Elbiali Replaces Stanionis on Trout-Gausha card
Light heavyweight contender Ahmed Elbiali will battle Marlos Simões in a 10-round showdown as part of Premier Boxing Champions on FS1 and FOX Deportes action Saturday, May 25 from Beau Rivage Resort Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. Elbiali will replace the previously scheduled bout featuring Eimantas Stanionis, as Stanionis was forced to withdraw because of a hand injury suffered in training.
PBC on FS1 and FOX Deportes begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT and is headlined by former super welterweight champion Austin “No Doubt” Trout returning to the ring to take on former title challenger Terrell Gausha in a 10-round super welterweight battle.
PBC Prelims will air on FS2 and FOX Deportes begin at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT and be headlined by Puerto Rican Olympian Carlos Negron taking on Daniel Martz in an eight or 10-round heavyweight match and top prospect Amon Rashidi competing in a four or six-round welterweight attraction. Prelims will also feature in the opening bout hard-hitting cruiserweights as undefeated Efe Apochi steps in against Earl Newman for an eight-round matchup.
The 28-year-old Elbiali (18-1, 15 KOs) is coming off an exciting third-round knockout victory over Allan Green on Jan. 13 on FS1. Elbiali, an Egyptian-American who lives in Miami, Florida, knocked down Green in all three rounds before tallying the victory. It was his second straight victory by knockout – the other coming against Zoltan Sera last June 10 – since losing the first fight of his career against former world champion Jean Pascal in 2017. Simões (13-1-2, 5 KOs) is coming off a stoppage victory over Jefferson Luis De Sousa in December. The 30-year-old of Curitiba, Parana, Brazil suffered the only loss of his career against Manuel Ceballos last June.
After representing his native Puerto Rico at the 2008 Olympics, Negron (20-2, 16 KOs) was unbeaten in his first 13 pro fights. Now residing in Miami, the 32-year-old carried a seven-fight winning streak before falling to Dominic Breazeale in December on FOX. He will look to bounce back in his 2019 debut on May 25. Negron will face Clarksburg, West Virginia’s Martz (18-6-1, 15 KOs), who enters this contest the winner of his last two and three of his last four outings. The 28-year-old lost to Luis Ortiz in December 2017 on FS1.
Rashidi (6-0, 4 KOs), who was born in Dallas, Texas and now lives in Desoto, is coming off an exciting TKO victory over Gabriel Gutierrez at AT&T Stadium on March 16. The 26-year-old is unbeaten since turning pro in 2015 and has scored knockouts in three of his last four fights.
An accomplished amateur from Nigeria, Apochi (7-0, 7 KOs) turned pro in the U.S. in 2017 and has racked up knockouts in each fight since. The 31-year-old trains in Houston and scored more four knockouts in 2018 before making his 2019 debut in February and stopping Raymond Ochieng.
A former New York Golden Gloves Champion, Newman (10-1-1, 7 KOs) will look to rebound from a decision loss to Lionell Thompson that came after fighting Paul Parker to a draw on FS1 in 2017. The 27-year-old from Brooklyn was unbeaten in his first 10 pro fights after turning pro in 2014.
Marquis Johns is a unknown humorist and avid boxing fan. His love for the sweet science goes back to when matches were 15 rounds and has been covering fights since closed-circuit pay-per-views. Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth is not only a quote by Mike Tyson, it's also a pretty good reminder to keep your guard up.
