VIDEO: HBO Boxing News: #KovalevMikhalkin & #BivolBarrera Final Press Conference Recap

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS TAKE CENTER STAGE WHEN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING®: SERGEY KOVALEV VS. IGOR MIKHALKIN AND DMITRY BIVOL VS. SULLIVAN BARRERA IS SEEN SATURDAY, MARCH 3

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING spotlights the competitive light heavyweight division with two world title bouts when SERGEY KOVALEV VS. IGOR MIKHALKIN AND DMITRY BIVOL VS. SULLIVAN BARRERA is seen SATURDAY, MARCH 3 at 10:05 p.m. (ET/PT) from The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The HBO Sports team will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

The fights will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO, HBO On Demand and partners’ streaming platforms.

In the main event, light heavyweight titleholder Sergey Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs) makes his 2018 ring debut, defending his crown against rising contender Igor Mikhalkin (21-2, 9 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round contest. The 34-year-old Russian reclaimed his title Thanksgiving weekend on HBO when he overwhelmed Vyacheslav Shabranskyy en route to a second-round knockout. Known as “Krusher,” Kovalev now resides in southern California and looks to continue his rise in the pound-for-pound rankings.

Fellow Russian Mikhalkin, 32, now residing in Hamburg, Germany, amassed three impressive unanimous decision victories in 2017, earning a shot at the world title for his biggest test to date. The southpaw will be making his U.S. and HBO debut.

In the co-main event, dominating light heavyweights square off when undefeated Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs) defends his portion of the light heavyweight title against top contender Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round showdown. Bivol, 27, originally from Kyrgyzstan and now hailing from St. Petersburg, Russia, has quickly ascended to the top of the division since turning pro in 2014. Knocking out all but two of his opponents, the champ fought four times in 2017 and has set himself up for his biggest fight yet.

Barrera, 35, of Miami, Fla. by way of Cuba, scored an exciting victory over Felix Valera on the undercard of HBO’s Thanksgiving weekend event. With the only blemish on his pro record coming against future Hall of Famer Andre Ward, Barrera continues to fight top contenders as he chases his first world title.

Follow HBO boxing news at hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/hboboxing.

All HBO boxing events are presented in HDTV. HBO viewers must have access to the HBO HDTV channel to watch HBO programming in high definition.

The executive producer of HBO Sports is Rick Bernstein; producer, Jonathan Crystal; director, Johnathan Evans.

® WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.

Kovalev, Mikhalkin and Bivol Media Workout Quotes

KOVALEV VS. SHABRANSKYY OFFICIAL WEIGH-IN
Theater Lobby, Madison Square Garden

Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev – Two-Time Light Heavyweight World Champion

“I am hearing how everyone is saying how Mikhalkin is going to be easy, but we’ll see.”

“I think Bivol will win on Saturday night because he is much more experienced than Barrera.”

“My kids and Shabranskyy’s kids have not played in the park together since our fight (their kids actually played together at the park 5 days prior to Kovalev’s November 25 KO win over Shabranskyy).”

Igor Mikhalkin
Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Igor Mikhalkin
“I trained very good and I feel very good. I know Kovalev and he will try the same style he always does – he will come and try to knock me out and I am prepared for that.”

“I’m very excited to fight at Madison Square Garden; it is like a dream come true and I promise to give the fans a good fight because I know there are many Russians that live in the area and many of them will be coming to the fight.”

Dmitry Bivol
Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Dmitry Bivol – WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion

“I know this is a big fight and I’m excited to get to fight a guy like Barrera. I’m glad I’m in a big fight because I trained very hard. I train like every fight is my last fight because every fight is the most important fight. On Saturday night, the fans will get to see what I am on all about.”

“I know Barrera is very strong and is a tough fighter. I had very good sparring partners to help me prepare for Barrera and that makes me believe that I will be the winner and stay champion.”

“After this, I want to fight the best fighters and I want to fight other champions so I can get more belts – whether that will be Kovalev or Stevenson. After this fight I will get with my team and we will decide who to fight next but I always want to fight the best but now I am only thinking about Barrera.”

About March 3: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. Tickets range from $50 to $300 and are available online at TicketMaster.com and at the Madison Square Garden box office. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions, is sponsored by Medoff Vodka and Leon.ru and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

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Video: HBO Boxing News: 1-on-1 with Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev

LIVE VIDEO: KOVALEV – MIKHALKIN PRESS CONFERENCE

https://www.facebook.com/MainEventsBoxing/videos/10154895796401324/?t=959

Bakhram Murtazaliev vs. Kenneth McNeil Super Welterweight Title Bout Leads Off Lineup of Championship Fights March 3

New York, NY: Before fans at the Theater at Madison Square Garden enjoy two light heavyweight championship bouts Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin, and Dmitry Bivol vs. Sullivan Barrera” on Saturday, March 3, Main Events and Krusher Promotions presents the first title fight on the night’s undercard in the super welterweight division.

Bakhram Murtazaliev (11-0, 9 KOs) of Grozny, Russia will face Kenneth McNeil (11-3, 8 KOs) of Birmingham, Alabama, in the first defense of the IBA Super Welterweight World Title he won at The Garden in November.

Murtazaliev, 25, has quickly made a name for himself since coming to the United States in 2016. He hopes to extend his seven-fight knockout streak and improve his already impressive 82% knockout ratio (9 KOs in 11 wins). This will be his third fight under both the Krusher Promotions’ and Main Events’ banners.

McNeil, 28, is coming off a win in his last bout, and a split decision with Samuel Clarkson many observers believe he won. McNeil has never been stopped, so Murtazaliev’s goal of extending his knockout streak will be put to the test in his toughest fight to date.

After winning the title at Madison Square Garden in November, Murtazaliev said of the experience, “It looked like what I dreamed all my life.”

Murtazaliev was able to return home to Russia for a holiday visit with family and friends, but then it was back to sunny Oxnard, California to train with Abror Tursunpulatov, who also trains two-time Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey Kovalev.

“In my preparation, my path is to do. Abror’s is to tell us what to do. Today, he tells us to throw rocks. Tomorrow, he may tell us to throw people. He has a plan … we trust him,” said Murtazaliev.

Murtazaliev recently marked his first anniversary training with Tursunpulatov. “I started to train with him and I really understood what he was saying. It made huge sense to me. I enjoy every day with Abror. I love training with the other boxers, and Kovalev too.”

Murtazaliev says he’s working hard to impress fans and achieve success in the ring. “I’m putting all my heart into practices and all my heart into my fight March 3rd. You aren’t going to be disappointed,” promised Murtazaliev. “I will try to gain more fans, to show nice boxing. I really work hard, and it’s all due to hard work. If you work hard, you will get everything you want in your life.”

There are a few big fans who won’t be watching the young super welterweight on March 3, though. “Nobody from my family has ever seen live video of my fights,” said Murtazaliev. “They are worried about me and they don’t want to see me get punched,” he laughed. Murtazaliev says only his father has ever watched him fight live, in Russia.

Video: Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev Greatest Hits

Top International and NY Prospects Highlight the Sergey Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin Non-Televised Undercard

New York, NY: Before fans at the Theater at Madison Square Garden enjoy two light heavyweight championship bouts Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin, and Dmitry Bivol vs. Sullivan Barrera on Saturday, March 3, Main Events serves up a menu of top international and local prospects on the non-televised undercard.

According to Main Events’ matchmaker and 2015 NABF Matchmaker of the Year, Jolene Mizzone, “matching an undercard like this is a breath of fresh air. The ‘A’ side fighters trust me to do my job and match them with the right opponents. They all want to challenge themselves to be ready when they get to the bigger fights. Some of them even asked me for tougher opposition, which doesn’t happen much these days.”

Vaughn Alexander
Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Vaughn Alexander (11-0, 8 KOs) of St. Louis, Missouri and older brother of former welterweight world champ Devon Alexander, returns to Madison Square Garden 14 years after his 2004 victory there, as he works his way back into the middleweight division. He will face Jaime Solorio (14-4-2, 8 KOs) of Ensenada, Mexico.

Alexander was a rising star when he was sent to prison and served an 11-year sentence. The 32-year-old picked up his career where he left off with life lessons learned and gratitude for the second chance Main Events and his hard work have provided him.

Solorio, 29, is a come-forward fighter and bigger than Alexander. He’s only been stopped once. Solorio will test Alexander’s ability to handle his size and aggressive approach.

Brooklyn native and community philanthropist, Frank “Notorious” Galarza (18-2-2, 11 KOs), will face Norberto Gonzalez (24-10, 14 KOs) of Monterrey, Mexico in a ten-round junior middleweight contest.

Frank Galarza
Photo Credits: David Spangolo/Main Events

Galarza, 32, made his professional debut in 2010 and did not face defeat until 2015. After he signed with Main Events following a 14-month layoff, Galarza won a decisive decision victory in November and can’t wait to continue his road back to championship contention. Outside of the gym, Galarza dedicates his attention to his charitable organization, Youth Fighting Forward, which offers boxing lessons, as well as mentoring and tutoring to underprivileged kids in Brooklyn and Connecticut.

Gonzalez, 36, is a veteran who has fought everyone and took this fight on short notice without a second thought. Forget wins and losses, Gonzalez is a tough customer who puts everyone to the test in typical Mexican style.

Bakhram Murtazaliev
Photo Credit: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Astana, Kazakhstan native Meiirim “The Sultan” Nursultanov (5-0, 4 KOs) will face Alejandro Torres (9-3-2, 4 KOs) of Monterrey, Mexico.

Meiirim Nursultanov
Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Nursultanov, 24, will have a robust cheering section for his second bout at The Garden from enthusiastic Kazakh fans. He has stopped each of his last three opponents. Nursultanov will look to top his most recent performance, which resulted in a TKO win after knocking his opponent, Ismael Bueno, out of the ring.

Torres, age 24, is making his debut at The Garden and appearing in his second bout in the United States. He has been on the short end of several decisions and nearly stopped his last opponent, knocking him down. Torres has only been stopped once, in his professional debut. Nursultanov will need to work hard to make a statement against Torres.

Expect a big show from the heavyweights. Cassius Chaney (11-0, 5 KOs) of Baltimore, Maryland faces Tim Washington (6-5, 6 KOs) of Toledo, Ohio, in a six-round fight.

Chaney, 30, a standout NCAA basketball player at the University of New Haven, switched sports after graduating with his bachelor’s degree in sports management. He’s been a sought after sparring partner, working with Tyson and Hughie Fury. He recently returned to his hometown of Baltimore to work with trainer Calvin Ford, the inspiration for the character “Cutty” in the popular TV series “The Wire.”

Washington, 37, joins the list of fighters making their first appearance in New York at The Garden. Washington has plenty of power and always comes to fight and make a statement. With all of his wins coming by knockout, Washington is a “go big or go home” opponent.

Alexey Evchenko (15-10-1, 6 KOs) of Chelyabinsk, Russia takes on Khiary Gray-Pitts (15-3, 11 KOs) of Worcester, Massachusetts in an eight-round welterweight fight.

Evchenko, age 34, makes his American debut after fighting primarily in Russia. He is a road warrior who has won his last six bouts in Russia and has the opportunity to introduce himself to fans and make a strong first impression that will stick with them.

Gray-Pitts, 25, is fighting for the first time outside Rhode Island and Connecticut. He is coming off his first win at welterweight over the rugged Greg Jackson. When this tough match was offered to Gray-Pitts, he didn’t hesitate, which says a lot about his attitude.

Middleweights Leshawn “Lightning” Rodriguez (8-0, 7 KOs) and Martez Jackson (4-1-2, 2 KOs) are scheduled for six rounds of action.

LeShawn “Lightning” Rodriguez
Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Rodriguez, 24, of Shirley, New York is generating buzz among fans who love his take-no-prisoners, hard-hitting style. He enjoyed an outstanding amateur career, amassing a record of 160-15 and winning two NY Daily News Golden Gloves before making his professional debut in 2016. Rodriguez promises to entertain and hopes to achieve his third straight knockout victory.

Jackson, 34, from Atlanta, Georgia, has a knack for ruining perfect records. Both of his draws came against previously undefeated opponents. Jackson has never been stopped and his sole loss came to Madiyar Ashkeyev, who is also on the card. Jackson has the ability to dictate the pace and Rodriguez will be tested to keep up with him in his toughest fight to date.

Madiyar Ashkeyev
Photo Credit: David Spangolo/Main Events

Madiyar Ashkeyev (8-0, 4 KOs) of Merki, Kazakhstan will face Jose Antonio Abreu (13-3, 8 KOs) of La Romana, Dominican Republic in a six-round junior middleweight match-up.

Ashkeyev, 29, enjoyed an outstanding amateur career. He earned a bronze medal at the Asia Cadet Boxing Championships (2004), second place at the XIX International Boxing Tournament (2011), and first place at the XX International Boxing Tournament (2014). He scored a second-round stoppage in his professional debut in 2015 over Tavorus Teague, and is coming off a seventh round TKO over Shawn Cameron in his most recent bout. Ashkeyev trains in Oxnard at the Boxing Laboratory under the guidance of Marco Contreras, and is managed by Egis Klimas, who also manages champions Sergey Kovalev, Oleksandr Usyk and Vasyl Lomachenko.

Abreu, 30, made his professional debut in 2012 and won his first 12 bouts with seven of those wins coming by way of knockout. After suffering his first career loss in 2016, Abreu redeemed himself in his next fight by scoring a second round TKO over Euri Gonzalez. With two difficult defeats in a row, Jose is in “must-win” situation against Ashkeyev, which makes him a dangerous opponent.

Opening the evening, two-time NY Daily News Golden Gloves Champion Ismael Villarreal (1-0) from the Bronx, New York returns after his successful professional debut for his second fight at The Garden against Anthony Woods (1-6) of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in a four-round super middleweight bout.

Ismael Villarreal
Photo Credit: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Villarreal, 20, son of former super lightweight fighter Otilio Villarreal, is quickly gaining fans and making a name for himself despite also carrying a full course load at Brooklyn Community College.

Woods, 31, originally from Georgia, wanted to play in the NFL as a kid. But after he got into a few scraps with neighborhood kids, he decided boxing suited him better. Woods says his attitude is why he’s never been stopped and he doesn’t intend for this to change against Villareal.

Mizzone said, “I am lucky to work with these boxers because they all want to fight the best. It is my job to challenge them, to advance their career, and it is their job to win!

“Every undercard fight is a must-win fight for both participants, whether it be to get to the next level, or to be able to get the next opportunity. I promise every fan who comes to this card on March 3 will be entertained from top to bottom, start to finish!”

Video: Watch #HeyHarold!: #KovalevMikhalkin & #BivolBarrera Preview

Sergey Kovalev Q&A

Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev, Two-Time Light Heavyweight World Champion:

On his opponent, Igor Mikhalkin: “He will bring everything to get the WBO title. But I’m not going to give it to him, believe me. My goal is to defend the title and provide that I’m the best in this division.”

On the fight: “The fight will be very interesting. He will never step back, he comes to attack and fight again. I saw his fights a lot of times as an amateur and a few fights as a professional. He is a southpaw. I haven’t fought a southpaw in a long time, probably since Cedric Agnew. Maybe it will be uncomfortable a little bit, but my goal is to make it an interesting fight.”

On this matchup: “I know just one thing, he’s very motivated right now. He never fought for a real world title and right now he is very motivated. Maybe, his whole life, he has been waiting for this moment. He comes here, and he is very dangerous because it is a great opportunity for his future boxing career … and I should be ready for everything he can bring against me.”

On his outlook toward boxing now: “I’m in the right way. Already, all my mistakes have been deleted mentally from my head. Right now, I just keep working and following my dream, for my goal to make the big fights.”

On working with his trainer Abror Tursunpulatov for the first full training camp: “I really like to work with Abror. I don’t think about what I should do, what I need to do, how many minutes or rounds. Everything is under his plan and his control. I like it, and right now I don’t spend my energy to think about training camp. Everything is under the control of Abror. I really like it, and now I have more energy to spend on focusing for the fight.”

On his current circumstances: “You know, I’m happy for everything that I have. What’s happened, has happened. What happened has made me better, and it’s in the past. What has happened with me, it’s a lesson for life. God sent me this test … It left big questions. I understand for myself, the main thing that I should do is maintain my body and my boxing career.”

On fighting outside the United States: “Fighting anyone who will fight is my goal. Wherever my next fight will be, I’ll go. For me, it doesn’t matter where I fight, just that everything should be fair around the fight. I like to travel.”

On his knockout against Vyacheslav Shabranskyy: “You know, I can say I’m back from my two losses. I’m much stronger mentally as a result of this. Life teaches me in these situations.”

Prediction for the outcome? “I don’t like to make any predictions … Only one thing I can say, this fight will be an interesting fight because it’s two Russians, and two motivated fighters. One of us will prove he is a world champion, and the other guy will lose.”

Sullivan Barrera Miami Media Workout Quotes

Miami, FL: Yesterday Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs) met with members of the media in Miami to discuss his upcoming mandatory challenge fight against WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs) at The Theater at Madison Square Garden Saturday, March 3. The bout will be the co-main event on the Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin HBO World Championship Boxing telecast which airs at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

Sullivan Barrera:

On fighting in a title bout:
“This would be a very important victory obviously because I want to look to the future after this. It would be a dream come true to win the title. And we would see what happens after that. There are a lot of big names out there.”

His plan fighting Bivol:
“Bivol is a good fighter and it is known that he has speed but we have a plan to adjust to the speed and take it away. We are going to impose ourselves and use our abilities.”

His thoughts on Bivol:
“Bivol is the champ and he has to be respected as such but I have fought big names before and that’s going to give me an edge. I have been there before, fighting in big fights.”

Regarding adversity and coming back from knockdowns:
“Things happen in a fight but you can see every time that it has happened the switch has gone on and activated me and I become a lot more dangerous. Obviously, that’s not the plan that it happens in any fight and we hope it doesn’t happen in this fight either. I know the crowd likes the drama and the excitement of it and it’s worked in our favor every time.”

