Today a purse bid took place at the IBF convention in Honolulu Hawaii and Gary Shaw Productions has outbid Golden Boy Promotions garnering the right to promote an IBF elimination bout between # 3 Luis Franco (11-0, 7 KOs) vs. #12 Gary Russell Jr. (19-0, 11 KOs). The winner will be the mandatory to fight current belt holder, Australian, Billy “The Kid” Dibb (34-1, 21 KOs) for the IBF featherweight championship of the world. The winning bid was $220,000.
“Luis Franco is a great fighter with a tremendous amount of talent,” said promoter Gary Shaw. “He beat Yuriorkis Gamboa twice in the amateurs and I know he’ll beat Russell in the pros. Franco brings an electrifying style to the ring and the fans are going to see the best Cuban fighter in action when he steps in the ring with Russell. The winner of this fight will be the new star in the featherweight division.”
A match between these two undefeated, highly touted prospects would be a great one for fans to catch on either Showtime or HBO. Let’s hope it gets put together soon and we’ll see a rare early meeting between two top, undefeated, big-time prospects.
We’ll keep you posted with any further updates or news.
