Top Rank cancels Saturday and Tuesday New York shows

After taking much of Thursday to consider what to do, it’s been decided that there will be no Top Rank Boxing cards in New York City on Saturday or Tuesday nights.

The promotion in conjunction with the New York State Athletic Commission decided Thursday night to reverse course and not hold the two shows at the Hulu Theater next to Madison Square Garden in New York City:

UPDATE: March 14 and March 17 Top Rank events have been postponed. pic.twitter.com/Pgh2f3FWTV

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) March 13, 2020

Earlier on Thursday Top Rank had announced that the World title fight involving WBO Featherweight Champion Shakur Stevenson and Miguel Marriaga would go on as scheduled Saturday evening, be televised by ESPN, but with no fans in attendance. The same would have been the case for unbeaten Irish featherweight sensation Michael Conlan, who was due to headline for top rank 72 hours later in the same venue.

Conlan would have been fighting for the second straight year on St. Patrick’s Day at the Hulu Theater and it was expected that, had fans been allowed, it would have been a near-sellout or capacity for that fight.

Also on Thursday afternoon, Premier Boxing Champions decided to postpone their Saturday night non-title main event middleweight fight James Kirkland and Marcos Hernandez.

The Saturday night fight card was scheduled for the MGM National Harbor Arena in Oxon Hill, Maryland, and the main event fight was to have been a middleweight non-title showdown between veterans Hernandez and Kirkland.

The 35 year old former top middleweight contender, Kirkland was to have fought for the third time off a four year layoff after he was knocked out by Canelo Alvarez in 2015. Kirkland had scored KO’s in both of his comeback fights. Hernandez is an eight year veteran with a 14-3-1 record.

Already, the NBA, and the NHL have stopped their regular seasons starting tonight. Major League Baseball has announced that it will suspended all Spring Training activities and games, and that it’s regular season will start at least two weeks later into April.

Also, Thursday afternoon the NCAA made the unprecedented decision to completely cancel it’s 2020 massively popular tournament. It will be the first time since 1938 that they will not have a champion.