Friday: Inaugural MTK Global/Top Rank Card Coming to ESPN+
April 27, 2024
Top Rank Press Release
Aliu Bamidele Lasisi to battle Ricardo Blandon in super flyweight main event
Exclusive stream begins at 12:30 p.m. ET
(APRIL 4, 2019) — Top Rank and MTK Global’s exclusive multi-year licensing agreement kicks off Friday, April 5 with a special card from Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Five bouts are scheduled to stream live and exclusively beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+ — the direct-to-consumer sports streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment and ESPN.
In the 12-round main event, Nigerian power puncher Aliu Bamidele “Lucky Boy” Lasisi (12-0, 8 KOs) will fight Ricardo Blandon (10-1, 6 KOs) for the vacant WBC International super flyweight belt. The co-feature will see Irishman David Oliver Joyce (9-0, 7 KOs) battle Stephen Tiffney (10-1, 4 KOs) in a 10-rounder for the vacant WBO European featherweight strap.
Lasisi’s last bout was a dominant unanimous decision over Mchanja Yohana in December. Blandon, who hails from Managua, Nicaragua, has won three straight bouts by knockout and will be making his first ring appearance outside of his home country.
Joyce, who represented Ireland at the 2016 Rio Olympics, is coming off a six-round unanimous decision over Jorge Rojas Zacazontetl last October at Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden. Tiffney has won two straight since a decision loss to Lewis Paulin (10-0 at the time).
In other action:
Up-and-coming super middleweight Mateo Tapia (9-0, 5 KOs) will face Gaganpreet Sharma (8-1, 4 KOs) in an eight-rounder.
Shakhobidin Zoirov, who captured a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics for his native Uzbekistan, will make his professional debut against Anthony Holt (5-4-1, 3 KOs) in a six-round featherweight contest.
Lightweight prospect Majid Al-Naqbi will make his professional debut versus Vladimir Lytkin (0-2) in a four-rounder.
About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer and International (DTCI) segment and ESPN. It reached 2 million subscribers in less than a year and offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks, along with premium editorial content.
Programming on ESPN+ includes hundreds of MLB and NHL games, exclusive UFC, Top Rank boxing and PFL fights and events, top domestic and international soccer (Serie A, MLS, FA Cup, UEFA Nations League, EFL Championship, EFL Carabao Cup, Eredivisie, and more), thousands of college sports events (including football, basketball and other sports), Grand Slam tennis, international and domestic rugby and cricket, new and exclusive series, acclaimed studio shows and the full library of ESPN’s award-winning 30 for 30 films. Fans subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 a month (or $49.99 per year) and can cancel at any time.
ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices) and ESPN.com. They are the industry-leading all-in-one digital sports platform, delivering a rich, personalized experience to tens of millions of fans every month.
About MTK Global
MTK Global is the world’s foremost fighter management company. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, it was founded in September 2012 by two-time European boxing champion, Matthew Macklin.
MTK Global delivers a wide range of support and services including career development, legal, media, endorsements and sponsorships to more than a hundred professional fighters. It provides boxing shows, events and training gyms in various locations worldwide: Marbella, Spain, London, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Newcastle, United Kingdom, Johannesburg, South Africa, Sta. Catarina, Brasil and Sydney, Australia.
For general enquiries, email us at: hello@mtkglobal.com.
About the Editor
Army Veteran and former Professional Boxer Simon Ruvalcaba started boxing at the age of ten and Had a 71 fight amateur career which featured a 139 lbs. 1998 8th U.S. Army Boxing Championship out of Camp Casey, Korea and a spot on the prestigious Army Boxing Team at Fort Hood, TX. After a journeyman pro career of 18 fights, which included sparring sessions with many champions and contenders including Julio Cesar Chavez and Pernell “Sweat Pea” Whitaker, Simon started writing and has contributed to many publications and websites including fighthype.com, pound4pound.com, Tahoe Daily Tribune (South Lake Tahoe, CA), Nevada Appeal (Carson City, NV). He has also been the Boxing Instructor for Ken Shamrock and The Lions Den and was MMA and Bareknuckle star Paige VanZant’s first boxing coach!
Born and Raised in South Lake Tahoe, California he now resides in Sun Valley, Nevada and spends as much time as possible with his Sons Gabriel and Oscar! Beyond boxing, Simon is an all around sports fanatic and is passionate about the teams that he roots for. Simon also works as a Sportsbook Supervisor for Caesars Sportsbook in Lake Tahoe.
