NEW YORK (March 5, 2019) – Having reached the five-million view plateau and having surpassed the 30-show milestone, FIGHTNIGHT LIVE Powered by Everlast returns home to New York City on Friday, March 8, to showcase some of New York’s bravest and finest pro boxing prospects. Beginning at 7 p.m. E.T. live from The City that Never Sleeps, the fan-friendly, FREE Facebook platform will feature a card punctuated by prospects and highlighted by one former women’s world champion. The event is presented by Ronson Frank’s Uprising Promotions and the New Mexican Promotion.
The free, interactive series – which has entertained more than 5.02 million fight fans since its platform premiere in May of 2017 – returns to NYC on Friday to continue its March schedule. The three-show March is part of a 2019 first quarter that showcases an outstanding six-card lineup featuring six different promotions and spanning four cities, which began with three February shows that combined for more than 520,000 views.
Hard-hitting Brooklyn native Jude Franklin (9-0, 8 KOs) will be seeking his 10th professional win in the main event on Friday night, taking on Aleem Jumakhonov (7-2-1, 4 KOs) of Horog, Tajikistan. Unbeaten featherweight Jose Gonzalez (11-0-2, 3 KOs) – the cousin of former pound-for-pound king and four-division world champion Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez – will also return to action. Undefeated bantamweight Ariel Lopez (11-0, 7 KOs) faces 13-bout veteran Jose Chanez of Tijuana, Mexico. Lightweight Wesley Ferrer (12-1-1, 7 KOs) will take on Andrew Rodgers of Elkhart, Ind., while undefeated super lightweight Mathew Gonzalez (7-0, 4 KOs) looks to pick up the eighth consecutive win to start his professional career. Titus Williams (7-2, 2 KOs) of Long Island will meet 14-bout veteran Cristian Renteria of Mexico in super featherweight action, while 50-year-old Hawaii native and former IFBA World Flyweight Champion Eileen Olszewski (10-7-3, 1 KO) looks to prove that age is just a number when she competes in a bantamweight attraction.
“This show will feature a number of fighters from our world-famous Gleason’s Gym Boxing Family, and we take particular pride in showcasing deserving boxers from our home market in New York City,” said Mark Fratto, Principal and Director of Business Development, Linacre Media. “That said, these prospects are not just some of the best in the city, they’re some of the best anywhere. You have a DiBella Entertainment signee in Jude Franklin, undefeated former Top Rank prospect Joselito Gonzalez, unbeaten Ariel Lopez of Mexico and a former women’s world champion in Eileen Olszewski, among others.”
Now in its second season, FIGHTNIGHT LIVE Powered by Everlast is the fan-friendly Facebook platform that – among other aspects – prides itself on the real-time conversations held between fight commentators and the viewing audience. FIGHTNIGHT LIVE has showcased more than 500 fighters and 16 promotions during 30 live event broadcasts from 18 different cities since May 2017, and in doing so, the interactive platform has generated the loyal interest of fight fans from across the United States and around the globe, including significant audiences in Mexico, the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe, and even fans in South America, Asia and Australia.
Since May 2017, the numbers on the 30-show FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series showed promise and potential for the new platform with an average of 167,642 views per event and more than 5.02 million total views for the franchise. Since Sept. 2018,Season II shows have averaged more than 277,289 views.
The Sept. 2018 “Kings Boxing Tuesday Night Fights” (594,447) from the Sands in Bethlehem, the Dec. 2018 “Queens and Kings of Queens Card” (379,758) in New York, the Nov. 2018 “Hard Hitting Showtime Collaboration” (372,662), the Dec. 2018 “Roy Jones Jr. Texas Throwdown” (318,886), the Oct. 2018 “Hard Hitting Philly Special” (297,545), the Oct. 2018 hour-long Bareknuckle “Freeview” (292,253), the Nov. 2018 “Titans In The Capital” (256,871), the Sept. 2017 “Real Deal Promotions: Empire State” from Resorts World Casino (225,000), the Feb. 2019 “Raging Babe Philly Special” (203,000) and the August 2017 CES “Super Saturday” from Foxwoods (203,000) all logged 200,000 or more views, and collectively the 30-show series has seen a total of more than 5,029,262 views across all devices.
In addition to the raw viewership numbers, the fully-interactive, fan-friendly productions have seen more than 416,000 collective live post engagements (almost 14,000 per show), including more than 320,000 “likes” or “loves,” almost 55,000 comments and more than 18,000 shares.
The Sept. 2018 “Kings Boxing Tuesday Night Fights” from the Sands in Bethlehem set a new bar with 594,447 views and the Sept. 2017 DiBella-CES doubleheader carried the series to three-quarters-of-a-million views in just over four months. The Sept. 2017 DiBella card saw more than 40,000 viewer interactions including almost 39,000 “likes” or “loves” and the March 17, 2018, Murphy’s “St. Patrick’s Day Clash” set a new high-water mark for shares with 2,182.
The FIGHTNIGHT LIVE page on Facebook has more than 87,000 fans and more than 94,000 followers.
Created and produced by Linacre Media out of New York City, the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series features professional announcers, multiple camera angles, television graphics, replays and behind-the-scenes access and interviews. The streamed shows are available globally wherever Facebook is available. The initiative not only enables fans from around the world to tune in, but also gives up-and-coming fighters a global platform to showcase their abilities, gives promoters an accessible “broadcast” solution and gives sponsors the ability to reach a mass audience via branded content.
FIGHTNIGHT LIVE Spring 2019 dates will be officially announced in the coming weeks.
FIGHTNIGHT LIVE is available online at: https://www.facebook.com/FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE/
Follow all the action via social media at FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Facebook, @FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Instagram and@FIGHTNIGHTLIVE_ on Twitter, or by using the hashtag #FIGHTNIGHTLIVE. For the latest Linacre Media events and broadcast schedule, follow @LinacreMedia across all social platforms or use the tags #LinacreMediaEvents or #LinacreMediaOnTV.
About Everlast Worldwide Inc.
The preeminent brand in boxing since 1910, Everlast is the world’s leading manufacturer, marketer and licensor of boxing, MMA and fitness equipment. From legendary champions Jack Dempsey and Sugar Ray Robinson to current superstars Deontay Wilder and Dustin Poirier, Everlast is the brand of choice for generations of world champion professional athletes. Built on a brand heritage of strength, dedication, individuality and authenticity, Everlast is a necessary part of the lives of countless champions. Based in Manhattan, Everlast’s products are sold across more than 75 countries and 6 continents. For more information, visitwww.everlast.com.
