafael od espn.com is reporting that former Featherweight champion Orlando Salido broke his orbital in his title losing fight bout this past Saturday night against Mikey Garcia.

“It’s very possible that it was broken right off the bat in the first round,” Salido’s manager Sean Gibbons said.

“Salido wasn’t ready for that first shot so it took him a while to get adjusted after that and we think he was fighting with the broken bone from the first round,” Gibbons said. “He had a CT scan at the hospital and everything was OK, thankfully, other than that (broken bone). We were at the hospital until 5 in the morning and then Orlando was on a flight back to Mexico at 9 a.m.”

He said Salido (39-12-2, 27 KOs), 32, was disappointed that the fight ended so abruptly, just as Salido, although way behind on the scorecards, was beginning to come on.

“We didn’t have closure in the fight,” Gibbons said. “Orlando said he would have rather gotten knocked out than have it end like that. He believes he was coming on and getting ready to do something. The Mikey that fought those first six rounds was tough. But the Mikey who fought the seventh and eighth rounds was not the same Mikey. Orlando was starting to get to him and who knows what would have happened? There was still a lot of fight left when it got stopped.”

“He has great support from the government in (the Mexican state of) Sonora, where we’ll do a fight in May at 130 pounds,” Gibbons said. “And if (junior lightweight titlist) Rocky Martinez is still holding onto his belt, we’d love to fight Rocky Martinez.”

“If we can’t get Martinez, making the weight for featherweight is no problem for Orlando. It’s not an issue, so we don’t rule out something at featherweight again,” Gibbons said.

The Theater at Madison Square Garden played host to three of boxing’s most anticipated fights as Top Rank in association with K2 Promotions showcased three world title fights in one night. The main event was a breakout performance for Mikey Garcia (30-0, 26 KOs, 125 ½lbs) who took on WBO featherweight champion Orlando Salido (39-11-2, 27 KOs, 126lbs). Things started quickly for Garcia when a left hook dropped Salido, who was lunging in with his head low. Not long afterwards, another spectacular punch sent Salido down again. After a dominant second round, Garcia knocked Salido down for a third time with another blow that Salido just simply didn’t see. This time it was a right uppercut. Garcia’s patience against the veteran Salido was impressive. Salido had been down countless times in the past, and Garcia made sure that he wouldn’t make a mistake despite his dominant start. To open the fourth round, a short right hand tagged Salido and sent him down yet again. Four knockdowns in four rounds, but none of them were particularly devastating. Salido quickly made it up to his feat each time, but despite stilly seemingly looking okay, Salido was sitting on an eight point deficit after only four rounds, and he was being thoroughly outclassed by his younger opponent.

Garcia is the textbook definition of an economical fighter. He doesn’t move unless it is to put his opponent in an unfavorable position where it would be difficult to land clean punches. He doesn’t throw punches for the sake of throwing punches. Each punch matters and they all serve a greater purpose. The left hooks that sent Salido down were simply short hooks that caught Salido with his head down trying to lunge inside. Other left hooks were thrown to shift Salido’s head into perfect range for his right hand.

There was only so much Salido could do to respond. He opened up the fifth round in a much more aggressive manner. He wasn’t going to tire Garcia out with the way he had been fighting, so he worked towards mauling Garcia against the ropes, leaning his body weight onto Garcia’s hoping to tire him out with sheer physicality. While Salido’s sloppier tactics improved things a bit, Garcia was still in total control. For every successful punch that Salido landed, Garcia landed an even more impressive one; often buckling the knees of Salido. By the eighth round, Salido came in with a right hook, and his head came forward, smashing into Garcia’s face. It created a loud smacking noise heard many rows back. After the round ended and Garcia walked towards his corner, it was clear that he had suffered a broken nose. Referee Benjy Esteves Jr. called in both ringside physicians to observe Garcia’s injury, and they both decided that Garcia was unfit to continue. Due to the accidental headbutt fight came to the scorecards, which were all in Garcia’s favor by a wide margin. The official scores read 79-70, 79-69, 79-69, giving Garcia the victory and his first world title.

Rising sensation Gennady Golovkin (24-0, 21 KOs, 160lbs) had a strong Kazakhstan showing when he defended his middleweight title against the talented Gabriel Rosado (21-5, 13 KOs, 159lbs). Golovkin’s reputation preceded him as in the first few rounds; Rosado utilized a great deal of movement and was very hesitant to throw punches. Golovkin was not flustered by this and walked Rosado down into the ropes and landed some strong blows. In the second round, a right hand from Golovkin opened up a cut over the left eye of Rosado, and it wasn’t long before the blood started pouring out of it. Golovkin just continued to apply the pressure, giving Rosado no room to breathe. Referee Steve Smoger kept a close eye on Rosado’s cut, which was getting worse and worse, and it looked like he was ready to stop the action, but Rosado’s cutman was able to contain the bleeding just a bit, but it was an impossible task. In the seventh round, Golovkin seemed to be going for the KO, and that was when Rosado’s corner stepped up onto the apron and threw in the towel. Golovkin successfully defended his title with a seventh round technical knockout at the 2:46 mark of round seven.

