Mares Goes To Super Bantam For Morel Clash

In 2011, former Mexican Olympian Abner Mares left his mark on the professional boxing world by winning and defending his first world championship at bantamweight against former World Champion Joseph King Kong Agbeko.

Now, on Saturday, April 21, Mares will begin his quest for a world title in a second weight class as he moves up in weight to take on former World Champion Eric “Little Hands of Steel” Morel of Puerto Rico, in a 12-round bout to be contested at 120 pounds at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas which will be televised live on Showtime.

Unbeaten in 24 fights, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico native Abner Mares (23-0-1, 13 KO’s) first made his name as a member of Mexico’s 2004 Olympic team, but he didn’t truly show off his amazing talent until he began fighting the top professional bantamweights in the world.

Mares fought to a controversial draw with Yonnhy Perez in his first world title fight in 2010, and after decisioning Vic Darchinyan for the WBC Silver Bantamweight title later that year, he set the stage for his IBF Bantamweight Title winning effort against Joseph King Kong Agbeko in August of 2011 to win Showtime’s Bantamweight Tournament.

In his most recent fight on December 3, 2011, Mares repeated his win over Agbeko, successfully defending his crown. Now it’s time for the 26-year-old Mares to seek out new challenges as he moves up to super bantamweight.

San Juan, Puerto Rico’s Eric “Little Hands of Steel” Morel (46-2, 23 KO’s) has defied the odds in recent years, showing that a fighter over 30 can not only compete with the best, but also beat the best. Now 36 years young, the longtime former Flyweight World Champion has been taking out all comers, winning 11 straight since his last defeat to Martin Castillo in 2005.

Among his list of vanquished foes are Heriberto Ruiz, Luis Maldonado and Gerry Penalosa, who he defeated for the WBO Interim Bantamweight title in 2010. On April 21, the former Two-Time World Champion will attack the unbeaten Mares with skill and experience in an effort to hand him his first professional defeat.

More information about a press conference which will take place, Tuesday, March 20 at the Don Haskins Center will be announced shortly.

“Mares vs. Morel: Battle on the Border” is a 12-round super bantamweight fight presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Corona and AT&T. The Showtime Championship Boxing telecast airs live at 9 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast). Just prior to the action on Showtime, preliminary bouts will air live on Showtime Extreme beginning at 7 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

Tickets, priced at $25, $50, $75 and $150, go on sale on Saturday, March 17, at 10 a.m. MT and may be purchased at the UTEP Ticket Office, all Ticketmaster locations or by phone at (800) 745-3000. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com. For more information, please call (915) 747-5234.