BoxRec

Mikey Garcia agrees to Sandor Martin bout that will replace Juan Francisco Estrada-Roman Gonzalez fight, sources say

Mikey Garcia, a four-division champion, has agreed to terms for a fight with Spain's Sandor Martin on Oct. 16, possibly in Texas, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.

The bout will be contested at a catchweight of 145 pounds, sources said.

Promoter Eddie Hearn was planning to stage the 115-pound championship trilogy fight between Juan Francisco Estrada and Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez on Oct. 16, but Gonzalez contracted COVID-19, sources said.

Estrada signed the contract, per sources, while Gonzalez's promoter, Akihiko Honda, committed to the fight in writing. That fight could now land in November.

Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) last fought in February 2020, a decision win over Jessie Vargas at welterweight. Garcia is ESPN's No. 10-ranked welterweight. The 33-year-old was in talks to fight former champion Regis Prograis in a highly anticipated matchup, but the bout proved to be too expensive for DAZN, sources said. Instead, Garcia and Prograis could meet each other next year after each takes a tune-up fight.

Martin (38-2, 13 KOs) will be making his U.S. debut. In his lone notable matchup, the 28-year-old dropped a decision to former title challenger Anthony Yigit.

Estrada (42-3, 28 KOs) scored a controversial decision over Gonzalez in March, the leading contender for fight-of-the-year honors. They combined for 2,529 punches, a CompuBox record at 115 pounds.

With the victory, the 31-year-old Mexican grabbed a second junior bantamweight title and retained his No. 1 spot in ESPN's junior bantamweight rankings (Gonzalez, a 34-year-old Nicaraguan, is No. 2). Estrada is also No. 10 in ESPN's pound-for-pound rankings.

The rematch came more than eight years -- and two weight classes -- after their first fight. When they met in 2008, Gonzalez won a unanimous decision to retain his 108-pound championship in another firefight.

I guess any tune up fight for Mikey is alright for me, haven't seen the man in the ring in what feels like an eternity.

Martin is a pretty good Euro-level boxer but doesn't have near the power to bother Garcia and Mikey will eventually stop him most likely. Can't believe Garcia is 33. He's really wasted the past three years when he could have been cementing a pretty impressive legacy

dazn matching mikey with some real beasts, jessie vargas now sandy martin

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑08 Sep 2021, 21:07 dazn matching mikey with some real beasts, jessie vargas now sandy martin

I didn’t mind the Vargas fight. The Martin fight though is crap.

jesse vargas vs mikey garcia ..... the 10m dollar fight

mikey should be in p4p lists, fighting no higher than 140. shouldve been the one to beat loma, etc. stuff like jessie vargas, spence, martin.....its just not the fights that made sense for him. absolutely 0 done to enhance his reputation or resume. of course im speaking as a fan, how can i knock him for taking 7m to fight a guy like jesse vargas

feels like he's wasted a bunch of his career, both when he took the break and the last few years active

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑09 Sep 2021, 05:01 jesse vargas vs mikey garcia ..... the 10m dollar fight

mikey should be in p4p lists, fighting no higher than 140. shouldve been the one to beat loma, etc. stuff like jessie vargas, spence, martin.....its just not the fights that made sense for him. absolutely 0 done to enhance his reputation or resume. of course im speaking as a fan, how can i knock him for taking 7m to fight a guy like jesse vargas

feels like he's wasted a bunch of his career, both when he took the break and the last few years active

Yeh, and he already lost 3 years of his early prime years with the TR contract dispute

lost so much interest in mikey

him vs loma seemed to be the fight to make, then suddenly mikeys up at 147........

Press Release

Mikey Garcia returns to action on October 16 as he takes on Sandor Martin at Chukchansi Park in Fresno, California, topping a stacked bill featuring two Light-Flyweight World title bouts, live worldwide on DAZN.

**TICKETS ON SALE TOMORROW (SEPTEMBER 17) FROM 11AM (PT) AT TICKETS.COM**

Former four-weight World ruler Garcia (40-1 30 KOs) last stepped through the ropes in February 2020, flooring Jessie Vargas at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, en-route to a points win over his fellow Mexican-American. The 33 year old is plotting a route towards more World title glory, and the Californian fan favorite plans to put on a show at the home of the Fresno Grizzlies.

“I’m very excited to get back in the ring and give my fans another night to remember,” said Garcia. “I’m looking forward to seeing everyone on October 16 in Fresno – it’s going to be a great night of boxing.”

Martin (38-2 13 KOs) has form and activity in his favor as he makes his American debut in the biggest fight of his career. The Spaniard recorded a wide decision win over Kay Prospere in the second defense of his European Super-Lightweight in April in his Barcelona backyard, and the 28 year old will be leaving everything in the ring on what he believes is potentially a life-changing night.

“I’m so excited for this opportunity,” said Martin. “The sport of boxing brings me the chance to change my life. There will be a before and after for everyone in this fight.”

A stacked undercard in support of the main event is led by two World Light-Flyweight title fights as WBO king Elwin Soto puts his crown on the line against Jonathan Gonzalez and WBA champion Esteban Bermudez defends his strap against Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.

Soto (19-1 13 KOs) entertained a packed crowd at AT&T Stadium on Cinco de Mayo weekend, stopping Katsunari Takayama in the ninth round of their clash on the undercard of Soto’s fellow Mexican star Canelo Alvarez’s clash with Billy Joe Saunders. That was a third successful defense for the 25 year old and the first inside the distance of the belt he ripped from Angel Acosta with a dramatic final round KO over the Puerto Rican in June 2019, and he makes his fourth defense on October 16 against Gonzalez in a bout in association with Zanfer Promotions.

It’s another Puerto Rican foe in Soto’s way in Fresno in the shape of mandatory challenger Gonzalez (22-3-1 13 KOs). The 30 year old is in his second World title tilt having travelled to Japan in August 2019 to face WBO Flyweight king Kosei Tanaka and the successful amateur landed the WBO NABO belt at Light-Fly in February 2020 and defended it with a fourth round KO of Armando Torres in May to land his mandatory status.

“I can’t wait to get back in the ring and defend my title,” said Soto. “Texas was a great night and I think this will be too. Gonzalez is a proud Puerto Rican contender, and we all know that when Mexico and Puerto Rico step through the ropes, there are fireworks, so the fans are going to love this fight.

“I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time,” said Gonzalez. “Soto’s style fits me perfectly. It will be a war of Puerto Rico vs. Mexico.”

Bermudez (14-3-2 10 KOs) ripped the WBA strap from Carlos Canizales in May, stopping the defending champion in Mexico City inside six rounds in what was the Mexican’s first World title fight. The 25 year old faces a formidable test in the first defense of his crown against rising Texas talent Rodriguez.

Rodriguez (13-0 9 KOs) is one of American boxing’s bright young stars, and the 21 year old Texan gets his first World title shot in Fresno. Trained by Robert Garcia, Rodriguez will be aiming to emulate his WBA World Super-Flyweight champion brother Joshua Franco and bring more hardware back to San Antonio.

“This is going to be a great fight,” said Bermudez. “Jesse is a really talented fighter, and I am sure that he will be in great shape and ready to rock on October 16, but I worked too hard to become World champion to let it go in my first defense, so this will be a war.”

“This is the opportunity I’ve been waiting for my whole life,” said Rodriguez. “First of all, I want to thank everybody at Matchroom, Robert and Mikey Garcia, Mr. Honda, my father and everybody at RGBA for supporting me since day one. I also want to thank Bermudez for giving me the opportunity to fight for his title.

“I know it won’t be an easy fight, but I plan on walking out of the ring October 16 as the new World champion and bring the title home to San Antonio. It will be an honor for me and my brother Joshua to be World champions at the same time. I am training very hard and promise I won’t disappoint anybody.”

“I am really looking forward to getting back to the States with a cracking card in Fresno,” said promoter Eddie Hearn. “It’s great to see Mikey back in the ring, a future hall of fame star that always makes for entertaining fights and is hunting his next World title target – but this is a massive opportunity for Sandor and one that he will be desperate to take with both hands.

“We have two fantastic World title fights in the always exciting Light-Flyweight division with WBO champion Elwin Soto and WBA champion Esteban Bermudez putting their belts on the line against Jonathan Gonzalez and Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez respectively – Fresno fight fans are in for a real treat on October 16.”

“It’s an honor to work with Matchroom and Mikey Garcia on this night,” said promoter Rick Mirigian, who is working with Matchroom on the event. “October 16 will be a night no-one will forget here in Fresno; I promise you that.”

