Alexis Rocha earned a big fight by stopping late-replacement George Ashie in round seven of their 12-round welterweight bout at The YouTube Theater in Inglewood, California.

In round three, Rocha uncorked a vicious right hook that landed on the jaw and sent Ashie to the canvas. There was some furious exchanges that Rocha got the better of and he landed some good hooks to the head and thudding body shots.

In round six, Rocha was cut over his right eye from an accidental headbutt. In round seven. Rocha landed a perfectly timed right hook that deposited Ashie face-first on the canvas and the fight was over at 2:08.

Rocha, 146.4 lbs of Santa Ana, CA is 22-1 with 14 knockouts. Ashie, 146 lbs of Accra, GHA is 33-6-1.

“I wanted to make a statement,” said Alexis Rocha. “Crawford is next. But if that can’t happen, I want all the big names. I’m signed to the best promotional company in the world, and I know they’ll make it happen. He [Ashie] was a tough fighter, but I knew he wasn’t going to hang with me.”

Floyd Schofield Decisions Mercado

Floyd Schofield remained undefeated with a 10-round unanimous decision over Alberto Mercado in a lightweight bout.

In round two, Schofield landed a hard right to the top of the head that put Mercado down.

Schofield, 134.8 lbs of Austin, TX won by scores of 100-89 on all cards and is now 13-0. Mercado, 134.8 lbs of Humacao, PR is 17-5-1.

“My feet hurt, but it was a good victory,” said Floyd Schofield. “To the fans, thank you for all the love and support, and next time I’ll definitely get that knockout. We want to fight Keyshawn Davis next.”

Melikuziev Stops Sierra in 3

Bektemir Melikuziev stopped Ulises Sierra in round three of their 10-round super middleweight bout.

In round two, Melikuziev was cut over the right eye from a punch. In round three, Melikuziev dropped Sierra with a straight left to the body. Late in the round, it was a hard straight left to the body that put Sierra down for good, and the bout was stopped at 2:59.

Melikuziev, 167.6 lbs of Indio, CA is now 11-1 with nine knockouts. Sierra, 167.4 lbs of San Diego, CA is 17-3-2.

“I’m happy that I just won and as I said before Gabe Rosado is the guy I’m looking for and if not him, anyone,” said Bektemir Melikuziev. “I’m ready. Just give me any 168-lb fight. Thank you to all of my supporters, we’re moving little by little. We’re getting closer to the title shot, we got another title today and we’re looking forward to the world championship.”

Oscar Collazo Stops Reyes in 5

Oscar Collazo stopped Yudel Reyes in round five of their 12-round WBO Minimumweight Elimination bout.

In round five, Collazo landed a big right hook that rocked Reyes back. Collazo followed up with a left and another right hook that put Reyes on the canvas. At the end of the round, Collazo landed another flush right hook that was followed by a straight left that put Reyes down again, and the fight was stopped at 2:59.

Collazo, 104.6 lbs of Villalba, PR is now 6-0 with four knockouts. Reyes, 104.2 lbs of Monterrey, MEX is 15-2.

“I feel super good. We did exactly what we wanted to do,” said Collazo. “If we went to the body, we then went back up and that’s how we made it happen. The knockout punch was the hook. We had been practicing since camp so I’m glad we made it happen. I want the champions next. Specifically, The WBA champion, Melvin Jerusalem. So, Melvin, if you’re listening, I want you.”

LOS ANGELES, CA (January 26, 2023): As the countdown continues for the inaugural boxing event at YouTube Theater in Inglewood this Saturday, January 28, Santa Ana’s Alexis “Lex” Rocha (21-1, 13 KOs) hosted a press conference today in Los Angeles ahead of his NABO title defense against George “Red Tiger” Ashie (33-5-1, 25 KOs) of Accra, Ghana. The 12-round main event is presented in association with Star Boxing. Doors to the venue will open at 3:00 p.m. PST, and the worldwide broadcast on DAZN begins at 5:00 p.m. PST/ 8:00 p.m. EST.

Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya, Partner of Golden Boy and Hall of Famer Bernard Hopkins, and several of the Rocha vs. Ashie undercard fighters also participated.

This is what the participants had to say:

ALEXIS ROCHA, CURRENT NABO WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION:
“Mentally as a fighter – RIP to Kobe Bryant who passed away three years ago – you have to have that ‘Mamba Mentality.’ You have to be ready for anybody they put in front of you. If it’s you or George Ashie I have to prepare for it. I have to focus on what I can do.”

