SATURDAY NIGHT ARMORY BOXING UPDATE INCLUDING MORRELL AND TRUAX APPEARANCES!
This Saturday night marks professional boxing’s anticipated return to The Armory and features local favorites Jamal “Shango” James and Ve Shawn Owens, both of Minneapolis’ Circle of Discipline. James is featured in the nights co-feature and Owens competes in the main featured off TV bout which will be shown live on SHOWTIME SPORTS Digital Platforms (details below).
WBA Super Middleweight Champion David Morrell Jr will be attending Friday’s weigh-ins where he is expected to announce his next title defense which is set for June 24th, 2023 at the Minneapolis Armory. Morrell (8-0, 7 KOs), a native of Cuba who now calls Minneapolis home, will also be in attendance at the Armory Saturday night.
Former IBF Super Middleweight world champion “Golden” Caleb Truax was set to make his return last December at the Armory before the show was postponed. The Minnesota native Truax who last fought in January of 2021, will be ringside on Saturday night as part of the Showtime International broadcast team alongside The Minnesota Score Magazine’s Wally Langfellow.
MATIAS VS. PONCE, JAMES VS. PALMETTA HEADLINES SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING TELECAST
Matias vs. Ponce will see top super lightweight contenders square off as popular knockout artist Subriel Matías meets undefeated Argentine Jeremías Ponce for the vacant IBF 140-pound World Championship on Saturday, February 25 live on SHOWTIME from The Armory in Minneapolis headlining a Premier Boxing Champions event.
The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® telecast begins at 8 p.m. CST and features the return of Minneapolis-native Jamal “Shango” James in the 10-round welterweight co-main event as he battles 2016 Argentine Olympian Alberto Palmetta. Kicking off the telecast, exciting super lightweight contender Elvis Rodríguez duels the hard-hitting Joseph “Blessed Hands” Adorno in a 10-round attraction.
ALL-ACTION CONTENDERS AND PROSPECTS HIGHLIGHT THREE-BOUT SHOWTIME® BOXING COUNTDOWN SHOW STREAMING LIVE THIS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25
Welterweight Contender Kudratillo Abdukakhorov Battles Minneapolis-Native VeShawn Owens; Plus Unbeaten Prospects Derrick Jackson and Mikkel Spencer Compete in Separate Bouts on SHOWTIME SPORTS® Digital Platforms at 5:45 PM CST
Top Contenders Subriel Matias and Jeremias Ponce Meet for Vacant 140-Pound World Title Live on SHOWTIME from
The Armory in Minneapolis
MINNEAPOLIS – February 22, 2023 – Three undercard matchups, featuring a welterweight showdown and two unbeaten prospects entering the ring in separate bouts, will highlight the SHOWTIME BOXING COUNTDOWN live streaming presentation this Saturday, February 25 in a Premier Boxing Champions Event from The Armory in Minneapolis.
The SHOWTIME BOXING COUNTDOWN show, hosted by award-winning MORNING KOMBAT live digital talk show hosts Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell, will stream live on the SHOWTIME SPORTS YouTube channel and SHOWTIME Boxing Facebook page starting at 5:45 CST and is topped by welterweight contender Kudratillo Abdukakhorov taking on Minneapolis-native and Armory fan-favorite VeShawn Owens in an 10-round duel.
The action will also include unbeaten rising welterweight prospect Derrick “Diesel” Jackson in an eight-round bout taking on Willie Jones, plus sensational super lightweight prospect Mikkel Spencer faces Margarito Hernandez in a four-round attraction.
The live streaming fights will precede the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® telecast at 8 pm CST headlined by top super lightweight contenders squaring off as popular knockout artist Subriel Matías meets undefeated Argentine Jeremías Ponce for the vacant IBF 140-pound World Championship.
The telecast will also see the return of Minneapolis-native Jamal “Shango” James in the co-main event taking on 2016 Argentine Olympian Alberto Palmetta. Plus, lightweight contender Elvis Rodríguez duels Joseph “Blessed Hands” Adorno in the telecast opener.
Tickets for the event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions and Warriors Boxing, are on sale now and can be purchased at the Armory at http://ArmoryMN.com/ and through Ticketmaster.
Born in Uzbekistan and fighting out of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Abdukakhorov (18-1, 10 KOs) rose to the top spot in the IBF rankings before dropping a December 2021 matchup with Cody Crowley. The 29-year-old made his U.S. debut in March 2019, defeating former title challenger Keita Obara by unanimous decision before following up with a wide technical decision triumph over former champion Luis Collazo in October of that year. He will meet the 31-year-old Owens (13-3, 12 KOs) in his seventh fight at The Armory in his hometown. Owens’ last outing saw him drop a decision to current WBA 140-pound champion Alberto Puello in December 2021, snapping a four-fight winning streak.
The 20-year-old Jackson (10-0, 5 KOs) turned pro at 18 in 2020 and stayed busy racking up his unbeaten record over the next two years. Representing Orlando, Fla., Jackson went eight rounds for the first time in his last fight, winning a unanimous decision over Damian Ezequiel Bonelli last October. He faces the 31-year-old Jones (8-2, 5 KOs), a Chapel Hill, North Carolina-native who owns an amateur victory over two-time world champion Regis Prograis in 2011. Jones most recently stopped Brian Jones in round three of their June 2021 matchup.
Spencer (2-0, 1 KO) is the younger brother of rising super welterweight Joey Spencer and turned pro himself August 2021 with a unanimous decision victory over Eliseo Villalobos. The 18-year-old from Linden, Mich., most recently knocked out Deljerro Revello in round four last September. He will be opposed by the 30-year-old Hernandez (3-4-1), who fights out of Wapato, Wash., and most recently lost a decision to Bryce Mills in January.
The non-televised undercard will see lightweight prospect Breeon Carothers (2-0, 2 KOs) in a four-round bout against Indiana’s Kevin Schmidt (0-2), plus Puerto Rican bantamweight prospect Jonathan Lopez (8-0-1, 4 KOs) duels Brazil’s Eduardo Diogo (3-0, 2 KOs) in a six-round attraction.
Tickets for the event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions and Warriors Boxing, are on sale now and can be purchased at the Armory at http://ArmoryMN.com/ and through Ticketmaster.
For more information visit www.SHO.com/sports, www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, follow #MatiasPonce follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing and @TGBPromotions, on Instagram @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing and @TGBPromotionss or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ShowtimeBoxing.
SUBRIEL MATIAS VS. JEREMIAS PONCE
AND JAMAL JAMES VS. ALBERTO PALMETTA
*All Times Are Central*
(As of 02/23/23)
Friday, February 24
1:00 p.m. OFFICIAL WEIGH-IN*
*Event will be streamed live via the SHOWTIME Sports YouTube Channel and the SHOWTIME Boxing Facebook Page.
Saturday, February 25
4:30 p.m. DOORS OPEN AT THE ARMORY
4:50 p.m. FIRST FIGHT BEGINS
8:00 p.m. SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® TELECAST BEGINS*
*Available in Spanish via Secondary Audio Programming (SAP)