Welcome back to the second edition of the ITR Arizona Boxing Weekly! I think I have officially settled on this name. Unless I receive some super cool suggestion, we are going to rock with this one. I like it too, ITR Arizona Boxing Weekly. Next week I’ll have some cool logo for it.

Now onto the news. It’s been another jam-packed week in Arizona boxing, so let’s dive right in, starting with the big announcement of the week: Fabian Rojo has officially signed with Matchroom Boxing.

At just 22 years old and with fewer than ten fights, Fabian Rojo is already making waves with local fight fans. In March, he made an early bid for Fight of the Year when he battled Shaquile Felicia in a thrilling six-round, back-and-forth war. He then followed that up with a highlight-reel knockout of Daniel Gonzales on DAZN. That knockout happened on the undercard of Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez vs. Juan Francisco Estrada. Being on the big stage of a high-profile undercard, he really caught the attention of fight fans everywhere.

Now, with a record of 9-0 and 7 KOs, Fabian has signed with Matchroom Boxing just six weeks after that spectacular knockout win.

This is huge news for Fabian, who had a very active 2023 and is carrying that momentum into 2024. With two fights already under his belt this year, the second half of 2024 is kicking off with a bang. Along with the signing announcement, we’ve also received a fight date for Rojo: he’ll be facing Alejandro Frias Rodriguez live on the DAZN undercard for Pacheco vs. Sulecki on August 31st.

If your fight against Felicia was the last one at the Celebrity Theatre, I’m glad I was there to witness it that night. Best of luck to you, Fabian! Here is a brief clip of his fight with Felicia this past March.

Also in fight announcements, we have the tough local vet Carlos Castro (30-2, 14 KOs) taking on the returning Stephen Fulton Jr in a ten round featherweight bout on September 14^th on the undercard of Canelo vs. Berlanga live in Las Vegas NV, at the MGM Grand. Fulton has been out of the ring since he fought Naoya Inoue in July of 2023. Carlos was most recently in action in April at the Celebrity Theatre. 

Best of luck to Carlos Castro who has plenty of ring experience and grit to pull this one off. We’ll be rooting for you Castro! 

In fight results of the week we have everyone’s homie, Elijah Smith aka YuddyGangTV picking up a unanimous decision victory in Miami, FL. Highlights can be seen on his Instagram, which I am sure you already follow. But if you don’t, be sure to visit @officialyuddygangtv on Instagram. The entire fight can be viewed on the DAZN app included with your subscription. 

In more fight announcements we have the return of Cool Town Throwdown! Live in Coolidge AZ, Cool Town Throwdown 12 on October 5^th and 6^th. Live amateur boxing and let me tell you, being at Throwdown 11, there was some fire fights! It was such a great event we have added eight randomly selected fights from each day and added them to our youtube channel. There was 16+ fights on each day.  You can view the playlist here: 

The overall two-day event was a lot of fun, there are good vendors, good food trucks and the DJ kept the vibe flowing all day. Great way to support your local up and coming talent. It’s only a matter of time before we start seeing these young fighters headlining the celebrity theatre. 

Buy Tickets for one or both days online here: https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/roblesboxing/cooltownthrowdown12

Their popular TWO tickets for $30 is available online NOW – September 15th Use Promo Code PRESALE12

OR

Use Promo Code EARLYBIRD12 to save 20% OFF General Admission Tickets (Expires September 30th)

For our BEST ticket prices, get your tickets online

Kids 4 years old & younger are FREE!

Can’t make it? Watch the livestream here:

https://www.flashmediasports.com/products/cooltown-throwdown-12

Lastly, we have an exciting card announcement for local fight fans to look forward to! Iron Boy Promotions his returning on August 24th. From what I’ve seen, the card looks STACKED!

The card will be featuring Joseph Rivas, Elias Terraza, Jordan Martinez, Conor Goade, and more! Of course, the lineup is subject to change, and we’ve all seen fights at this level fall through for various reasons, even at the last minute.

What better way to close out the summer of 2024 than with a card like this? As we move into the fall and winter months the ITR AZ Boxing awards is beginning to take shape. Being apart of a stacked card like this, you’re going to want to make sure you stand out from the crowd. We are most definitely going to be entertained on this night. 

The categories for the 2024 awards will be AZ Fighter of the Year, AZ Fight of the Year, AZ Knockout of the Year, Best local AZ Boxing gym, AZ Rookie of the Year. There may be some more categories added, but this is the list thus far. The voting season will begin around November or so, I’ll keep the social media pages updated with more details.

Lastly I wanted to turn our attention towards helping out a local gym. BoxOut AZ recently shared a story on Instagram, visit their page for more details @boxoutaz. But I wanted to share this with you all;

“Dear Community,

We are reaching out to ask for your support as we continue to nurture the next generation of boxers and promote overall wellness in our community. Box Out Gym has always been a sanctuary for those seeking not only physical strength but also mental and emotional resilience.

Our youth programs have been instrumental in shaping the lives of many young individuals, providing them with guidance, structure, and a positive outlet. We are also home to talented boxers who are honing their skills to compete at higher levels, and we want to ensure they have the resources they need to succeed.

We are committed to continuing this journey, but we can’t do it alone. we have launched a GoFundMe campaign as part of our fundraising efforts.  Your support-whether through donations, sharing our campaign, or simply spreading the word—means the world to us.

**How the Funds Will Be Used:**

– Covering operational costs (rent, utilities, maintenance)

– Supporting youth programs and scholarships

– Ensuring we can continue to pay our dedicated staff

This will allow us to  ensure  Box Out Boxing & Fitness facility remains a safe space for healing, growth, and friendship.

Thank you for being part of our family, and for helping us continue this important work.”

Your Boxout Team.

For more details please follow and contact the BoxOut team on Instagram @Boxoutaz.

Well that does it for this week everyone! Who knows what we will have in store for us next week. If you want to share some stories with me to be featured on here, feel free to contact me on IG @KingFelixG

Thanks!