MONTREAL, JUNE 13, 2025 — It’s payback time for Steven Butler. Jose de Jesus Macias is heading to Quebec with plans to shock “Bang Bang” once again on June 27. The fight will serve as the co-main event on a stacked 10-bout card featuring four championship fights, headlined by the WBC Interim World Super Middleweight Title bout between #1 world contender Christian Mbilli and Maciej Sulecki, live at Videotron Centre in Quebec City.

“After two straight training camps, I’m not just hungry—I’m enraged. It’s not Erik Bazinyan, but it’s even better; Macias and I have unfinished business. I kept things polite for local fights. But this is a rematch—time for violence. I’m getting my revenge on June 27,” declared two-time world title challenger Steven Butler.

Montreal’s Steven Butler (35-5-1, 29 KOs) and Jose de Jesus Macias (29-13-4, 15 KOs) meet again four years after Macias’ swift victory. Butler is out to reverse the result, while Macias believes history will repeat itself.

“I’m happy to return to Quebec—but you really should stop inviting me! People wanted to see Lafrenière vs. Butler back in the day, and I beaten both. Butler’s going down again on June 27, and then I’ll get my revenge on Bazinyan,” said Macias, stepping in for the injured Erik Bazinyan, and coming off a win last November, just like Butler.

But before the rematch comes war: in a special heavyweight attraction between two knockout artists with over 90% KO ratios, Quebec’s own by way of Russia, Arslanbek ‘The Lion’ Makhmudov (19-2, 18 KOs) will take on Ontario’s adopted Ricardo ‘Big 12’ Brown (12-0, 11 KOs). The fight is scheduled for 10 rounds—but the stats suggest a much shorter story…

“He talked about slaying the Lion when the fight was announced. Funny, he was very polite at the face-off. But in the ring, the politeness ends. I’ll be hunting—and this will be war,” warned Makhmudov.

With an unusually deep lineup, the June 27 gala will feature three title fights before the three main attractionseven begin. In a bmatchup many experts call a “50/50,” Leïla Beaudoin (12-1, 1 KO) will defend her WBO International Super Featherweight Title for the first time against world #2 contender Elhem Mekhaled (17-3, 3 KOs).

Colombian sensation Jhon Orobio (13-0, 11 KOs) will face a triple first: his Quebec City debut, his first 10-round fight, and his first title shot, battling for the WBC Continental Americas title at 140 lbs against seasoned Slovakian veteran Zsolt Osadan (27-3-1, 17 KOs).

Top-15 world-ranked welterweight Christopher Guerrero (14-0, 8 KOs) will put his WBC Continental title on the line against former international champion Sandy Messaoud (20-8, 1 KO). Many believe this could be the fight of the night—Guerrero’s coach among them.

“A tall southpaw with an unorthodox style—he gives everyone trouble. His fights are always close, no matter the result. That’s exactly why we picked him. I expect the toughest fight of Chris’s career,” said Giuseppe Moffa.

Also on the card: Wilkens Mathieu (13-0, 9 KOs), Quebec’s hometown pride, returns for an 8-rounder against French champion Adagio McDonald (8-1, 6 KOs). Luis Santana (13-0, 6 KOs) of Montreal will face Uruguay’s heavy-hitter and former Steve Claggett opponent Eduardo Estela (17-4, 12 KOs) in his first scheduled 10-round bout. Canadian Olympian Wyatt Sanford (2-0, 2 KOs) will take on Israeli veteran Igor Lazarev (9-4, 3 KOs) in his first 6-rounder. Opening the night, rising star Moreno “The Soldier” Fendero (11-0, 9 KOs) steps up in competition to face the rugged Centenario veteran Billi Facundo Godoy (41-8, 20 KOs), nicknamed “El Niño.”

Tickets for #MbilliSulecki, set for June 27 at Videotron Centre, are still available (HERE) via Ticketmaster. Photos from Christian Mbilli’s recent fights and the undercard boxers are also available (HERE).

– 30 –

Members of the press wishing to cover the #MbilliSulecki gala must submit their accreditation request via the online form available on the EOTTM website (HERE) by Thursday, June 19 at 5:00 PM.

LONDON, ENGLAND – (September 21st, 2023) – A serious threat awaits Callum Simpson in London next weekend as dangerous Mexican Jose De Jesus Macias steps in to replace an injured Germaine Brown on the BOXXER: Breakthrough card at London’s York Hall on Saturday, September 30th, live and exclusive on Sky Sports. 