What’s next?
“After March 3rd, when I get the belt, I’m ready, I’m ready right now for everyone, open for everyone. I’m a fighter and open to fight everybody. I’m a throwback fighter. I’m not thinking about sitting down. Of course, things need to be done right financial-wise but I am willing to fight anybody.”

His strategy for Bivol:
“Obviously, we can’t reveal our strategy and our plan, but I can tell you we are going to go out there 100% and leave it all out there in the ring to get the victory.”

Sergey Kovalev Reaching Full Potential by Letting Go

(Oxnard, California) – Despite his tremendous success at the highest levels of boxing, two-time Light Heavyweight Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs) says only now is he reaching his full potential as an athlete.

This is not happy news for the rest of the light heavyweight division!

Kovalevputs his WBO title on the line against fellow Russian light heavyweight Igor Mikhalkin (21-1, 9 KOs in the 12-round main event at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on March 3, televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

Under the guidance of new trainer Abror Tursunpulatov at The Boxing Laboratory in Oxnard, Kovalev says he had to turn over the reins and trust in his trainer to bring him to his full potential, something he admits he needed to do. “I’m under his control, 100 percent, under his plan for workouts, what time I wake up and what time I should go to sleep. We’re speaking about what I’m eating, and everything, we discuss it.

“It’s interesting right now. It’s working. It’s getting me in top shape for my next fight,” said Kovalev.

Kovalev says his two losses are in the past, but not the valuable lessons he learned from them. “It was the lesson of my life. The last two years before this (upcoming) fight, my sport mode was broken” due to his travel schedule back and forth between Russia and the U.S., missing workouts and changing time zones. Kovalev said it wasn’t a matter of not putting in the work, but not maximizing his training and doing damage with poor diet and overtraining.

Kovalev says it’s also a significant change for the better to speak in his native Russian with his trainer, one he only now fully recognizes. “We understand each other, 100 percent,” and with the understanding comes full trust.

In preparation for the southpaw Mikhalkin, Kovalev has engaged in sparring sessions with southpaws. “Day by day, spar by spar, I feel much better and more comfortable against a southpaw,” said Kovalev. “I should be ready for everything, because I am very motivated right now.” Kovalev said it’s the way of Russian fighters to give their all in the ring, “We are trained mentally, Russians, and never step back, just fighting till the end. We’re ready to fight for the world title.”

As an accomplished world champion among a large group of younger Eastern European and Russian boxers training alongside him in Oxnard, Kovalev understands he is seen as their role model. He accepts it, and takes the responsibility seriously.

“Yes, the guys take my personal example for something, for motivation for their upcoming fights, and something more. I feel very responsible, you know, working with Abror, and in this training camp, because around me are a lot of young fighters who watch my workouts,” said Kovalev.

Their attention produced a surprising benefit for Kovalev as well. “It’s good motivation for me, too. I show them how I must, and how all fighters must spend energy in the gym. It takes 100 percent effort to get any title in the world,” said Kovalev.

Sergey Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin and Dmitry Bivol vs. Sullivan Barrera International Media Conference Call Transcript

Kathy Duva: Welcome everyone to the Sergey Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin and Dmitry Bivol vs. Sullivan Barrera international media conference call. This is Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events. I just want to, on a personal note, tell everybody it’s great to have you back after these few months. This is a long cold winter. Happy to be able to get back into action.

Thank you to all the media who have dialed in on this call today to discuss two sensational championship fights in the light heavyweight division. Both bouts will air on HBO World Championship Boxing®, live from The Theater at Madison Square Garden, on Saturday, March 3rd at 10:05pm, ET/PT.

The main event between Sergey Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title. The co-main event, which features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion, Dmitry Bivol vs. Sullivan Barrera is a 12-round title fight.

Tickets range from $50 to $300. They are moving very well and are available online at ticketmaster.com, in person at Madison Square Garden box office, and directly through Main Events by dialing our office at 973-200-7050, or sending an email to boxing@mainevents.com. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing®.
We’ll also be featuring, for those who can be there in person, a fantastic undercard. Jolene Mizzone has always outdone herself and we will be featuring 11 bouts of all young prospects, some local, some from Eastern Europe and all over the world, who are going to be in great, competitive fights. It’s a good night to be there in person.

Sullivan Barrera: I feel alright. My training camp, we are going well too. I have been waiting my whole life for the title fight, so that’s the day finally here. Very important fight for me, so I’m very happy for that.

Question: Sullivan, can you tell us what went into your decision to take the Bivol fight over fighting Kovalev in the main event that night?

Barrera: I was offered the Sergey Kovalev fight initially for a substantial amount more money than the second time but at that time there was no title fight on the line. I felt that after the Wardfight, I was worthy of finally fighting for a title. The second time around when they offered me the Kovalev fight, it was for considerably less money, and they wanted to extend my contract. That is the reason why I decided to fight Bivol.

Question: Sullivan, can you tell us what you think of Bivol so far and if you think what people have been saying about him is justified based on what he’s done in the ring thus far.

Barrera: I respect all fighters. Bivol is a young, talented fighter. I respect anyone that gets in the ring. At the end of the day, when he steps into the ring, he’s going to have to prove everything that all the writers are saying about him.

Question: Why would this fight be different than Bivol’s previous fights? Because Sullivan obviously is the most experienced or most accomplished fighter that Bivol will have fought.

Barrera: All of my opponents have been younger than me. The importance here is that it’s a title fight and I am going in there knowing that it’s a title fight. I am preparing like this is the most important fight. I understand that Bivol is a younger guy and I’m used to that.

Question: What does Sullivan expect from fighting Bivol?

Barrera: I think in the past he hasn’t fought anyone with the experience that I have had and it should be a very competitive fight.

Question: Cuban boxers have had some recent defeats. The fighters that are left are [Luis] Ortiz, Erislandy Lara and Sullivan Barrera. Do you think you can be the show face for the Cuban boxing system?

Barrera: Of course, yes. I believe so.

Question: Kathy, why was Sullivan offered less money to fight Bivol than Kovalev?

Duva: Well, actually, while we were discussing the Kovalev fight, a lot of numbers got thrown around, but as far as the offer is concerned, it was the same, the actual offer. That’s my recollection of the negotiation.

Question: Sullivan also made a reference about extending the contract but I’m a little confused by that. Wouldn’t him becoming champion extend the contract?

Duva: Not at that time, no. Sullivan has been with Main Events a long time, that contract was running out and we were working on another one, where that was not featured in the contract. We did absolutely ask for options, it’s a voluntary defense and that’s typically the way things work.

Question: Sullivan, what weaknesses do you see in Dmitry Bivol that you feel you’ll be able to expose on March 3rd?

Barrera: The biggest difference is the experience. I feel that I’ve fought a lot more experienced fighters and I believe, strongly, that that will be the biggest difference come March 3rd.

Question: If Main Events was able to take you from a virtually unknown commodity of the United States, to a world champion who’s fighting on HBO, why wouldn’t you want to extend your contract with them?

Barrera: I never said that I was never going to re-sign with them or to continue to do business with them. Just that the offer that was made to me initially for the Kovalev fight was something that wasn’t up to par with what I wanted, and I am very thankful for everything Main Events has done for me and continues to do for me. What the future holds is after this fight.

Question: In this fight, is Sullivan betting on himself to improve the offers that he receives from Main Events?

Barrera: Yes, once I am a champion, the WBA champion, of course, I’ll be a champion, the offers do get much better.

Duva: Thank you Sullivan. Dmitry Bivol is the WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion. He is a fantastic fighter. We are partners with World of Boxing on this promotion and delighted to be working with him.

Question: Dmitry, earlier Sullivan said that the reason that he took the fight against you as opposed to Kovalev was about money. Why do you think that he took the fight?

Dmitry Bivol: I do not have any reason not to believe that Sullivan took the fight was because of the money, but at this point, it doesn’t matter why he decided to do it because now the only thing that’s left is the fight itself.

Question: Do you think that Sullivan views him as an easier opponent than Kovalev?

Bivol: At first, those were the thoughts that I might have had that maybe he thought I was a weaker opponent, but now that Sullivan has stated that it’s because of the money, I understand that maybe Sullivan is correct, he just did it because of the money. I don’t necessarily have a reason to not believe Sullivan.

Question: Dmitry, what is your opinion of Sullivan Barrera who obviously has a lot of international experience and has fought some top light heavyweights?

Bivol: Of course, I know that Sullivan has lots of experience and lots of fights behind him, but I know that I also have a lot of experience, might not as much as Barrera, but still lots of experience, good quality fights. I believe that I’ve got good qualities that I can trust. I can trust in myself to win this fight.

Question: How much do you feel that you have to prove yourself in this fight because Sullivan obviously is the best opponent that you have faced?

Bivol: I am definitely aware that Barrera is probably one of the best fighters that I’ve ever faced, probably the best fighter. But to me, every fight is important, and every fight, everything’s on the line, so I need to go out and do my best and make sure that I show my best qualities and do my best fighting.

Question: Dmitry, do you believe that perhaps because of the fact that you’ve only had 12 fights and you were a champion at an early age, you’re considered a rookie, so to speak, and that Barrera accepted you because of the fact that you were the lesser opponent in terms of a championship fight as opposed to Sergey Kovalev, or Superman Stevenson who’s fighting Badou Jack?

Bivol: I said before, at first, I might have thought that maybe Barrera decided to fight me because I’m a weaker opponent between the two. But, as Barrera stated, he accepted the fight over Kovalev specifically because of the money. So now, I know that that is why that fight was arranged. At the end, though, I am very happy that Barrera decided to fight me and I have no reason not to trust Barrera that he picked me specifically because of the money. So that is why I’m happy that we get to fight.

Question: Knowing that this is your title fight, you’re defending your title fight against, as expected, the veteran, which is Barrera, who’s fought Andre Ward and fought Joe Smith and guys with more fights than you. Without giving out any trade secrets, what are you doing extra to make sure that your hand is raised in victory March 3rd in terms of training?

Bivol: I believe that a person must do what he knows how to do. I know my good qualities and I make sure that every time I’m in practice, I’m perfecting the art of boxing. I’m perfecting my skills. I know that I’m not perfect but I want to make sure that I keep on working towards perfection. Nothing specific new is happening in camp; camp is always tough and camp is always good. It’s pretty much the same, the only thing that’s different maybe is tougher sparring partners, but other than that, I know my skills and I know that I want to continue doing what I do best, which is boxing.

Question: Dmitry, this is your New York City debut. How do you feel about fighting at the Theater at Madison Square Garden?

Bivol: I’m very excited about my debut in New York and, of course, to be fighting at Madison Square Garden. My trainer’s dream is to have his main fighter fight in the main event, in Madison Square Garden. This is a small step towards that dream for him.

Question: What are Barrera’s strengths and weaknesses that you’ve seen in his fight?

Bivol: Every fighter has his own weaknesses. I don’t necessarily want to discuss what Barrera’s weaknesses are. I think the best way to see it is just to see the fight and see where he was stronger and where he was weaker.

Question: We saw Andre Ward handle Sullivan Barrera rather easily. Will Dmitry look to deploy some of the same tactics?

Bivol: Ward showed a lot of good speed in a fight. He showed a lot of good movement, a lot of body movement in the fight, and possibly this is some of the things I would like to use in the fight as well.

Question: We’ve seen Sullivan go down in the first round of each of his last two fights. Will you look to jump on him? Do you see yourself getting off to a fast start knowing that in the last two fights whether he came out cold or for whatever the reason he’s been down early?

Bivol: I’m not lining up to necessarily knock him down or send him down in the first round. I’m going to assess the situation to see how the fight is going. And, of course, if there’ll be opportunities where I’m able to capitalize on them, for sure I will do it, but I will have to decide on my feet. I am training for all 12 rounds. I’m not sure if it’s going to go that long, but I’m training my stamina to make sure that I’ve got enough energy for all 12 rounds.

Question: It’s The Garden in New York, do you want this to be an all-out war, a dog fight, or would you prefer it to be a high IQ boxing match basically?

Bivol: When I come out to fight, I always try to fight with a high IQ. I want to make sure that I’m responsible for the movement that I make and I understand what’s going on. I’m always thinking on my feet. But, of course, after the fight, I want to make sure that the fight was also entertaining for the fans and the fans would like to see me fight again and are excited about me fighting.

Kathy: I would like to thank you Dmitry Bivol for joining us. Next on the line we have Igor Mikhalkin joining us from Germany with his promoter Erol Ceylan.

Question: Igor, I wanted to ask you, just looking at Kovalev fights in the past, will you focus on what everybody sees as his biggest weakness and go to the body? Is that something you’re going to stress going into this fight?

Igor Mikhalkin: I am going to judge it by the situation. I’m going to see how it goes, and try to hit in the head as well as go in the body. I’m going to assess the situation as the fight proceeds.

Question: Coming into The Garden, fighting on the big stage on HBO on the main event, if you could write the perfect script, how would he want this fight to play out?

Mikhalkin: [chuckles] Obviously, it’s a dream of every boxer to fight in the main event, Madison Square Garden. It’s obviously a dream fight for me. It’s very important for me. I’m very excited about it. And I’m not only fighting the main fight on the main card, I’m also fighting the main fighter in the light heavyweight division, so I’m going to write the perfect script on March 3rd and, hopefully, I’m victorious.

Question: Would you want it to end in a knockout or do you just want to win?

Mikhalkin: I’m going for points. I’m going for doing a good job boxing. I never was a puncher, so I never necessarily aim for a knockout. I conditioned to fight all 12 rounds, and I enjoy fighting all 12 rounds, so I’m going to go and fight technically and see how it goes.

Question: Igor, you’re making your debut in the Mecca of Boxing Madison Square Garden have you begun to develop perhaps a little bit of butterfly stage fright not only because this is your debut, but you’re fighting, like it was mentioned before, the number one. And what extra are you doing to make sure that your hand, not Sergey’s, is raised in victory on March third?

Mikhalkin: I’m conditioning and training really hard. I’m making sure I’m very well prepared for the fight. This is most likely the most important fight in my career. This is the greatest opponent I’ve ever fought. Before every fight, of course, there’s a little bit of butterflies. Because it’s Madison Square Garden as opposed to another arena, it’s not any more frightening than other places. I’m happy to be there. I’m happy to make my debut in Madison Square Garden, and I’m making sure that I’m training really hard to keep this fight in my favor.

Question: In terms of advantages or disadvantages, is the fact that he is a southpaw and fought very well, he has a very good record of 21 victories, nine knockouts, does a southpaw stance create advantage, you think?

Mikhalkin: Yes. The answer to your question is yes. I think being at southpaw is going to be to my advantage. The short answer is yes, I think so.

Question: Earlier, Igor, you said that you train for the distance and there is evidence of that in your record. Your last several fights, have gone to distance, but you haven’t been in there with somebody like Kovalev. Have you been sparring with bigger punchers than normal in an effort to try to simulate that power?

Mikhalkin: I have been inviting sparring partners that are bigger punchers that are trying to imitate, let’s say, the style of Kovalev. I’m prepared for when it’s time to fight on March 3rd.

Question: Are there any nuances? Is there anything else that you’re doing differently than normal?

Mikhalkin: Nothing specific. At the beginning of the training camp I thought maybe something needs to be changed, but then I realized that training is already good and so I am continuing to train very hard. Continuing to condition myself and make sure that everything goes well on March 3rd. So, not anything specific was changed, just hard training and training all the time.

Duva: I will like to thank Erol Ceylan and Igor Mikhalkin for joining us. Now we have two-time World Champion Sergey Kovalev on the line and Egis Klimas, his manager.

Question: Sergey, welcome back to New York City. This will be your second fight. You’re fighting a southpaw, what do you know about Igor?

Sergey Kovalev: Hi everybody. My pleasure to be back in New York fighting against Igor Mikhalkin. I know this guy from amateurs when I was maybe 17 or 18. And right now, we’re fighting in Madison Square Garden, so it’s interesting for me.

Question: What are his strengths and weaknesses that you know of Igor? If you’ve seen him in amateurs, you’ve seen him fight, maybe you just quarreled with him at amateurs?

Kovalev: I know that he is a nice guy and very good boxer. He’s IBO champion and that he wants to get the champion world titles. I will defend my WBO title March 3. I don’t know any more about him.

Question: Sergey, I was just wondering if you could tell us what Mikhalkin can do to make things difficult for you in the fight that you have to guard against. Being a southpaw, being a boxer, being a guy who moves, how do you guard against that to make sure you get the knockout?

Kovalev: I’m not going to do some something extra to get a victory over Igor Mikhalkin because I’m back already as champion of the world in my last fight. I should be ready for everything because I am very motivated right now. I think Mikhalkin is very excited about the fight with me. It’s going to be a very interesting fight because we are trained mentally, Russians, and never step back, just the fighting till the end. We’re ready to fight for the world title.

Question: Sergey, will you be disappointed if you’re not able to knock him out?

Kovalev: It’s not my goal to knock somebody out every round, every minute. I don’t think about it. I just get into the ring. We’ll get into the ring and I’m going to do my best job for boxing fans. What will happen, we will see. Everybody will see March 3rd. Watch HBO or come to Theater Madison Square Garden.

Question: Going into this fight, I know you talked a little bit about not worrying about the knockout, but you wouldn’t be “Krusher” Kovalev if you don’t knock the people out. That’s what people want. How important is it for you to be in this stage satisfying fans with this fight?

Kovalev: I will be very happy after the fight when I will get the victory over Igor by knockout. I’m really happy when my boxing fans are happy of results of the fight.

Question: Kathy, I want to ask you because I believe that you guys announced your date first, March 3rd, your fight with the main event with HBO. The other guys came in and they announced their date. Did they try to work with you at all or did anybody exchange any words saying, “Hey, look. We already got this date set in New York,” or is it just one of those things they announced it and everybody goes?

