Abner Mares vs. Jhonny Gonzalez and Leo Santa Cruz vs. Victor Terrazas on August 24th on Showtime in a championship double header.
“I’m looking forward to fighting in front of my hometown fans on August 24 at StubHub Center,” said Mares. “Jhonny Gonzalez and I have a lot of respect for each other, but we know what’s at stake. I’m confident that we’re going to put on an explosive fight that fans will want to see.”
“The belt belongs to me,” said Gonzalez. “It’s time it returns to my waist. I will give it everything I’ve got on August 24.”
Mares vs. Gonzalez, a 12-round fight for Mares’ WBC Featherweight World Championship, will take place on Saturday, August 24 at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. The event is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, sponsored by Corona and AT&T and will be televised live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Also featured will be a 12-round world championship showdown between WBC Super Bantamweight World Champion Victor Terrazas and former IBF Bantamweight World Champion Leo Santa Cruz. SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is available in Spanish using secondary audio programming (SAP). Mares vs. Gonzalez is presented in association with Promociones Del Pueblo. Preliminary fights will air on SHOWTIME EXTREME®.
Tickets priced at $150, $75, $50 and $25, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges, go on sale on Saturday, July 13 at 10:00 a.m. PT and will be available for purchase online at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849) and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. PT to 6:00 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, please call 877-234-8425.
The newest member of boxing’s pound for pound fraternity, Hawaiian Gardens, California’s Abner Mares (26-0-1, 14 KO’s) earned his spot there the hard way, battling through adversity and some of the best fighters in the world over the last eight years. A member of the 2004 Mexican Olympic team who originally hails from Guadalajara, Mares won his first world title in 2011 when he defeated Joseph Agbeko for the IBF Bantamweight World Championship. Mares won the WBC Super Bantamweight World Championship against Eric Morel less than a year later and, in May of 2013, the 27-year-old knocked out Daniel Ponce De Leon, capturing the WBC Featherweight World Championship. On August 24, he will look to add to his already stellar resume by defending his belt against Gonzalez.
A knockout puncher who has struck fear into the hearts of opponents for years, Mexico City’s Jhonny Gonzalez (54-8, 46 KO’s) is a fan favorite who has won world championships at bantamweight and featherweight while beating the likes of Mark Johnson, Fernando Montiel, Irene Pacheco and Mauricio Pastrana. Since moving to featherweight full-time in 2009, Gonzalez has gone 14-1 with 12 knockouts, with his only loss in the form of a technical decision to Ponce De Leon in September of last year. The winner of two straight who most recently scored a fourth round technical knockout win over Akihiko Katagiri, the 31-year-old veteran plans on testing Mares’ chin this August when he attempts to get the title which he lost to Ponce De Leon back.
Unbeaten in his last 11 bouts, Guadalajara’s Victor “Vikingo” Terrazas (37-2-1, 21 KO’s) is one of Mexico’s most underrated fighters, but with a win over Santa Cruz this August, the world will know his name. The owner of a 2011 win over Fernando Montiel, Terrazas won the WBC Super Bantamweight World Championship this past April by decisioning Cristian Mijares. On August 24, he makes his first defense.
Boxing’s latest action hero, 24-year-old Leo “Terremoto” Santa Cruz (24-0-1, 14 KO’s), of Los Angeles, made quite the impression in his super bantamweight debut in May, stopping Alexander Munoz in five rounds. It was a great start at 122 pounds for the former bantamweight king originally from Huetamo, Michoacan, Mexico, who successfully defended his belt three times over the span of three months before seeking bigger game at super bantamweight.