Undefeated up-and-coming welterweight Fredrick “General Okunka” Lawson (23-0, 20 KOs) and veteran Breidis Prescott (27-6, 20 KOs) will headline a special Thursday night edition of ESPN Friday Night Fights presented by Corona Extra and ESPN Deportes’ Noche de Combates presentado por Corona Extra on March 26, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes.
Thursday’s show from the Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Fla., will mark the second consecutive year Friday Night Fights has visited the historic venue. The card is presented by Warriors Boxing and will also be available via WatchESPN.
Commentators:
Todd Grisham, analyst Teddy Atlas and reporter Brian Campbell will form the ESPN2 commentary team, while Doug Kezirian will host the ESPN2 studio. Pablo Viruega and Delvin Rodríguez will call the fights for Noche de Combates (Fight Night) on ESPN Deportes, while Leopoldo González and Claudia Trejos will co-anchor the ESPN Deportes studio.
Main Event:
In his last fight—which was televised on ESPN2—California’s Lawson scored a 10-round unanimous decision win over Ray Narh.
“I think Breidis Prescott is a seasoned guy who’s going to give Freddie some new looks that maybe Freddie hasn’t seen,” said Lawson’s trainer Abel Sanchez. “This is probably the first major test in Freddie’s career – Prescott has some very good experience against some top-level guys. Freddie’s going to have to go in against a guy who’s on a world-class level.”
Colombia’s Prescott—whose last fight was also televised on ESPN2—is looking to rebound from a 10-round unanimous decision loss to Roberto Garcia.
“Fredrick Lawson is a great fighter. I was looking at his fights, and the kid is great,” said Prescott’s manager Lazaro Garcia. “There’s nothing bad to say about him. I don’t know what his camp is doing, but our camp is working hard, very hard. We studied some of his fights, and we’re ready to rock and roll.”
Co-Feature:
Thursday’s 10-round lightweight co-feature will pit undefeated former junior lightweight titlist Rances “Kid Blast” Barthelemy (21-0, 1 ND, 12 KOs) against Angino Perez (18-6, 16 KOs). In his last fight, Barthelemy—who was born in Cuba and currently resides in Las Vegas—scored a 12-round unanimous decision win over David Saucedo to retain his lightweight title. Florida’s Perez is looking to continue his winning ways following a second-round TKO win over Joselito del Rosario. Barthelemy first won his title in January 2014 on Friday Night Fights’ season opener against defending titlist Algenis Mendez. The decision was later changed to a no decision after an appeal from Mendez’s promoters. Barthelemy went on to win the title in a July rematch against Mendez. After one successful title defense, Barthelemy decided to vacate his title in February to move up in weight.
Additional Fight:
Friday’s show will also include a six-round bout between Light Heavyweights Ahmed Elbiali (10-1, 9 KOs)—who will be making his fourth ESPN appearance—and Mike Stafford (13-2, 3 KOs).
Upcoming Schedule:
Date
Time (ET)
Main Event
Location
Networks
Thu, Mar 26
9 p.m.
Breidis Prescott (27-6, 20 KOs) vs. Fredrick Lawson (23-0, 20 KOs) — 10 rounds, Welterweights
Hialeah Park Racing & Casino,
Hialeah, Fla.
ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, WatchESPN
Fri, Apr 3
9 p.m.
Petr Petrov (35-4-2, 17 KOs) vs. Gamaliel Diaz 38-11-3, 17 KOs) — 10 rounds, Lightweight
Omega Products Center, Corona, Calif.
ESPN2, ESPN Deportes+, WatchESPN
Fri, Apr 10
9 p.m.
Boxcino 2015 Semifinals: 8 rounds each
Heavyweights:
Andrey Fedosov (26-3, 21 KOs) vs. Lenroy Thomas (19-3, 9 KOs)
Razvan Cojanu (13-1, 7 KOs) vs. Donovan Dennis (11-1, 9 KOs)
Jr. Middleweights:
Brandon Adams (16-1, 11 KOs) vs. Vito Gasparyan (15-3-5, 8 KOs)
Stanyslav Skorokhod (9-0, 7 KOs) vs. John Thompson (15-1, 5 KOs)
Sands Hotel & Casino, Bethlehem, PA
ESPN2, ESPN Deportes+, WatchESPN
*Schedule subject to change
Friday Night Fights and Noche de Combates Social Media:
· Follow ESPN Friday Night Fights’ Nigel Collins on Twitter @ESPNFNF or like ESPN Friday Night Fights on Facebook.
· Score the fights round-by-round with the “Live Friday Night Fights Facebook Voting App,” an application on the ESPN FNF Facebook page that allows viewers to score the fight round-by-round.
· Follow ESPN Deportes’ Noche de Combates on Twitter @ESPNBoxeo.
· For the latest ESPN.com boxing news and analysis follow @ESPNBoxing.