Duva: Nobody spoke to me. As you know, we announced this date on the night of Sergey’s last fight back in November. There are many dates that are held throughout the year for boxing events. They do not happen for various reasons. I can only worry about things I can control. Unfortunately, one of those things. We’re very happy with the response thus far from the fans with the ticket sales. At this point, we’ve already exceeded what we did last time. In fact, that was the case early on, actually, a couple weeks into the sales for the fight. We’re expecting a big robust crowd. I would advise anyone, especially, really not just the Sergey fans but the boxing fans, this is a great show, top to bottom. It’s not just about coming to see one fight, it’s about coming for the whole night. We will not disappoint you.

Question: Sergey, in your last several fights, you’ve been in there with pretty much nothing but the best of the best. Is it difficult for you to get motivated for a fight like Igor the same way as a Hopkins or an Andre Ward?

Kovalev: For me, every fight is like a call. It’s a call. Right now, this call I got Igor Mikhalkin, nobody except him. I’m ready to fight anybody. Who’s else right now is ready? Only Igor Mikhalkin. We have the best guys right now. Somebody can come and they have another belt and they defend the title against another challenger. And I’m fighting anybody who is ready to get into the ring against me. And Igor Mikhalkin got the call.

Question: Okay. You haven’t fought any southpaws since 2014 when you fought [Cedric] Agnew and [Blake] Caparello, two southpaws back-to-back. Who were some of the guys you’ve been sparring with to prepare for your first lefty in about four years?

Kovalev: It’s a little bit difficult to find somebody who looks like Igor Mikhalkin. But I’m ready because I have sparred already like three weeks with a southpaw. And day-by-day, spar-by-spar, I feel much better and more comfortable against southpaw. And this thing that will be interesting fight. I’m really excited that I’m fighting early on this year already and I’m really happy that I’m back on the high level to box high stakes.

About March 3: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. Tickets range from $50 to $300 and are available at TicketMaster.com and the Madison Square Garden box office. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

Kovalev-Mikhalkin & Bivol-Barrera Tickets on Sale Tuesday Presale Begins Monday!

New York, NY: Tickets go on sale Tuesday, January 16 at noon for the upcoming showdown between two-time Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs) versus Igor Mikhalkin (21-1, 9 KOs) and WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs) versus Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs), which takes place on Saturday, March 3 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Tickets for this exciting event are priced from $50 to $300 and will be available through ticketmaster.com and the Madison Square Garden box office. From Monday, January 15 at noon until Tuesday, January 16 at 11:00 am, subscribers to the Main Events email list can purchase tickets in advance using an exclusive presale code at www.ticketmaster.com and www.msg.com.

The event will be promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

About March 3: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing®. Tickets range from $50 to $300 and will be available through TicketMaster.com, the Madison Square Garden Box office and the Main Events office by calling 973-200-7050 or emailing boxing@mainevents.com.

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Kovalev-Mikhalkin & Bivol-Barrera March 3 at MSG

New York, NY: Sergey Kovalev continues his rise back to the top of the light heavyweight division when he returns to the Mecca of Boxing on Saturday, March 3rd to defend the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title versus southpaw Igor Mikhalkin, originally of Irkutsk, Russia, now fighting out of Hamburg, Germany. A skilled boxer, Mikhalkin puts his ten-bout winning streak on the line as he steps up to challenge one of the most fearsome punchers in professional boxing at New York City’s Theater at Madison Square Garden.

In the co-main event, newly minted WBA World Light Heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol of Russia makes his second defense of the title against Cuba’s streaking Sullivan Barrera, the mandatory challenger. Viewed as a “toss-up” bout by boxing insiders, Bivol-Barrera matches a young, explosive champion against an experienced veteran hungry for his first world title fight. Presented by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions, the doubleheader will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing®. Ticket information will be announced shortly.

Last month, the Big Apple welcomed Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs), the two-time light heavyweight world champion, with open arms as he made his New York debut with a stoppage of Vyacheslav Shabranskyy in the second round to reclaim his WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Eager to return to the ring and to his new home, “Krusher” thrilled his large following of Russian fans last month and he expects an even bigger contingent to greet him in March. As he sits comfortably atop the light heavyweight rankings and in the top five pound-for-pound, Sergey’s goal is to put on a great show for the fans in attendance and watching on HBO.

Kovalev said, “I really enjoyed fighting at Madison Square Garden in November. It feels like my home. I’m very excited to go back to MSG and to fight on HBO. Everyone should to have a great time watching my fight!”

Kovalev’s manager, Egis Klimas, added, “It’s still very difficult to find light heavyweights who want to fight Sergey. I’m surprised! Many thanks to Igor Mikhalkin, who is confident enough to take on The Krusher and get a big opportunity. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Shabranskyy is Ukrainian and Igor is Russian. They’re tough! Not afraid!”

Mikhalkin (21-1, 9 KOs), 32, a southpaw originally from Irkutsk, Russia, now resides in Hamburg, Germany. He made his professional debut in 2007 with a second-round stoppage against Stefan Stanko and went on to win his first 11 bouts with seven of those wins coming by way of knockout. The lone blemish on Mikhalin’s record is a unanimous decision loss to former WBO Light Heavyweight Title contender Aleksy Kuziemski in 2010. In the eight years since, Igor amassed several belts: the IBO Light Heavyweight World Title, EBU Light Heavyweight Title and the WBO Intercontinental Light Heavyweight Title. Mikhalkin will be making his US debut against Kovalev on March 3.

When asked about his upcoming title shot against Kovalev, Mikhalkin replied, “It is a great honor for me to fight in the United States. This will undoubtedly be the biggest and hardest fight in my career. Kovalev is for me the strongest man in this weight class. But I feel ready. The fight against Kovalev comes at the perfect time. I feel stronger than ever and I want to show the American boxing audience a great fight.”

Mikhalkin’s promoter, Erol Ceylan, of EC Box Promotions added, “We are happy to organize this fight together with Main Events. Kovalev is a big name in the light heavyweight division. Igor has absolutely earned this fight and he has the class to defeat Kovalev. Igor has already won many great foreign victories in his career and I’m sure that he will be successful again.”

In the co-main event, the young champion, Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs), makes his New York debut and fights in the United States and on HBO for the second time. Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs), who has become a fixture on HBO, returns to The Garden for his first world title fight. Both men were very focused on making this fight and facing each other. Some boxing commentators believe this matchup could be the fight of the night.

“This is not the first time that I am training for the most important fight of my career, and this motivates me and makes me happy! Sullivan Barrera is what we wanted and I am glad that we will meet in the ring soon,” explained WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion, Dmitry Bivol.

Andrei Ryabinskiy, of World of Boxing, Bivol’s promoter, explained, “We have planned a very active schedule for Dmitry Bivol and World of Boxing in 2018 and are happy to start the year with an event at Madison Square Garden on March 3rd with Dmitry Bivol vs Sullivan Barrera. I would like to thank Kathy Duva and HBO and hope that our partnership will prosper.”

Bivol’s manager, Vadim Kornilov added, “We are glad that our first appearance in 2018 will be against one of the best in the division in the legendary Madison Square Garden. Sullivan Barrera is a serious test for Bivol and we have a lot of respect for him taking this fight. We want to prove to the world that it was not by accident that this young kid became a world champion in only his 12th ring appearance, he is already fighting on HBO for his third time, and he is fighting one of the best fighters in the division with only one career loss that came at the hands of Andre Ward. Bivol has already been mentioned as a possible pound for pound prospect by many and we will continue fighting the best out there to prove this!”

Barrera said, “I came from Cuba with one dream and that was to win a world title. I know it won’t be easy and I know I chose the toughest road than anyone to get here. But I know all of the tough opponents I have agreed to fight and hard work will pay off. On March 3rd, I will become the most deserving light heavyweight champion in boxing.”

Main Events CEO Kathy Duva remarked, “We’re ready to showcase the light heavyweight division again at Madison Square Garden! We have Kovalev and Barrera both returning to The Theater after big wins in November and we’re adding another light heavyweight champion to the card! Dmitry is a young champion with a bright future ahead of him if he can get past Sullivan, which is no easy task. And Sergey is taking on Igor Mikhalkin, who is a young, but experienced, southpaw and that’s given him some trouble in the past. We’ll round out the show with another lineup of prospects and local guys in great fights to make sure the fans see a really entertaining and satisfying night of boxing.”

About Kovalev-Mikhalkin: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing®. Ticket information will be available shortly.

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Kovalev to defend against Igor Mikhalkin on March 3

WBO Light Heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev will most likely defend his crown against Igor Mikhalkin on March 3 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden and be televised on HBO, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Kovalev promoter Main Events and HBO had hoped to match Kovalev with top contender Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs), who is also with Main Events, in the March 3 main event. On the Kovalev-Barrera undercard, Barrera rallied from a first-round knockdown to win a wide unanimous 10-round decision against Felix Valera, to set up the obvious fight.

However, Barrera, 35, a Cuban defector fighting out Miami, is also the mandatory challenger for the light heavyweight belt held by Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs), 27, of Russia, and though he was offered the fight with Kovalev, Barrera instead elected to fight Bivol for less money on HBO in the Kovalev-Mikhalkin co-feature, a source with knowledge of the negotiations told ESPN.

“We are very interested in fighting the top fighters in the light heavyweight division. Barrera has been named the mandatory (challenger) for Bivol by the WBA and we would be glad to do that fight next,” Vadim Kornilov, Bivol’s manager, told ESPN recently.

YARDE: “I ALREADY PUNCH AT LEAST AS HARD AS KOVALEV, BETERBIEV AND STEVENSON!”

Fourteen fights, 14 wins, 13 stoppages and a top five world rating; all achieved in just 19 months and 28 rounds as a pro. The core stats reveal all you need to know about Anthony Yarde’s meteoric rise through the light-heavyweight ranks.

Following Saturday’s explosive four round demolition of Serbia’s tungsten tough Nikola Sjekloca, the 26 year old Beast from the East (London) reflects and speculates with Glynn Evans head of his return to the Copper Box Arena on February 10th.

You’ve enjoyed a fabulous 2017, collecting three belts and registering five explosive stoppage wins in just 13 rounds combined. What have been the key factors that have enabled you to achieve that?
I’ve achieved what I have this year by just focussing on myself, living in my own bubble, sticking to the basics and working hard. 85% of my success is down to grafting and 15% is down to talent. And you can lose talent if you just rely on it and don’t work hard to sustain and improve it.

The 15% God given talent that I have is my mentality and the speed that I have for my size. My speed is far more important than the power. It’s all about being able to LAND the heavy shots and I’m able to do that because I’m so quick.

The Sjekloca gig represented a massive step up in class. The Serbian medalled at both the European and World Seniors as an amateur, has lost just four of 37 as a pro and has fought more than ten times as many pro rounds. Were you apprehensive about that step up?
Not at all. I feel every opponent represents a different challenge and sometimes those that are supposed to be easier prove the hardest to impress against because they just tuck up and go into survival mode.

For once, I was facing an opponent who genuinely believed that he could win. His recent form was very good. In his previous fight, he drew with Robert Stieglitz, the European champion, over in Germany. He arrived with plenty of ambition. That provided opportunities for me to exploit.

Sjekloca took Gennady Golovkin and Andy Lee the full trip in the amateurs and had never been stopped during an 11 year pro career that has seen him face three world champions (Sakio Bika, Arthur Abraham and Tyron Zeuge). What did it mean to register a spectacular stoppage victory over him?
I’m not really into proving anything to others, I’m just about proving things to myself but it was fantastic. It sent out a big statement to the division. I’ve accelerated through the ranks relatively quickly.

I think I’m already one of the hardest punchers in the light-heavyweight division, at least as hard, if not harder than Kovalev, Beterbiev and Stevenson. The raw power is either there or it’s not and mine has been evident from the very beginning. This year, believe me, I’ve not always been digging with maximum power because I’ve been looking to gain a few crucial extra minutes in the ring.

What are your aspirations for 2018? Domestic and continental titles? World eliminators?
If you’d asked me the same question at the end of 2016, I doubt I’d have said I’d be world top five and holding three title belts so I’m not about to put a lid on anything. Whatever is meant to happen will happen but I’m not in any rush.

My job is to keep my head down, work hard and enjoy the journey. When it comes to career moves, ask my manager Tunde Ajayi and my promoter Frank Warren. Right now, I’m still a pretty inexperienced boxer and a very inexperienced businessman. I abide by the saying: ‘If you put your hands on too many pots, you won’t have control of any pot.’ I leave everyone in my team to do their job. I just focus on the boxing.

You’re gradually creeping higher up the card on the major bills. How do you feel about the prospect of headlining at The Copper Box or O2 next year?
Well I sort of topped the card at The Copper Box by default in July, after Billy Joe (Saunders) was forced to pull out at late notice. So I think I’m probably quite close to that, provided I keep winning.

It’s most definitely what I want; to be the key face on the posters, the main event and eventually pay-per-view. When I started out, I didn’t say: ‘I hope to do those things or I’d like to do those things….’ Those were things that I said: ‘I’m going to achieve, I will do….’

You have to have aspirations. Those are the things that keep me training so hard, keep me so focussed.

Promoter pre-sale tickets for ‘The untouchables’ are available now from www.frankwarren.com and on 01992 505 550.

Tickets priced at £50 (Lower Tier), £70 (Floor), £100 (Floor), £150 (Floor) and VIP/Hospitality £250 are available via See Tickets, Eventim and Ticketmaster on Wednesday 20th December at 12.00 noon.

See Tickets
0871 230 7148
www.seetickets.com

Eventim
0844 249 1000
www.eventim.co.uk

Ticketmaster
www.ticketmaster.co.uk

Krushing it: Kovalev stuffs us with memories of a better Thanksgiving weekend

By Bart Barry-

Saturday Russian light heavyweight Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev laid waste to an otherwise-anonymous Ukrainian named Vyacheslav “Two YYs” Shabranskyy in the sort of woeful mismatch managers schedule immediately after their former champions get conclusively whupped but don’t traditionally expect to see televised. Especially on HBO. Seeing Kovalev bully another hopeless opponent, though, did nothing nearly so much as remind aficionados of Andre Ward’s greatness in moving up a weightclass and roughtrading Kovalev in June.

The weekend after Thanksgiving hopes to become a Krusher Kovalev turkey-giveaway tradition at HBO. Four years ago Kovalev krushed someone named Ismayl Sillah as part of the Stevenson-Kovalev marketing campaign that got Adonis Stevenson an absurd reward-to-risk ratio over at Showtime and got Kovalev a bunch of wellpaying placeholder matches and fruity modifiers – “most-feared”, “sociopathic”, “dominating”, and so forth – interspersed with chasing old man B-Hop round the ring and Kovalev’s recent reckoning with a great fighter in his prime, which, again, didn’t go swell for Krusher.

Before Thanksgiving weekend was about c-level cards and a-side rehab on HBO, well well before, several regimes before, 13 years before, someone had the chutzpah to put the third match of the remarkable Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales trilogy on the same weekend in Las Vegas. What one can’t help but sense when he revisits that fight is the honesty of it all. Even matchmaking, complementary skillsets (Barrera’s lefthook, Morales’s rightcross), genuine animosity, two superlative practitioners driven to lunacy by one another’s fists. It’s the disbelief the men retained even after 24 rounds together – what makes it different from, though not better than, Vazquez-Marquez: By the third time Israel Vazquez traded blows with Rafael Marquez (the greatest trilogy of my lifetime thus far) the men respected one another deeply, whereas Barrera and Morales spent their 25th round together treating one another like latereplacement pugs.

Morales came in the fight outweighing himself and with right yellowglove high and cocked, intending to stiffen Barrera more quickly than Manny Pacquiao’d turned the feat a year earlier. Barrera, meanwhile, proud as any man who’s been gloved, saw Morales only as HBO’s “puto campeón” – what he called Morales after their first fight, a pejorative subsequently scrubbed from replays – and despised Morales further for his intended cherrypicking of Barrera’s weakened self. Morales knew he could cut Barrera’s lights with a proper right, and Barrera knew Morales couldn’t cut his lights in a lifetime of trying. That leavened the match further; two rational actors harmonizing their ways to an irrational conclusion, two men thinking an act inevitable when for at least one actor it was impossible.

Then Barrera knuckleclipped Morales’s aquiline nose with a left uppercut crunchy enough to make El Terrible breathe mouthly the duration. Asked afterwards about his broken nose Morales said he didn’t remember it happening because it didn’t matter.

As Barrera’s fortunes rose after he got decisioned by Morales in their first match, Feb. 2000, undressing Naseem Hamed 14 months later in a 36-minute denuding that remains the genre’s standard a decade and a half hence, Morales’s fortunes rose after he got decisioned a second time by Barrera (in what probably was the only correct scorekeeping result of the trilogy): Fewer than four months after his rubbermatch with Barrera, El Terrible decisioned Manny Pacquiao. Reflect on that as you finish digesting what hyperbolic gravy HBO ladled over the Kovalev turkey Saturday: Morales went directly from the completion of one historic trilogy, losing to Barrera, to the commencement of another, beating Pacquiao.

Did we know how lucky we were? Hard to say. I recall thinking Morales was a once-in-a-lifetime athlete, as was Pacquiao, obviously, at the time he decisioned Pacquiao, but as I’d just begun writing about our beloved sport I didn’t know quite how unique Morales was.

If you don’t task yourself with 1,000 weekly words about boxing its dead periods are not so acute. If pressed I might be able to name unaided a dozen prizefights I recall between Barrera-Morales 1 and 3 (some of that time I spent residing in Mexico where there was a walking-range sportsbar that televised every fight) but I have no recollection of what I had to think about when no fights were happening like I do now. That’s part of the reason I have an opinion about Saturday’s fare. It’s not the sort of thing I’d opine about without this column, which you surely inferred from the majority of this column’s being written about a wellworn something, that happened in 2004, and you inferred it because by virtue of your even reading this you’re helping sustain my enduring pride (and gratitude) about how much smarter my reader is than what lessdiscerning peers congregate round more popular writers’ reports (and you can know who you are like this: If you think the last part of this runon sentence is about you, it is).

