FORMER TITLE CHALLENGER ANGEL “TITO” ACOSTA TO FACE JUAN “PINKY” ALEJO FOR INTERIM WBO JUNIOR FLYWEIGHT TITLE ON COTTO VS. ALI NON-TELEVISED UNDERCARD
CONTENDERS RONNY RIOS AND ZACHARY “ZUNGRY” OCHOA TO RETURN IN SEPARATE BOUTS
NO. 1 RANKED IRISH AMATEUR AARON “SILENCER” MCKENNA TO MAKE PROFESSIONAL DEBUT IN OPENING BOUT
LOS ANGELES (Nov. 16, 2017) Fistic fireworks will be on display in the always exciting 108-pound division as former world title challenger and knockout artist Angel “Tito” Acosta (16-1, 16 KOs) of San Juan, Puerto Rico and Nuevo Leon, Mexico’s Juan “Pinky” Alejo (25-4-1, 15 KOs) will headline the non-televised undercard of Cotto vs. Ali in a 12-round fight for the Interim WBO Junior Flyweight Title at Madison Square Garden.
The RingTV.com live stream of the undercard bouts will begin at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. The stream will be followed by the HBO World Championship Boxing telecast, which will begin at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Acosta only knows how to win by one way: knockout. After debuting as a professional in 2012, Acosta racked up an impressive 16 victories-all by stoppage. Through the span of almost five years, Acosta defeated the likes of Japhet “The Namibian Lion” Uutoni and Luis “Gallo” Ceja, the latter of whom he beat by tenth-round technical knockout victory to win the vacant WBO Latino Light Flyweight Title. The 27-year-old Acosta will return after the only defeat of his career, which was against junior flyweight kingpin and WBO World Junior Flyweight Kosei Tanaka.
Alejo is an experienced 33-year-old fighter with a tough fight against former WBOWorld Junior Flyweight Champion Donnie “Ahas” Nietes on his resume. This will be the second time Alejo fights in the U.S. and the event will be the biggest so far in the career of these fighters.
The formidable contender Ronny Rios (28-2, 13 KOs) of Santa Ana, Calif. is returning after his first world title opportunity to face Deivis Julio (19-3, 11 KOs) of Monteria, Colombia in a 10-round featherweight fight. Super lightweight prospect and Brooklyn native Zachary “Zungry” Ochoa (17-1, 7 KOs) will clash against a soon-to-be announced opponent in a bout scheduled for six rounds.
Opening up the RingTV.com livestream, Ireland’s no. 1 ranked best amateur boxer Aaron “Silencer” McKenna of County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, will make his highly anticipated professional debut in a welterweight bout against an opponent to be named soon after being signed recently by Golden Boy Promotions. McKenna is the youngest boxer to turn pro in Ireland’s history, with an amateur record that included 152 wins and nine losses, including eight Irish titles. Earlier this year McKenna was ranked the no. 1 youth boxer in Ireland for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo but opted to instead begin his professional career in the U.S. under the Golden Boy Promotions banner.
Header photo by Matt Easley – Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions
