Undercard
Mayer vs. Farias, Dogboe vs. Lopez Added To Inoue-Dasmarinas Card
_2020_07_15_074617.jpg)
BY RANDOM HITS
Published Fri May 14, 2021, 04:25 PM EDT
Mikaela Mayer’s first world title defense is coming on a monster card. Mayer, the 2016 U.S. Olympian from Los Angeles, will put her WBO female junior lightweight title on the line against former two-weight world champion Erica Farias on Saturday, June 19 at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.
Mayer-Farias will serve as the co-feature to WBA/IBF bantamweight world champion Naoya “Monster” Inoue’s title defense against mandatory challenger Michael “Hot and Spicy" Dasmarinas.
And, in a featherweight battle scheduled for 10 rounds, Adam “BluNose” Lopez will defend his NABF belt against former junior featherweight world champion Isaac “Royal Storm” Dogboe.
Inoue-Dasmarinas and Mayer-Farias will be televised live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes (simulcast on ESPN+) at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Dogboe-Lopez will be among the bouts streaming exclusively on ESPN+ before the world title doubleheader.
Promoted by Top Rank, tickets priced at $200, $100, $75 and $50 go on sale Wednesday, May 19 at 12 p.m. PT, and can be purchased by visiting Etix.com.
“Mikaela Mayer is the future of women’s boxing, and I have no doubt she’s going to shine in her first world title defense,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “She wants all of the top names, but she must first get past a tough former world champion in Erica Farias. Lopez-Dogboe is a can’t-miss action fight that will propel the winner to title contention.”
Mayer (14-0, 5 KOs) won her world title last October on the Inoue-Jason Moloney card, dethroning longtime champion Ewa Brodnicka via a near-shutout unanimous decision. Since turning pro, Mayer has lost only a handful of rounds, and last July, she became the first female boxer to headline a Top Rank on ESPN card. Farias (26-4, 10 KOs) has held titles at junior welterweight and lightweight and has won 14 world title fights. She most recently lost a pair of junior welterweight title tilts to Jessica McCaskill, who proceeded to dethrone all-time great Cecilia Brækhus for the undisputed welterweight championship.
Mayer said, "I am excited for my first title defense as WBO world champion. Although I had sought a unification bout, Farias is a worthy opponent who will make for an entertaining, action-packed fight. She brings excellent credentials and has only lost to some of best women boxing today. I’m ready and eager to pass another test and showcase the skills that will eventually make me your undisputed champion."
Dogboe (21-2, 15 KOs) won the WBO junior featherweight world title in April 2018 with a dramatic knockout over Jessie Magdaleno, but after one title defense, his momentum was blunted with a pair of defeats to Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete. He returned last July after a 26-month layoff and battered Chris Avalos en route to an eighth-round stoppage. Lopez (15-2, 6 KOs), from Glendale, California, most recently defeated former world champion Jason Sanchez over 10 rounds, his second straight win since his valiant effort — on a day’s notice — against Oscar Valdez in November 2019. Lopez followed up the controversial TKO loss to Valdez with last June’s majority decision over Louie Coria, which many boxing experts ranked among the year’s best battles.
Lopez said, “Dogboe is a former world champion who always comes to fight. But I’m a different fighter now, and I know what a win would mean for my career. I’m coming to Las Vegas to steal the show."