Saturday’s HBO card and next Saturday’s card and nextnext Saturday’s card have the feel of a kid hustling to clean up his room when mom threatens to suspend his allowance. It’s not what he wants to be doing with his Saturday night, but he does want to stay in good graces however poorly he’s behaved since his last allowance, and if he can get it done fast and vigorously enough he can point to his effort at least: Cancel your subscription if you want to, Mom, if your mind was already made-up, fine, but don’t say it’s because I didn’t try – I gave you five boxing telecasts in six weeks at the end of 2017!

It’s a fair point, and as aficionados are nearly irrational about boxing as moms’re about their sons, it should serve to retain the 600,000 of us faithful souls who reliably watch things weak as Saturday’s card.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

FOLLOW KOVALEV – SHABRANSKYY LIVE!!

Follow all the action as Sergey Kovalev looks to regain the WBO Light Heavyweight title against Vyacheslav Shabranskyy. The action begins at 10 PM ET / 7 PM PT with Junior Lightweight contest between former world champions Jason Sosa and Yuriorkis Gamboa followed by a Light Heavyweight fight between Sullivan Barrera and Felix Valera

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12-Rounds–WBO Light Heavyweight title–Sergey Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) vs Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs)
ROUND	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	TOTAL
Kovalev*	10	TKO											10
Shabranskyy	7												7

Round 1: Kovalev lands a right..Good jab.Body shot..Right from Shabranskyy..BIG RIGHT AND DOWN GOES SHABRANSKYY..BIG RIGHT AND DOWN GOES SHABRANSKYY..

Round 2 Hard right from Kovalev..HARD LEFT AND SHABRANSKYY GOES DOWN..Right rocks Shabranskyy..HARD ONSLAUGHT AND THE THE FIGHT IS OVER

10-Rounds–Light Heavyweights–Sullivan Barrera (20-1, 14 KOs) vs Felix Valera ( 15-1, 13 KOs)
ROUND	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	TOTAL
Barrera	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	9	10			98
Valera	10	9	9	9	10	8	9	8	9	10			91

Round 1 HARD LEFT HOOK AND DOWN GOES BARRERA..RIGHT HAND AND DOWN GOES VALERA

Round 2 Left hook from Valera..Good left hook from Barrera..Valera warned for a low blow..Good right from Barrera..Barrera cut over his left eye..Hard right to body from Barrera..

Round 3 VALERA DEDUCTED A POINT FOR LOW BLOW..Left hook from Valera..Left hook to body from Barrera..

Round 4 Good overhand right from Barrera…Hard right…Right to body..right..

Round 5

Round 6 VALERA DEDUCTED ANOTHER POINT FOR LOW BLOW..Barrera lands a right. Valera lands a left..2 lefts Barrera…Good body shot..Right hand..Straight right to the chin..Hard combination

Round 7 Right from Barrera..Trading body shots..Good right from Barrera..Left uppercut

Round 8 VALERA DEDUCTED ANOTHER POINT FOR LOW BLOWS..Good uppercut from Barrera..

Round 9 BARRERA DEDUCTED A POINT FOR A LOW BLOW..Good left to body and right from Barrera..

Round 10 Big left hook from Valera..Body shot…Barrera lands a body shot..Big left hook

98-88, 97-90, 97-89 for SULLIVAN BARRERA

10-Rounds–Jr. Lightweights–Jason Sosa (20-2-4, 15 KOs) vs Yuriorkis Gamboa (27-2, 17 KOs)
ROUND	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	TOTAL
Sosa	9	10	10	9	9	9	10	10	10	10			96
Gamboa	10	9	10	10	10	10	8	9	9	9			94

Round 1 Hard right from Gamboa…Good body shot

Round 2 2 Body shots from Gamboa..Sosa lands a left hook…Cut over Gamboa’s left eye..Good over hand right from Sosa

Round 3

Round 4 Good body shot from Gamboa..

Round 5 Hard right from Gamboa..Good right from Sosa…Right From Gamboa..

Round 6 Left from Gamboa..

Round 7 RIGHT HAND MAKES GAMBOA GLOVE TOUCH CANVAS FOR A KNOCKDOWN..Good left hook from Gamboa..Good right from Sosa..Body shot..

Round 8 Right from Sosa..Left to Body..Left..Right to body

Round 9 Right from Sosa

Round 10 GAMBOA DEDUCTED A POINT FOR HOLDING…

94-94; 95-93; 96-92 for YURIORKIS GAMBOA

Return Of The “Krusher” — Kovalev Stops Shabranskyy In 2

NEW YORK CITY –Sergey Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KO) returned to pre-Andre Ward fight form and captured the WBO world light heavyweight title, blasting through Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (19-2, 16 KO), sending him to the canvas three times inside two rounds en route to a TKO victory.

After a brief “feeling-out” period, where Kovalev was momentarily backed up by a Shabranskyy jab, the 34 year-old Russian marched forward, uncorking massive right hands that seemingly landed at will. It was midway through the first when a “Krusher” right landed flush on the side of Shabranskyy’s head and sent him down to the mat for the first time.

Upon beating the count, Kovalev greeted his 30 year-old Ukrainian counterpart with more haymakers and eventually connected with an even bigger right that collapsed Shabranskyy to the mat again. The “Lionheart” beat referee Harvey Dock’s ten count and was able to survive the round.

In the second round, Kovalev picked up right where he left off, fighting as ruthless and relentless as ever, plodding forward and unloading vicious bombs that continually connected with an alarming success rate.

A left-right-left combo midway through the second sent Shabranskyy down for the third time. Again, Shabranskyy beat the ten-count, but this time he stood on extremely unsteady legs. Kovalev continued to wail on an absent Shabranskyy until referee Harvey Dock stepped between the two combatants and called a half to the bout at the 2:36 mark of round two.

It was Kovalev’s first performance since dropping two straight fights to Andre Ward, both controversial in their own right. In their first meeting, Ward scored a split decision victory, despite hitting the canvas in the second round. In their rematch, referee Tony Weeks controversially waved off the match in the eighth round after a series of borderline low-blow body shots hurt the 34 year-old Russian and left him defenseless.

Tonight also marked Kovalev’s first fight working with head trainer, Abror Tursunpulatov. Previously, Kovalev had been working with John David Jackson. Rumors of a fractured relationship between Kovalev and Jackson began to swirl between the first and second Ward fights, and in October, the inevitable parting of ways become official when Kovalev formally announced Tursunpulatov as his new coach.

Prior to tonight’s devastating loss, Shabranskyy was having himself a solid 2017, scoring back to back stoppage wins over Larry Pryor and Todd Unthank May, respectively. Those wins were enough to land him his first title shot tonight against Kovalev.

Shabranskyy’s only other loss came courtesy of Sullivan Barrera in December 2016.

Barrera, who scored a unanimous decision victory earlier in the night against Dominican, Felix Valera, is certainly a candidate to fight for Kovalev’s title in the near future.

“It’s my goal to be the best in the division,” Kovalev said afterward. “Here tonight was great boxing for me and I love boxing and I want to make great fights.

Bombs Away — Barrera Scores UD Win Over Valera

Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KO) out-slugged and earned a ten round unanimous decision victory over Felix Valera (15-2, 13 KO) in a light heavyweight contest marred by low-blows.

There were fireworks from the opening bell and midway through the bout’s first round, the free swinging Dominican, Valera, caught his Cuban counterpart with a monster left hook that sent Barrera down the canvas. The 35 year-old Barrera was able to shake the knockdown and score one of his own later in the round right as the bell sounded, when a glancing Barrera shot sent an off-balance Valera to the mat.

The first of four point deductions administered by referee Mike Ortega, Jr. for low blows came in the second round when Valera nailed Barrera below the waistline for the second time. Valera would also be deducted a point in the sixth and eighth rounds. Barrera was deducted a point for low blows in the ninth.

It was a bombs away type affair, with both fighters swinging wildly at times, knowing that they possessed the power to end the fight with one punch. But time and time again, however, it was Barrera who landed the more meaningful, significant shots.

In an attempt to rattle Barrera flamboyant Valera tried anything he could to disrupt the always-composed Cuban. The 29 year-old Dominican flailed his arms wildly, stuck his tongue out at Barrera, and even jumped up and down — all to no avail.

At the end of ten, all judges scored the bout widely for Barrera. Don Ackerman had it 98-88, Tom Schreck 97-89, and Glenn Feldman 97-90.

It was another solid win for Barrera, whose only defeat came at the hands of Andre Ward in March 2016. Barrera last fought in July against Joe Smith, Jr., where much like tonight, he rose off the canvas to score a unanimous decision victory.

For the durable Valera, it was his second professional defeat, the other coming courtesy of undefeated superstar, Dmitry Bivol.

Gamboa Earns Controversial Decision Over Sosa

Yuriorkis Gamboa (28-2, 17 KO) scored a controversial ten round majority decision victory against Jason Sosa (20-3-4, 15 KO) in what many viewed as a make or break fight for the former three-division world champion.

It was clear early on that the 35 year-old former Olympic Gold Medalist’s gameplan was to stick-and-move, get-in and get-out. Conversely, Sosa’s plan was to plod forward, apply as much pressure as he could, while landing the bigger, more significant power punches.

After a first round where both fighters staked their flag, Sosa unloaded a looping right that caught Gamboa on the button as the second round drew to a close. Any Sosa attempt to throw follow up shots were quickly squandered by the dinging of the bell.

Gamboa got right back to work in the middle rounds, however, staying true to his stick-and-move gameplan, landing a few shots, then slipping most of Sosa’s return-fire.

Sosa began to swing the momentum back his way in the sixth, and in the seventh, a Sosa left hook clipped an off-balance Gamboa whose gloved fist made contact with the canvas. Referee Ron Lipton immediately ruled a knockdown.

The final three rounds saw good action, with Sosa coming forward, and Gamboa trying to hit and move.

In the tenth round, referee Ron Lipton controversially deducted a point from Gamboa for holding.

At the conclusion of ten, judge Robin Taylor scored the contest even, 94-94. She was overruled by judges John McKaie and Don Trella, who scored the bout 95-93 and 96-92, respectively. 15rounds.com scored the fight 95-94 for Gamboa.

Sosa was initially slated to face Robinson Castellanos (24-13, 14 KO), who scored an upset TKO win against Gamboa in May. However, an injury earlier this month forced the Mexican to withdraw, and Gamboa was called in as a late replacement.

The win makes it two straight for “El Ciclon” since suffering that shocking defeat to Castellanos.

For Sosa, the tough-luck loss his is second in a row, the other coming back in April courtesy of Vasily Lomachenko.

“It was a good fight. I didn’t have enough time to train. I only had three weeks. I didn’t have time to get ready. I needed 2 or 3 more weeks to lose the weight correctly,” Gamboa said afterward.

He continued, “Of course the decision was good. I think won every round. Except for the knockdown and the point deduction.”

Sosa also spoke afterward, saying, “I was a fun fight. I took some breaks but I thought I did enough to win. I know I did enough to win the fight.”

Murtazaliev Destroys Galvan In 5, Wins IBA Super Welterweight Title

Bakhram Murtazaliev (11-0, 9 KO) methodically broke down Carlos Galvan (16-6-1, 15 KO) before closing the show in spectacular fashion in the fifth round of a super welterweight contest slated for ten.

The heavy-handed Russian, who operates under the tutelage of Sergey Kovalev’s new trainer, Abror Tursunpulatov, stalked his Colombian counterpart round after round. Like waves on a shore, Murtazaliev kept coming forward, forcing Galvan to fight going backwards, something he was clearly uncomfortable doing.

After four rounds of systematically crushing Galvan’s will, the 24 year-old Russian broke through in the fifth, sending Galvan to the mat with a vicious one-two. About a minute later, Murtazaliev finished off his wounded foe with a thundering left hook to the liver that put Galvan on the mat for good. Referee Ricky Gonzalez opted not to administer a ten-count and instead, called a stop to the contest at the 1:31 mark of round five.

It was the fourth stoppage defeat in six overall losses for Galvan. It was also his fourth time fighting in the United States, and his fourth loss.

Galarza Grabs UD Win In Return To Ring

Brooklyn’s Frank Galarza (18-2-2, 11 KO) returned to the ring after a fourteen month layoff and scored a unanimous decision win over Chicago’s Jamie Herrera (15-5-1, 8 KO) in an eight round super welterweight contest.

The victory was hard-earned and well-deserved for Galarza, who had dropped his previous two contests — a TKO loss to Jarrett Hurd and a majority decision loss to veteran Ishe Smith, a fight that saw Galarza hit the canvas in the second round.

It was a gutsy affair between two veteran prizefighters who each were coming off lengthy layoffs. For Galarza, who in July inked a new promotional deal with Main Events, the fight marked just his second fight in the last twenty-four months, and the first since September 2016. For the Mexican-American Herrera, it was just his first fight since November 2016, when he suffered UD loss to Taras Shelestyuk.

The fight was a back and forth contest, with a predictable, but entertaining ebb and flow. Round after round, both fighters willingly engaged, eating a few shots before landing their own. But while both fighters enjoyed success over the duration of the contest, it was the 33 year-old Galarza who punches landed cleaner and with more frequency.

In the fifth round, a Galarza right hand opened up a cut over his 28 year-old counterparts left eye. In the seventh, a booming right to the body by Galarza hurt Herrera, hunching him forward where he was met with a flurry of Galarza lefts and rights until Herrera was able to weather the storm.

The Chicagoan’s high-pressure style was both a blessing and a curse for him in that it seemed to slowly wear down Galarza, but also left him vulnerable to Galarza stick-and-move pot-shots as he tried to work his way inside his reach.
At the end of eight rounds, all three judges scored the contest for Galarza. Robin Taylor scored it a shutout 80-72, while referees John McKaie and Allen Nace saw it 78-74 and 79-73, respectively.

“I feel good after a 14 month layoff, shaking off some ring rust. I’m so grateful for Main Events to put me on their card,” Galarza remarked afterward.

He continued, “Hopefully I’ll be back in the Garden soon. It felt great, it was where I belong. It felt right. Not many places you can call home, but this is one for me.”

Galarza also acknowledged his legion of fans in the crowd tonight. “I’m grateful for my supporters, for people who waited it out for me,” he said. “As a Brooklyn native, a person from New York who’s been around, they support me and that’s the best thing.”

Nursultanov Stays Perfect, Hands Moon First Loss Inside Two

In a battle that pitted two undefeated middleweights against one another, Kazakhstan’s Meiirim Nursultanov (5-0, 4 KO) made quick work of Marietta, Georgia’s Eric Moon (7-1, 6 KO), stopping him inside two rounds.

It was all Nursultanov from start to finish, as he pressured and battered Moon from the opening bell. Midway through the second, Nursultanov pinned Moon against the ropes and wailed away, mixing shots to the body and head. At the 1:54 mark of the second round, referee Ricky Gonzalez decided Moon had eaten too many uncontested shots and called a halt to the contest.

The win makes it four kayos in five professional fights for the Egis Klimas managed, Main Events promoted, Nursultanov.

Thunder In His Hands, LeShawn Rodriguez Stops Duarte In 3

In a middleweight contest slated for six, former New York Golden Gloves Champion and 2016 US Olympic alternate “Lightning” LeShawn Rodriguez (8-0, 7 KO) powered his way past Sao Paolo’s Brazil’s Alex Duarte (13-3-1, 10 KO) en route to a third round KO victory.

It was an impressive display of patience, prowess, and power from the 24 year-old New York native, who balanced his attack, working to both the head and body of his 37 year-old counterpart.

Midway through the second, Rodriguez ripped a left to the body that put Duarte on his knees. The Brazilian beat Steve Smoger’s ten count and was able to survive the round.

In the third however, a Rodriguez left-right combo to the body and head, sent Duarte to the canvas for good, where he was unable to beat Smogers count. The official time of stoppage was the 1:48 mark of round three.

It was Duarte’s third loss of his career, all of which have come via stoppage.

“It feels good always to win, but to win by knockout is better, sensational, spectacular,” Rodriguez said afterward. “I felt at home. A lot of people came out to see me. This is the first time I’ve fought in New York since I turned pro.”

Gogokhia Stays Perfect, Decisions Abreau

Enriko Gogokhia remained perfect (7-0, 3 KO) with a unanimous decision win over Jose Antonio Abreau (13-3, 8 KO) in a six round welterweight contest.

Action picked up toward the end of the second round when the southpaw, Gogokhia, floored his Dominican counterpart. The 29 year-old Abrea beat the ten count and was immediately met with a barrage of punches as the round drew to a close.

In the next few rounds, the Egis Klimas managed Gogokhia, pressed his foot on the gas and forced the action, continually getting the better of the boxer’s exchanges.

In the end, all three judges scored it widely for the 26 year-old Georgian native, Gogokhia. Scores were 60-53 and 59-54, twice. The judges’ decision resulted in Abreau’s third career loss, all of which have been on US soil.

“It was a good fight, good opponent with a good record,” Gogokhia said afterward. “It was harder because the opponent was ready and he also wanted to win. I was just getting started by the last round. Still, a victory is a victory.”

Villareal Kicks Off Pro Campaign With Win

The undercard of Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranskyy kicked off with the successful debut of former two-time New York Golden Gloves champion, Ismael Villareal (1-0). The former amatuer standout scored a unimous decision victory over Race Sawyer (0-5) in a four round super welterweight contest.

Villareal, who fights out of John’s Gym in the Bronx is trained by his father, former welterweight Otilio Villareal, who over his 32 bout pro career, shared the ring with the likes of Zab Judah, Kermit Cintron, and Hector Camacho.

Villareal controlled the contest bell to bell, bruising and battering Utah’s Sawyer with head snapping blows. The 21 year old Bronx debutant would have benefitted by putting in more work to his foe’s body, but that was not on the agenda tonight.

