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LAS VEGAS -- Golden Boy Promotions will announce Saturday morning it has signed junior lightweight titlist Jorge Linares, one of the most gifted young fighters in the world.
Golden Boy announced Friday company president Oscar De La Hoya would make a "surprise" and "major announcement" at a news conference Saturday morning in the Floyd Mayweather-Juan Manuel Marquez media center.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the news conference told ESPN.com it was to announce the signing of Linares, the 24-year-old prodigy and two-division titleholder from Venezuela.
Linares (27-0, 18 KOs), whose nickname is coincidentally El Nino de Oro -- the Spanish version of De La Hoya's Golden Boy nickname -- has been based in Japan for the past several years and fighting for Akihiko Honda's Teiken Boxing, Japan's most influential promoter.
Honda will remain as Linares' co-promoter, according to a source.
Golden Boy, like several American promoters, has had its eye on Linares for a few years.
He won his first world title in Las Vegas in July 2007 when he stopped former junior featherweight champion Oscar Larios in the 10th round of a one-sided fight to win a vacant featherweight belt.
The bout was on the Bernard Hopkins-Winky Wright card, which was promoted by Golden Boy. It didn't have a deal with Linares at the time, but put him on the card with the hope of signing him.
It took more than two years. Since that bout, however, Linares has fought three times because of nagging injuries, which he seems to have put behind him.
Linares made one defense of his featherweight belt before moving up to junior lightweight and capturing a vacant title via fifth-round knockout of Whyber Garcia in November 2008.
Linares made his first defense of that belt June 27, stopping Josafat Perez in the eighth round.
Linares is scheduled to defend his title against Mexico's Juan Carlos Salgado on Oct. 10 in Tokyo. After that, Linares is expected to fight in the United States.
Golden Boy announced Friday company president Oscar De La Hoya would make a "surprise" and "major announcement" at a news conference Saturday morning in the Floyd Mayweather-Juan Manuel Marquez media center.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the news conference told ESPN.com it was to announce the signing of Linares, the 24-year-old prodigy and two-division titleholder from Venezuela.
Linares (27-0, 18 KOs), whose nickname is coincidentally El Nino de Oro -- the Spanish version of De La Hoya's Golden Boy nickname -- has been based in Japan for the past several years and fighting for Akihiko Honda's Teiken Boxing, Japan's most influential promoter.
Honda will remain as Linares' co-promoter, according to a source.
Golden Boy, like several American promoters, has had its eye on Linares for a few years.
He won his first world title in Las Vegas in July 2007 when he stopped former junior featherweight champion Oscar Larios in the 10th round of a one-sided fight to win a vacant featherweight belt.
The bout was on the Bernard Hopkins-Winky Wright card, which was promoted by Golden Boy. It didn't have a deal with Linares at the time, but put him on the card with the hope of signing him.
It took more than two years. Since that bout, however, Linares has fought three times because of nagging injuries, which he seems to have put behind him.
Linares made one defense of his featherweight belt before moving up to junior lightweight and capturing a vacant title via fifth-round knockout of Whyber Garcia in November 2008.
Linares made his first defense of that belt June 27, stopping Josafat Perez in the eighth round.
Linares is scheduled to defend his title against Mexico's Juan Carlos Salgado on Oct. 10 in Tokyo. After that, Linares is expected to fight in the United States.
Good news.