Former world champions and top-rated contenders clash when the Philippines’ Marlon Tapales and Japan’s Ryosuke Iwasa go toe-to-toe for the Interim IBF Super Bantamweight Title on Saturday, December 7 live on SHOWTIME from Barclays Center, the home of BROOKLYN BOXING™.
The Premier Boxing Champions event is headlined by undefeated WBC Middleweight World Champion Jermall Charlo defending his title against highly-ranked contender Dennis Hogan. The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and also features middleweight star Chris Eubank, Jr. and top contender Matt Korobov squaring off in the co-main event for the Interim WBA Middleweight Title.
The non-televised undercard will feature a clash between once-beaten middleweight contenders as Immanuwel Aleem (18-1-2, 11 KOs) takes on Ronald Ellis (16-1-2, 11 KOs) in a 10-round fight, unbeaten Ghanaian bantamweight Duke Micah (23-0, 19 KOs) in a 10-round duel against the Philippines’ Joseph Ambo (9-2-1, 6 KOs) and Australia’s Louisa Hawton (9-2, 5 KOs) battling Los Angeles-native Lorraine Villalobos (4-2, 2 KOs) for the Interim WBC Strawweight Championship.
Rounding out the lineup is Harlem’s Arnold González (2-0, 2 KOs) in a four-round welterweight fight, the pro debut of heavyweight Steven Torres in a four-round showdown against Mexico’s Daniel Franco (2-2, 2 KOs), plus a pair of Dallas-natives in action as unbeaten super middleweight Burley Brooks (4-0, 4 KOs) steps in for a six-round attraction while Amon Rashidi (7-1, 5 KOs) competes in a six-round bout.
Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Lions Only Promotions and TGB Promotions, are on-sale now and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com and barclayscenter.com. Tickets also can be purchased at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center. Group discounts are available by calling 844-BKLYN-GP.
Fighting out of Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte, Philippines, Tapales (33-2, 16 KOs) captured a bantamweight world title in 2016 with a comeback knockout victory over Panya Uthok while down on the scorecards. The 27-year-old has fought professionally since 2008, and rides a 12-fight winning streak into this bout. This will be his third consecutive appearance in the U.S. after scoring knockout victories over Fernando Vargas and Roberto Castañeda so far this year.
The 29-year-old Iwasa (26-3, 16 KOs) made his U.S debut in February with a technical decision victory over veteran contender César Juárez, rebounding from losing his 122-pound title to T.J. Doheny last year. Fighting out of Kashiwa, Japan, Iwasa won the title in 2017 by stopping Yukinori Oguni and defended it successfully against Ernesto Saulong. Iwasa enters December 7 the winner of seven of his last eight fights.
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