All in all, Villareal won’t have too much to complain about tonight. The Ecuadorian-American pitched a shutout on all three judges scorecards. Don Trella had it 40-35, and John McKaie and Robin Taylor scored it 40-36.

After the contest, Villareal did speak about having some debut butterflies.

“It totally felt different than the amateurs,” he said. “There were so many more people looking at me. I was trying to look good, I was focused on the knockout because it was my very first professional fight.

“I learned I have to work harder and be careful not to get hit.”

Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranskyy Final Press Conference Recap

Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events:

It’s Thanksgiving week in New York City. It’s a time for people to consider what they are thankful for; to count their blessings. I can speak for everyone at Main Events and say how thankful we are to have the opportunity to put on a show for boxing fans at the greatest venue for boxing in the United States, Madison Square Garden. We’re thankful we can offer these talented, dedicated athletes the chance to reach for their goals and better their lives through boxing. Tickets starting at $50 are still available through Ticketmaster and the Madison Square Garden box office for Saturday’s event or you can watch live on HBO World Championship Boxing® starting at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific Time.

Our card features two bouts in the competitive light heavyweight division: Sullivan Barrera vs. Felix Valera and our main event, the Next Chapter in Sergey Kovalev’s career, the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title fight against Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy.

The opening bout of the HBO telecast brings together two action-oriented junior lightweights, Jason Sosa and Yuriorkis Gamboa, in a must win 10-round fight. On our off TV undercard, we have three talented and undefeated Eastern European fighters out of the famed Boxing Laboratory in Oxnard, California with Bakhram Murtazaliev, who is co-promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions, facing Carlos Galvan in a ten-round super welterweight bout, a battle of the unbeaten between middleweights Meiirim Nursultanov and Eric Moon and Enriko Gogokhia versus Jose Antonio Abreu in a welterweight showdown.

And, a little treat for all the New York fans, we have three born-and-bred local fighters getting the chance to perform in front of their friends and family on Thanksgiving weekend. They include Brooklyn’s Frank Galarza making his Madison Square Garden debut against Jaime Herrera, Long Island-native LeShawn “Lightning” Rodriguez, who has promised to put on his own Winter Spectacular versus Alex Duarte and, making his pro debut, Ismael Villarreal, from the Bronx, will face Race Sawyer.

We are thankful to our sponsors Medoff Vodka and Leon.RU. We are thankful for all our partners in this card; working with so many good people proves you cannot succeed alone. I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions, Shuan Boxing Promotions, Peltz Promotions and Krusher Promotions for a wonderful working relationship making this event possible. I want to thank HBO, especially Peter Nelson and Tony Walker, for their unwavering support. We will not let you down. As always, we thank you for the opportunity.

Peter Nelson, Executive Vice President – HBO Sports:

I want to thank all the press for being here. It’s a great privilege to be associated with such a great event and to see you all turn out here before a holiday. I want to thank, first and foremost, everyone at Main Events, constant professionals. We always know we can rely on Main Events to, not only deliver us a great show, but also on the undercard, off HBO, Kathy is giving us a glimpse into the future. The fighters she just named are all apart of budding generation you will be seeing on HBO in the coming years. I would also like to thank the different parties working together in order to make this event happen, obviously Krusher Promotions as well as Golden Boy Promotions. I want to thank everyone on team Barrera as well as team Valera, in addition to Russell Peltz. This guy gives the best talks in all of boxing and he is just sitting there right now. I don’t understand what we are doing here. Every time he gets up here he schools everybody. You never want to talk after Russell Peltz.

I want to thank everyone who is really committed to making the best fights in boxing and constantly working together in order to do that. It is important to work with people who want to put the fights together that the fighters want. They have to be willing to work with anybody, anywhere and the fighters we want on the network are the ones who want to fight anyone, anytime and anywhere. As I can attest with all these fighters up here, I have never had that problem with any of them. They have never turned down a fight. Those are the kind of fighters people want to watch. Those are the kind of fighters that make the fights people want to see. And those are the kind of fights that lead to bigger and better things for each of the fighters involved. Our start time is 10 p.m. and we have a triple header.

We have all action fights on HBO. In the super featherweight division with Jason Sosa and [Yuriorkis] Gamboa are going to compete in order to see what the big next step is to come in their career. The light heavyweight division, as Kathy said, is a stacked division. Two great fights there. Maybe we see the winners meet up down the road. We see some others fighters who are in great position to try and take dominance over an open division right now and have a world title fight like Sergey vs. Shabranskyy. If you aren’t going to be at home or watching it on television, set your DVR. Hopefully you will be at the arena on Saturday night. We look forward to seeing you all. Thanks very much.

Joel Fisher, Executive Vice President – Madison Square Garden:

I really want to welcome everybody here to this final press conference at MSG. This is really an exciting time at The Garden as we get ready to host three consecutive weekends of great fights. We haven’t done that since the 1960s. The two guys that are fighting this weekend will follow in the footsteps of all the great boxers and fighters that fought in the MSG ring. Sergey is really one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world and we know that he is ready to start the next chapter of his brilliant career. We are thrilled to host the light heavyweight world championship fight between Sergey and Vyacheslav. It will be another night in a long history of great fights at The Garden. As all you know The Theater is actually a tremendous place to host a fight and view one. We are sure all the loyal fans will come out. It’s just going to be a great atmosphere on fight night with top quality boxing at The Garden. Those two things are synonymous. The Garden has been in the boxing business for over 130 years. This will just add to the rich history of all the MSG fighters: Sugar Ray Robinson, Ali, Joe Frazier and the list goes on and one. As I said this kicks off three fights in a row. Three weekends in a row so it really is an exciting time for us. I really want to thank Kathy, Peter, their staffs from myself, Sal Federico and my staff. It’s just been great to work together with everybody. I want to take this time to wish everybody a Happy Thanksgiving. As Kathy said its Thanksgiving weekend and for everybody to come out is great. Hopefully everyone has a great Thanksgiving, a great holiday and end it with a great night of boxing here at MSG. I look forward to seeing everyone and have a great holiday.

Duva:

Finally, to the media present and watching live, thank you for your time and attention. I promise you, in the months and years to come, you’ll remember you were here to witness The Next Chapter in Sergey Kovalev’s career.

We have an exciting undercard – this is a full Thanksgiving meal with plenty on the table. Opening our bout on the HBO card is former unified featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa (27-2, 17 KOs) stepping in to fight former WBA World Super Featherweight Champion, Jason Sosa (20-2-4, 15 KOs) in a ten-round super featherweight fight. Gamboa is a native of Guantanamo, Cuba, an Olympic gold medalist. This is a fight he wanted. Sosa is one of our many local fighters on the undercard, from Camden, New Jersey. These guys both want to start the next chapter of their careers on a winning note.

Russell Peltz, President – Peltz Boxing:

When they get to this part of the press conference, they start with the main event. Teddy Brenner was the greatest matchmaker in the history of boxing. For those of you who don’t know who he was, he was the matchmaker here at MSG from the late 50s to the late 70s before that he ran what they call the House of Upsets in the Eastern Parkway of Brooklyn where about a third of the 200 main events he made became rematches in The Garden. No one will ever surpass Teddy because Teddy promoted fights, he did not promote fighters. He had three criteria for what made a good fight: 1. Do the styles mesh? Gamboa and Sosa are each 5’6. They each try to hurt people. 2. Does the fight lead somewhere? The winner has been promised a shot at a world title. 3. The most important is, would I buy a ticket to see this fight? Absolutely. That’s why I think it’s the most compelling, the most intriguing, the most interesting fight on this card. Gamboa cannot afford a loss. People say he is washed up. He is 25-2. I don’t know how washed up you can be at 25-2. We expect to see the best Gamboa there has been. The one I have ran into here a few years ago when he knocked out a fighter I had Rogers Mtagwa. Jason Sosa is coming off a defeat to Lomachenko and I was in the dressing room with him after that fight. It was a tearful scene. Peter Nelson from HBO came in and said, ‘I promise I won’t forget what you did for us this night. You stepped in when no one else wanted to fight Lomachenko at that time for any reasonable amount of money.’ Jason took the challenge and everybody said it’s the end of his career and here we are back again. Peter made good on his promise and we are one fight away from fighting for the world title. We would love to fight any of the guys that are fighting on the HBO show on December 9th.When Robert Diaz or Eric Gomez or Peter Nelson call me I don’t even say hello. I say will take it because that’s what fighters do; they fight. I’m really looking forward to this thank you.

Jason Sosa, former WBA Super Featherweight World Champion:

First I don’t really have a lot to say because tomorrow is Thanksgiving and we are not gonna have the privilege to eat at least four or five plates. I would just like to give thanks. Thanks to the media. Thanks to Peter Nelson and Main Events. I am thankful for my family, my two kids and my mom. And I’m thankful for the opportunity to, once again, showcase my talent on HBO.

Raul Rivas, Trainer of Jason Sosa:

First and foremost I want to thank the man up above; without him nothing is possible. Thanks to the media, HBO, of course, Golden Boy and Krusher Promotions for giving us the opportunity to showcase again on HBO. I want to thank Gamboa’s team for taking the fight. It’s going to be a good fight, a perfect fight with two aggressive, strong fighters .The are the great height for each other and they both need this fight. We know if we lose, we will have to sit for a while. He loses and he has to sit for a while. The best thing for me is that I know that Gamboa is going to bring the best out of Jason. Loma is a special talent. One like that comes every ten years. We fought. Loma, when no one wanted to fight him. We relinquished our WBA title to take that fight, which says a lot about that young man. Russell Peltz I thank you for believing in us. I want to say Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I know that you are missing your family like we are. And for the fighters in general, like Jason said, they cannot have three meals and enjoy the family and the Thanksgiving. This sport is very demanding with time. So thank you for taking your time.

Robert Diaz, matchmaker – Golden Boy Promotions:

It’s going to be tough, going against Russell Peltz and Jolene Mizzone [Main Events’ matchmaker] on the same night! But I want to thank Peter. Everybody is thanking everybody. Of course, thanks to the media, thanks to the fans, thanks to Madison Square Garden; it’s a privilege to be here. But Peter, thank you for not focusing on those pretty records, for focusing on fighters that want to fight and bringing them back even after a loss or two because these are fighters that want to fight. I’ve got to disagree with Russell on one thing. In this fight, the super featherweights, they have a lot in common to the main event. All four fighters know what a loss or victory means for their career. In all four cases, neither can afford a loss. In one case, the winner goes on to fight for a world title. In the main event, the winner will walk out a world champion. You all know Gamboa. You know what he can do. He’s a special fighter. It’s all about preparing. They put in the hard work. He is more than ready.

Yuriorkis Gamboa, former IBF and WBA Featherweight World Champion

Thank you for the new opportunity to try again on HBO. (Spanish from here, no translation)

Jesse Rodriguez, Manager – Yuriorkis Gamboa

What an event this weekend. I know everyone’s thanking, this is the right time to thank HBO. Peter, thank you for believing in Yuri and giving him another opportunity. To Golden Boy thank you for bringing Gamboa back. The guy has fought four times this year when previously in the last four or five years, he’s fought only four times of five times. Thank you Golden Boy; you’re going to see a great fight this weekend. Gamboa is definitely ready. We’ve got one of the best in the world and we thank him for taking on the challenge. Gamboa has put in a lot of work and you’re going to see it this weekend. Thank you again everybody and thank God for the opportunity.

Duva:

I think of this like our Thanksgiving boxing dinner, where we have an amazing appetizer that whets our appetite for the rest of the meal. With all due respect for Russell, we’re now going to move on to the main course and the dessert. The light heavyweight division is on fire right now and we really can’t get enough. We’re excited to feature a second top fight in the light heavyweight division as our co-feature Saturday night. Cuban Sullivan Barrera is 20-1, 14 KOs and former WBA Interim Light Heavyweight World Champion Felix “Mangu” Valera is 15-1, 13 KOs of the Dominican Republic are making it a hot island showdown. This bout is presented by Main Events in association with Shuan Boxing Promotions and we’re very happy to work with them. Sullivan is ranked #1 one at light heavyweight by the WBA. If he can defeat Valera, Sullivan will be first in line for Dmitry Bivol’s WBA Light Heavyweight World Championship belt as the mandatory challenger. Sullivan is another distinguished amateur, a former member of the Cuban National Team who defected from Cuba in 2009. He quickly made a name for himself in the light heavyweight division winning his first 17 bouts, with 12 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Sullivan Barrera, Ranked #1 in WBA:

Good afternoon everyone. Thank you for coming. My English is not very well, but I would like to try. I’m so happy for this day here at The Garden. Thank you to HBO, Peter Nelson and my promoter, Main Events. This weekend is a great weekend, Thanksgiving. We work hard at the gym to put on a great show for the fans, the boxing fans. My opponent, Felix Valera, I respect him. He’s a great boxer too. We will put on a great show for the boxing fans. Thank you everyone, and see you Saturday.

Derik Santos, Trainer – Sullivan Barrera:

Hello to everyone, I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving. I’d like to thank Peter Nelson, HBO, Madison Square Garden, our promoter Main Events and Luis Molina, our manager. I’d also like to thank Sullivan, because I tell you he’s a pleasure to work with. We’ve worked hard to be here. I’d like to thank Team Valera for accepting the opportunity. Like he said, it’s cold here but we’re going to bring the heat on Saturday night and we will put on a show for the fans.

Duva:

Sullivan will have his hands full with Felix Valera, a knockout artist with 13 knockouts in his 15 professional wins. His only loss is to the man waiting in line for the winner of this fight, Dmitry Bivol. This is the first professional bout in the United States for Felix. You can’t do much better starting out making your US debut in Madison Square Garden.

Felix Valera, Former WBA Interim Light Heavyweight World Champion

First, I want to thank Main Events, HBO and my promoter, Shuan Boxing. I feel happy to be here, feel happy to put on a good fight and Saturday night you’ll see a good fight from me. For me, it’s an honor to fight such a great fighter like Sullivan Barrera. It’s also an honor to want to fight all the best in the light heavyweight division.

Belgica Péña, Shuan Boxing:

We’re happy to be here in the United States, providing a showcase for Dominican fighters. Everybody will see he’s talented and he belongs on this level.

Luis Perez, Trainer of Felix Valera:

I also want to thank Main Events, Shuan Boxing and HBO. I feel we’re actually fighting the best fighter in the light heavyweight division. It’s only my opinion once again, no disrespect to nobody. He’s from a long Cuban boxing school. He’s a great counterpuncher; he’s got power. He’s been down and got up off the floor to win by knockout. So in my opinion, we have the toughest fight in the light heavyweight division. Coming through Saturday the way that we planned it, I feel we are on top once again. To me, Sullivan Barrera is the best in the light heavyweight division. We prepared very well for him. Thanks to him and thanks to Main Events for giving us this opportunity.

Duva:

When we put together Sergey Kovalev’s first fight in The Next Chapter of his career, he wanted it to be memorable and exciting: a real test of his new approach and attitude. We found the right opponent in a guy with the longest nickname in boxing, and it says everything about his come-forward style, Lion Heart.
Diaz:
It’s such a pleasure to be working with different promoters putting their best against our best fighters. At the end of the day, you’re going to get the best fights and the fans are going to walk away happy. Jolene [Mizzone], you owe me. This is a tremendous fight. I want to thank Team Krusher for this opportunity. Utmost respect for you and your team, Egis, we go way back. This is a real fight. This is a real fight because of what it means to both fighters. Put the world title aside, which is very meaningful, this fight means the next chapter, not only for you, but also for Slava. We are very confident because he has a good team behind him.

Manny Robles, trainer – Slava Shabranskyy:

Thank you all for being here today. I’d like to thank HBO, Main Events and, of course, Golden Boy. Thank you very much, for the opportunity, for my fighter here, Slava, to fight for the world title. I just want to say, we had a great camp, great sparring. It was probably the best camp we’ve ever had. I’d like to thank everyone for being here today and I wish everyone a great Thanksgiving. Saturday night we’re going to walk away with the world title, God willing. We’re well-prepared and we’re ready for, with all due respect to Kovalev, we’re ready for everything that may come our way.

Slava Shabranskyy – WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight Champion:

First I want to thank my promoter for believeing in me and giving me the opportunity to fight the best. A fight in Madison Square Garden alone is a dream come true. I’m now fighting for the title, it’s an amazing feeling. I’m working really hard to be where I am now. I’m ready, let’s go!

Duva:

Finally, our former unified light heavyweight champion in the main event sits here today knowing what it is like to feel thankful and to understand the importance of teamwork. Sometimes life delivers a hard lesson but you can learn and move forward. You can be stronger and wiser. You can reach your goals for a second time in life. How many of us can say we’ve reached the very top even once? Sergey Kovalev has been a world champion. He rose from nothing – you all know his story. There is no reason to believe he can’t do it again. It will be exciting to watch it happen. I think it will be even more satisfying for us than the first time we saw it. We have heard from a lot of people who have talked to Sergey and watched him these past few weeks during training – including many of you. They have pulled us aside and told us how amazed they are at his change in appearance and his change in attitude. When Sergey defeated the great Bernard Hopkins, Bernard told Sergey right after the right he would be world champion as long as he wanted to be. He was right – Bernard is always right! I you don’t believe me, he’ll tell you! It turned out the only person who could really beat Sergey Kovalev was himself. Now that he has learned this lesson, he is ready to begin the next chapter. Everyone in the light heavyweight division should be very, very afraid of what a focused Sergey Kovalev can do.

