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Diego De La Hoya to face former title challenger Jesus Ruiz

Fighters Network
31
Aug
Diego De La Hoya (R) vs. Manuel Roman. Photo by Naoki Fukuda

Diego De La Hoya (R) vs. Manuel Roman. Photo by Naoki Fukuda

The lineup for Friday’s edition of “LA Fight Club” was announced via press release on Monday, and headlining the card will be featherweight Diego De La Hoya fighting former world-title challenger Jesus Ruiz. The 10-rounder will be televised on Estrella TV from the Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles.

The cousin of Golden Boy Promotions founder Oscar De La Hoya, whose company promotes the series, Diego De La Hoya was the subject of a RingTV.com “New Faces” segment in July. Since then he has notched a fourth-round knockout of Jose Estrella, also at the Belasco, to raise his record to 11-0 (7 knockouts).

“When I fight someone they really want to beat me because they have the association with my last name. There is a lot of pressure but I feel I can handle it,” said the then-20-year-old fighter in the NF feature. “I’m proud of my last name and what Oscar’s accomplished as a fighter. But I’m going in the ring now and although the last name will open up opportunities for me I have to be smart and show people I am a great fighter and show people all of my skills, because if the doors open there’s a lot of pressure and if I don’t fulfill those expectations there’s no point. I want to build my own legacy and prove to people I’m also a good fighter.”

Ruiz (32-6-5, 21 KOs), De La Hoya’s most accomplished opponent to date, fought for the WBC junior featherweight belt in January and lost by eighth-round TKO against Leo Santa Cruz. The 25-year-old Nogales, Mexico native has previous wins over Andres Gutierrez, Ruben Tamayo and Leonilo Miranda.



In the co-main event, two-time Brazilian Olympian Everton Lopes (3-0, 1 KOs) will face Omar Tienda (13-0, 8 KOs) in an eight-round junior welterweight fight and local favorite Christian Gonzalez (10-0, 9 KOs) will fight Erick Orozco (5-1-2, 3 KOs) in a six-round junior lightweight bout.

On the non-televised undercard, Rafael Gramajo (4-1-1, 2 KOs) will fight Andres Balderas (3-3, 2 KOs) in a junior featherweight six-rounder, Ivan Delgado (6-0-1, 2 KOs) will be in a six-round junior lightweight fight against an opponent still to be determined and Jonathan Navarro (1-0, 1 KOs) will face Gibran Gutierrez, who is making his professional debut.

Tickets for “LA Fight Club” starting at $20 are available for purchase online at www.goldenboypromotions.com or by visiting the Golden Boy Promotions Facebook page. For ticket information, email at [email protected].

The “Knockout Experience VIP Package” is also available for an additional $25 and includes VIP entrance, access to an exclusive lounge offering food and beverages for purchase; a meet-and-greet opportunity with fighters and celebrities attending the event (past guests have included Oscar De La Hoya, Kate Del Castillo, Mario Lopez, George Lopez, Lucas Matthysse, Randy Caballero and others) and an automatic entry into the “LA Fight Club” grand prize drawing, which can include but is not limited to: autographed gloves, a picture in the ring, backstage access, tour of locker rooms, fighter ring walk, tickets to upcoming boxing events and additional merchandise and prizes.

The broadcast on Estrella TV will begin at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT

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