(April 15th) Sunny Edwards and Adrian Curiel will clash in a 12-round Flyweight battle as the chief support bout for the blockbuster World title clash between Juan Francisco Estrada and Jesse Rodriguez at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday June 29, live worldwide on DAZN.

Both men will be looking to bounce back to winning ways and get back to World champion status, and for Edwards (20-1 4 KOs), it’s an immediate return to the state where he met headline star Rodriguez in a unification clash in December.

The Briton faced ‘Bam’ in Glendale with his IBF title on the line against the WBO king, but was stopped in the ninth round of a thrilling battle, leaving the states with a first career defeat. The 28 year old, who also penned a new deal with Matchroom today, will be looking to regain the IBF belt after Bam vacated it to face Estrada, a title that he took from Moruti Mthalane in London in April 2021 and successfully defended four times before facing Rodriguez.

Curiel (24-5-1 5 KOs) moves up in weight after two dramatic World title clashes with Sivenathi Nontshinga. The Mexican challenged the South African in Monte Carlo for the IBF World Light-Flyweight title in November and stunned the champion with a KO of the year contending right hand in the second round to rip the crown away. The pair met again in a rematch in February in Oaxaca, Mexico, but this time it was the former champion that exacted revenge in a thrilling battle with a 10th round stoppage.

“I’m really excited to get the next chapter of my career underway,” said Edwards. “Agreeing another deal with Matchroom which confirms my future here for the foreseeable future.

“With the belief I’ve got in me from the promotional team and the events I’ve been involved in, I know I’m in the right place.

“Me vs Curiel is a hell of a fight. He is a former World Champion, like myself, and we’re both fighting to get back into World title contention.

“I’m going to Arizona again and fighting in front of an even bigger crowd this time, filled with passionate Mexican and American boxing fans. 29 June, I’m looking forward to being back.”

“I have a brand-new opportunity for my career,” said Curiel. “When you lose, you learn, and I will prove it against Edwards on June 29.

“If they want to make it 112lbs we will take it even though this is not my weight, all because I am thirsty for revenge. Viva Mexico!!”

“This is a great fight between two men desperate to get back to the top,” said Hearn. “Sunny was a World champion for a long time and when that feeling goes, you want to get it back as soon as possible, while Adrian only just tasted that for himself for a short time, so both men know that this is a must-win fight to get back into the mix, and comes as the chief support to one of the biggest fights of the year.”

One of the best fights in boxing is official – Juan Francisco Estrada will defend his WBC and Ring Magazine World Super-Flyweight titles against Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.

Estrada (44-3 28 KOs) steps back through the ropes to defend the title for the first time after beating old foe Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez in the third installment of their epic trilogy in December 2022, a thrilling encounter he edged via majority decision in front of a packed crowd in Glendale, Arizona.

The 33 year old’s win over the Nicaraguan star made it 2-1 in his favor across their famous trilogy, and now the Mexican meets the hottest young champion in the game that has already claimed the scalps of two of the four modern-day Super-Flyweight kings.

Rodriguez (19-0 12 KOs) had his own epic night in the arena 30 minutes from downtown Phoenix venue that he’ll face ‘Gallo’, when he unified at Flyweight by stopping Sunny Edwards in the ninth round of a stunning performance in December.

The 24 year old will look to build upon that elite showing to try to wrestle back the title he won against Carlos Cuadras in February 2022 at the Footprint Center. ‘Bam’ successfully defended the title twice, first stopping Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in June in his San Antonio backyard, and then seeing off Israel Gonzalez in Las Vegas in September.

It’s a huge weekend for Mexican sports fans in Phoenix, with the national soccer team taking on Ecuador on Sunday in the Copa America at State Farm Stadium, and the clash between Estrada and Rodriguez promises to be one of the fights of the year as two pound-for-pound stars lock horns in a stunning battle.

“I’m very happy to announce my return against Bam Rodriguez,” said Estrada. “After my last victory against Chocolatito we took a good break and was able to spend quality time with my family and my kids and heal an injury I was dealing with. 

“I will be more than ready since I know Rodriguez is a dangerous fighter, but in June it will be clear that there’s is plenty of ‘Gallo’ excitement to come.”

