Artur Beterbiev and Joe Smith Jr. weighed in and are ready to go ahead of Saturday night’s substantial three-belt light-heavyweight battle.
The entire fight card is topped by the highly anticipated Beterbiev vs. Smith Jr. went through procedures at Madison Square Garden ahead of the fights that will be aired LIVE on ESPN.
The undercard will begin at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+, and the main card will start at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN, ESPN+, and ESPN DEPORTES.
Beterbiev vs Smith Jr weights:
12-ROUND WBO, WBC, IBF WORLD TITLE UNIFICATION
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT MAIN EVENT
ARTUR BETERBIEV: 175 lbs
JOE SMITH JR.: 174.6 lbs
8-ROUND SUPER WELTERWEIGHT MAIN EVENT
WENDY TOUSSAINT 152 lbs
ASINIA BYFIELD 152.8 lbs
6-ROUND SUPER WELTERWEIGHT MAIN EVENT:
JAHYAE BROWN 153.2 lbs
KEAN MCMAHON 152.6 lbs
FIGHT NIGHT – SATURDAY, JUNE 18
BETERBIEV-SMITH FIGHT NIGHT
5:45 p.m. ET Hulu Theater at MSG Doors Open
6:00 p.m. ET First fight live on ESPN, ESPN+ & ESPN DEPORTES
Beterbiev-Smith is promoted by Top Rank and Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing.
ESPN
In one of the most highly anticipated fights of the year, Top Rank will present the light heavyweight title unification showdown between WBC/IBF champion Artur Beterbiev (17-0,17 KOs) and WBO champion Joe Smith, Jr. (28-3, 22 KOs) this Saturday, June 18, at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ (English and Spanish). The fight will be live from Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The high-stakes heavyweight main event features plenty of action between two of the sport’s most dangerous punchers. Beterbiev is boxing’s only active world champion with a 100 percent knockout rate. Long Island native Smith is a one-time union laborer who has knockout wins over Eleider Alvarez and living legend Bernard Hopkins.
Battling in the featherweight co-feature will be two-time Cuban Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez (9-1, 5 KOs) and the unbeaten Abraham Nova (21-0, 15 KOs).
On location, Joe Tessitore will call the action, working with analysts Andre Ward, a Hall of Famer and 2004 U.S. Olympic gold medalist; and future Hall of Famer Timothy Bradley Jr., Mark Kriegel, and Bernardo Osuna will serve as reporters and handle interviews. Immediately after the main event, the team will present the State of Boxing Post-Show on ESPN+ at midnight.
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