Further undercard fights will be announced before tomorrows on sale launch.

Prograis 'Very Frustrated' Mikey Garcia Fight Didn’t Happen; Had Never Heard Of Sandor Martin

Regis Prograis can’t understand why DAZN executives wouldn’t pay for his intriguing fight against Mikey Garcia, yet fully funded Garcia’s tune-up bout with an anonymous, unproven opponent.

The former WBA “super” 140-pound champion expressed frustration Thursday during an interview with BS.com, just a few hours after DAZN and Matchroom Boxing announced Garcia’s next fight. Garcia, a four-division champion, will oppose Spain’s Sandor Martin in a welterweight fight DAZN will stream October 16 from Chukchansi Park, a minor-league baseball stadium in Fresno, California.

“It is what it is,” Prograis said. “Listen, Mikey, he has a name and I guess that’s what he’s gonna do. But I would definitely like to know what the numbers are looking like for him to fight somebody like that. Sometimes, I’m not gonna lie, it just seems like it’s not fair. I had a bunch of hard fights coming up and then somebody like that could just fight a person nobody’s ever heard of.

“I mean, of course, I don’t know the numbers, but I’m pretty sure Mikey’s gonna get paid something good just to fight a nobody. To me, it’s not fair. But hey, what can you do about it? That’s why I’m out here chilling in Colombia now. I’ll be back when they update me with something.”

Prograis and his wife, Raquel, traveled recently from their home in Katy, Texas, for a vacation in Colombia. The New Orleans native needed to get away to give his mind and body a break from training.

The 32-year-old Prograis started to train late in July for what he thought would be a high-profile showdown with Garcia. Though he was never officially offered that fight, Prograis prepared as if it were scheduled because he wanted to be physically and mentally ready if the fight took place this Saturday night, which was the rumored date, or soon thereafter.

“It’s very frustrating – very with a capital ‘v,’ ” Prograis said. “When they told me I had this fight scheduled, I just wanted to win so bad. The whole Josh Taylor thing got to me. I’m not gonna lie, I never thought I could lose. Of course, I know everybody is beatable and stuff like that. Nobody is invincible, but for me, I train so much and I have so much passion for the sport to where I never thought I can lose. So, when they told me I could fight Mikey, I’m like, ‘Man, I don’t need a date. I’m gonna train. I’m gonna do what I’ve gotta do.’ Like every day, I was training because I wanna get better.

“And then, to hear that it's not gonna happen, that’s like super frustrating because, you know, that’s what I was looking forward to. … I was really anticipating this fight. I thought it was gonna be a great fight. I was really anticipating this fight. I know both of us was gonna get paid. I knew it would be a great fight not just for us, but for boxing. And then when it gets scrapped, of course it’s very, very frustrating.”

Prograis (26-1, 22 KOs) was informed by his handlers that Garcia wanted a less dangerous fight to shed some ring rust because the Oxnard, California, native hasn’t fought since he out-pointed Jessie Vargas in February 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Money most likely was a factor as well.

Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) reportedly was paid $7 million to face Las Vegas’ Vargas (29-3-2, 11 KOs), but DAZN is more cost-conscious, particularly in the U.S. market, than before the pandemic. BS.com has learned Garcia and Prograis would’ve been paid less than $7 million combined if their fight was made.

“With those numbers, he probably won’t fight me, to be honest,” Prograis said. “Listen, if he made $7 million to fight Jessie Vargas, he’s definitely not gonna fight me for $3 million, $2 million, $2.5 million. If it’s still that number by the time we could fight again, yeah, I don’t think it’s gonna happen. And I definitely don’t think Mikey’s scared or nothing like that. I would never say that because Mikey’s a real fighter.

“But I understand – if he got $7 million to fight Jessie Vargas, he wants the same or probably even more to fight somebody like me, because I feel like I am way more dangerous than somebody like Jessie Vargas. So, if that’s the exact number, I really don’t think it’s gonna happen.”

Garcia, 33, is unlikely to have much trouble when he meets Martin (38-2, 13 KOs) four weeks from Saturday night. The 28-year-old Martin will take a nine-fight winning streak into their bout, but he hasn’t fought anyone anywhere near the level on which the intelligent, skillful Garcia operates.

