At Thursday’s weigh in, Shelestyuk was 147 pounds and Martinez was 145.7.
Shelestyuk of Ukraine has a record of 13-0 with eight knockouts and is coming off a 10-round unanimous decision over Aslanbek Kozaev on November 6 in a nationally televised bout on ShoBox: The New Generation.
With that win, Shelestyuk cracked the world rankings, as he is settled in at number-11 by the WBO.
Martinez of Tijuana, Mexico has a record of 11-4-1 with five knockouts has wins over Jose Galvez (7-0-1) & Daniel Nava (7-1-2) will be looking for the most significant win of his career.
Shelestyuk is co-promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing.
“We expect a great performance from Taras on Friday night,” said Arthur Pelullo, President of Banner Promotions.
“With a good win on Friday, we will bring him back in August in a bigger fight. We feel he is right on the cusp of a great opportunity.”
“Taras has become a fan favorite at the Doubletree Ontario,” said Ken Thompson, President and Founder of Thompson Boxing. “He has a unique blend of power and style, and boxing fans respond to that. He’ll have a tough fight against Erick Martinez, but we are confident he’ll get the job done and take home the title.