Press Conference Notes: Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol Meet Face-to-Face ahead of Undisputed Light Heavyweight Showdown Beterbiev-Bivol will be a special one-fight broadcast from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia LIVE on ESPN+ (Courtesy: Queensberry Promotions) LONDON (April 15, 2024) — WBO/WBC/IBF unified champion Artur Beterbiev and WBA ruler Dmitry Bivol met face-to-face at today's kickoff presser in London ahead of their undisputed light heavyweight showdown on Saturday, June 1 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This battle of 175-pound titans will stream live and exclusively on ESPN+ in the U.S. as a special one-fight broadcast. Beterbiev-Bivol will be promoted by Top Rank, Queensberry Promotions, Matchroom Boxing, World of Boxing Promotions and Sela. Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs), boxing's only current world champion with a 100 percent knockout ratio, stopped Enrico Koelling in his 12th pro fight to win the IBF world title. He added the WBC championship to his co

 June 1: Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol Undisputed Light Heavyweight World Title Showdown to Stream LIVE & Exclusively on ESPN+ in the U.S. Beterbiev-Bivol will be a special one-fight broadcast from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (April 15, 2024) — An undisputed light heavyweight king will soon be crowned in The Kingdom. WBO/WBC/IBF unified champion Artur Beterbiev will battle WBA ruler Dmitry Bivol on Saturday, June 1 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The victor will become the division’s first undisputed champion since Roy Jones Jr. defeated Reggie Johnson in 1999.  This battle of 175-pound titans will stream live and exclusively on ESPN+ in the U.S. as a special one-fight broadcast. Beterbiev-Bivol will be promoted by Top Rank, Queensberry Promotions, Matchroom Boxing, World of Boxing Promotions and Sela. “This a dream matchup between two of the best light heavyweights we’ve ever seen,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum. “The beautiful city of Riy

Weigh-In Results: Jared Anderson vs. Ryad Merhy TOMORROW at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT LIVE on ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN+ (ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT)     •  Jared Anderson 250.9 lbs. vs. Ryad Merhy 235.6 lbs (Anderson’s WBO International and WBC USA Heavyweight Titles - 10 Rounds)    •  Efe Ajagba 241.2 lbs vs. Guido Vianello 244.5 lbs (Ajagba's WBC Silver Heavyweight Title — 10 Rounds) •  Robson Conceição 131.6 lbs vs. Jose Guardado 131.5 lbs  (Junior Lightweight — 8 Rounds) (ESPN+, 5:50 p.m. ET/2:50 p.m. PT) •  Julian Delgado 159.3 lbs vs. Juan Tamez 159 lbs  (Middleweight— 4 Rounds) •  Ruben Villa 125.6 lbs vs. Cristian Cruz 125.1 lbs   (Vacant WBC Silver Featherweight Title — 10 Rounds) •   John Rincon 143 lbs vs. Yainel Alvarez 143.5 lbs   (Welterweight — 6 Rounds) •   Abdullah Mason 134.6 lbs vs. Ronal Ron 134.7 lbs   (Lightweight — 8 Rounds) •   Charly Suarez 131.8 lbs vs. Louie Coria 131.7 lbs   (Junior Lightweight — 8 Rounds) •   Jalen Walker 131

  The upcoming MMA Festival, organized by Kombat Sports Kalayaan (KSK) and set to take place on April 28 in Poblacion, Makati City, promises to be the largest event of its kind. It will shine a spotlight on MMA fighters like Fil-Am Mark Striegl and Godwin Langbayan. Striegl, a renowned Asian MMA superstar, sambist, model, and actor, will participate in the Grappling Super Fight event against BIJ Brown Belt competitor Paige Alitao. Langbayan, a BJJ Brown Belt and WFP Bantamweight Champion, will face off against a Professional MMA Fighter from Singapore, ranked #47th in the Professional Men's Flyweight in Asia Southeast, Sim Khai Xiong, in a KSK MMA Championship match. Additionally, other featured fighters include Elorde Sandigon versus Andriawan Dharmita and Joemar Gallaza versus Robertson Abion. Cyren Seno, a champion for youth and sports and owner of KSK Gym, leads the event with the goal of fostering and empowering Filipino MMA athletes. She says: "Our objective is to cultiv

 Press Conference Notes: Heavyweights Jared Anderson and Ryad Merhy Set for Corpus Christi Collision Anderson-Merhy, Efe Ajagba-Guido Vianello and the return of Robson Conceição will be broadcast live on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT (Courtesy: Mikey Williams/Top Rank) CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (April 11, 2024) — Unbeaten heavyweight phenom Jared “The Real Big Baby” Anderson (16-0, 15 KOs) looks to overcome his biggest challenge to date against Belgian contender Ryad Merhy (32-2, 26 KOs) this Saturday, April 13, in the 10-round main event at American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas. In the 10-round heavyweight co-feature, Nigerian puncher Efe Ajagba (19-1, 14 KOs) and Italian standout Guido “The Gladiator” Vianello (12-1-1, 10 KOs) will clash in a battle of 2016 Olympians. The eight-round televised opener features Brazilian three-time world title challenger Robson Conceição (17-2-1, 8 KOs) against Mexico's Jose Guardado (15-1-1, 5 KOs). Anderson-M