“Fighting for my fourth world title against a legend like ‘Gallo’ is huge,” said Rodriguez. “This is a fight I’ve been wanting for a while and I’m ready to prove myself once again.

“On June 29, you guys will see another special performance. AND THE NEW!”

“What a fight this is,” said promoter Eddie Hearn. “When the best fight the best, excitement is guaranteed - and there’s no doubt that these are two of the best fighters on the planet.

“There are so many plot lines for us all to get our teeth into in the build-up to this incredible clash – but when the bell goes, the talking will stop, and we will be treated to something very special. Both fighters are to be commended for taking on the challenge – will ‘Gallo’ prove too much too soon for Jesse, or can ‘Bam’ add Juan’s name to his already incredible CV?”

“Another blockbuster fight to add to our already unrivaled schedule”, said Alfie Sharman, VP DAZN. “Bam is not messing around; first he takes on and beats Sunny Edwards - one of the most avoided fighters in the sport – in December and now he faces a legend of the sport in June in Estrada. Do not miss this fight! Tune in live, June 29, only on DAZN”.

An announcement on ticket on-sale dates will be made soon.

About DAZN Group
DAZN Group is one of the fastest growing sports media companies in the world. Headquartered in the UK and with employees in over 25 countries, our businesses touch every aspect of the way fans engage with sports; from production, through to content distribution and commercialization. DAZN Group is home to DAZN, the leading global sport destination, as well as the popular sport portal, DAZN News. DAZN is leading the charge to give sports fans around the world access to sport anytime, anywhere. DAZN guarantees affordable access on most connected devices including smart TVs, set-top boxes, streaming sticks, smartphones, tablets, PCs and game consoles. DAZN is now live in more than 200 countries and territories after first launching in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan in 2016.

DAZN is a leading digital sports platform in Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Japan, Canada, US and the UK.  Its wide range of exclusive content includes top-flight football from the world’s most popular competitions – Bundesliga, English Premier League, J.League, LaLiga, Serie A, and the UEFA Champions League, in addition to the biggest sports from around the world - Formula 1, NFL, NBA, MotoGP and the UFC.  

DAZN is the NFL’s global partner and, from the 2023 season, will be the only place for fans around the world to watch every NFL match. DAZN is a global home for boxing and combat sports through its partnerships with Matchroom Boxing the Professional Fighters League. With the most authentic voice in the sport, DAZN is the only brand that can reach across all markets and audiences cohesively in boxing, unlike any other broadcaster. DAZN is also a global home for Women’s Football with UEFA Women’s Champions League and Finetwork Liga F.  DAZN is adding more and more sport to its platform to create a destination for sports fans.  

DAZN is reimagining the way people enjoy sport. With a single, frictionless platform, sports fans can watch, bet, play, share, socialise, and buy tickets, NFTs and merchandise. Live and on-demand sports content, anywhere, in any language, on any device – only on DAZN.  

DAZN is a global, privately-owned company with employees in over 25 countries.

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About Matchroom Boxing

After the success of snooker in the 1980s, Matchroom Sport moved into boxing with two small hall shows followed by Frank Bruno v Joe Bugner at Tottenham Hotspur’s ground – the biggest boxing event of 1987. That launched the company into the boxing big-time, a position it has maintained ever since.

Through the 1990s Matchroom Sport’s boxing roster featured many of the biggest names in the sport including Lennox Lewis, Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank, Steve Collins and Naseem Hamed, all in world title fights and it continues to work with some of the biggest names in UK boxing including Audley Harrison, the 2000 Olympic Super-Heavyweight gold medalist.

Over the years, Matchroom Sport has built up long-standing relationships with broadcasters around the world and with the advent of the Prizefighter phenomenon, the company’s boxing division has never been in a stronger position.

From fantastic six round scraps between the sport’s journeymen, up to multi-million-dollar World Championship contests featuring the above fighters, the Pro Box series has it all. Each show is packed with the very best in boxing action in a series that encompasses almost 25 years of Matchroom Sport’s commitment to bringing the highest quality to the global television market.