Egis Klimas, Manager – Sergey Kovalev:

Hello everybody, good afternoon. Welcome to New York City, Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden. As always it is a pleasure to be here. I wanted to thank everybody and I want to thank, just not to repeat it, and repeat it again, I want to thank everyone who put in an effort to this fight. I’m very honored to represent a different, a completely different Sergey Kovalev than what I knew in 2009. In the beginning of his career, he was very patient and we walked very long road to get into the position. After he became a champion, he started doing thing a champion isn’t supposed to do. He didn’t pay much attention about his training; he was always on his own. He was trying to tell trainers and everybody what to do, how to do. After every fight, he used to go back home to Russia, spending, two or three months there until he’s going to get a next fight. Finally he got that last call, which reached his mind. I was trying to give some advice during his career but he didn’t pay much attention. He just walked on the other side and did what he’s supposed to do. Usually we can’t give to a grown man advice; he’s not going to take it seriously until it reaches into his mind. He got that bell. Somebody told him, ‘you’ve got to stop it. You’ve got to go a different road if you want to go somewhere in this life.’ I’m very happy, I’m really happy to represent a different Sergey Kovalev.

On another note, as soon as I walked in today to Madison Square Garden, Robert Diaz stepped to me and he said, ‘You know what, Slava got a phone call when he landed in New York. His wife called him and said guess what? Our children are playing. Both their children playing in the background and the two men are going to step in the ring and going to fight each other.’ That’s a wonderful story. I’ll see you guys on Saturday night, have a good time.

Duva:

No matter what any of us say, no matter what Sergey says, whatever story we have to tell you, what really matters is what we’re all going to see Saturday night. That is really the only thing that means anything .Up until that moment, we have to wait. Until then, it is my privilege to introduce the newly energized and focused Krusher Kovalev.

Sergey Kovalev, former unified light heavyweight world champion:

Hi everyone, I’m happy to be here at Madison Square Garden and Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I want to say thank you to HBO for this opportunity to get back on this level of boxing, where I can prove for myself who I am. Also, thank you to my manager, to my team, to Kathy Duva and to Madison Square Garden. I’m here fighting for all boxing fans, here and worldwide. I want to thank God, that he blessed me, and that I’m still alive, that I’ve reloaded and got a lot of new motivation in my head, mentally. From my last losses, I didn’t break. These losses didn’t break me mentally. It was a good experience for me. I should follow my goals on a clear road without any wrong things, any baggage on my back. Right now, I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions for this fight and especially for Slava Shabranskyy. I respect this guy because he’s a real fighter. His nickname proves he’s a Lion, a Lion Heart, and we will show you on Saturday a great fight. Because on top of this will be the WBO title. From the WBO title, I began my first successful boxing career. I will repeat it and after this we can speak of my future boxing career. Thank you to everyone who came here. I love life; I love boxing.

Duva:

For boxing people, this is hallowed ground. Every time I walk in the door here, I remember the first time I came here. It was more than 40 years ago. Main Events is about to celebrate our 40th anniversary next year if you can believe that. Many of you weren’t born yet. I remember being here and I took a picture of Joe Frazier. He actually stood right in front of me, I had my camera and I took a picture. It’s still hanging across from my desk. I look at it every day, black and white and fading, but it’s him. There’s one thing you gain from having this many years on you, experience. It’s learning that life is nothing but a series of reinventions. Those who can continue to reinvent will thrive and those who can’t will fall behind. The reinvention begins on Saturday.

As you all go off to your Thanksgiving dinners, I want to ask all of you to think about these fighters. They won’t be, as Jason pointed out, be sitting down to a big meal because they have make to weight on the scale Friday. God knows Jolene hopes they all do! This is a rough assignment during a holiday like this.

Tickets starting at $50 and are still available through Ticketmaster and Madison Square Garden box office for Saturday’s event. Or you can watch live on HBO World Championship Boxing® starting at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.

We have a lot of people here behind the scenes giving up their holiday. They’re working hard to put on an entertaining night of boxing for your Thanksgiving weekend. I want to particularly make a shout out to every member of my wonderful staff: Jolene, Nicole, Alexis, Lisa and Joe. I want to make a shout out to Ed Keenan, our trusty sidekick and to Gayle Falkenthal who is pinch-hitting admirably for Ellen. We all have her and her family in our thoughts and prayers. She’s going through a rough patch. Hopefully she’ll be back again too. I think it’s only appropriate as we’re all giving thanks, that we give these people a big round of applause, please. And to all of you because I know you’re all working today too and we’d rather not be. So thank you for coming.

###
Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Medoff Vodka and Leon.ru. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

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Video: Kovalev – Shabranskyy weigh in

Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranskyy Scouting Report Can The Krusher Stop Shabranskyy?

New York, NY: On Saturday night, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) will look to regain the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title from The Theater at Madison Square Garden live on HBO World Championship Boxing against Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs). The scouting report for this much-anticipated battle is below:

Category
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev
Vyacheslav “Lion Heart” Shabranskyy
Age
34
30
Record
30-2-1 (26 KOs)
19-1-0 (16 KOs)
Strength
The Krusher has knockout power in both hands and can end a fight with any punch he throws. He has a sharp jab that has been effective in keeping his opponents at bay and has plenty of big-fight experience coming into this bout.
Shabranskyy is one of the division’s toughest fighters. He has an aggressive style with heavy hands and a granite chin. He applies steady pressure throughout the fight and does a superb job of breaking down his opposition.
Weakness
He tends to leave openings in his guard, which could be costly considering the power of his opponent.
His aggressive style can get sloppy at times, which has resulted in him hitting the canvas in prior bouts. He will need to fine-tune his defense to avoid a shot from one of the division’s biggest punchers.
Experience
Sergey has more professional bouts under his belt and has faced-off with the best in the sport. His previous 11 bouts have been world title fights.
Slava lacks the top-level opposition that Kovalev has faced; this will be the biggest fight of his career thus far.

Power
Kovalev is called the Krusher for a reason. His main strength throughout his career has been his power. He throws each punch with bad intentions and can finish the fight in an instant.
Shabranskyy is extremely heavy-handed. He has remarkable power in both hands and possesses a straight right hand that can end any fight if landed clean.
Speed
Sergey has average speed that picks up once he smells blood and goes for the finish.
Slava has average speed and really turns it up a notch when he senses that his opponent is in trouble.
Endurance
Sergey has proven in recent years that he can go a full twelve rounds, but we’ve also seen him lose steam in later rounds.
Shabranskyy’s endurance has yet to be tested. He has gone 10 rounds just once in his career, which resulted in a decision win over former ranked contender Yunieski Gonzalez.
Accuracy
He has a pin-point accurate jab and delivers rigorous shots to the body that have ended fights in the past.
Slava’s most accurate punch is his right hand. If timed correctly, it can be a game-changer in the fight.
Defense
Sergey’s best defense is his offense. His power has always been a game-changer in bouts. It forces opponents to rethink their game plan.
The Ukrainian relies on offense more than anything. He likes to attack his opponents and break their will from start to finish.
Chin
Although he was stopped in his previous bout under questionable circumstances, Kovalev has proven throughout his career that his chin is more than durable.
Vyacheslav was stopped in his lone career defeat, however, he has proven that his chin is durable. He has been knocked down in numerous fights and made it back to his feet to take the win.
Style
Sergey is an offense-minded fighter who likes to walk his opponents down until he smells blood and can go for the finish.
Shabranskyy is an aggressive, in-your-face fighter who wastes little time in trying to break his opponents down and finish the fight.
Crowd Support
The Krusher should have the advantage; he spent over three years as the champion at 175 lbs. and has a crowd-pleasing style of fighting.
The Ukrainian may not have the crowd support that his opponent will have, but his aggressive style will undoubtedly earn him some new fans by the end of the fight.
Intangibles
Since suffering his only two career defeats in his pro career, The Krusher wants to get right back in the ring and get back one of his titles. Kovalev has been through the gauntlet in the light heavyweight division – he has faced nothing but the best throughout his career. He does not plan to break that trend anytime soon.
There was no title on the line when Shabranskyy originally accepted this fight. The Ukrainian is willing to take any fight to climb the ladder in this stacked division. He will attempt to impose his will and fight fire with fire when facing an opponent whose style is almost identical to his own.
The Match-Up
1. Will Sergey be mentally prepared for this fight?
2. Will Shabranskyy be able to handle Sergey’s power?
3. Will Sergey get back to being the Krusher?
4. Will Shabranskyy be able to shine under the big lights?

According to Main Events’ matchmaker and 2015 NABF Matchmaker of the Year, Jolene Mizzone, “This is the type of fight every fight fan should want to see because both fighters can punch! After going through over 10 different potential opponents who turned down a fight with Kovalev, I give Shabranskyy credit for taking less than one day to accept the fight. Kudos to both guys for accepting this fight. Sergey, who is coming off two losses, was still ready to fight anyone. Shabranskyy accepted this opportunity before it was sanctioned for the vacant title, when no one else was willing to get in the ring with The Krusher.”

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Medoff Vodka and Leon.ru. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

HBO SERVES UP A THREE-COURSE THANKSGIVING FEAST WHEN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING®: SERGEY KOVALEV VS. VYACHESLAV SHABRANSKYY AND SULLIVAN BARRERA VS. FELIX VALERA AND YURIORKIS GAMBOA VS. JASON SOSA IS SEEN SATURDAY, NOV. 25

HBO Sports celebrates the holiday weekend with an action-packed tripleheader, including the return of light heavyweight powerhouse Sergey Kovalev, when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: SERGEY KOVALEV VS. VYACHESLAV SHABRANSKYY AND SULLIVAN BARRERA VS. FELIX VALERA AND YURIORKIS GAMBOA VS. JASON SOSA is seen SATURDAY, NOV. 25 at 10:00 p.m. (ET/PT) from The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The HBO Sports team will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

The fights will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO, HBO On Demand and affiliate portals.

The main event features the return of the feared Sergey Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) as he battles heavy-handed Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs) for a vacant light heavyweight title in a scheduled 12-round bout. Following a light heavyweight title reign that spanned more than three years and featured eight successful defenses, polished Russian knockout artist Kovalev, 34, is eager to reclaim the belts he lost in 2016 to future Hall of Famer Andre Ward.

Standing in his way is Ukraine’s Shabranskyy, 30, who turned pro in 2012 after a long amateur career in his home country and has been knocking out top contenders on the way to his biggest fight to date. Both men have been active lately, this being Kovalev’s tenth fight since Jan. 2014 and Shabranksyy’s tenth fight since Jan. 2015. The bout marks Kovalev’s 11th appearance on HBO, while Shabranskyy is making his debut on the main channel after fighting on HBO Latino in 2015.

In the co-main event, one of the top light heavyweight contenders, Sullivan Barrera (20-1, 14 KOs) of Miami via Cuba, closes out his tremendous 2017 by taking on Felix Valera (15-1, 13 KOs) of the Dominican Republic in a ten-round fight. Barrera, 35, is fresh off the biggest win of his career, a unanimous decision victory over Joe Smith Jr. in July and hopes to set himself up for another title shot in 2018 by defeating Valera. Making his U.S. debut, the hard-punching Valera, 29, seeks an upset that would insert him into the light heavyweight championship conversation.

In the opening bout, former unified featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa (27-2, 17 KOs) of Miami, Florida squares off against Camden, NJ native Jason Sosa (20-2-4, 15 KOs) in a scheduled ten-round super featherweight contest. Gamboa, 35, is an accomplished veteran with success at all levels, including a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics while representing Cuba and a dominating stretch as a world champion in the pro ranks. Sosa, 29, looks to bounce back after a difficult loss to junior lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko and return to the championship ranks. Sosa is making his third HBO appearance, while the bout marks Gamboa’s tenth fight on HBO.

Immediately following the boxing action, HBO Sports presents a half-hour special spotlighting the career of all-time great Miguel Cotto, who is slated for his professional farewell against Sadam Ali on Saturday, Dec. 2 at Madison Square Garden in a fight to be seen on HBO.

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Video: Sergey Kovalev’s Greatest Hits – Watch Now!

Kovalev-Shabranskyy Non-Televised Undercard

New York, NY: Before fans at the Theater at Madison Square Garden are treated to the long-awaited WBO Light Heavyweight World Championship bout between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Vyacheslav “Lion Heart/Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy on Saturday, November 25, they will witness an exciting mix of top international and local prospects on the non-televised undercard.

Brooklyn native and local philanthropist, Frank “Notorious” Galarza (17-2-2, 11 KOs), will face Jaime Herrera of Chicago, Illinois in an eight-round super welterweight battle.

Galarza, 32, made his professional debut in 2010 and did not face defeat until 2015. After nearly a year off, he has signed with Main Events and is looking to prove he is still a force to be reckoned with in the division. When he is not boxing, Frank dedicates most of his free time to his charitable organization, Youth Fighting Forward, which offers boxing lessons, as well as mentoring and tutoring to underprivileged kids in Brooklyn and Connecticut. His fight with Herrera on Nov. 25 will allow him to fulfill his life-long dream of competing at Madison Square Garden.

Herrera, 28, is as tough as they come and is a fighter who is known to fully embrace the spoiler role. He owns a victory over the previously undefeated Javier Flores. He was also responsible for derailing the comeback train of former title contender Mike Jones when he scored a 7th-round stoppage in 2014. Herrera has been in the ring with and has held his own against some of the sport’s toughest fighters in Adrian Granados and ranked welterweight Egidijus Kavaliauskas.

Middleweights Leshawn “Lightning” Rodriguez (7-0, 6 KOs) and Alex Sandro Duarte (7-2, 5 KOs) are scheduled for six rounds of action.

Rodriguez, 24, of Shirley, New York had an outstanding amateur career, amassing a record of 160-15 and winning two NY Daily News Golden Gloves before making his professional debut in 2016. He sustained a broken hand in his October 2016 bout against Courtney McCleave, which left him sidelined for nearly a year. Since his return to the ring in September, he is 2-0 with two knockouts.

Duarte, 37 from Sao Paulo, Brazil, is an active fighter who will meet any challenge that is offered. He started his career with a record of 12-0-1 before suffering his first career defeat at the hands of the heavy-handed Bakhram Murtazaliev. This bout will be Duarte’s 7th of this year and his chance to get back into the win column.

In the first championship bout of the evening Bakhram Murtazaliev (10-0, 8 KOs) of Grozny, Russia will face Carlos “The Warrior” Galvan (16-5-1, 15 KOs) of Apartado, Colombia for the IBA Super Welterweight World Title.

Murtazaliev, 24, has quickly made a name for himself since coming to the United States in 2016. He has an 80% knockout-to-win (8 KOs in 10 wins) ratio and has stopped his last six opponents in a row. Bakhram, originally signed to Krusher Promotions, recently added Main Events to his team as well. This will be his second fight under both the Krusher Promotions’ and Main Events’ banners. In his first fight, he stopped Robson Assis in the first round as part of the Mohegan Sun’s Rising Stars Boxing series at Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino last month.

Carlos Galvan, 26, is also a knockout artist with a 93% knockout-to-win ratio (15 KOs in 16 wins). He made his professional debut back in 2011 and stopped his first four opponents. Galvan has also stopped his last four opponents as well. Despite five career losses, Galvan’s defeats have come at the hands of opposition with a combined record of 58-1; it is a list that includes the likes of currently-ranked contender Caleb Plant and previously-ranked contender Immanuwel Aleem.

Astana, Kazakhstan native Meiirim “The Sultan” Nursultanov (4-0, 3 KOs) will face Eric Moon (7-0, 6 KOs) of Atlanta, Georgia.

Meiirim Nursultanov, 24, started boxing at the age of 13 after watching his brother compete in the sport. He made his professional debut last year and has stopped each of his last three opponents. Nursultanov will look to top his most recent performance, which resulted in a TKO win after knocking his opponent, Ismael Bueno, out of the ring.

Eric Moon, 26, was born in Alexander City, Alabama. He was street fighting at age 14 and started boxing at 16. After he graduated from high school in 2008, he took some college courses at Alabama A&M but decided to pursue boxing instead. Moon had 52 amateur fights with only 6 losses. Three of Moon’s six KOs came in the first round and he has a 85% (six of seven) knockout-to-win ratio.

Former kickboxing sensation Enriko Gogokhia (6-0, 3 KOs) of Zugdidi, Georgia will face Jose Antonio Abreu (13-2 8 KOs) of La Romana, Dominican Republic in a six-round welterweight match-up. As a professional kickboxer, Gogokhia, 26, was 42-7, 21 KOs and won the WKF World Title, the W5 Intercontinental Championship and the Tatneft Arena World Cup. He made his professional boxing debut in 2016 after six years as a professional kickboxer.

Abreu, 29, made his professional debut in 2012 and won his first 12 bouts with seven of those wins coming back way of knockout. After suffering his first career loss in 2016, Abreu redeemed himself in his next fight by scoring a second round TKO over Euri Gonzalez. After suffering his second career defeat in his most recent bout, Jose will once again be looking for redemption when facing the undefeated Enriko Gogokhia.

In the first bout of the evening, two-time NY Daily News Golden Gloves Champion Ismael Villarreal from the Bronx, New York will make his professional debut against Race Sawyer of Salt Lake City, Utah. Villarreal, 20, is the son of former super lightweight fighter Otilio Villarreal, who is best known for his match-ups against names like Zab Judah, Hector Camacho and Kermit Cintron. Ismael first began training with his father at the age of eight.

Sawyer, 33, is a professional boxer who also competes in mixed martial arts. He has spent his entire boxing and mixed martial arts career competing in his home state of Utah. This will be his first trip to New York, where he is ready to embrace the chorus of boos that he may face when battling Ismael Villarreal in his own backyard.

According to Main Events’ matchmaker and 2015 NABF Matchmaker of the Year, Jolene Mizzone, “These are the kind of undercards I love to make. This is a great mix of the local up-and-comers, hot prospects from Eastern Europe with the big amateur backgrounds and veterans looking to prove the losses on their records were just a minor setback. Every match that was made was made for a reason and these guys each have a story to tell. There are punchers, boxers and veterans with more experience than their opposition. Every fighter on this undercard has something to prove and this is the best platform for them to do it. The best thing about this undercard is, unlike most recent undercards, these bouts were made well in advance. Therefore, all the fighters had ample time to train. It should be an exciting night!”

