LAS VEGAS (October 7, 2020) -Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete has won 27 consecutive bouts. Ruben Villa has never lost as a professional. Something will give Friday evening (ESPN, 10 p.m. ET), when the two battle for the vacant WBO featherweight world title, which became available after Shakur Stevenson moved up to the junior lightweight ranks.

The ESPN-televised co-feature will see Kazakh middleweight phenom Janibek Alimkhanuly against Gonzalo Coria in a 10-rounder. Undercard bouts, including middleweight prospect Lorenzo “Truck” Simpson against Sonny Duversonne and junior welterweight puncher Elvis “The Dominican Kid” Rodriguez against Cameron Krael, will stream live on ESPN+ at 7:15 p.m. ET.

Navarrete (32-1, 28 KOs) reigned as WBO junior featherweight world champion and became boxing’s most active world champion. He made five defenses of the title he won from Isaac Dogboe in a nine-month span and most recently knocked out Uriel Lopez in a June non-title bout in Mexico City.

Villa (18-0, 5 KOs), from Salinas, Calif, who is promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing, earned this title shot with wins over the likes of Alexei Collado and Jose Enrique Vivas, but Navarrete represents a giant step up in class. Villa fights for his Salinas Valley home region, which has been ravaged by wildfires in recent months. The poor air quality has forced him to wear a mask during roadwork. The field workers are still out there, providing Villa with ample motivation as he awaits his first world title opportunity.

At Wednesday’s press conference, this is what Navarrete and Villa had to say.

Ruben Villa

“There have been a couple of restrictions and stuff due to COVID, but I’ve been in the gym, I’ve been active. It hasn’t gotten in the way of me training and my team’s training. Yeah, we trained hard, another hard camp, and we’re ready for Friday night.”

“My last couple of fights, they’ve been aggressive guys who come to beat me and think they’re going to get me off my game plan. But I adapted well. We always had good game plans and stuck to game plans, and now we’re here fighting for a world title. I feel like I’m ready. I feel like he’s beatable, and my style is the one to do it.”

“He’s an aggressive guy who throws 100 punches a round. I feel like it’s just going to bring the best out of me to do my job as well as I can.

“I feel like you’re going to see a bigger and better Ruben Villa this Friday.”

“Running with the mask on, seeing the field workers working during the pandemic and fires, it’s just another motivation for me to win this fight and bring Salinas its first world title. I just can’t wait to show you guys what I got.”

“I want to see the best Ruben Villa. I haven’t even seen him yet. I feel like Navarrete will bring it out of me. I’m just excited to perform and, like I said, show you guys what I got. I feel like I’ve been slept on. Maybe a lot of people think I don’t belong here, but I’m going to show everyone I’m an elite 126 fighter. Yeah, I’m coming to win and coming to fight.”

Emanuel Navarrete

“With the current situation and the camp we’ve had, {my team} has done a great job. We’ve worked through it, and we’re ready for this match.”

“My body is doing a lot better. I’m growing a little bit more. It was getting a little bit difficult making 122, but now going up to 126, I think I’m more prepared for that.”

“For now, we’re pretty much ready. We’re ready for this weight. We’re ready for this fight on Friday night, so I think we’re ready to go with what we have. After this fight, we’re going to keep moving forward.”

Use the hashtag #NavarreteVilla to join the conversation on social media.

SALINAS, CA (October 6, 2020) – The highly anticipated world title fight between Ruben Villa IV (18-0, 5KOs), who is promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing, and Emanuel Navarrete (32-1, 28 KOs) will happen this Friday, October 9th, 2020 on ESPN with the vacant WBO featherweight world title on the line.

The fight is being promoted by Top Rank, in association with Banner Promotions Promotions and Thompson Boxing, taking place at “The Bubble” inside the MGM Grand Conference Center, televised live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes (10 PM ET / 7 PM PT).

Prior to being in the professional ranks, Villa was largely considered as one of the greatest amateurs in recent years in USA Boxing. He is now looking to make a childhood dream come true by bringing a world title back to his hometown of Salinas, California.

Here is what Villa had to say about his upcoming fight world title fight.

On his recent training camp
“This camp has been the best camp of my life. I turned off all social media, I took a ‘Mamba Mentality’, and focused strictly on training. I’ve had great sparring partners preparing for this fight like Manny Jaimes, Javier Padilla, Andy Vences and Xavier Martinez, and they all gave me tough rounds, and I am ready for whatever Navarrete will bring, whether it is boxing or pressure.

