Former world lightweight champion Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios and former featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa will have some promotional roadwork ahead of them before they resume training for their battle of the undefeated for the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight championship. Rios and Gamboa embark on a two-day, coast-to-coast media tour, hosting news conference luncheons in Miami, Florida and Los Angeles, next Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
Monday, March 5 at Noon ET
- Versailles Restaurant
- Calle Ocho / 3555 Southwest 8th Street
- Miami, Fla. 33135
Tuesday, March 6 at Noon PT
- Millennium Biltmore Hotel – Crystal Ballroom
- 506 South Grand Ave.
- Los Angeles, Calif. 90071
Rios vs. Gamboa will take place Saturday, April 14, at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. The fight will be televised live on HBO as the main event of World Championship Boxing, beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET / 7:15 p.m. PT. The telecast will open with 10-round junior welterweight collision between top-10 contenders “Mile High” MIKE ALVARADO and MAURICIO HERRERA.
These four warriors boast a combined record of 100-1-1 (68 KOs) – a winning percentage of 98%.
Rios (29-0-1, 22 KOs), the former WBA lightweight champion, from Oxnard, Calif., enters this fight having won 10 of his previous 11 fights by knockout. Gamboa (21-0, 16 KOs), the former world featherweight champion who won Olympic gold in 2004 for his native Cuba and now resides in Miami, Fla., will return to the ring having won eight of his previous 11 by stoppage. In short, these warriors have never met a chin they didn’t want to smash.
Alvarado (32-0, 23 KOs) of Denver, has won 10 of his last 12 bouts by stoppage en route to a career-high No. 3 world rating, in the World Boxing Organization (WBO). Notable knockout victims include Breidis Prescott, Ray Narh, Emmanuel Clottey and Cesar Bazan. Herrera (18-1, 7 KOs), from Lake Elsinore, Calif., enters this fight riding a two-year, five-bout winning streak, highlighted by victories over Ruslan Provodnikov (17-0) and Mike Dallas, Jr. (17-1-1). Herrera is currently world-rated No. 7 by the International Boxing Federation (IBF).
Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Arena Box U.S., Tecate and AT&T, tickets priced at $250, $150, $100, $50 and $25, not including applicable service charges, go on sale Tomorrow! Friday, March 2 at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT and will be available at all Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers and Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Mandalay Bay at (877) 632-7400 or Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
