Zepeda-Vargas and a 10-round bantamweight tilt between undefeated Puerto Rican KO artist Carlos Caraballo and Jonas Sultan will stream live and exclusively on ESPN+ starting at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.
Combat followers exterior the US can watch the combat dwell on FITETV:
Jose Zepeda desires a 3rd world title shot. Josue Vargas, born in Puerto Rico and raised within the Bronx, hopes his hometown principal occasion is the ticket to title competition.
Zepeda and Vargas will meet in a 10-round junior welterweight principal occasion Saturday, Oct. 30 at Hulu Theater at Madison Sq. Backyard. Zepeda is ranked No. 2 on the planet by the WBC, and Vargas, winner of 13 straight bouts, hopes to knock “Chon” off his lofty perch.
Undercard motion — additionally streaming and live and exclusively on ESPN+ — consists of former world champion Jonathan Guzman returning in an eight-round junior featherweight combat, Lengthy Island-born welterweight Jahi Tucker (4-0, 2 KOs) in a six-rounder, Kasir “Mazzi” Goldston (3-0, 1 KO) competing in a six-round junior welterweight contest, New York Metropolis prospect Mathew Gonzalez (12-0, 8 KOs) making his MSG debut in a six-rounder at junior welterweight, former New York Metropolis beginner standout Ray Cuadrado (1-0, 1 KO) in a four-rounder at junior light-weight, and Irish sensation Paddy “Actual Deal” Donovan (7-0, 5 KOs) making his American debut in a six-round welterweight task.
Promoted by Prime Rank, tickets beginning at $30 (not together with charges) go on sale Friday, Oct. 1 at 12 p.m. ET and will be bought by visiting Ticketmaster.com or MSG.com. All company age 12 and older are required to supply proof of COVID-19 vaccination (this implies having at the very least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine previous to attending). MSG’s complete COVID-19 tips, together with these relating to youngsters underneath 12, will be discovered at https://www.msg.com/madison-square-garden/faqs.
“It’s been a very long time, and Prime Rank and ESPN are thrilled to be again at Madison Sq. Backyard with an intriguing battle between a sensational younger southpaw in Vargas and a world-level contender in Zepeda. The winner is squarely within the title image,” stated Prime Rank chairman Bob Arum. “Carlos Caraballo has all of the makings of the following Puerto Rican celebrity. Not many bantamweights can punch like this child, however Sultan is way from a pushover.”
Zepeda (34-2, 21 KOs) is unbeaten in 5 bouts since a good majority resolution loss to then-WBC world champion Jose Ramirez in February 2019. The slick-boxing Zepeda participated within the 2020 Combat of the Yr, knocking out Ivan Baranchyk within the fifth spherical of a bout that featured eight whole knockdowns. He returned in Might on the Josh Taylor-Ramirez undercard and outboxed “Hammerin” Hank Lundy over 10 rounds. Zepeda hopes a win over Vargas results in a Ramirez rematch or maybe a crack at undisputed king Taylor. Vargas (19-1, 9 KOs) earned his nickname as a wunderkind within the Bronx, the place he compiled a 72-8 beginner document and gained six New York Metropolis Metro championships. Other than a controversial disqualification loss early in his professional profession, Vargas has been near-perfect. He fought twice in 2020 contained in the MGM Grand Bubble, notching extensive factors wins over Salvador Briceno and Kendo Castaneda. He final fought April 24 in Kissimmee, Florida, and turned again the awkward problem of Willie Shaw over 10 rounds.
“I’m pushing exhausting to earn one other world title alternative, however I perceive the duty at hand towards a younger, proficient fighter like Josue Vargas,” Zepeda stated. “There may be mutual respect, however after we enter the Madison Sq. Backyard ring, that every one goes out the window.”
Vargas stated, “I’m prepared for this chance. Being the principle occasion in my hometown, Madison Sq. Backyard, is a dream true. The Bronx and Puerto Rico will likely be within the constructing to indicate their help. That is Puerto Rico versus Mexico, so it’s going to be a heck of a combat. As soon as I acquired the decision, I began pushing even tougher. I‘ve been by way of loads in my skilled profession, so why not step as much as the plate? I’ve the talents to beat Zepeda, and I’m going to do exactly that. Zepeda has plenty of expertise towards the highest names within the junior welterweight division. We each have the expertise and the talents to placed on a present.”
