(MAY 6) DETROIT – Four of
Michigan’s top prospects will highlight undercard action as
big-time boxing returns to Detroit on Saturday, June 3 headlined
by the rematch between Undisputed Middleweight World Champion
and Michigan’s own Claressa Shields and four-division world
champion Hanna Gabriels live from Little Caesars Arena and
streamed on DAZN in the U.S. and Canada.
The lineup will see Dearborn’s Da’Velle Smith take on fellow
unbeaten Kahydlian Woods in a six-round middleweight showdown,
Grand Rapids’ Joshua Pagan battling the undefeated Ronnell
Burnett in a six-round super lightweight attraction, Grand
Rapids’ Joseph Hicks Jr. in an eight-round middleweight bout,
and Dearborn’s Gheith Karim in a cross-town matchup against
Detroit’s Marlon Harrington scheduled for eight rounds in the
super welterweight division.
Tickets for the live event are on sale now and can be purchased
through 313Presents.com, Ticketmaster.com and the XFINITY Box
Office at Little Caesars Arena. The event is promoted by Salita
Promotions and 313 Presents.
“Saturday, June 3 will be a night to remember from the opening
bell, all the way until the world championship main event,” said
Dmitriy Salita, President of Salita Promotions. “The card will
feature local talent with world class potential fighting in
their most significant fights live on DAZN from Little Caesars
Arena in downtown Detroit. Detroit legends like Tommy Hearns and
Hilmer Kenty will be looking on at ringside as these contenders
will be fighting their most challenging opponents and hoping to
prove that they are next in line to continue the elite pedigree
of this legendary boxing city.”
The 22-year-old Smith (5-0, 4 KOs) made his pro debut in
September 2021, winning the WBC’s inaugural Big Belt
Championship by knocking out Ricky Evans in the first round.
Smith would follow that triumph with a pair of knockouts in
November 2021 and May 2022, before winning a unanimous decision
over Devontae McDonald last August. The Kronk Gym-trained
prospect most recently stopped Gyorgy Mizsei in February. He
will be opposed by the 27-year-old Woods (4-0, 3 KOs).
Originally from California and now fighting out of Indianapolis,
Woods turned pro last year and scored three-straight knockouts
before a split-decision triumph over then unbeaten Ezekiel
Scruggs in February.
Pagan (5-0, 2 KOs) won the 2021 U.S. Amateur Welterweight
National Championship with a unanimous decision over Keon Davis,
completing a big step on his boxing journey that began as a
teenager with his father and trainer Tony. The 23-year-old
followed that up by turning pro in January 2022 and earning four
victories that year. Most recently, Pagan won back-to-back
decisions in Detroit to kick off 2023 as he bested Istvan Bela
Orban in February and Wesley Rivers in April. He faces Kansas
City, Missouri’s Burnett (9-0, 5 KOs), a 32-year-old who has
fought professionally since 2017. Burnett earned three wins in
2022, including knockouts of Lantz Nave and dan Abram.
The 29-year-old Hicks (6-0, 5 KOs) started boxing at 19 and
became a standout amateur before entering the pro rank. He was
set to captain the U.S. Olympic Team at the 2020 summer games,
before the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the proceedings. By the
time the games were back on, the IOC’s formula for picking
fighters in his weight class left him on the outside looking in.
Undeterred, Hicks has shined as a pro, including already scoring
two wins this year with triumphs over Bilal Quintyne in February
and Noah Kidd in April.
Originally from Iraq and now residing in Dearborn, Michigan,
Karim (9-0, 3 KOs) is trained by Jonathan Banks out of the
world-renowned Kronk Gym in Detroit. The 25-year-old returned
from a nearly three-year layoff last June and has won
three-straight fights since then, most recently besting Ramses
Agaton in March. He takes on Detroit’s own Harrington (8-1, 7
KOs), who trains in the same city as Karim, at Detroit’s World’s
Best Boxing Gym. Harrington will be returning to the ring
following his first career defeat, which came via decision
against Marquis Taylor last October.
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