Boxing: Lightweights Redkach, Cruz to Meet in PBC on FS1 Main Event

Premier Boxing Champions on Wednesday announced that a 10-round lightweight scrum between Ivan Redkach and Luis Cruz will headline a “Toe-To-Toe Tuesdays” event on Fox Sports 1. The card will go down on April 19 from Sands Bethlehem Events Center in Bethlehem, Penn.

Televised coverage will begin at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT with a pair of eight-round middleweight contests. Immanuwel Aleem (15-0, 9 KOs) will take on knockout artist Jonathan Cepeda (17-1, 15 KOs) while Kyrone Davis (10-0, 4 KOs) will square off against powerful Dominican Olympian Junior Castillo (9-0, 9 KOs).

Redkach (19-1, 15 KOs), who was born in the Ukraine but lives and trains currently out of Los Angeles, is coming off a win over Erick Daniel Martinez in October. He holds wins over solid opposition like Tony Luis, Sergey Gulyakevich and Yakubu Amidu and believes the time is now to take the next step up the ladder.

“I am really looking forward to headlining this event on April 19,” said Redkach. “I know that I have a strong opponent, but I am determined to impress the fans and show that I am ready to challenge the elite in my division. I've trained very hard and I'm ready to fight.”

Puerto Rico’s Cruz (22-4, 16 KOs) has already conquered the likes of Martin Honorio, Hevinson Herrera and Yogli Herrera. He’s coming off a win over Roberto Acevedo in November and knows that he can ill-afford a loss at this juncture in his career.

“I plan on rejuvenating my career with this fight,” said Cruz. “This is an interesting fight and I've been training really hard. Redkach is a tough fighter, but it is nothing that I haven't seen before. I want to get this big win. It's now or never for me.”