Caraballo (14-0, 14 KOs), from Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, is a five-year professional who broke out in March together with his fourth-round demolition over Leonardo Baez. He hopes to enter the world title image with a powerful exhibiting over Sultan (17-5, 11 KOs), a former world title challenger from the Philippines who has by no means been stopped as an expert. In Might 2018, Sultan dropped a choice to Jerwin Ancajas for the IBF junior bantamweight world title. He has gained three out of his previous 4 fights and final fought in August, knocking out Sharone Carter in seven rounds.
Caraballo stated, “I’m grateful for the chance that my promoter, Miguel Cotto Promotions, is giving me along with Prime Rank to combat at Madison Sq. Backyard. I’ll take this chance to look nice and proceed to make noise at 118 kilos as I aspire to win a world title. Sultan is a powerful, skilled opponent. I do know he has fought the massive names, however I’m working exhausting with my crew to indicate I’m a power to be reckoned with. This victory is for my folks from Guayanilla, and all Puerto Ricans in New York.”
October 30: Jonathan Guzman-Carlos Jackson Junior Featherweight Bout Headlines Jose Zepeda-Josue Vargas Undercard at Hulu Theater at Madison Sq. Backyard and LIVE on ESPN+
After an almost two-year layoff, former junior featherweight world champion Jonathan “Salomon King” Guzman’s comeback begins Saturday, Oct. 30 in an eight-round showdown towards Carlos Jackson at Hulu Theater at Madison Sq. Backyard.
Guzman-Jackson, a powerful contender to steal the New York Metropolis highlight, headlines a stacked undercard (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT) earlier than hometown child Josue “The Prodigy” Vargas’ step-up take a look at towards Jose “Chon” Zepeda within the 10-round junior welterweight principal occasion (ESPN+ 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).
Guzman (24-1, 23 KOs) gained the IBF junior featherweight world title in July 2016 with an Eleventh-round TKO over Shingo Wake in Wake’s residence nation of Japan. 5 months later, he returned to Japan and misplaced his title to Yukinori Oguni by unanimous resolution. One of many Dominican Republic’s most completed fighters, Guzman has fought solely twice for the reason that Oguni defeat. In January 2020, he knocked out Rodolfo Hernandez Montoya in three rounds. Jackson (17-1, 11 KOs) is greatest recognized to a small contingent of MGM Grand Bubble attendees for his July 2020 warfare towards Jose Enrique Vivas. In one of many yr’s most hellacious motion bouts — a battle of blood-curdling physique blows — Vivas picked up the contested 10-round resolution.
In different undercard motion:
- New York Metropolis crowd favourite Mathew “Lefty Gunz” Gonzalez (12-0, 8 KOs) will look to choose up his third consecutive knockout towards Dakota Linger (12-5-2, 8 KOs) in a six-rounder at junior welterweight.
- Welterweight Pablo Valdez (4-0, 4 KOs), a New Yorker who trains alongside tremendous middleweight star Edgar Berlanga, hopes to maintain his good document intact towards Alejandro Martinez (2-1-1, 2 KOs) in a six-rounder.
- Jahi Tucker (4-0, 2 KOs), the rising welterweight star from Deer Park, New York, makes his MSG debut in a scheduled six-rounder versus Jorge Rodrigo Sosa (3-2, 3 KOs). Tucker, 18, turned professional at 17 final yr contained in the MGM Grand Las Vegas Bubble.
- Ray Cuadrado (1-0, 1 KO), a one-time New York Metropolis beginner standout, will face Michael Land (1-3-1, 1 KO) in a four-rounder at junior light-weight.
- Prime junior welterweight prospect Kasir “Mazzi” Goldston (3-0, 1 KO), from Albany, New York, will step up towards Marc Misiura (2-1, 1 KO) in a four-rounder.