“Sometimes losses hurt fighters but they can also motivate. They help you mentally. What can I say? Ghanians are tough but I’m Mexican, I’m just as tough. Everyone is always asking what I want after this fight but I can’t take my eyes off of him. He has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Those are very dangerous fighters. My mind doesn’t go past the 28th. My mind is focused on him. Whoever they put in front of me I have to put on a spectacular show. Keep knocking on that door and the big names will follow.”

GEORGE ASHIE, IBF CONTINENTAL AFRICA SUPER LIGHTWEIGHT TITLEHOLDER
“First of all I want to thank God for this opportunity. I’ve been training everyday for this opportunity. I’m a great fighter from Ghana and I’m going to show that I’m back. I want to prove that to the fans.”

“I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions and Star Boxing for this great opportunity. This is going to be Oscar De La Hoya vs. Ike Quartey II and this time it’s going to Ghana not Mexico. It’s going to be a war. I want to thank all the fans in Ghana. I have this opportunity and I’m not going to let it slide out of my hands. These opportunities are life changing and I’m here to stay.”

FLOYD SCHOFIELD, LIGHTWEIGHT PROSPECT:
“I put in the work to put on a show so tune in. This is for me to prove that I’m here to stay. This is my division and I’m going to take over. All I can say is that I’m grateful for the opportunity,”

“It’s going to be a great fight. I want to fight all of them. Anybody who has the belts like Haney, Davis and Ryan. I want all the top names. They’re in my way. They’re just stepping stones. When I see them it’s going to be all business. I’m not going to give away the plan but it’s going to be a good fight.”

ALBERTO MERCADO, LIGHTWEIGHT FIGHTER:
“I’m very happy to be here after not fighting for so many years. I want to thank God. I can’t tell you what’s going to happen this Saturday but I’m going to go off of what he [Floyd] does.”

“I have the experience. I’ve seen this kid. I know he’s talented, he’s young and he’s bringing it all on the table. I got offered this fight back in September and I said yes. I know I have the experience and you’ll see this Saturday.”

BEK MELIKUZIEV, SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT PROSPECT:
“Hello everyone and thank you for coming. For me the priority is this fight, I’m only concentrating on this Saturday and the guy in front of me. If everything goes well I want a rematch with Gabe Rosado.”

“My home is Uzbekistan, but here in the U.S. my home is Indio, CA. It’s amazing there. There are many Mexicans there who like boxing and are very hardworking like us Uzbekistans. I’m looking forward to fighting in Indio, CA. Thank you to everyone, we are ready. Gracias, Mexican Fans. Vamos!”

ULISES SIERRA, SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT PROSPECT:
“I don’t really get too many opportunities on the big stage, so when they offered this I had to hop on. It’s going to be an exciting fight.”

“Bek is very aggressive and I’m expecting him to bring everything. I’ll be there standing tall ready to catch him between shots. Thank you guys for the support. Tune in, it’s going to be a good fight.”

OSCAR COLLAZO, MINIMUMWEIGHT CONTENDER:
“I dedicate this fight to all my fans, to all my Puerto Rican fans. I want them to feel proud of me and I want them to know that I have been working very hard to become a world champion. I am going to be a teacher come Saturday.”

YUDEL REYES, MINIMUMWEIGHT CONTENDER:
“I feel very good. Golden Boy offered me this fight. I feel super calm and very prepared for this fight and the preparation we had for this fight. Mexico vs. Puerto Rico have always been great fights.”

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS:
“We have started 2023 on an amazing note, with an amazing partner like DAZN, bringing fight fans, especially LA fight fans and throughout California great cards like this one on January 28. We want to present fight fans with the hottest new talent.”

“YouTube Theater is an amazing venue, there is not a bad seat in the house and can seat 5-6,000 people. This card is stacked, we have some tough fights, and we’re committed to the mission to bring fight fans the best entertainment.”

BERNARD HOPKINS, GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS PARTNER AND INTERNATIONAL BOXING HALL OF FAMER:
“To Alexis and Bek who have a loss on their record: it’s not how you start, it’s how you end it. I started my professional career with a loss. And now I am a Hall of Famer.”

“We put the call out. When the great fights happen, Golden Boy isn’t going to stick their chest out and say ‘see what we did,’ it’s going to be more like ‘see what we said’ – we said that we want to make the best fights happen.”

