By: Sean Crose
Premiere Boxing Champions announced a major lineup of fights on Tuesday in Los Angeles, California. The highlight of the afternoon? The announcement of an Errol Spence – Mikey Garcia IBF welterweight title bout, which will go down on March 16th at AT&T Stadium in Texas. Garcia, 39-0, will be making a notable jump in weight divisions to face the 24-0 Spence, and will most likely step into the ring a prohibitive underdog, even though both fighters are known as world class talents.
Other notable PBC fights will appear on Fox, which recently made a deal with PBC. On January 26th, Keith Thurman, 28-0, will be making his long awaited return when he faces Josesito Lopez, 36-7, in a bout which will be aired live from the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn. Leo Santa Cruz will be defending his WBA featherweight tile when the 35-1-1 Californian faces the 23- 2 Miguel Flores in another live Fox broadcast, this one from Los Angeles on February 16th. Another major bout will feature WBC welterweight champ Shawn Porter, 29-2-1, as he battles the formidable Yordenis Ugas, 23-3, live in front of Fox cameras in Las Vegas on March 9th.
According to PBC, Fox will air “eight televised world title fights in the first three months of the new deal, featuring eight world champions and more than two dozen of the world’s best boxers going toe-to-toe. The schedule includes five world-class boxing fight nights live on FOX and FOX Deportes, four more on FS1 and FOX Deportes, and the first FOX PBC Pay-Per-View in March.”
PBC also “announced the on-air personalities who will call all the thrilling action.” Needless to say, some of the names are well known and quite respected. “Former heavyweight world Champion Lennox Lewis and former lightweight world champion Ray ‘Boom Boom’ Mancini join FOX Sports as boxing analysts,” PBC stated, “while Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Chris Myers and Emmy Award-nominee Kenny Albert serve as blow-by-blow announcers. Seasoned FOX broadcaster Kate Abdo joins as a studio and fight night host. Plus, Boxing Hall of Famer Larry Hazzard works as a Rules Expert/Unofficial Scorer.”
Fox Deportes can now boast of having “International Boxing Hall of Fame member and former four-division world champion Erik ‘El Terrible’ Morales,” on the team, “working with Jaime Motta and Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award winner Jessi Losada.” PBCs fight schedule will begin on December 22nd, when the Charlo brothers showcase their skills in Brooklyn, against Willie Monroe Jr, and Tony Harrison respectively, and will end on April 20th, when Danny Garcia, 34-2, makes his comeback fight against Adrian Grenados, 20-6-2, at a location to be announced.
