Golden Boy adds Rashidi “Speedy” Ellis for August 28 card

Golden Boy Promotions has filled out their upcoming late August card in California. And the co-main event has unbeaten Welterweight Rashidi “Speedy” Ellis back in action.

Golden Boy made the announcement late Monday morning Pacific time that the Massachusetts native Ellis will put his 22 – 0, 14 KOs record on the line against journeyman Brad Solomon on August 28th in Indio, California:

? @RashidiEllis vs Brad Solomon in #LinaresFortuna co-feature ?

+ STACKED undercard ?
Aug 28 @dazn_usa
?: @FantasySprings pic.twitter.com/wcjrtXf2TJ

— Golden Boy (@GoldenBoyBoxing) July 27, 2020

Ellis was last in action on the undercard of last November’s Golden Boy show that featured Rene Alvarado winning the WBA Super Featherweight championship over Andrew Cancio at the same location. That night, Ellis scored a 12 round unanimous decision defeating Eddie Gomez (photo at top) for the WBA’s Continental Americas Welterweight title.

Ellis has also previously held the IBF’s North American Welterweight Title, but the Gomez fight has been the only one he has had since October of 2018. Obviously, part of that recently, is due to the Covid-19  shutdown of the sport for almost four months between March and July.

Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya said of Ellis in a Monday statement,

“Rashidi Ellis is a big problem for everyone at 147 pounds. He may very well have the quickest hands in boxing, and he’s eager to fight the very best in the division. We’re proud to have him lead our explosive undercard for August 28.”

Ellis turned 27 in May and was also ranked in the top 10 by the WBA for the first time in his career earlier this month. He’s currently #9 on their list.

The opponent Solomon is from Louisiana and 36 years of age. His pro record stands at 28-3, but he has lost his last two fights including being knocked out by Virgil Ortiz, Jr. in four rounds last December.

The main event of the Golden Boy/DAZN show at the Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino will have Jorge Linares battling Javier Fortuna in a 12 round Lightweight showdown.  The former three division World Champ Linares, 47-5, 29 KOs, was rumored to have been the opponent that rising, unbeaten Lightweight Ryan Garcia did not want to fight on July 4th.

So, Golden Boy never held a show on that date and made the Linares-Fortuna main event for the end of August, instead. Linares was most recently the WBA’s Jr. Lightweight champ, until Vasiliy Lomachenko dominated and stopped him by 10th round TKO in May of 2019.

Back to Ellis, he hopes to at least get in the discussion for bigger fights and pay days and may be on the radar of Ortiz, who won his 16th straight fight by KO in the Golden Boy main event last Friday night.