9:28 AM ET Steve KimESPN Add the Pula Arena in Pula, Croatia, to the list of venues interested in hosting the heavyweight bout between unified world titleholder Anthony Joshua and challenger Kubrat Pulev. “We have a very solid offer,” CEO of Epic Sports and Entertainment Ivaylo Gotzev, who represents Pulev, told ESPN. “We’re respecting [Joshua
Boxing
5:53 PM ET Former boxing star Miguel Cotto, a world champion in four divisions, has submitted a proposal through his promotions company with suggested protocols to resume professional events in his native Puerto Rico as early as August. Among the points established in the document are staging cards behind closed doors and testing boxers for
12:18 PM ET Steve KimESPN Boxing’s calendar is about to be booked up once again, according to Top Rank promoter Bob Arum. Arum said during a recent interview on IFL TV that he hopes to start making announcements on an upcoming schedule starting next week. “It’ll be all fighters who have either appeared on the
5:34 PM ET Efficient coronavirus testing is a major key to the return of combat sports in earnest. The Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory (SMRTL) is set to help unlock some of those doors. SMRTL has been “cleared and certified” to begin doing coronavirus testing for sports, lab president Dr. Daniel Eichner said Monday
9:00 AM ET Steve KimESPN Boxers will always have that fight or win that defines their career. They also have those fights where they just enjoy being in the ring, win or lose. They know their most challenging opposition and love to discuss their most satisfying victories. ESPN spoke to a number of top fighters
5:27 PM ET WBC junior lightweight champion Miguel Berchelt, WBO junior featherweight champion Emanuel Navarrete and WBO junior lightweight champion Elwin Soto are among the fighters Zanfer Promotions is planning to feature as part of a resumption of boxing in Mexico in June, organization president Fernando Beltran told ESPN. Beltran told ESPN that fans will
5:50 PM ET Steve KimESPN After some back-and-forth jabs in the past, the war of words between UFC superstar Conor McGregor and boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya is really heating up. The latest escalation happened when De La Hoya gave a sharp response when asked about how he’d fare with McGregor in a fight.
9:49 AM ET Heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua and the IBF’s mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev could face each other in front of a crowd at a Roman Amphitheatre in Croatia, the Bulgarian’s manager has said. The pair were due to meet at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on June 20 but the fight was
9:51 PM ET Steve KimESPN Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said Wednesday that his company will begin putting on fight cards next month after being idle since February due to the coronavirus pandemic. “We are coming back in June,” Arum told ESPN. “These will be shows that will be on ESPN and ESPN+. They will
5:04 PM ET IBF middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin said Wednesday that he doesn’t expect his first bout coming off the coronavirus pandemic to be against boxing superstar Canelo Alvarez, since Golovkin has an agreement in place to face undefeated mandatory challenger Kamil Szeremeta when the schedule resumes. That would open the door for Alvarez, the