Stephen Smith: record, next fight and profile →
NEW YORK – WBC Featherweight Champion Gary Russell Jr. (26-1, 15 KOs), of Capitol Heights, Md., and Irish contender Patrick Hyland (31-1, 15 KOs), of Dublin, faced off at the final press conference Wednesday at Highline Ballroom in New York, as they approach this Saturday’s Featherweight World Title fight live on SHOWTIME® from the Fox Theater in Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, CT.
NEW YORK (– The boxers who will be fighting Saturday, April 16 on a SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® world title doubleheader are deep into their respective training camps as they continue preparation for their bouts at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, CT.
Due to the delays in securing a date and place for the IBF super featherweight clash between Jose Pedraza (21-0, 12 KOs) and Stephen Smith (23-1, 13 KOs), there was speculation in the UK among some fans as to whether the Puerto Rican wanted to go ahead with the fight. Speaking to BoxingScene.com recently, Cidra-based Pedraza laughed at suggestions that he was evading the Liverpool man.
After months of speculation about when the fight would take place, Jose Pedraza (21-0, 12 KOs) and Stephen Smith (23-1, 13 KOs) finally know that they will square off on April 16 in Connecticut, screened on Showtime in the United States for Pedraza’s IBF super featherweight title.
It's not often that NBC and CBS-affiliated networks will offer cross-promotion for programming on the same night, but could very well become the case on a busy night of boxing on April 16. As previously announced, Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on NBC makes its return with a loaded bill from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The primetime telecast - beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET - is topped by a welterweight crossroads bout between unbeaten contender Errol Spence (19-0, 16KOs) and Long Island-bred former 140 lb. titlist Chris Algieri (21-2, 8KOs).
Stephen Smith is delighted that there is finally some light at the end of the tunnel. The Liverpool super featherweight has been training for a shot at the IBF title since October last year but has yet to receive a definitive date for his showdown with José Pedraza.
The promotional rights to a super featherweight title fight between Jose Pedraza and Stephen Smith landed exactly where they began - in Lou DiBella's control. The New York City-based promoter put up $150,000 as the lone bidder at Thursday's hearing at International Boxing Federation (IBF) headquarters in Springfield, New Jersey.
Stephen Smith is getting fed up of the lack of news about his world title fight. The Liverpool super featherweight has been training for a shot at the IBF title since October last year but has yet to receive a definitive date for his showdown with José Pedraza. That could change for the better in the coming weeks. Eddie Hearn, Smith's promoter has revealed that purse bids have been called for the fight a second time after “they [Lou DiBella and Pedraza’s team] couldn’t [or] haven’t confirmed [a] date.”
Stephen Smith could be forced to wait a little longer before his date with destiny. The Liverpool super featherweight, 30, is set to take on Jose Pedraza (21-0, 12 KOs) for the IBF super featherweight world title.
As BoxingScene.com first reported on Tuesday, the junior lightweight champion of the International Boxing Federation (IBF), Jose Pedraza, will make his mandatory defense against Stephen Smith on the 26th of March in New York.