After a week in which Boxing Insider Promotions’ show lost one of its biggest attractions, there were thankfully no other fallouts at Thursday’s weigh-in.
Kurt Scoby, 17-1 (15 KOs), weighed in at 146lbs for his eight-round bout against Alex Martin, 19-8 (6 KOs), who was slightly lighter at 145.8lbs. The fight was put together just a week ago, and could potentially offer a tricky style matchup for the 30-year-old Scoby, a heavy-handed fighter from Duarte, California, who now trains under Hector Bermudez. Scoby is riding a four-fight knockout streak, while the 36-year-old southpaw Martin is coming off an upset decision win in July over popular Philadelphia-based boxer Daiyaan Butt.
The card will take place at Sony Hall in New York’s Times Square. The original co-feature was scheduled to include local heavyweight prospect Josh Popper, 4-0 (4 KOs), but his fight fell out after his original opponent withdrew earlier this week, and a replacement opponent didn’t pass the New York State Athletic Commission’s strict approval process.
In an eight-round co-featured bout between New York-based heavyweights, George Arias, 18-1-1 (7 KOs), weighed 229.4lbs while Brooklyn’s Earl Newman, 10-4-1 (7 KOs), came in at 252.8lbs. Arias, 33, of the Bronx, is aiming to end a two-fight winless streak following a third-round stoppage loss to Jared Anderson in 2023 and a draw against Skylar Lacy in 2024, while Newman, 34, has lost his past four bouts dating back to 2017.
In six-round action, Donte Layne, a former multiple-time national amateur champion from Elmont, New York, will put his 7-0 (6 KOs) record on the line against Mirady Lubanzadio Zola, 5-3-1 (2 KOs), a Congo-born, Canal Winchester, Ohio-based boxer. The 22-year-old Layne weighed 169lbs, while the 30-year-old Zola weighed 168lbs.
In the two other bouts, Nadim Salloum, the only professional boxer ever from Lebanon, weighed 169.8lbs, while Andres Martinez weighed 170.4lbs for their six-round bout; and Armando Barbier weighed 147.6lbs for his four-round bout with Ricardo Jimenez, who weighed 146.2lbs.
Salloum has a record of 13-2 (7 KOs) and Martinez is 5-4 (3 KOs). Barbier is 2-0 (1 KO), while Jimenez is 0-2-1.
Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.