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Rocha vs. Ashie is a 12-round welterweight fight for the NABO Welterweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing. Schofield vs. Mercado is a 10-round fight for the vacant WBA International Lightweight Title presented by Golden Boy in association with Davies Entertainment. The fight night will take place on Saturday, January 28, live from YouTube Theater in Inglewood, CA and will be broadcast on DAZN worldwide.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.DAZN.com, and www.starboxing.com. Follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoy, https://www.Facebook.com/starboxing, and https://www.facebook.com/DAZN. Follow on Instagram @GoldenBoy, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Follow the conversation using #RochaAshie

About YouTube Theater
YouTube Theater is a 6,000-seat performance venue located at Hollywood Park, a near 300-acre sports and entertainment destination in Inglewood Calif., being developed by Los Angeles Rams Owner/Chairman E. Stanley Kroenke. The state-of-the-art theater is a 227,000 square foot, three-story indoor venue situated under the same roof canopy as SoFi Stadium and American Airlines Plaza. The venue can be configured to house three different crowd capacities, including intimate settings with minimum capacities of 3,400 and 4,400. Equipped with premium finishes throughout, the venue also offers guests both an interior and exterior balcony, luxury boxes, an industry room, and a private club with premium seats. Opened in August 2021, YouTube Theater is equipped to host a variety of events, including concerts, awards shows, esports competitions, community gatherings, conferences and more.

LOS ANGELES, CA (January 25, 2023): Santa Ana’s Alexis “Lex” Rocha (21-1, 13 KOs) hosted a media workout today at Young Champion’s Boxing in Los Angeles ahead of his NABO title defense against newly announced opponent George “Red Tiger” Ashie (33-5-1, 25 KOs) of Accra, Ghana. The 12-round main event clash is set for this Saturday, January 28 at YouTube Theater in Inglewood and is presented in association with Star Boxing.

Doors to the venue will open at 3:00 p.m. PST, and the worldwide broadcast on DAZN begins at 5:00 p.m. PST/ 8:00 p.m. EST.

Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Oscar De La Hoya, and several of the Rocha vs. Ashie undercard fighters of the televised DAZN event were also on hand to give comments.

This is what the participants had to say:

ALEXIS ROCHA, CURRENT NABO WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION:
“I’m very confident and prepared for this moment and I’m happy being the main event. I’m looking forward to going out there and putting on a good show. He’s a good opponent, he’s very tough and very durable. What I tell everyone is that every opponent is dangerous. Especially him coming in as a last minute replacement. He’s going to want to steal the show. He has nothing to lose and everything to gain. I prepared the same as always, with a grueling tough camp. I had a lot of great sparring with great sparring partners. They got me ready to be the best I could possibly be. I’m ready to go out there and show the world who I am.”

FLOYD SCHOFIELD, LIGHTWEIGHT PROSPECT:
“I feel very confident. I’m ready and anxious to get in the ring. I feel he is a step-up opponent. He’s never been stopped before but I plan to change that this upcoming weekend. I prepared very hard. I sparred 15 rounds. I’ve just been preparing a game plan and that’s what I plan to show and execute this weekend.”

BEK MELIKUZIEV, SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT PROSPECT:
“It should be a good fight. I’m not thinking about it too much. I’m ready to fight. I have a good opponent, he’s experienced and has been around for a while. It was a good training camp, almost two months so I’m ready for the fight.”

OSCAR COLLAZO, MINIMUMWEIGHT CONTENDER:
“I feel super excited. I feel 100 percent for this fight. It was a very serious fight camp. We know what’s laid out on the table and we’re prepared for that. My opponent is strong. Mexicans usually leave it all in the ring. I know he’s hungry but at the end of the day we’ll see who prepared more and is more intelligent.”

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS:
“This is a stacked card from top to bottom in a venue where there is no bad seat in the house. You have a spectacular main event featuring Alexis Rocha who is knocking on doors for his opportunity for a world championship. You also have Floyd Schofield who I believe is going to be the next big thing in boxing. Fans are in for a treat – boxing is back!”