Prograis, meanwhile, wants to get a fight of his own scheduled as soon as possible. He stopped Ukraine’s Ivan Redkach (23-6-1, 18 KOs, 1 NC) in the sixth round of his most recent bout, which was part of the Jake Paul-Ben Askren pay-per-view undercard April 17 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

“I don’t wanna just wait around and, you know, he fights and it still might be a maybe,” Prograis said. “Like, ‘Oh, you might fight him after he fights in October.’ So, it’s like, ‘Nah, I’m gonna go on with my schedule.’ Hopefully, he fights, then I fight, and then after that, maybe we can come to an agreement sometime after that. But I don’t know what’s going on with it.”

mikey is use to having time out the ring and jumping back in , think points win

dont know how dazn will stay afloat in the post jesse vargas era

Good tune up fight. Maybe Mikey can lure Thurman out after this? Be a good scrap.

Mikey needs big ratings for Martin fight

Hearn says they’ll revisit the Mikey-Prograis fight after they look at the numbers for Mikey’s October 16th clash against the 28-year-old Sandor.

If the fight brings in many new subscribers on DAZN, that will increase Mikey’s chances of getting the kind of money he was asking for to fight Prograis.

“‘Couldn’t afford?’ [you mean we] Didn’t agree with the purses they [Mikey and Prograis] wanted. It’s two different things,” said Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn to ESNEWS in reacting to a comment from Mikey that DAZN couldn’t afford to pay for his fight with Regis Prograis.

“I don’t think DAZN had a problem affording anything,” said Hearn. “It’s just that they’ve become smarter frankly, and they needed to be.

“When they entered the U.S market, no one knew who DAZN was, and very few people knew who I was. We had to come in, overspend and make statements.

“Now, they know the value of fights. When we go into purse bid scenarios, it might be Lopez-Kambosos; we have a value of what we believe that fight is worth.

“We have a value of what we believe the Mikey Garcia vs. Regis Prograis fight is worth. Unfortunately, they didn’t agree, and we didn’t agree. So we didn’t do it.

“So, I said [to Mikey Garcia], ‘You haven’t boxed for 19 months, let’s come out and box the biggest star in Spanish boxing in Sandor Martin, who headlines all our shows. Come back, and then we’ll revisit Regis Prograis against Mikey Garcia once we look at the numbers for your fight with Sandor Martin.’

Fight Week!!

Garcia last fought nearly 2 years ago.. The same month Fury and Wilder last fought.. Feb 2020..

W'e're talking 18 months.. Long time that..

Once you start giving guys like Garcia $7m for a crap fight, and plus he's been on PPV before as well, they're gonna keep demanding that. Hearn was desperate to do one fight deals to help promote DAZN at the time, but it just wasn't worth it.

He's 33 now, he already lost 3 years of prime before this as well..

Already a 4-weight champion. He needs to chose a weight class and settle in. Hopefully he hasn't started declining yet.

Change of plan: Jesse Rodriguez will face Jose Alejandro Burgos

Nikita Ababiy returns to the ring following mental health hiatus

After dealing with a plethora of personal issues, Nikita Ababiy is ready to “steal the show.”

The middleweight prospect returns to the ring on Saturday for the first time in nearly 11 months when he faces journeyman Sanny Duversonne in an eight-round bout. Ababiy vs. Duversonne will support the unherladed 147-pound DAZN main event featuring Mikey Garcia versus Sandor Martin, scheduled for 10 rounds, at Chukchansi Park, in Fresno, California.

Ababiy is fresh off a pair of unanimous decision victories in 2020 but the 22-year-old was consistently outspoken throughout the year regarding the difficulty of training in New York during quarantine, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It was a very difficult time,” he explained. “Everything was closed. All of my boxing gyms were closed. How can I train normally and prepare for a fight when everything is closed?”

Ababiy told The Ring that most of the gyms in Brooklyn re-opened last month, which has been a breath of fresh air for the youngster, who hasn’t scored a knockout win in over two years.

“Everything is back to normal. Now it’s time to get back in the ring again and I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to put on a great show for the fans.”

However given the unpredictability of the virus, we asked Ababiy if he would consider moving out of New York and to an area with lax COVID regulations. It certainly carries more risk but that also means Ababiy won’t have to let out a bleat of frustration in the case that New York has another COVID outbreak and shuts down areas of public gathering.

“I really want to move out of New York,” he admitted. “I either want to move to Florida or California because of the availability of sparring partners and the monsters that live out there and train out of there.

