Two nights of Showtime Boxing headline the weekend. Up first we have ShoBox The New Generation showcasing a main event with Nikolay Potapov (14-0, 6 KOs) vs. Stephen Young (14-0-2, 6 KOs) in Verona, N.Y.
We’ve got a three-hour show ahead of us, so we’ll get at three undercards as well. Hopefully some of these guys have knockout power.
Scroll on down for the live blog. Keep reading for the press release from Showtime.
Eight talented up-and-coming boxers with a combined record of 116-2-4, 71 KOs will compete on a compelling ShoBox: The New Generation quadrupleheader on Friday, April 15, live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) from Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, N.Y.
In a clash of unbeaten bantamweights in the main event, undefeated world-ranked Nikolay Potapov (14-0, 6 KOs), of Podolsk, Russia, faces Stephon Young (14-0-2, 6 KOs), of St. Louis, Miss. in a 10-round bout. Eudy Bernardo (21-0, 15 KOs) of the Dominican Republic faces Mason “Rock Hard Mighty” Menard (30-1-0, 22 KOs), of Rayne, La., in an eight/10-round battle of hard-hitting lightweights in the co-feature.
Promising Russian cruiserweight Alexey Zubov (10-0, 6 KOs) measures against Constantin Bejenaru (10-0, 4 KOs, WSB: 0-1-1) of Mandilesti, Moldova, in one of the eight-round bouts.
The two ShoBox returnees will box in the eight-round telecast opener when Kazakhstan’s devastating junior welterweight Bakhtiyar “Bakha Bullet” Eyubov (10-0, 10 KOs), of Brooklyn, N.Y., takes on Liberia-born Samuel Teah (7-1-1, 2 KOs), of Philadelphia, Pa.
Six of the fighters, all seeking to establish their credibility and make a name for themselves, are newcomers to the network and will be making their ShoBox debuts on a four-fight telecast that has a distinct international flavor (two Americans, two Russians, one Romanian, one from Kazakhstan, one Dominican and one from Liberia).
Tickets for the event presented by Salita Promotions in association with AASHA Record Breakers are currently on sale and can be purchased at the Turning Stone Resort Casino Box Office, by calling 877.833.SHOW, or online at Ticketmaster.com. Tickets are priced at $60 for ringside seats, $35 and $25.
The fast-rising Potapov, of Potolsk, Russia, is ranked 10th in the IBF. Extremely rare for a fighter at this point in his career, he’s already gone 10 rounds five times and 12 rounds once against good opposition. This is his second start in the United States since signing with Salita Promotions in June 2015. The 5-foot-4, 26-year-old is coming off a shutout 10-round decision over Pedro Melo last Oct. 29 in Brooklyn.
An outstanding amateur with international success, Potapov had around 200 fights before he turned pro in March 2010. He went 13-0 as a pro in Russia. In his outing before last – and last in his homeland — he produced perhaps a career-best performance while winning a unanimous 12-round decision over then-IBF No. 10-ranked Jasoin Canoy, on Nov. 8, 2015.
Barry Tompkins will call the ShoBox action from ringside with Steve Farhood and former world champion Raul Marquez serving as expert analysts. The executive producer is Gordon Hall with Rich Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.
The show begins at 10 p.m. on Showtime. Watch it with me.
