Undefeated prospect Michael “The Brazilian Rocky” Oliveira will have some heavy hitters supporting him Saturday night – Hall of Famer Eder “Golden Bantam” Jofre and former world light heavyweight champion Glen “Road Warrior” Johnson – when he enters the ring against Dominican veteran Jose “Minguito” Soto, headlining the “Sao Paulo Fight Night” pro-am boxing card, presented by MO Productions, at Credicard Hall in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The 21-year-old Oliveira (14-0, 11 KOs), now rated No. 18 by the World Boxing Council (“WBC”), takes on Soto (24-7-2, 13 KOs) in the 10-round main event for the vacant WBC Latino middleweight championship.
“Sao Paulo Fight Night” will air live on TV Globo Network, SporTV cable, GloboEsporte and TV Globo International, as well as TYC Sports in Argentina, and streaming for free outside of Brazil and Argentina for free on www.BoxingChannel.tv.
Oliveira, the two-time defending Brazilian International Press Award’s Athlete of the Year (2009 and 2010), was born in Sao Paulo but he moved two weeks after birth with his family to Miami. He will be fighting for the third time in Brazil as part of a six-fight, two-year deal with TV Global.
Jofre (72-2-4, 50 KOs) is a four-time, two-division world champion who is considered the greatest Brazilian boxer of all-time and arguably the best bantamweight ever. He has supported Oliveira and MO Productions in their quest to popularize boxing once again in Brazil. Oliveira and Johnson train in the same Miami gym and have become friends.
“I’m honored to have Mr. Jofre supporting me at my fight once again,” Michael said. “He is a living legend, not only in Brazil, but in the entire boxing world. I was privileged to walk the great Glen Johnson into the ring for his last fight. I’ve learned a lot from him, in and out of the ring, and I’m very happy that he is here in Brazil for my fight.”
Brazil’s last superstar boxer, four-time world champion Acelino “Popo” Freitas, made his third World Boxing Organization super featherweight title defense in Credicard Hall, one of the largest show arenas in South America, when he knocked out challenger Javier Jauregui in 2000.
Several amateur matches featuring some of Brazils top Olympic boxers will be part of the “Sao Paulo Fight Night” card, in addition to one other pro fight between Sao Paulo light middleweights – Jailton “Dragao Branco” De Jesus Souza (12-2, 10 KOs) and Douglas Ataibe (1-0, 1 KO) in a six-round bout.