In June this year, Macias faced Erik Bazinyan – ranked #3 in the world at super-middleweight by the WBC and #2 by the WBA – and gave him a scare, nearly spoiling Bazinyan’s undefeated record and the big-money Canelo Alvarez showdown that Bazinyan has been linked with. 

Macias (28-12, 14 KO’s) has made a career of derailing contenders and spoiling the night for home fighters – such as his jaw-breaking 2021 TKO of recent WBO world title challenger Steve Butler in Canada – and he’s aiming to do the same to Simpson (12-0, 9 KO’s) next Saturday during his first-ever visit to the UK. 

For Barnsley man Simpson – considered one of the best under-the-radar talents in the UK by boxing insiders before he signed with BOXXER earlier this year – it’s a chance to test his mettle against a fighter who has faced some of the division’s toughest talents and score a win which will put his name on the international radar.

“Callum Simpson already had a tough opponent for September 30th and now he has an even tougher one. Jose de Jesus Macias is an excellent boxer who has caused a string of upsets over the years and gave the world-ranked #3 super-middleweight Erik Bazinyan all sorts of problems in June,” said Ben Shalom, BOXXER CEO.

“This is a serious test for Simpson. There aren’t many fighters who would step up to this level of opposition so early in their careers, especially on short notice, and I think he deserves a lot of credit for accepting this fight with Macias.”

BOXXER presents Simpson vs Macias in association with bet365 as the event’s bet365 Wildcard contest. 

BOXXER: Breakthrough at York Hall, London takes place Saturday, September 30 and airs live and exclusively in the UK and Ireland on Sky Sports.

This event is presented in association with official partners bet365, Everlast, WOW HYDRATE, Village Hotels and Fastline Steel Services.

May 30, 2023) — Undefeated super middleweight contender Erik Bazinyan returns in a 10-round main event against Mexico’s Jose de Jesus Macias this Thursday, June 1 at Casino de Montreal in Montreal, Canada.
 
Bazinyan-Macias and undercard bouts will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ starting at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT.

Bazinyan (29-0, 21 KOs) is a 28-year-old native of Yerevan, Armenia who moved to Canada when he was 16. Following an amateur career of more than 100 fights, he debuted as a pro in 2013, four months after his 18th birthday. Bazinyan rose the rankings by defeating a host of seasoned veterans, including Alan Campa, Saul Roman, Scott Sigmon, and Marcelo Esteban Coceres. Bazinyan returns to the ring after defeating Alantez Fox in February and plans to turn his attention toward the top dogs of the division if successful on Thursday. Macias (28-11-4, 14 KOs) is a 12-year veteran who holds a win over Bazinyan’s stablemate and two-time title challenger Steven Butler. The 31-year-old heads into this clash following a decision loss to Pavel Silyagin last July.

In other streaming action from Montreal:

• Canada native Steve Claggett (34-7-2, 24 KOs) will face Puerto Rican former world champion Alberto Machado (23-3, 19 KOs) in a 10-round junior welterweight battle. Claggett has scored five consecutive knockout wins since losing to Mathieu Germain in 2021. In his last fight, he beat Rafael Guzman Lugo via seventh-round TKO in March. Machado is coming off an eighth-round stoppage win against Jose Angulo last December.
   
• In an eight-round junior lightweight bout, Avery Martin Duval (9-0-1, 5 KOs) takes on Mexico’s Andres Sanchez Ramirez (6-6-3, 2 KOs). Duval looks to extend his winning streak to six, while Ramirez returns after two wins in his native land.  
   
• Southpaw prospect Thomas Chabot (8-0, 7 KOs) makes his 2023 debut in a six-rounder against Luis Bolanos Lopez (4-2-1). 
   
• Middleweight standout Alexandre Gaumont (7-0, 5 KOs) looks to earn his fourth straight knockout in a six-round fight against Poland’s Piotr Bis (6-2-1, 2 KOs).

# # #

 
About ESPN+  
ESPN+ is the industry-leading sports streaming service that offers fans in the U.S. thousands of live sports events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks and exclusive editorial content from dozens of ESPN writers and reporters. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ has grown to more than 25.3 million subscribers. Fans sign up to ESPN+ for just $9.99 a month (or $99.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNplus.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices).