(OCT 30) NEW YORK - The
IMPACT Network, in conjunction with SMH Group, will present
IMPACT Championship Boxing brought to you by T&K Boxing
Promotions in association with DiBella Entertainment, featuring
an exciting women's world title fight between Kali Reis and
Kandi Wyatt. The event takes place on Friday, November 6, from
the St. Petersburg Clearwater Marriott, in St. Petersburg, FL,
and will premiere on IMPACT Network, Saturday, November 7, at
10:30pm ET.
In the main event, Kali "KO
Mequinonoag" Reis (16-7-1, 5 KOs), of Providence, RI, will meet
Kandi "Krush" Wyatt (10-1, 3 KOs), of Calgary, Alberta, Canada,
in a 10-round clash with the vacant WBA world female super
lightweight title on the line. The winner of this high stakes
battle could be in line for unification matches against IBF
champion Mary McGee or WBO champion Christina Linardatou.
"I'm thrilled to collaborate with
T&K Boxing Promotions and Steven Marcano to bring an exciting
night of championship boxing to IMPACT Network's wide-ranging
audience," said Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment.
"Former world champion Kali Reis will take on highly skilled
Canadian Kandi Wyatt for a vacant super lightweight world title
and heavyweight slugger Elvis Garcia collides with Dell Long.
Boxing fans will also get to see
a pair of rising stars in action, including unbeaten Puerto
Rican lightweight contender Victor Padilla and Sin City
heavyweight Jeremiah Milton. The Reis-Wyatt title fight joins a
string of significant female championship fights worldwide. I'm
thrilled to have found a home for it on IMPACT Network."
"We are pleased to be back on November 6 for the live event,
which will air November 7, at 10:30pm ET, to IMPACT's 90 million
homes via basic cable," stated Steven Marcano, of the SMH Group,
the programming partner with Impact Media Group. "After
discussing with the IMPACT executive team, Bishop Wayne T.
Jackson, Royal Jackson and Terry Arnold, we all agreed that we
wanted to work with Lou DiBella, who is now a Hall-of-Famer, and
he's brought us a terrific event featuring a female world title
fight worthy of IMPACT Network. We were supposed to do another
event with Lou earlier this year, but it was cancelled due to
Covid-19. IMPACT plans to have a 24-show calendar for 2021 and
plans many more shows with DiBella Entertainment. IMPACT Boxing
is also excited to welcome boxing great Antonio Tarver, who will
call the action from ringside, along with Curran Bhatia and
ringside reporter and boxing insider Zach Hirsch."
"T&K Boxing Promotions is happy to announce that we are working
together with DiBella Entertainment on our November 6 event,
known locally as 'All or Nothing', and we are thrilled that it
will be broadcast on IMPACT Network," said Jesus Escalera,
President of T&K Boxing Promotions. "We were all set to present
a great show featuring local talent and then Lou DiBella
approached us with an opportunity to televise it. Lou also
provided us with a tremendous women's world championship main
event, along with other up-and-coming prospects for the
undercard. It will be a special night for us, as it is part of
the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame's induction weekend. The Class
of 2020 will be in attendance."
Reis is a former WBC middleweight world champion. Her nickname,
"KO Mequinonoag", which means "many feathers, many talents",
represents her Native American heritage, of which she is part
Cherokee, Nipmuc, and Seaconke Wampanoag. In one of women's
boxing's biggest events, Reis challenged then-undisputed
welterweight world champion Cecilia Braekhus in 2018. It was the
first women's bout telecast by HBO World Championship Boxing in
its 45-year history. Remarkably, the fight averaged 904,000
viewers, the second highest rating by the network for boxing
during that year. Reis has rebounded with three wins in a row.
Wyatt, promoted by Michael Short's Dekada Promotions, is a
former world title challenger, having faced Linardatou for the
WBO world female super lightweight title in March 2019. She was
a highly accomplished amateur, before her 2014 pro debut,
becoming a 10-time Provincial champion, six-time National
champion and four-time Ringside World Tournament champion.
Rising lightweight Victor Padilla (8-0, 7 KOs) will be featured
in a six-round bout. Trained by Rashiem Jefferson and managed by
Carlos Rosario, the heavy-handed Padilla has stopped six of his
opponents inside the opening round. Born in Puerto Rico, now
living in Berlin, NJ, Padilla turned professional in December
2016, following a stellar amateur career that included three
National championships, ending with a record of 90-7.
Elvis Garcia (8-0, 5 KOs) will clash with Dell Long (7-6-2, 4
KOs), of Artie, WV, in an attractive six-round heavyweight bout.
Born in Mexico, now living in Indio, CA, trained by Joel Diaz,
Garcia returns to the ring following a victory against Hugo
Trujillo. He also recently gained invaluable experience working
as the "secret weapon sparring partner" that promoter Eddie
Hearn referred to with regard to Anthony Joshua's preparation
for his rematch against Andy Ruiz last year. Prior to turning
pro, Garcia was an outstanding amateur with a record of 85-10,
42 KOs. After winning gold at the Washington State Golden
Gloves, as well as a silver and two bronze medals at USA
National Tournaments, Garcia moved to Tijuana, Mexico, where he
won the Mexican National Championships and the Mexican Golden
Gloves Tournament twice. Long is coming off of an unexpected
upset win against Don Haynesworth (16-4-1) on August 29, and he
also owns a knockout victory against 13-1 Travis Clark.
Heavyweight prospect Jeremiah Milton (1-0, 1 KO), originally
from Tulsa, OK, now based in Las Vegas, NV, will compete in a
four-round bout against Robert Brothers, of Titusville, FL.
Milton's pro debut on August 20 lasted just 75 seconds, ending
with a knockout of Dennis Vance Jr. As an amateur, Milton was a
super heavyweight silver medalist at the 2019 US Olympic Trials.
In preparation for his pro debut, Milton sparred with Luis
Ortiz, Joe Joyce and Guido Vianello.