The Gary Russell Jr vs. Mark Magsayo match will see the quick-fisted Gary Russell Jr. take on the dangerous mandatory challenger Mark Magsayo for the WBC featherweight championship belt. The Gary Russell Jr vs. Mark Magsayo match will take place on Saturday, January 22, at the Borgata Hotel Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The two fighters will fight against each other over a full-length match. Both the boxers are coming off victories in their previous matches. The American boxer Russell's previous match was against Tugstsogt Nyambayar in a title defense which had a unanimous decision. Magsayo boasts a record that has more than twenty wins and no losses. He defeated Julio Ceja with a knockout victory in the late rounds. In the whole process, Russell, who is not ranked by The Ring at his weight class because of inactivity, will end a hiatus from the ring for a couple of years.
Russell has been the champ for several years. He successfully defended his championship belt on more than four occasions. The Filipino sensation Magsayo had a career-best win over former champion Julio Ceja in the past year to get his initial shot at championship gold. Also, a rematch between the contenders Subriel Matias and Petros Ananyan is the co-main event at the 140 lbs weight class.
Russell had held the WBC Featherweight championship belt for the past seven years when he stopped vision champion Johnny Gonzalez to get the belt emphatically. The boxer is a part of one of the premier boxing households. He has been trained by his father, Gary Sr. He stays here alongside his young brothers, the unbeaten bantamweight Gary Antonio and the lightweight Gary Antuanne. Rusell won over the current featherweight champion Kiko Martinez by a knockout a few years ago and a unanimous choice over the former world champion Joseph Diaz Jr. a year before that. Not too long ago, the boxer outsmarted the strategy of the unbeaten Tugstsogt Nyambayar to get his fourth title defense a few years ago. The southpaw is not restricting himself to the featherweight division and is prepared to go over to the junior lightweight division and even all the way to the lightweight division.
But, he has not been able to get a suitable rival. He doubts any of the best boxers are willing to test their capability against him. Russell won the WBC championship belt by defeating Johnny Gonzalez. He feels that the boxers at his weights class have gone out of their paths to avoid fighting against him. The boxer feels that his ability is both a curse and a blessing. For now, the boxer had an interrupted camp in his home turf because his father got his foot amputated due to complications arising from diabetes. The boxer is now ready to go against Magsayo. The southpaw was a standout amateur. He got a bronze medal at the World Championships more than fifteen years ago before getting a place on the US team for the Olympics held a few years later.
Russell said, "I'm prepared to fight anybody willing to step in the ring. None of these guys who are supposed to be the best are willing to step in the ring with Gary Russell Jr.; therefore, I'm fighting my mandatory challenger. The WBC made Rey Vargas my mandatory challenger. He was supposed to be my opponent. I don't know how many times, but that fight didn't materialize. I can't force these guys to get into the ring. When Gervonta "Tank" Davis' fight [with Rolando Romero] fell through, I told them I was willing to take the fight at a month's notice. They decided not to fight me and fought the other guy. It's not because of me. I've been willing to compete. Gervonta Davis, Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, these guys aren't going to fight someone who is really going to challenge them. They're going to handpick their opponents. They are going to pick someone that, in most cases, when the fight is announced, everyone already knows who the winner is going to be. I've been the longest-reigning champion in the sport of boxing, I haven't had a unification.”
He continued, “Eddie Hearn reached out to me before Josh Warrington lost [against Mauricio Lara]. Other than that, no one was willing to step in the ring and compete against me. When Shakur Stevenson was in my weight division, he didn't compete against me. Leo Santa Cruz hasn't attempted to compete against me. This is why I've only been competing against my mandatory challengers. The next best guy to the champion. None of the champions in or around my division is in a rush to get in the ring with me. I can't make these guys get in the ring with me. I did mention it to [Al Haymon], once again, all you can do is propose the fights to these guys, and even with him proposing the fight, he can't force these guys to get in the ring against me."
