- Gary Russell Jr. vs Mark Magsayo
- Jan 22
- 9:00 PM EST / 6:00PM PST
- Spa in Atlantic Town, N.J.
A 12-round rematch between great light-weight contenders Subriel Matías and Petros Ananyan within the co-main match, plus hard-hitting featherweights Tugstsogt Nyambayar and Vic Pasillas squaring-off within the 10-round telecast opener.
It’s one of the crucial first worlds established fights of 2022 and what an implausible contest to kick the year off with!
WBC World featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. (31-1, 18 KOs) is all set to make the sixth defense of his green and gold belt against undefeated, necessary challenger Mark Magsayo (23-0, 16KOs).
Offered via Premier Boxing Champions on Saturday, January 22, the championship contest takes place at the Borgata Lodge On-line online casino & Spa Atlantic The town, broadcast continues to exist Showtime.
The 126lbs division has all the time been fiercely contested, with memorable battles corresponding to when Manny Pacquaio and Juan Manuel Marquez fought for a number one time to an exhilarating draw in 2004, which kickstarted their well-known festival, totaling to 4 improbable fights.
Every boxer has an identical endeavor alternatively different goals – Magsayo is aiming to develop into most simple the second Filipino in history to be crowned WBC World featherweight champion, while Russell Jr. is chasing greatness via together with his identify to a list of most simple 5 other WBC featherweight titleholders with six or additional establish defenses.
Those on the tick list – in chronological order – serve as Vicente Salvidar (7 defenses); Danny Lopez (8); Salvador Sanchez (9), who sadly died since the champion; Azumah Nelson (6); and Filipino Luisito Espinoza (7).
The protective champion from Maryland has boxing in his blood, knowledgeable via his father Gary Russell Sr., who is a self-educated instructor with 5 boxing sons, who all used to be newbie champions. Necessarily probably the most widely known of the sons of the one are all his namesakes – the famous person of this story Gary Russell Jr.; 19-0 Gary Antonio Russell; 14-0 Gary Antuanne Russell; and their half-brother Gary Antonio Jones, who accumulated a certified document of 22-2 during 1996-2011.
The siblings were all impressed via their dad to box right-handed, which has clearly was out well for they all, and the numbers don’t lie – Gary ran his newbie report back to 163-10 and received a World Championships bronze medal; he was even an Olympian (Beijing 2008) until he out of place consciousness merely hours quicker than his weigh-in on account of dehydration.
From the Philippines, Magsayo was moreover a newbie champion, reportedly competing in over 200 bouts, so every boxer get pleasure from high-quality training and intensive background inside the recreation.
Magsayo is knowledgeable via Hall of Famer Freddie Roach at his LA Wild Card fitness center and was in recent times awarded WBC Prospect of the one the year 2021, which is an accolade that his next opponent received 3 diversifications of in 2011 – Ring Magazine, ESPN, Sports activities actions Illustrated.
The 26-year-old prospect is seven years Russell’s junior and has merely come off a large win via defeating Mexican Julio Ceja in a WBC Eliminator on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao’s retirement struggle against Yordenis Ugas. ‘Pollito’ were given right here into the struggle having merely drawn with WBA World super-bantamweight titleholder Brandon Figueroa.
It took place at the T-Cell House, so he is fairly used to big occasions, alternatively strangely came upon himself having a lookup from the canvas for the principal time in his professional profession, irrespective of starting early and scoring the principle knockdown inside the struggle.
It initially gave the impression adore it might be an early evening time after Ceja was downed in the very first round, alternatively, he gamely fought once more slowing the younger man down with body blows to someday floor him with a left uppercut in round 5. Then, ‘Magnifico’ came upon his 2d wind and were given right here on strong from the eighth round to fully KO the three-time world establish contender inside the 10th, with two rounds to transport.
More youthful, confident, and ruthless, Magsayo has bulldozed his technique to turning into the desired contender via beating everyone in his path and will take rather a large number of self-trust having already defeated a former world champion – WBO World bantamweight titlist Panya Uthok (54-10, 36KOs) – along with successful all 5 of his fights in The us.
The likelihood’s raw power can ice combatants out with one shot, so he is live and threatening over all of the 12-rounds, which is a distance he has completed 3 times now.
He has devastating power and he fared well against the final southpaw he faced – Rigoberto Hermosillo (11-4-1, 8KOs). On the other hand, that’s not a full-right kind measuring stick given that Mexican has out of place in his final 4 fights.
The protective champion is professional and dominant, working on the most productive stage for numerous years now, alternatively, he has been fairly inactive during his reign. He fought 3 times in 2014, alternatively, since then he has most simply given the impression once in step with a year in the world establish fights. He didn’t compete the least bit final year, so comes into this contest with over 23 months of the state of no activity.
Since his one and most simple professional defeat to Vasiliy Lomachenko (16-2, 11KOs) in June 2014, he has received seven in a row and six of those were world championships fights.
Towards Loma, he was stunned and stunned inside the early rounds, caught unawares just about, alternatively were given right here once more strongly midway right through the competition alternatively was dominated another time inside the championships rounds. One judge ruled it a draw, alternatively, that was a clear mistake because of he was outpunched convincingly.
On the other hand that was his first-ever established struggle, over seven years previously now when he was 24-0. He has since grown into an impressive world champion and his hand tempo, sharpness, experience, and ring generalship are of the most productive high quality.
He has knocked out 4 of his six combatants in the world establish fights and two of his established defenses were given right here against fighters who would transfer at once to develop into world champions after defeat at his hands – ‘JoJo’ Diaz (IBF super-featherweight) and Kiko Martinez (IBF featherweight).
Irrespective of his state of no activity, the 33-year-old showed no signs of rising previous in his final struggle with Tugstsogt Nyambayar (12-2, 9KOs) in February 2020, which he received unanimously.
He’s a volume-punching, sharp and speedy, counter-punching out-fighter with the entire self-trust of a dominant, long-reigning world champion. His jab is lightning-fast and his backhand is a deadly weapon however it definitely’s those hooks he throws in mixtures which may well be one of the crucial harmful.
His drawing shut foe is more youthful, confident, and strong, alternatively, he does show signs of inexperience during fights. His final struggle would have finished him the sphere of very good to have professional the entire different hard eventualities of being knocked down and hurt, sponsored up and outboxed, alternatively the easiest way that he took the struggle once more into his non-public hands was mature and impressive. His fight-ending right kind move was simply stunning. When he was behind and sought after the knockout, he simply delivered.
Russell Jr. was 24-0 when he was out of place in his first world establish struggle, and now Magsayo is in a similar fashion located at 23-0 heading into his first-ever world establish shot.
The champion has the experience of seven worlds establish contests behind him and that knowledge is also the biggest factor in this struggle. Each and every different phase to imagine is his state of no activity, alternatively, that hasn’t long gone against him prior to now. Magsayo’s biggest energy is his raw power, alternatively, Russell Jr. is hard to nail clean and couldn’t be stopped via Lomachenko or anyone else. The teenager confirmed that he can adapt during fights to get the win.
The challenger is just lately a 16/5 underdog with Betway, with the champion a 1/5 favorite, and a now not going draw is 25-1.
