Fuse Media, the global leader of inclusive entertainment, expands its sports portfolio with a partnership between six-division, 10-time World Champion and current Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions and the El Rey Rebel FAST Channel to air some of the most memorable fights in recent history as part of a new “Friday Night Fights” series launching on the channel Friday, May 3 at 8 PM ET/PT.
Kicking off Cinco De Mayo weekend, the new weekly series premieres on the 21st anniversary of the bruising May 3, 2003 fight between the Golden Boy himself, Oscar De La Hoya, and Luis Ramon “Yori Boy” Campas. Rounding out the special double-header launch that evening is the classic 2009 matchup featuring Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton.
Other historic contests in the weekly series will include Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Ricky Hatton (2007); Manny Pacquiao vs. Marco A. Barrera (2007); and Saul Alvarez vs. Josesito Lopez (2012).
In addition, El Rey Rebel’s “Friday Night Fights” series will feature events from Fuse Media’s other sports television partnerships with premier Hispanic Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) sports franchise “Combate Global MMA” and “BYB Bare Knuckle Fighting.”
“The early part of the 21st century was a golden era of boxing across a number of weight divisions and fans can now go back in time to rewatch some of the best fighters of that time,” said Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya. “Casual and boxing hardcores alike always tuned in when three guys named Pacquiao, Mayweather and De La Hoya were fighting and now they’ll have an opportunity to see all three in their prime on ‘Friday Night Fights.’”
“We couldn’t be more excited that 10-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya and his Golden Boy Promotions are bringing some of the most epic fights in modern boxing history to El Rey Rebel, said Miguel Roggero, Chairman and CEO of Fuse Media. “With these thrilling matches, ‘Friday Night Fights’ will be a cornerstone franchise for El Rey Rebel, unleashing the types of raw emotion and adrenaline that the channel’s growing number of viewers are craving.”
De La Hoya continues to champion the sport of boxing, promoting some of the biggest events in the sport including a massive PPV event featuring International star Ryan Garcia on April 20 and a historic Mexico vs. Mexico PPV clash with current client, former WBO Junior Middleweight Champion and current super middleweight world title contender Jaime Munguia in his upcoming May 4 fight against generational PPV star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Below are more detailed descriptions of some of the classic fights included in the weekly “Friday Night Fights” series:
Oscar De La Hoya vs. Luis Ramon Campas
Following the dramatic knockout of rival Fernando Vargas, Oscar De La Hoya defended his unified WBA and WBC Junior Middleweight World titles against beloved Mexican fighter Luis Ramon “Yori Boy” Campas on Friday, May 3, 2003, the weekend ahead of Cinco de Mayo. De La Hoya gave Campas a beating, knocking his mouthpiece out so many times that Referee Vic Drakulich had to dock the challenger a point in round six. Oscar forced Drakulich’s hand in stopping the fight in the seventh round.
Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton
“The Battle of East vs West” was a professional boxing match for the IBO and The Ring light welterweight championship between Manny Pacquiao from General Santos, Philippines and Ricky Hatton from Manchester, United Kingdom. The bout was held on May 2, 2009, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada and drew 1.75 million pay-per-view buys. El Rey Rebel’s telecast airs one day after this matchup’s 15th anniversary.
Saul Alvarez vs. Josesito Lopez
This matchup on September 15, 2012 showed the world Saul Álvarez’s size and experience in the boxing ring. Alvarez knocked Josesito Lopez down in the second, third, and fourth rounds en route to stopping him in the fifth round after referee Joe Cortez determined he was taking too much punishment.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Ricky Hatton
Billed as “Undefeated,” the event on December 8, 2007 was a boxing superfight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Reigning WBC and Ring Magazine Welterweight World Champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. and reigning Ring Magazine Super Lightweight World Champion Ricky Hatton. The fight was for Mayweather’s WBC & The Ring welterweight titles, which Mayweather successfully defended, defeating Hatton by TKO in the tenth round.
Marco A Barrera vs. Manny Pacquiao
Manny Pacquiao vs. Marco Antonio Barrera II, billed as “Will to Win,” was a super featherweight boxing match on October 6, 2007, at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas that was distributed by HBO PPV. Barrera came out smarter in this fight as he survived up to the final round, but Pacquiao easily outboxed him throughout the contest. Pacquiao defeated Barrera via unanimous decision, with two judges scoring the bout 118–109, whereas the third scored it 115–112.
El Rey Rebel is available on The Roku Channel, Freevee, Canela, TCL, Fuse.tv and on Fuse+ for subscribers who sign up for the platform or authenticate through their current TV provider.