“I also want to move out there for the warm weather. As you’re probably aware, once the summer ends in New York, it gets really cold and you can’t really train outside. I want to move within a year. Las Vegas is also a possibility.”

Ababiy (10-0, 6 knockouts), originally from Richmond, Virginia, also opened up on his absence from the ring, which he explained was due to mental health problems. He cited The Ring’s No.2-ranked lightweight Ryan Garcia as an example of someone who did it correctly.

“More and more fighters are opening up about their mental health issues. Ryan Garcia was one of the first to go public about his struggles. At the end of the day, I told myself that I was the only one who could make this better,” Ababiy said. “What’s the point of being in my room and dwelling and crying about it when I could solve it on my own?

“So people aren’t confused; I never stepped away from boxing. I was still training but I wanted to take care of those personal issues before taking on another fight. If I’m in camp and I want to be the best version of myself, I cannot focus on both. I had to focus on my mental health.”

Ababiy will take on Duversonne (11-4-2, 8 KOs), who has squared off against a number of quality opponents, including former middleweight title challenger Brandon Adams, Chordale Booker and Lorenzo Simpson, but “Sonny Prime Time” failed to win each of those bouts.

“I don’t really know too much about him, to be honest,” he revealed. “I know that he’s faced some guys but he was there to survive. He wasn’t there to win.

“That’s the difference. I’m coming to win. I’m not coming here to run around and dance. I really want to get the knockout and if I see the opportunity, I will surely capitalize on it.”

Garcia vs Martin weigh-in start time is scheduled for 4 pm ET / 1 pm PT in the US, 9 pm BST in the UK and 7 am AEDT in Australia. Live stream video is available below.

Sandor Martin: Garcia Made A Mistake The Moment He Chose Me As An Opponent

“He made a mistake the moment he chose me as an opponent,” Martin said of Garcia calling his name for this weekend’s fight, which will be contested at a maximum weight of 145 pounds. “After this fight, I will get the big fights. I’m going to steal his future plans, get all those fights he’s planning to make.”

“I’m the one traveling here. I have nothing to lose, he has everything to lose,” notes Martin, who has only fought twice outside of Spain and never before outside of Europe. “Honestly, I’m very calm about the fight this Saturday. I’m confident that I will be victorious this weekend.

“He is really putting his future at risk with this fight. I’m 28 and in my prime. He’s 33. His time is running out. I was born with boxing in my blood. I’m 40 fights into my career, 38 wins. Winning is in my DNA.”

Mikey Garcia vs Josh taylor at 140lb is the fight to make. fornicating politics probably wont allow it, but geezes thats a fight id get keen for.

Date: October 16, 2021
Broadcast: DAZN
Start time: 7:30 pm ET | 4:30 pm PT | 12:30 am BST
Venue: Chukchansi Park - Fresno, CA

Promoted by: Matchroom Boxing

Main Card (DAZN, 7:30 pm ET)

10 Round Welterweight Bout
Mikey Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) vs. Sandor Martin (38-2, 13 KOs)

6 Round Super Featherweight Bout
Marc Castro (3-0, 3 KOs) vs. Angel Luna (14-7-1, 7 KOs)

WBO World Junior Flyweight Championship
Elwin Soto (19-1, 13 KOs) vs. Jonathan Gonzalez (24-3-1, 14 KOs)

10 Round Flyweight Bout
Jesse Rodriguez (13-0, 9 KOs) vs. Jose Alejandro Burgos (18-4-1, 15 KOs)

Prelims (DAZN and Social Media, 5:00 pm ET)

10 Round Lightweight Bout
Brock Jarvis (19-0, 17 KOs) vs. Alejandro Frias Rodriguez (13-4-2, 6 KOs)

4 Round Super Lightweight Bout
Oscar Alan Perez (3-0, 3 KOs) vs. Raymundo Rios Cardiel (3-6-2, 3 KOs)

8 Round Middleweight Bout
Nikita Ababiy (10-0, 6 KOs) vs. Sonny Duversonne (11-4-2, 8 KOs)

8 Round Super Middleweight Bout
Diego Pacheco (12-0, 9 KOs) vs. Lucas de Abreu (12-0, 11 KOs)

4 Round Lightweight Bout
Charlie Sheehy (debut) vs. Luciano Ramos (0-1, 0 KOs)

Prelims in an hour