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Video: HBO Boxing’s Harold Lederman Previews #KovalevShabranskyy

VYACHESLAV “LION HEART CHINGONSKYY” SHABRANSKYY LOS ANGELES MEDIA WORKOUT QUOTES

LOS ANGELES (Nov. 15, 2017) WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight Champion
Vyacheslav “Lion Heart Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs) hosted a Los Angeles media workout at Westside Boxing Club ahead of his 12-round fight against former unified Light Heavyweight Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) for the vacant WBO World Light Heavyweight championship. The fight will take place on Saturday, Nov. 25 at the Theater at Madison Square Garden and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Here’s what Shabranskyy had to say regarding his upcoming fight:

VYACHESLAV “LION HEART CHINGONSKYY” SHABRANSKYY, WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight Champion:

“My training camp was great. I did all the necessary rounds of training for this fight. Now we’re just working on the speed during these last two weeks.”

“Dmitry Bivol [WBA Light Heavyweight Champion] and David Benavidez [WBC Super Middleweight Champion] have helped me a lot with sparring. They come to the gym and they give me real work. We just train real hard and help each other. It’s great being able to spar and train with these champions.”

“This is a very big event. Fighting for a world title–it’s all or nothing. Right now, I’m not thinking about [Kovalev]. I’m not thinking about what he has done or what he is doing. I’ll see him on Nov. 25, and then after the fight, I’ll tell you about him.”

“I was so excited when I found out this bout would be for a world title. I had accepted the fight before knowing it would be for a world title. We got the call from his side and we took the fight. But then the WBO called and we were very excited. I’m very hungry and prepared to win.”

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO World Light Heavyweight championship promoted by Main Events andKrusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Tickets for Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy range from $50 to $350 and are available online at Ticketmaster.com, at the MSG box office or Main Events’ office by calling (973) 200-7050 or emailing boxing@mainevents.com. Use the code LATINOSUNIDOS when purchasing your tickets to donate a portion of the proceeds to hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico and the rebuilding efforts in Mexico following the earthquake in Mexico City. The donations will go to the Hispanic Federation’s Unidos fund and to Habitat for Humanity Mexico.

Photos and video of Sergey Kovalev and Vyacheslav Shabranskyy are available for download here:http://bit.ly/KovalevShabranskyy. Credit must be given to David Spagnolo/Main Events for all Kovalev assets, and credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions for all Shabranskyy assets.

CONTACTS:
Ellen Haley, Main Events: (973) 903-6715, ehaley@mainevents.com
Gayle Lynn Falkenthal, FVG/Main Events: (619) 997-2495, gfalkenthal@gmail.com
Ramiro Gonzalez/Gabriel Rivas, Golden Boy Promotions: (213) 489-5631
Stefan Friedman/Kristen Rockwell Caloca, Mercury: (424) 202-1671
Larry Torres, MSG Sports Properties: (212) 631-5178,larry.torres@msg.com
Patrick Byrne, HBO: (212) 512-1361 / patrick.byrne@hbo.com
Ed Keenan, EMC, (609) 432-7859, keenan@emcevents.com

Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev Media Workout Recap

LOS ANGELES, Calif., November 15, 2017 – An energized, reinvigorated Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) spoke with Southern California’s leading boxing journalists and websites and put on a show of skills at a media workout on Tuesday, November 14. The event also featured Kovalev’s new trainer, Abror Tursunpulatov; Kathy Duty, CEO of Main Events, and Egis Klimas, Kovalev’s manager.

Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev – former unified light heavyweight world champion

“Right now, God has blessed me and given me this opportunity to get back to this level. Maybe in the future, we can do unification fights between every champion. In every division, there must be one champion. I follow this goal, and right now I’m working on it.”

“I worked hard by myself, but with Abror, these workouts are different dosages, intervals. If today we’re working very hard, then next day is a little bit lighter, working on my style. When I work myself, I work hard every day. I didn’t give a rest to my body, it wasn’t good.”

“We’re just working on my strengths, what I can do the best. We are working on my body, my style, and what I can do much better.”

On his new diet regimen:
“More natural, more organic. I like it. If you cook right, it’s very delicious and very healthy. You’re feeling this, I’m feeling what I’m eating. I am what I’m eating. You are what you eat. Really, I feel this and my energy is much better with the right food.”

“I’m very glad to work with Abror. We understand each other; we speak the same language. It’s the most important thing. I understand what he wants. If he says something about an exercise and I don’t agree, we discuss it and we find compromise, some solutions. It’s almost never happening, because what he’s giving me, I understand it can help me. We are the same mentally, I understand where we go, for what, and why. I feel very comfortable to work with him and very happy has control of my training camps and my conditioning for my shape.”

“Slava Shabranskyy is a real fighter. The fight is going to be interesting. He is ready to fight and I am ready, too. He is very motivated because it is a title fight for the WBO title. We’re both happy and very motivated. It will be a great fight.”

“Let me show you November 25 different boxing, the real Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev. I’ve changed a lot of things. I’ve deleted a lot of mistakes. It’s time to change.”

Abror Tursunpulatov – trainer, Sergey Kovalev

“We come from the same training facility, we have the same manager, Egis Klimas. We live there like brothers, and if someone is in a bad situation, someone is hurt, all of us is hurt.”

“I don’t have no pressure. Of course, I want to prove he is the best. I can do it and I feel very comfortable.”

“The main important thing is for Sergey to work under my supervision, under my plan, and if works under my plan and my supervision, that is when we are going to get results.”

“We are just changing right now a little bit, we need more time to make more changes. We’re trying to add, I hope until the fight is done.”

Kathy Duva – CEO, Main Events:

“We’re having fun now, it’s a job but it’s always better when you can enjoy your work.”

“Sergey’s made it very clear that this was all a wake-up call for him. He’s decided to get it together. You can’t be the champion of the world and out with your friends.”

“The day he won the title from Bernard Hopkins, Bernard told Sergey, ‘You’re going to be a champion as long as you want to be. As long as you keep focus, nobody’s ever going to beat you. You’re going to lose when you lose focus.'”

“He’s got a chance now to hit the reset button. He’s still the man in the division. There are a lot of talented fighters in the division. They are all climbing up to beat him. Now they are all going to have to chase him. It’s a more comfortable place to be. We’ll see what happens on November 25.”

“Everybody else in the top ten, all those young guys coming up, they stand there and fight. We’re going to have some amazing fights in the light heavyweight division, it’s going to be entertaining.”

Egis Klimas – manager, Sergey Kovalev

“I see a completely different person. He is more concentrated, more focused, more dedicated, he’s training hard, he’s watching his diet. He made the big changes in his head.”

“Because of theses couple of losses, I can even blame myself for some of it, it was my mistake … I realized he needs to get out of his comfort zone. Everything is for the better.”

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Reminder to news media: The deadline to apply for Fight Week credentials is Friday, November 17. Fill out the credential application at http://www.emcevents.com/kovalevshabranskyy.html

International Boxing Association Sanctions November 25 Fight Between Sergey Kovalev and Vyacheslev Shabranskyy for IBA Light Heavyweight World Title

New York, NY: The International Boxing Association announced Friday that it will sanction the upcoming light heavyweight battle between former unified world champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) and Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chingonskyy” Shabranksyy (19-1, 16 KOs) for the IBA Light Heavyweight World Title. This in in addition to the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title which will also be on the line in this bout.

The fight will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, November 25, is presented by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT and. Tickets range from $50 to $350 and available online at Ticketmaster.com, at the MSG box office or Main Events’ office by calling (973) 200-7050 or emailing boxing@mainevents.com.

The IBA also announced that in addition to the Kovalev-Shabranskyy bout, the 10-round non-televised undercard bout between Bakhram Murtazaliev (10-0, 8 KOs) and Carlos Galvan (16-5-1, 15 KOs) will be for the IBA Super Welterweight World Title. This bout is presented by Main Events and Krusher Promotions.

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Back In The USA: Kovalev hopes to put a Russian thanks into T-Day

By Norm Frauenheim-

It’s hard to know what Sergey Kovalev knows about Thanksgiving, a uniquely American holiday. But he fights a couple days after Turkey day and if the Nov. 25 bout goes as expected, he’ll come away with a pretty good understanding.

Bolshoe spasibo

That’s Russian for thanks very much. Thanks, Google.

How ever it is pronounced, the guess here is that Kovalev will say it as often as the rest of us eat Turkey sandwiches in the hours and days after the last piece of pumpkin pie.

A victory over Vyacheslav Shabrankskyy in The Theater at New York’s Madison Square Garden in an HBO televised bout will allow Kovalev to hit the reset button and, moreover, forget about a 13-month stretch of controversy and frustration over two losses to Andre Ward.

First, he lost a decision to Ward last November in a bout most people thought he won. Then, he lost an eighth-round stoppage to Ward in a June rematch that was controversial for low blows, what the referee did or didn’t do and who he was or wasn’t.

Then, Ward retired and, by the way, bolshoe spasibo for that. There would have only been a lot of indigestion with a trilogy, mostly for Kovalev, still a compelling light heavyweight who continues to be ranked No. 5 in The Ring’s pound-for-pound edition.

“Right now, I feel all bad things are gone from my mind,’’ Kovalev said this week in a conference call. “Right now I concentrate, and I focus for the future of my boxing career. I’m ready to be again a world champion and collect my belts if somebody will be ready to unify the title.’’

It’s hard to imagine Kovalev thanking Ward in a language that doesn’t include some well-chosen obscenities. But Ward’s retirement did mean he vacated a title, the WBO’s version of the 175-pound belt, that will go the Kovalev- Shabrankskyy winner. That figures to be Kovalev, unless the guy he didn’t recognize in the Ward rematch shows up for opening bell for Shabranskyy. He said he wasn’t himself in the rematch.

Some of that can be blamed on Ward, who took away Kovalev’s deadly jab with his inside tactics while also eliminating some of his leverage by getting underneath him in an effective inside assault. It was as frustrating as it was maddening and it seemed to drain Kovalev’s energy, if not passion, for the task immediately in front of him.

Kovalev said he has adjusted. He has a new trainer, Arbor Tursunpulatov, instead of John David Jackson.

“I’m happy to work right now with my new coach,’’ Kovalev said. “He’s doing a great job and we understand each other because we speak and understand one language. We understand each other and I feel comfortable.’’

He also says he has eliminated the distractions. Distractions are supposed to be an American or maybe Filipino kind of thing. Think of Floyd Mayweather Jr. with bales of cash and a garage full of high-end cars, or Manny Pacquiao with karaoke. Trips back to Russia, however, appeared to knock Kovalev off his regimen, especially in the months before a long-awaited showdown with Ward, who retired unbeaten and at the top of the pound-for-pound debate.

“When I’m doing boxing, I should do boxing,’’ said Kovalev, who also discovered that an American author, Thomas Wolfe, might have been right when he said you can never go home. “Not another business or a lot of flights to come back and forth to Russia to spend free time. Because when I’m in Russia, I don’t have the time, like for locals and doing the boxing. Just a lot of meetings, a lot of businesses, a lot of wrong things.

“I mean, not sport at all. But right now, I’m here in America, and started a new chapter in my boxing career.’’

One victory beyond Ward might put Kovalev back on track to achieving the singular prominence that seemed to be within reach of his dangerous hands.

His promoter, Kathy Duva, thinks so.

“The first fight, I will say for the rest of my life, he didn’t lose,’’ Duva said of Ward-Kovalev 1. “The second one, he was fighting the referee and the fighter, but he lost to the No. 1 fighter in the world. That’s not coming back. You don’t fall too far when you’re that close with a guy who is that good. Ward has a style that is just very, very hard to beat, especially when he’s getting help.

“My feeling about this is that Sergey is must-see TV. Sergey is still one of the most compelling, exciting fighters in the world. Having lost a debatable decision or a debatable stoppage shouldn’t really derail somebody’s career all that much.

“And as things turned out, Sergey is in a position right now to, not only be right back on top, but to be right back on top of one of the most exciting and perhaps the deepest division in boxing.’’

A surprise, as things turn out, and a reason to say Bolshoe spasibo.

Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranksyy International Media Conference Call Recap

Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events: Welcome everyone to the Kovalev-Shabranskyy International Media Conference Call. Thank you to all the media who have dialed in to this call today to discuss the upcoming fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight Title. This tasty Thanksgiving weekend boxing event is sure to thrill fans and will air on HBO World Championship Boxing® live from The Theater at Madison Square Garden on Sat., Nov. 25 at 10:00 PM Eastern and Pacific Time. The fight is presented by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Tickets range from $50 to $350 and are available online at ticketmaster.com, the Madison Square Garden box office or Main Events’ Office by calling 973-200-7050 or emailing boxing@mainevents.com.

Sergey Kovalev, former unified light heavyweight world champion: Yes, I’m really good. My training camp is going really good, like always, and I’m happy to work right now with my new coach Arbor Tursunpulatov. He’s doing a great job and we understand each other because we speak and understand one language. We understand each other and I feel comfortable.

Question: Sergey, can you describe what it was like for you to put the losses to Andre Ward behind you? This is like a new beginning for your career. Can you talk about that?

SK: All life is like a lesson for me. After my last three fights, some felt that I should get more physically into my work life with my boxing again. But right now, I feel all bad things are gone from my mind. Right now I concentrate, and I focus for the future of my boxing career. I’m ready to be again a world champion and collect my belts if somebody will be ready to unify the title.

Question: Sergey, when this fight was made with Shabranskyy you did not know it was going to be for the title. Andre Ward hadn’t retired, I don’t believe, when this fight was put together and you were going to go in and fight him to get back in action, score a win and get back on track. Can you tell me what it was like for you, as far as how excited you were that when you found out that it was going to be for one of the titles that Andre vacated when he retired? That you’d have a chance to regain one of your belts in your first fight coming off of a defeat?

SK: My next fight without the belt was going to be discouraging, because I must come back.(It) should be very exciting. I’m really excited and ready to get my belts back. It would be really interesting and really exciting, and I would fight anybody.

I was ready to fight Sullivan Barrera, but he didn’t approve the fight and we got Vyacheslav Shabranskyy. And, after this, Andre Ward vacated the title; it’s additional motivation. It’s like the most important (in) how my future boxing career is going to be. I’m really happy that this fight will be for the title and for the WBO, because this was the first title that I had already., But now this is like a new chapter in my boxing career. I am recharged. I am much stronger than last three fights and you will see November 25 in New York.

Question: Kathy, you’ve promoted a lot of fighters over the years. I just wanted your philosophy about what to do when you have a top-notch fighter, like Sergey Kovalev, and they have the situation where they lost a fight, lost maybe a second fight and your philosophy on how you go about bringing them back to prominence once again? What is your thought process when you meet with the fighter’s manager to put him back in a position to get him back on top?

KD: The first fight, I will say for the rest of my life, he didn’t lose. The second one, he was fighting the referee and the fighter, but he lost to the number one fighter in the world. That’s not coming back. You don’t fall too far when you’re that close with a guy who is that good. Ward has a style that is just very, very hard to beat, especially when he’s getting help.

My feeling about this is that Sergey is must-see TV. Sergey is still one of the most compelling, exciting fighters in the world. Having lost a debatable decision or a debatable stoppage shouldn’t really derail somebody’s career all that much. And as things turned out, Sergey is in a position right now to, not only be right back on top, but to be right back on top of one of the most exciting and perhaps the deepest division in boxing.

In my mind, you know, you hit the reset button. That’s what we did here. Sergey started out from absolutely nothing and in a few short years made it all the way to the top of the sport. I don’t know why everybody thinks he can’t do it again. He doesn’t have far to climb this time and it’s very nice the way the thing is starting to play itself out. You have exciting young fighters winning world titles in the division now. He’s going literally back to where we began with the WBO. He wins that belt first and I’ve already been hearing that some of the other champions want to fight him.

We’ve got some terrific fights to look forward to. I think, let’s put it behind us and move on. These are going to be exciting fights. This is an exciting division. I commend Sergey for reaching for that brass ring and fighting someone he really didn’t have to fight to try to grab that mantle of greatness. I think he got it, in essence, because he did it.

In this day and age, there are very few fighters who are going to go win a world title, put their titles on the line against absolutely everyone, one right after another and come right back and start doing it again. To me, this is a little interruption and we’re just moving forward now.

Question: Do you think all this leads, Kathy, to Sergey fighting the eventual winner of Bivol and Barrera?

KD: Of course. If he wants to win his belt back, he’s going to have to do that. If the Bivol-Barrera fight gets done. We’ve had talks. It is certainly makeable, but it is by no means a foregone conclusion at this point.

Question: Sergey, from a tactical standpoint, there were some things that were mentioned during the Ward fight, and I know you’re saying that you want to move on and you guys have hit the reset button. I agree, you don’t fall far off of the map or the ladder when you take a loss to another world champion. But just from a tactical standpoint, what are some of the things that you took away from the two fights with Ward that you may or may not have seen as things that you could work on moving forward now that you’ve hit the reset button?

SK: The most important thing in my boxing career that I should do during all my time here in America till I finish my boxing career: when I’m doing boxing, I should do boxing. Not another business or a lot of flights to come back and forth to Russia to spend free time. Because when I’m in Russia, I don’t have the time like for locals and doing the boxing. Just a lot of meetings, a lot of businesses, a lot of wrong things. I mean.not sport at all. But right now, I’m here in America, and started a new chapter in my boxing career.

Question: You think it was more or less you were having distractions from outside of the ring being in Russia with family and other businesses. Here in America you’re able to focus 110% on boxing. But then, once you are 110% zoned in here in America, with your training, what are some of the things that you’re doing inside of the gym? Or are you just getting back to the basics and working hard and going back to the things that got you all the way to where you currently are? Is there anything different outside of the training?

SK: By being in the U.S., I am a more disciplined fighter. All the traveling that I did, changing the time zones, doing the non-boxing business, it was hard for me to get back into the tip-top condition before my fight. When I do too much traveling and when in other businesses, I’m not 100% focused. By staying in the U.S., I would have been disciplined all the time. That’s what’s going to help me to have that reset button and to get to my next title fight.