Magsayo turned pro more than ten years ago. The famous Filipino southpaw is blessed with impressive power and hand speed. He has victories over the former world championship holder Pungluang Sor Singyu, Shota Hayashi, and Chris Avalos. In his most recent fight, the young boxer, trained by Freddie Roach, got a great come-from-behind knockout of Julio Ceja. The sensation from Filipino Magsayo fights out of Metro Manila. Not too long ago, he got a career-best win in the past year by knocking out the former champ Julio Ceja within the tenth round of a fight that he trailed on the scorecards. The boxer fights in the US for the fifth time in the Gary Russell Jr vs. Mark Magsayo match. The match is his first attempt at getting a championship belt. Magsayo has been trained by Freddie Roach in Southern California and has a number of wins over Ramiro Robles, Shoto Hayashi, and a stoppage victory over former challenger Chris Avalos.
Magsayo said, "I'm very grateful for this chance to battle on SHOWTIME for the WBC world title. That is the battle that I need and have been working exhaustingly hard to get for years. I'm going to return to win and take advantage of this opportunity. There's a purpose Gary is a champion, similar to there's a purpose I turned the obligatory challenger. That is going to be a great battle for me to point out to the world what Filipinos are manufactured from. I've had a protracted street to get to this place, and I might be prevented in honor of everybody who helped me get right here."
Matias will seek to avenge his only professional defeat, which he obtained by a slender judgment to Ananyan a couple of years ago, in the co-main event of the Gary Russell Jr vs. Mark Magsayo match. Matias came out of his native Puerto Rico and got back from the loss to get back-to-back wins. He stopped the unbeaten Malik Hawkins in his tracks in the middle rounds. He compelled the unbeaten Batyrzhan Jukembayev to give up after the middle rounds of the fight. Matias stopped his first fourteen rivals inside the ring and has always obtained a call of victory. Matias said, “Everybody aware of me is aware of how I wished for this rematch. I'm very excited that I'm now getting that chance. That defeat slowed me down; however, I needed to get to the place I, in the end, needed to be. If I don't beat Ananyan in this rematch, then I shouldn't be champion, but."
Ananyan made his debut in America a couple of years ago. He had a slender majority judgment against Kareem Martin after defeating Arkadi Harutyunyan in April. The boxer was born in Armenia and trained in Southern California. After turning professional nearly eight years ago, the boxer was undefeated in his first fourteen matches. Ananyan said, "I need to thank my crew for getting me this chance to showcase my abilities on nationwide tv and to show that my victory over Subriel Matías final year was no fluke. Like our first battle, the rematch might be a barnburner. Again, I'm coaching in America, getting nice sparring in camp, and I feel very assured. Come January 22, I'll defeat Matias as soon as once more."
Nyambayar got a silver medal in the Olympics held ten years ago and got a silver medal representing his native Mongolia. The boxer now lives in Southern California. This is the location where John Pullman trained him. The boxer ascended the featherweight rankings after his comprehensive wins over former interim champ Oscar Escandon and the undefeated Harmonito Dela Torre. He got his initial world title shot when he won against former champ Claudio Marrero in January a couple of years ago. This was earlier than dropping his championship match against Russell. Nyambayar gets back to the featherweight division after a difficult match against Chris Colbert in a fight held last year that he lost by decision.
Nyambayar said, "It is a nice alternative for me on January 22," stated Nyambayar. "I'm ready and excited to get back into the ring. That is going to be a fantastic present from high to backside, and I'm trying to ship one other nice battle for the followers. That is going to be a battle from the primary bell, and I'm assured I'll come out victorious."
Nationality: American
Date of Birth: June 5, 1988
Height: 5'4.5"
Reach: 64"
Total Fights: 32
Record: 31-1 with 18 knockouts.
Nationality: Filipino
Date of Birth: June 22, 1995
Height: 5'6"
Reach: 68"
Total Fights: 20
Record: 23-0 with 16 knockouts.
- Gary Russell Jr vs. Mark Magsayo, 12 rounds, featherweight, for Russell's WBC featherweight title
- Subriel Matias vs. Petros Ananyan, 12 rounds, super lightweight
- Tugstsogt Nyambayar vs. Vic Pasillas, 10 rounds, featherweight
- LeShawn Rodriquez vs. Sixto Suazo, 6 rounds, middleweight
- Evan Holyfield vs. Chris Rollins, 6 rounds, super welterweight