  The Philippines is gearing up to welcome Southeast Asia's trail running elites as it prepares to host the prestigious Southeast Asian Trail Running Cup in the locale of Bontoc, Mountain Province, from June 19-23, 2024. Tin Ferrera, secretary-general of Philtra and Head for the Southeast Asian Trail Running Confederation, expressed her excitement about bringing the biennial competition to the country.  "We, as Philtra, and our athletes have joined the World Mountain Trail Running Championships and other big events outside the region and across Asia and we believe it’s time we show what we have. That’s why we are grateful to SEATRC for choosing our country as host,” she said. About 200 athletes are set to compete in various categories, including the Long Trail, Short Trail, Mountain Classic, and Vertical Uphill. Participating countries will also vie for the coveted Team Champion titles for the long and short trail categories. The SEA Trail Running Cup, organized by SEATRC, is

ONE Championship’s ONE 168: Denver Ticket Pre-Sale Is Now Live Stamp vs. Xiong and Haggerty vs. Superlek Headline ONE’s Return to U.S. on September 6, 2024, in Denver’s Ball Arena April 10, 2024 – Singapore: ONE Championship (ONE), the world’s largest martial arts organization, today announced that pre-sale tickets for ONE 168: Denver, the promotion’s highly anticipated return to the United States on Friday, September 6, are now available at https://onefc-6876030.hs-sites.com/en/one168-presale-live.  Tickets to ONE 168: Denver will go on sale to the general public on Wednesday, April 24 at 10 a.m. Mountain Time (MT). Inquiries for exclusive corporate group packages can also be made at Visit.ONEFC.com/ONE168-Corporate or by emailing ticketing@onefc.com.  ONE 168 takes place Friday, September 6, 2024 live from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. Multiple World Championship super-fights have been confirmed for the blockbuster event, with several more marquee matchups to be announced in th

Top Rank Presents Heavyweight Doubleheader: Jared Anderson vs. Ryad Merhy and Efe Ajagba vs. Guido Vianello Saturday, April 13 Live on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+   (April 10, 2024) — Top Rank Boxing on ESPN presented by AutoZone: Anderson vs. Merhy and Ajagba vs. Vianello will be presented live Saturday, April 13, at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+. The event takes place at American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas.  In the 10-round heavyweight main event, unbeaten knockout artist Jared “The Real Big Baby” Anderson takes on Belgian contender Ryad Merhy.  Anderson (16-0, 15 KOs) is coming off an impressive 2023, where he notched three victories with two knockouts. In April, he brought George Arias' undefeated run to an end. Less than three months later, he celebrated his triumphant return to Toledo, squaring off against former world titleholder Charles Martin and earning a 10-round unanimous decision. Anderson then dispatched Andriy Rudenko in five round

  ProBox TV returns on April with its latest installment of Wednesday Night Fights. The card, at the ProBox TV Events Center in Plant City, Florida, is led by two featherweights attempting to climb the rankings Angelo Leo (23-1, 11 KOs), who trains out of Las Vegas, Nevada, made weight at 125.8 lbs. His opponent, Eduardo Baez (23-5-2, 9 KOs), came in slightly lighter at 125.4 lbs. They will contest a 10-round main event. Leo is a former WBO super-bantamweight champion. He is riding a three-fight winning streak; his past two fights were broadcast on ProBox TV. Leo is ranked seventh by the WBA and 13th by the IBF. He has made it clear he wants to become a two-division world champion. Baez fought Emanuel Navarrete for the WBO featherweight title. He recently ended a three-fight losing streak that started with the Navarrete fight – and he recorded two wins in 2023. Betting Odds Per SportsBetting.AG, Angelo Leo is the favorite at -700. Baez is the underdog at +450.  Start Time The televis

  'I'm the man in the division': Alex Winwood confirms June WBC title eliminator Jarred Cross -April 10, 2024 Alex Winwood will fight Joey Canoy in a WBC straw weight world title eliminator in Sydney on June 12. Noongar boxer Alex Winwood says he is the man in-waiting for the WBC world straw weight title ahead of a chance to secure his shot at the belt in two months’ time. In November, the WBC mandated a 'final eliminator' between Winwood and Mexican fighter Luis Castillo for Yudai Shigeoka's title in 2024 after the Aussie climbed his way up the ratings in an undefeated 12-month start to his professional career. In the time since, negotiations broke down and the belt changed hands to the Philippines' Melvin Jerusalem. On Tuesday, Stan Sport, GEED UP and Green Machine Boxing, the promotion company of former world champ and fellow Western Australian Danny Green, announced Winwood's next step towards meeting Jerusalem in the ring. At Sydney's Hordern Pa

(April 9, 2024) – Ukrainian featherweight contender Arnold Khegai has signed a multi-fight promotional agreement with Top Rank. Khegai (21-1-1, 13 KOs), who is ranked No. 1 by the WBO and No. 3 by the IBF, is expected to return in the summer.  “Arnold Khegai is one of the very best featherweights in the world, and he deserves an opportunity to prove himself at the championship level,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum.  Khegai said, “Signing with Top Rank is a huge milestone in my career, and I'm grateful to Bob Arum for this opportunity. I'm ready to fight for any of the belts at featherweight. I want to show the world who I am.” “Arnold is an incredibly dedicated and talented fighter,” said Sam Katkovski, Khegai’s manager. “He will be the next world champion from Ukraine, following in the footsteps of Usyk and Lomachenko. Thank you to Top Rank for giving us the opportunity.” Khegai, who was born to Korean parents in Lymanske, Ukraine, turned to combat sports as a teenager to su