On his matchup with Emanuel Navarrete
“Navarrete is a good fighter, but I will be honest, I feel largely disrespected coming into this fight. I am a southpaw who is the bigger man, and had a better amateur career, but am being viewed as an underdog. I have a chip on my shoulder, and though I respect Navarrete’s skills, I am looking to prove a point.”

On bringing a world title back to Salinas, California.
“I love my hometown of Salinas, California, and I want to bring home a world title to all the fans here that have supported me over the years. I have told my trainers Max Garcia and Sam Garcia that this has been a childhood dream of mine since I first laced up a pair of gloves. We’re working as a team to accomplish this goal.”

On what people expect when he steps in the ring.
“People will see someone who started boxing at a young age, show his skills and poise in accomplishing a childhood dream. I have been very focused, I am giving this my all, and I am ready. Everyone should tune in Friday, October 9th, on ESPN, because this will be a great fight for the fans.”

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing.

PHILADELPHIA, PA/ / ORANGE, CA. (October 1, 2020) – Thompson Boxing Promotions is pleased to present the newest instalment of its successful boxing series 3.2.1 Boxing featuring three exciting-and-compelling bouts, live on Sunday, November 1st, 2020. The free stream will air on the Thompson Boxing Promotions website (www.thompsonboxing.com), as well as their Facebook and YouTube pages. The fight will also be streamed on the Banner Promotions Facebook page and website (www.banner-promotions.com)

3.2.1. Boxing will take place at the Omega Products International Event
Center in Corona, CA, and will start at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET.

In the 8-round main event, super lightweight Michael “The West Texas Warrior” Dutchover (14-1, 10 KOs), of Midland, TX, who is co-promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing, will make his second headlining appearance on 3.2.1 Boxing as he faces Manuel “La Tormenta” Mendez (16-7-3, 11 KOs), who fights out of Colton, CA. Dutchover will look to continue to build on the success off his last win over Jorge Marron Jr. (18-2, 6 KOs).

Dutchover, who is coached and managed by Danny Zamora, has a high knockout ratio and is known for his all-out attack. His only loss came in a controversial stoppage during a match against Thomas Mattice in his hometown of Midland, TX, on a ShoBox main event back in 2019. In his last bout, Dutchover bounced back by beating Jorge Marron Jr. by a wide-unanimous decision on the first 3.2.1 boxing card of the year.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing.

PHILADELPHIA, PA/ / ORANGE, CA. (Sept. 21, 2020) – On Friday night, October 9th, undefeated WBO number-two ranked featherweight contender Ruben Villa (18-0, 5 KOs) gets his much deserved world title shot when he takes on former WBO super bantamweight world champion, and WBO number-one ranked contender, Emanuel Navarrete (32-1, 28 KOs), in a battle for the WBO World Featherweight title.

Navarrete is undefeated in the last eight-years, which spans 27 fights.

The fight will take place at “The Bubble” inside the MGM Grand Conference Center, and will be televised live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.

“I have been working my butt off since I was a little kid for this opportunity, and I just can’t wait to get in there and fight for the title,” said Villa, who is promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing. “Navarrete is a real aggressive Mexican fighter. He is coming to win. He was a former champion, and I am the underdog, but I have the style to beat him. We have kept the camp the same. We just treat it like it’s every other fight, just that this fight is for a world title. All my hard work is paying off. I am honored and excited to represent everyone who has supported me and my journey to become a world champion, and I plan on bringing the world title back to my home city of Salinas, California.”

“This is what we envisioned for Ruben when we signed him out of the amateurs, to be fighting for a world title,” said Artie Pelullo, President of Banner Promotions. “That opportunity has now arrived, and we expect Ruben to put on a great performance on October 9th and win the WBO Featherweight World Title. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank Stephen Espinoza and Gordon Hall of Showtime for all their help with the development of Ruben’s career, by showcasing him on ShoBox that has helped get him ready for this fight.”

“Ruben Villa is a terrific fighter and has the ability to make his dream to become a world champion a reality. The hard work that Banner Promotions and us at Thompson Boxing have put on his career will surely pay off,” said Ken Thompson, CEO of Thompson Boxing. “Navarrete is a terrific champion and it will be a huge challenge for our fighter, but I’m sure Ruben will rise up to the occasion and make us all proud.”

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing.

PHILADELPHIA, PENN/ / ORANGE, CALIF. July 27, 2020) – Lightweight prospect, Michael “West Texas Warrior” Dutchover, improved his record to (14-1, 10 KOs) as he dominated Jorge Marron Jr. (18-2, 6 KOs) in the feature attraction of Thompson Boxing Promotions 3.2.1. Boxing pay-per-view streaming event. The 8-round main event bout took place at the Omega Products International Event Center in Corona, CA.