Question: Kathy, do you see many big challenges for Sergey Kovalev at 175?

KD: Oh yes. My Lord, they’re just lining up. You saw Dimitry Bivol the other night, certainly, announce his rival very emphatically. You’ve got Artur Beterbiev, there’s that grudge match that hasn’t happened yet that certainly is still on the horizon between Sergey and Beterbiev. Particularly if Beterbiev is successful in his title fight that’s coming up shortly. You’ve got Sullivan Barrera who’s going to be on this card. He’s got Felix Valera who’s going to be fighting him in, we think, maybe the sleeper fight of the night. Of course, Gvozdyk, who is also managed by Egis Klimas is another one. You’ve got Eleider Alvarez who I’m hearing isn’t getting a title fight. So, who knows? Maybe he’ll arrive and, you never know, if that WBC titleholder ever grows a pair, we may see him some day. There are so many good fights in this division.

If you think about it, Dimitry Bivol is in his 20s. He is the only one, actually, who is in his 20s. The rest of these guys are in their 30s. There’s going to be a whole crop of new fighters coming up right behind them. I do mean it when I say I think this is the deepest division in boxing. I think it is.

Question: Sergey, with these names: Alvarez, Stevenson, Bivol, all the guys, do you feel that you are the main guy? You are the strongest guy in 175?

SK: Take your time. Let’s just see what will happen after next year. Right now I have a focus on my next fight and I do not say that I’m the best. But I want to be the best. And I already have proved a lot of things to myself and to lot of people, to the boxing fans, that I can be the best. But the three last fights, it was something is wrong with me. Next fight and next year I will show everything, who I am. But take your time. I’m working on it.

KD: That will be so much fun finding out.

Question: Sergey, I was just wondering if your upcoming opponent, if his style is going to offer you any problems, his movement and his defensive boxing?

SK: If I will be in the best shape and right now, everything is going very good with my training camp and I’m feeling very good and I hope that everything will be much better than the last fight, you know.. If I will be in the best shape, not any problem against Shabranskyy or anybody.

Question: Our Commander in Chief, Donald Trump, we are trying to get him to come to Bellator and he’s expressed some interest in fight sports. Will he have to buy a ticket or will there be a VIP pass if he wish to attend?

KD: [laughing] I’ll probably make him buy a ticket because the last time I made a deal with him, he didn’t pay us the whole amount of money he owed us. So he’s going to have to buy a lot of tickets before we make up that 2.6 mil.

Question: Do you think Sergey’s opponent can offer him any problems or present any challenges?

KD: Of course. Every time a fighter like Sergey has to take the next step in his journey, learn to deal with the loss, move on from it, the next opponent is obviously going to present a problem. Shabranskyy is a great big puncher and this is boxing, anything can happen. I know Sergey is taking this very seriously and putting 100% into it. Because you’ve got to do that every time when you’re in there with a world-class fighter, which is what he’s going be in with on November 25th.

KD: I would like to mention our undercard fight with Sullivan Barrera and Felix Valera. I think Eric can talk a little bit about the other undercard fight, which is terrific. It’s always a pleasure to deal with our friends at Golden Boy. It really does make this job a lot more fun when you actually genuinely like the people you’re working with. Welcome, Eric. Good to have you.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions: Thank you, Kathy. The feeling is mutual over here at Golden Boy. Good morning to everybody as it is still morning on the West Coast. Happy to be on this call and obviously very happy for this fight for Vyacheslav Shabranskyy. We call him Slava for short. This is going to be a great card on November 25th. As Kathy mentioned, we have one of our fighters in the co-feature and that’s Yuriorkis Gamboa, who is going to be making a comeback fight on HBO. He’s got a tough fight against Jason Sosa and we’re looking forward to that. But we’re very happy for Slava. He’s finally getting an opportunity to fight for the world title. And obviously, he’s fighting the best light heavyweight out there in Sergey Kovalev. He has demonstrated to all of us at Golden Boy that he’s prepared for this fight. This is going to be a tough challenge, but he’s up for it.

Let me give you a little background on Slava. He made his professional debut back in 2012. He had 17 straight victories, 14 KOs. The only blemish on his record was a hard-fought fight against Sullivan Barrera, but he’s bounced back since and he’s had a couple of great wins.

He’s the current WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight Champion. This is his chance at stardom. If he can beat a guy like Sergey Kovalev, he’s going to be considered probably one of the top light heavyweights in the world.

Vyacheslav Shabranskyy: Training camp is doing good. I’m so happy for our preparation. Thank you very much, yeah. Everything is great.

Question: Slava, this is obviously such a big opportunity for you. Do you think that Sergey’s style of always coming forward and your style of classic boxing, does his style play perfectly into yours?

VS: I think we have a different style. It will be a more interesting fight because my style is a background Ukrainian amateur, plus Mexican here. So, I know what Kovalev’s style is like. I know his Russian background is strong and now he’s here. I think it will be interesting fight there for everybody.

Question: Are you afraid of his power at all?

VS: No, I’m not scared of nobody. Hey, bro, I have a wife and two kids. I’m scared of nobody. [Laughs]

Question: I asked Sergey if he did anything differently in this training camp since the Andre Ward losses as far as from a tactical standpoint. It seemed like he was having some trouble with the inside fighting. I know you said you have your amateur background and you also mentioned you like to apply Mexican style. Is that something that we can look forward to as far as your game plan? Can we look forward to the two of you banging on the inside, because it seemed as though there still might be some questions out there for Sergey as far as taking it to the body and then also the inside fighting.

VS: You never know how a fight is coming, but I believe it’ll be like good fight. I’ll bring everything what I know from Ukraine here but don’t want to give away too much, yeah.

Question: Eric, the other fight that you had mentioned, the Gamboa-Sosa fight, can you tell us a little bit about that? Because I know Gamboa, was announced yesterday as the replacement. Can you just talk a little bit about that fight?

EG: Robinson Castellanos was the original opponent that was going to fight Jason Sosa and he injured himself. He injured his back. This actually happened last week. He injured his back and the doctor gave him a few days off. He came back to training and he still had a lot of discomfort. And it looks now like he might have some surgery on his knee that was causing the pain. It trickled up from the knee to his back. He’s going to be out for a while, Robinson Castellanos. Gamboa came back after losing to Castellanos. He came back and he had a win and he was available. Gamboa is a former three-time world champion. He’s still very tough and he was able to come right in and replace Castellanos for the fight. I think it’s going to be a very good fight.

Question: Vyacheslav, do you feel that you are coming in a better moment than Sergey Kovalev after two victories?

VS: Everything will be in the ring, so, we will see our situation in the ring. Both guys are coming into this ring bringing everything that they have on the line and, just because I have two consecutive wins after unfortunate loss, doesn’t mean anything. So, both guys are probably in the same position as of now.

Question: Eric, do you see this division, 175, as one of the most interesting in boxing right now, and what do you think, like Kathy said, about Barrera, Stevenson, Bivol, Kovalev, these guys. How do you see the 175 category?

EG: No, it is. It’s one of the best divisions in boxing, obviously, when you have one of the top pound for pound fighters, Andre Ward, fighting in that division. He just recently retired, but for a long time it’s one of the best divisions. When you have a star like Sergey, who pretty much put the division on the map. A few years back, some of the top fighters were fighting there. Bernard Hopkins obviously spent the last part of his career fighting at light heavyweight. And ever since then it’s been very exciting. There’s many good fighters in that division, and you’ve got to give it to Kovalev. He’s probably the top guy there now with the retirement. It’s a very hot division and there’s many good a match as they can take place in this division and November 25th is one of the matches.

Question: Vyacheslav, I was just wondering what you thought of the Kovalev-Ward fight, the second fight in particular. Do you see vulnerabilities in Kovalev that maybe you hadn’t seen before?

VS: Ward did his homework, A+. I am prepared to see Kovalev in a different light for this fight because I am 100% sure that I learned a great lesson from what happened to him.

Question: What lessons did he learn from that fight?

VS: Ward made necessary adjustments. I am going to do my homework for this one. I am sure I am prepared for anything.

Question: Does Slava feel that Kovalev is maybe more vulnerable now than he was before, now that he’s been stopped in a fight and has lost? A lot of people thought he won the first fight, but now that he’s lost two fights in a row?

VS: He’s actually much more dangerous after a loss, because he has everything to look forward to in this fight.

Question: How does Slava view this opportunity for himself, being that he was stopped by Barrera in the big fight last December? How does he view this fight for himself in terms of making himself a world champion and thrusting himself into huge fights in the light heavyweight division?

VS: Up to this point every single fight, I treat it like a championship fight. And for this fight, I had no idea the belt would be on the line. And now that the belt is on the line, I am blessed to have this opportunity.

Question: Eric, I was just wondering if you could comment on the fight and what you think of Kovalev at this stage as opposed to before he fought Andre Ward twice and what are Shabranskyy’s chances of winning this fight?

EG: I can make the argument that Kovalev won the first fight with Andre Ward. That was a very, very close fight. I felt he won that fight. He made some technical errors in the second fight. I think he’s still the top guy. He’s still the top guy, especially now that Andre Ward retired. It’s going to be a very tough fight, but the key is Shabranskyy has been waiting for this fight his whole life. This is the opportunity. This is what he’s wanted ever since he signed with Golden Boy. He wanted the opportunity to fight one of the top guys, to fight for the title. Is he going to rise to the occasion? That’s the question. That’s the question. He’s doing everything right in camp. He’s looking great. Talking to his trainer he’s doing everything that he’s supposed to. He’s motivated. We’re going to have to wait and see November 25th.

Question: Eric, what do you think that he learned from the Barrera fight? Obviously, he had knocked Barrera down in the fight and then got knocked out himself. What do you think he learned from that and how has that made him a different fighter?

EG: To work a little bit more on his defense and you can’t just walk into a fighter. You got to come behind a jab and work on his head movement a little bit more. Those are some of the things that he’s been working on in the gym and I think that those are going to be beneficial. When you’re fighting a guy like Kovalev, he probably has one of the best jabs in boxing. He’s so long and he uses it so well. Slava has his work cut out for him. He’s going to have to get past that jab so he can be able to get on the inside and do some work.

Question: Eric, you mentioned the Gamboa fight. Can you comment on the opportunity that Yuriorkis is getting here coming off the tough loss and everything? What this chance means for him in his career and maybe being able to salvage his career here?

EG: This is probably like his last chance. This is do-or-die for him. And that’s the way he’s taking it. This is do-or-die. He’s still very exciting. He’s one of the most exciting fighters in boxing. He can bang. He can punch. He can box. He can move. He might not have the same hand speed he did when he was a little younger, when he first came on the scene, but he’s going to fight tooth and nail in this fight. This is going to be a great fight because his back is against the wall. And in order to get more paydays or be considered in title fights, he’s going to have to win this fight. Jason Sosa in many ways he’s in the same position as him. They make for great fights when you have two guys that are fighting for their future, and they want to stay at this elite level. I’m looking forward to a great fight.

EG: I just want to thank everybody that was on the call. Thank you very much, Kathy. I am looking forward to this great event, November 25th.

VS: Thank you guys, thank you everybody. I’m so excited for this fight here. See you on November 25th.

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place on Nov. 25 at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Reminder to news media: The deadline to apply for Fight Week credentials is Friday, November 17. Fill out the credential application at http://www.emcevents.com/kovalevshabranskyy.html

FORMER UNIFIED FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPION YURIORKIS “EL CICLON DE GUANTANAMO” GAMBOA STEPS IN TO FIGHT JASON “EL CANITO” SOSA

LOS ANGELES (Nov. 6, 2017) Former unified featherweight champion Yuriorkis “El Ciclon de Guantanamo” Gamboa (27-2, 17 KOs) will step in to fight Jason “El Canito” Sosa (20-2-4, 15 KOs) in a 10-round super featherweight fight at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in the televised opener to Kovalev vs. Shabrankskyy. The event takes place Saturday, Nov. 25 and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Gamboa, a 35-year-old native of Guantanamo, Cuba, is an Olympic Gold Medalist who shot to the top of the Featherweight rankings to win two world titles, defeating the likes of Orlando “Siri” Salido and Daniel Ponce De Leon before officially moving up to 130 pounds. Gamboa has also faced stiff competition as a super featherweight, with wins against Darleys Perez and Rene “El Gemelo” Alvarado under his belt. Gamboa is replacing Robinson “Robin Hood” Castellanos, who pulled out of this fight due to an injury.

“I’m excited for this great opportunity to fight Sosa on the undercard of Kovalev-Shabranakssy,” said Gamboa. “A win over Sosa on HBO could push me back into title contention. I’m a fighter with many aspects and dimensions, and that’s what I’ll bring in my fight against Sosa. For my my last fight, I wasn’t prepared well. This time I will be very much prepared, so I can walk away with my hand raised.”

“I’m excited for Gamboa,” said Zeferino Ramirez of ZR Entertainment. “This is the fight we wanted. And I expect big things in 2018. He’ll be ready for any 130-pound champion if he is successful on November 25.”

The 29-year-old Sosa, of Camden, NJ, is the former WBA World Super Featherweight Champion. He earned his title by handing Javier “El Abejon” Fortuna his first loss as a pro with an 11th-round knockout in Beijing, China in June 2016. Sosa successfully defended his title with a 12-round decision win over Stephen Smith in Monte Carlo in November 2016 before returning several months later in a tough fight against Vasyl “Hi-Tech” Lomachenko in April 2017. Sosa is also known for fighting to an impressive majority draw against former WBA Super World Featherweight Champion Nicholas “Axe Man” Walters and for stopping former world title challenger Jerry “The Corpus Christi Kid” Belmontes in only one round.

“People think we have an easier opponent in Gamboa since Castellanos beat him, but we’re not buying into that,” said Sosa. “Maybe Gamboa didn’t take Castellanos seriously. We expect to see the very best Gamboa on Nov. 25. Having said that, this is not about who we are fighting; this is about why. We are fighting to make Puerto Rico proud after what all the people who live there have been through recently.”

“This should be a solid fight between two guys, the same size, who like to hurt people,” said Russell Peltz, Hall of Fame Promoter of Peltz Boxing Promotions.”It’s a better matchup, style-wise, than the one between Jason [Sosa] and Robinson Castellanos.”
Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Gamboa vs. Sosa is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing and ZR Entertainment. The event will take place on Nov. 25 at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Reminder to news media: The deadline to apply for Fight Week credentials is Friday, November 17. Fill out the credential application at http://www.emcevents.com/kovalevshabranskyy.html

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Training Camp Notes: Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev Krusher Settles in with New Trainer Abror Tursunpulatov

Oxnard, CA: Former unified light heavyweight world champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) did a lot of soul-searching after his controversial loss to Andre “S.O.G” Ward over the summer in Las Vegas, Nevada. He travelled back to his home in Russia for several months with his wife, Natalia, and his son Aleksandr and even spent time meditating at a monastery in Greece. After months of contemplation, he decided it was time to sever his relationship with long-time trainer, John David Jackson.

When Kovalev began the first half of his training camp in Big Bear Lake, California for his upcoming bout with Vyacheslav “Lion-Heart Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs), he had not yet settled on a new trainer, but he did have his eye on someone. One of the first fighters signed by Sergey’s promotional company, Krusher Promotions, is a middleweight prospect from Grozny, Russia named Bakhram Murtazaliev. After Bakhram began training at the Boxing Laboratory in Oxnard, California with Kovalev, Sergey became impressed by his trainer, Abror Tursunpulatov of Uzbekistan.

Tursunpulatov is best known for working with 2016 Olympic Gold Medalist Fazliddin Gaibnazarov and other members of the Uzbekistan Olympic Team. Seeing what Tursunpulatov did for Murtazaliev in his last two fights, Kovalev decided that Abror was the perfect person to train him for his upcoming battle with Shabranskyy.

Tursunpulatov is a quiet man who does not actively seek the spotlight, so Kovalev decided to announce his choice in a simple Instagram post where he said, [translated from Russian] “I’m presenting you my coaches of physical conditioning, Aleksandr Sedov, and boxing coach, Arbor Tursunpulatov. I feel very comfortable to be working together and preparing for Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy at MSG in New York City. Hope our connection will bring us new success for my boxing career.”

Left to Right: Tursunpulatov, Kovalev and Sedov
Photo Credit: Instagram @SergeyKrusherKovalev

When asked about the personnel change, Kovalev’s manager, Egis Klimas replied, “I’m just happy that Sergey found someone who can train him and I’m happy that Sergey is listening to somebody, which means a lot because I believe the trainer needs to have the respect from the fighter and it can’t be the other way. If fighter goes to the trainer and tells him what to do, he’s not the trainer. The trainer needs to tell the fighter what should be done.”

Klimas added, “Arbor is a real trainer. He’s not a showman going for the camera and getting into the press talking about it. He’s just helping Sergey to get him into better shape and to get him ready for boxing. And he reminds Sergey of his old trainer from the beginning in Russia, Roshchenko. Especially because Sergey wants to hear Russian language spoken in his corner. That is important to him.”

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Sosa vs. Castellanos is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

WBO Votes to Sanction Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranksyy Bout for the Vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title

Miami, Florida: The World Boxing Organization voted today at their annual convention to sanction the upcoming battle at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, November 25 between former unified light heavyweight world champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) and Vyacheslav “Lion Heart” Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs) for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title.

The fight will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT and is presented by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Tickets range from $50 to $350 and available online at Ticketmaster.com, at the MSG box office or Main Events’ office by calling (973) 200-7050 or emailing boxing@mainevents.com.

Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight World Title promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions. Barrera vs. Valera is a 10-round light heavyweight fight promoted by Main Events in Association with Shuan Boxing Promotions. Sosa vs. Castellanos is a 10-round super featherweight fight promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing. The event will take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.