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Rocha vs. Ashie is a 12-round welterweight fight for the NABO Welterweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing. Schofield vs. Mercado is a 10-round fight for the vacant WBA International Lightweight Title presented by Golden Boy in association with Davies Entertainment. The fight night will take place on Saturday, January 28, live from YouTube Theater in Inglewood, CA and will be broadcast on DAZN worldwide.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.DAZN.com, and www.starboxing.com. Follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoy, https://www.Facebook.com/starboxing, and https://www.facebook.com/DAZN. Follow on Instagram @GoldenBoy, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Follow the conversation using #RochaAshie

About YouTube Theater
YouTube Theater is a 6,000-seat performance venue located at Hollywood Park, a near 300-acre sports and entertainment destination in Inglewood Calif., being developed by Los Angeles Rams Owner/Chairman E. Stanley Kroenke. The state-of-the-art theater is a 227,000 square foot, three-story indoor venue situated under the same roof canopy as SoFi Stadium and American Airlines Plaza. The venue can be configured to house three different crowd capacities, including intimate settings with minimum capacities of 3,400 and 4,400. Equipped with premium finishes throughout, the venue also offers guests both an interior and exterior balcony, luxury boxes, an industry room, and a private club with premium seats. Opened in August 2021, YouTube Theater is equipped to host a variety of events, including concerts, awards shows, esports competitions, community gatherings, conferences and more.

LOS ANGELES, CA (January 24, 2023): Santa Ana’s star Alexis “Lex” Rocha (21-1, 13 KOs) will face new opponent George “Red Tiger” Ashie (33-5-1, 25 KOs) of Accra, Ghana, as the main event for the 12-round clash set for January 28 at YouTube Theater in Inglewood and presented in association with Star Boxing. The originally announced opponent, Anthony Young, suffered a nose injury and can no longer participate in the fight against Rocha. Doors to the venue will open at 3:00 p.m. PST, and the worldwide broadcast on DAZN begins at 5:00 p.m. PST/ 8:00 p.m. EST.

“I recently learned of the injury that Anthony suffered in sparring,” said Alexis Rocha. “To be honest, it does not matter who is standing across from me in that ring come Saturday night. The goal and the assignment remains the same: break my opponent’s will and win by stoppage. I’m ready for any fighter they put in front of me.”

George “Red Tiger” Ashie represents Accra, Ghana. Ashie is the current IBF Continental Africa Super Lightweight Champion, and will present a significant challenge to Rocha as his last five fights have ended in jaw-dropping knockouts. 

“I promise the fans will see a great boxing match and that l will knock him out coldly,” said George Ashie. “I do thank Alexis for giving me this opportunity. I will prove to the world on Saturday night who George is. Thank you to my team, especially Emmanuel Addo and Joe DeGuardia and Star Boxing for making this happen. I am the Red Tiger and I rule the ring whenever I step in it.”

“It doesn’t matter what opponent is in front of Alexis, he will do whatever it takes to attain the victory,” said Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya. “We applaud George Ashie for taking this fight on a week’s notice – this will be a war with two fighters out to prove they’re worthy contenders in the sport.” 

Tickets for Rocha vs. Ashie are on sale and can be purchased at https://www.ticketmaster.com/ and https://www.goldenboypromotions.com/. 

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Rocha vs. Ashie is a 12-round welterweight fight for the NABO Welterweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing. Schofield vs. Mercado is a 10-round fight for the vacant WBA International Lightweight Title presented by Golden Boy in association with Davies Entertainment. The fight night will take place on Saturday, January 28, live from YouTube Theater in Inglewood, CA and will be broadcast on DAZN worldwide.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.DAZN.com, and www.starboxing.com. Follow on Twitter @GoldenBoyBoxing, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoy, https://www.Facebook.com/starboxing, and https://www.facebook.com/DAZN. Follow on Instagram @GoldenBoy, @StarBoxing, and @DAZNBoxing. Follow the conversation using #RochaAshie

About YouTube Theater

YouTube Theater is a 6,000-seat performance venue located at Hollywood Park, a near 300-acre sports and entertainment destination in Inglewood Calif., being developed by Los Angeles Rams Owner/Chairman E. Stanley Kroenke. The state-of-the-art theater is a 227,000 square foot, three-story indoor venue situated under the same roof canopy as SoFi Stadium and American Airlines Plaza. The venue can be configured to house three different crowd capacities, including intimate settings with minimum capacities of 3,400 and 4,400. Equipped with premium finishes throughout, the venue also offers guests both an interior and exterior balcony, luxury boxes, an industry room, and a private club with premium seats. Opened in August 2021, YouTube Theater is equipped to host a variety of events, including concerts, awards shows, esports competitions, community gatherings, conferences and more.