Three heavyweight bouts led by hometown hero Claressa Shields taking on towering Danielle Perkins for the women's heavyweight world championship will be featured on February 2nd from the Dort Financial Center in Flint, Michigan, live on DAZN (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT). Two new Salita Promotions heavyweight signees, Brandon Moore and Pryce Taylor, will be in action as Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) takes on Indianapolis’ Skylar Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs) in the co-feature. Taylor (5-0, 3 KOs) will return to fight in Flint after just six weeks as he squares off against Denver’s Jerrell Nettles (4-10, 1 KO). Tickets for the live event are on sale now and can be purchased online.
In addition to the heavyweights, plenty of Michigan’s boxing talent will once again be on full display. Hailing from Grand Rapids, fan-favorite Joseph Hicks (11-0, 7 KOs) returns to action when he takes on Louisiana’s Keon Papillion (10-0-1, 7 KOs) in a welterweight showdown. In his last outing, Hicks scored a unanimous decision victory against Ronnie Austion last September. This will arguably be Hicks’ toughest test to date as Papillion enters this televised bout on the strength of a second-round stoppage victory over Rondale Hubbert last September.
“I do not know much about my opponent, but I know that he is extremely durable,” said Hicks. “It is a blessing to perform in Flint once again. Flint has become a home away from home for me. Salita Promotions has put together an incredibly strong card, and it’s an honor to share the stage with the GWOAT Claressa Shields and some of the upcoming talent from Flint.”
Also featured on the televised card is Joshua James Pagan (11-0, 4 KOs) of Grand Rapids, Mich., who he squares off against Venezuela’s Ronal Ron (16-7, 13 KOs). The 25 year-old Pagan is coming off his first fight internationally last October when he defeated the grizzled Haskell Rhodes in Puerto Rico.
Coming from a rich bloodline of fighters, Leon Lawson III (16-1, 9 KOs) returns to the Dort Financial Center on the heels of a knockout victory over Argentina’s Luis Alberto Veron in September. Opposite the Flint star wil be Kansas City's Christopher Thompson (9-2, 6 KOs), who started his career with nine straight wins after turning pro in 2020.
It will be yet another Flint fighter opening up the night of fights as Jaquan McElroy (2-0, 1 KO) will take on Nathan Mitchell (1-3, 1 KO) of Senatobia, Miss.
Newly signed Salita Promotions featherweight Carolyne Veyre (8-1) squares off against Carmen Vargas (5-2-1) of Houston. A former Canadian Olympian, Veyre aims to follw up on her dominant win over Gabriela Bouvier last December.
Opening up the televised main card and recently signed to the Salita Promotions banner, the first-ever female Olympic boxer in Puerto Rico, Ashleyann Lozada, will make her pro debut against Denise Moran (3-0) of San Diego, Calif. The 2023 Pan American Games bronze medalist Lozado boasts a decorated amateur career and looks to showcase her skills in her televised debut.
In a quick turnaround following a unanimous decision victory last December, Samantha Worthington (10-0, 7 KOs) out of Folsom., Calif., looks to claim another victory in the junior welterweight division against Lithuania’s Vaida Masiokaite (10-26-1, 1 KO).