In an interesting matchup, Roman Martinez (26-1-1, 16 KOs, 129lbs) Juan Carlos Burgos (30-1, 20 KOs, 129 ½lbs) squared off in what looked to be an interesting clash of styles. The bout started off in an entertaining fashion as Martinez was able to get inside of Burgos’ rangy offense. Both fighters landed hard blows in the opening rounds, but Burgos’ size and movement seemed to be in control. He often ripped hard hooks to the body from a great distance, and they were taking their toll on Martinez’ body. The pace hit a plateau in the middle rounds. Burgos maintained control of the fight, but neither fighter seemed to kick it into a higher gear, and the fans became a bit frustrated. The pace continued in this fashion until the final bell. Most in attendance had Burgos winning the fight clearly. The final scores read 117-111 for Burgos, 116-112 for Martinez, and 114-114, making it a disappointing split draw. He result drew boos from the crowd.

Sean Monaghan (16-0, 10 KO’s, 177 1/2lbs) was the final non-televised bout when he faced Roger Cantrell (15-2, 8 KO’s, 184 1/2lbs). In addition to his weight advantage, Cantrell also had a sizeable height advantage over his opponent, and he stuck behind his jab to open the fight. Monaghan was able to slip underneath and get inside Cantrell’s range to land some blows of his own. The second round saw Monaghan land multiple unanswered combinations on Cantrell. In the third, Cantrell’s size and weight seemed to come into play and he went on the offensive. The middle rounds saw things level out as both fighters exchanged some heavy blows. But it was Monaghan whose blows were harder, more frequent, and more precise. Cantrell’s stamina seemed to wither and his punches lacked pop. Monaghan used that opportunity to wisely go to the body. Cantrell managed to weather the storm and survive until the final bell. The final scores read 77-75, 78-74, and 79-73 in favor of Monaghan, giving him a unanimous decision victory.

Rising star Glen Tapia (16-0, 9 KO’s, 153 1/2lbs) made short work of Ayi Bruce (14-8, 8 KO’s, 153 1/4lbs) in their bout. Tapia was just simply too big, too strong, too fast, and too smart for Bruce. He opened up the bout mixing things up from a distance with combinations to the body and head. Bruce had no answer. After a successful first round, Tapia became more aggressive. After a hard combination, Bruce was shaken and forced to cover up and weather the storm. Tapia beautifully began landing to the body, which forced Bruce to drop his guard just enough to allow Tapia to land a left followed by a right hook that sent Bruce down.

Bruce beat the count but was on very shaky legs. Tapia went in for the kill and landed about a dozen blows before the referee jumped in and saved Bruce at the 2:33 mark of the second round, giving Tapia a TKO victory.

Puerto Rican Olympian Felix Verdejo (1-0, 0 KO, 130 ½lbs) needed only two punches to knock out Tomi Archambault (1-3, 1 KO, 129 ½lbs). The opening bell rang, and Verdejo threw a left hook to Archambault’s body followed by a fast left hook that landed on his chin. That was all it took, and Verdejo was victorious with a TKO victory in only :21 of the first round.

In an exciting cruiserweight match, Isa Akberbayev (10-0, 7 KOs, 196 ½lbs) and Anthony Ferrante (12-4, 7 KOs, 196lbs) exchanged hard blows for ten rounds. Neither fighter took time getting to know eachother. Near the end of the first round, a right hand to the side of Akberbayev’s head sent him down. The knockdown did not seem to have any lasting effects and when the fighters continued, with only a few seconds to go, Akberbayev landed a right hand that sent Ferrante down. The fight cooled off a bit, but both fighters still traded hard blows. Ferrante’s size and ability to use it well seemed to tire Akberbayev. That, plus a cut that Akberbayev suffered midway through the bout seemed to trouble him throughout the second half of the fight. Entering the final round, Ferrante’s trainer shouted that he needed a knockout to secure a victory even though it seemed like he was ahead on points. Ferrante, calm as ever, shared a laugh with referee Randy Newman before entering the tenth round and landing a vicious right hand that knocked Akberbayev out cold and face first on the canvas. The bout was waved off, and Ferrante was credited with a tenth round knockout at the 1:19 point.

Mikael Zewski (17-0, 13 KOs, 149 ½lbs) scored three knockdows en route to stopping Brandon Hoskins (16-3-1, 8 KOs, 146lbs). All three knockdowns came in the fourth round and the referee called a halt to the action at 1:42 of the round, giving Zewski a TKO victory.

The judges gave Ronald Ellis (6-0, 6 KOs, 168 ½lbs) every round when he took on Steven Tyner (3-9-2, 2 KOs, 170lbs). The scores all read 40-36 in favor of Ellis for the unanimous decision victory.

Orlando Salido 126 – Mikey Garcia 125.5
Roman Martinez 129.5 – Juan Carlos Burgos 129