Dutchover, who is co promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing, dominated the bout from the opening bell as he outworked Marron Jr. throughout the entire fight. With his slippery style from the southpaw stance, Marron Jr. was able to avoid a lot of powerful blows from Dutchover, but never landed anything offensively. Dutchover got the best of some heated exchanges that took place in the later rounds, as Marron Jr. was doing his best to make the fight competitive. Dutchover cruised to a unanimous decision victory. Scorecards read 80-72, 78-74 twice.

“I feel with a few more fights, I’ll be ready to take on anyone they put in front of me,” said Dutchover. “Marron showed a lot of heart today by going the distance, but I felt he was trying to survive and make it to the final bell. We had a few nice exchanges, but he wasn’t really engaging. I did what I had to do to get the victory so now its time to move on. I’ll wait to see what my promoters, Thompson Boxing and Banner has next for me. I’ll be ready for war when they call my name.”

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing.

PHILADELPHIA, PENN/ / ORANGE, CALIF. (July 20, 2020) – Lightweight prospect Michael “West Texas Warrior” Dutchover (13-1, 10 KOs), who is co-promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing, will face Jorge Marron Jr. (18-1, 6 KOs) in a 8-round main event this Sunday, July 26, 2020 as TBP presents 3.2.1 Boxing, a live Pay-Per-View streaming event.

Dutchover, who is coming off his controversial loss to Thomas Mattice on ShoBox, has been in camp working to make a statement, meanwhile his opponent Jorge Marron Jr., views this bout as life changing should he come out victorious. Dutchover gives his thoughts on training camp, his matchup with Marron Jr. and more.

The card which will showcase Dutchover’s stablemate, super lightweight Ruben Torres (12-0, 10 KOs) versus Oscar Bravo (25-9, 11 KOs) in the 8-round co-main event, as well as undefeated featherweight Arnold Dinong (6-0, 1KO) facing Brandon Cruz (6-1, 4 KOs) in the 6-round opening bout.

The July 26, 2020, 3.2.1. PPV broadcast, airing live on the Thompson Boxing Promotions website (www.thompsonboxing.com), will start at 4:30 p.m. PT / 7:30 p.m. ET., and will take place at the Omega Products International Event Center in Corona, CA. 3.2.1 Boxing is priced at $6.50 US Territories, Canada, EU and select Asian Countries, $3.50 Latin America, African and select Asian Countries.

Here is what Dutchover had to say about his upcoming fight

On Training Camp
“Training camp has been good I have been training with my coach/manager Danny Zamora as well as my stablemate Ruben Torres. We are getting each other ready for our bouts on the same day. It is motivating being in the gym with the same group of people I began with and it is helping me push extremely hard for this fight. I want to make a statement in this bout and put the division on notice.”

On Headlining Your First Pay-Per-View
“It is an honor that Thompson Boxing chose me to be in the main event of this pay-per-view. I take it extremely seriously and now feel the need to entertain the fans who pay money to watch this bout. A lot of people are having financial situations right now, so for someone to pay for my fight I know I have to give them a great show and that is what I plan on doing. I am training and pushing myself to the limit.”

On Coming Off his First Career Loss
“It was heartbreaking, I fought in my hometown of Midland, Texas, and the fight was stopped over a cut. I knew I could’ve continued, but I also respect the doctor for making the best judgment he felt at the time. I know in boxing once you lose, a shadow is cast upon fighters and I want to prove to the world that I am a worthy fighter who will still be a world champion one day. So especially coming off a loss, it is especially important that I put on a performance that gets people talking.”

On his opponent, Jorge Marron Jr.
“Marron Jr. is a very tough opponent, who sees me as an opportunity. I know he comes from a fighting family and he is training extremely hard, looking to take everything I have worked for. This is not an easy bout coming off my last fight. I am expecting a very good fight on July 26th.”

The July 26, 2020, 3.2.1. PPV broadcast, airing live on the Thompson Boxing Promotions website (www.thompsonboxing.com), will start at 4:30 p.m. PT / 7:30 p.m. ET., and will take place at the Omega Products International Event Center in Corona, CA. 3.2.1 Boxing is priced at $6.50 US Territories, Canada, EU and select Asian Countries, $3.50 Latin America, African and select Asian Countries.

For regular updates on our fighters, events, and promotions, please like the Banner Promotions Facebook Page, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @BannerBoxing.