El Salvador is looking to put boxing on the country's map by hosting a significant show.
Heavyweight contenders Kingsley Ibeh (15-2-1, 13 KOs) and Gerald Washington (21-6-1) will headline a Sept. 20 card staged by Toro Promotions at Gimnasio Nacional José Adolfo Pineda in San Salvador, the Central American country's capital city.
“With El Salvador attracting huge interest and investment to serve as a regional and global hub for boxing and MMA, Toro Promotions is spearheading this endeavor,” said Toro Promotions CEO Azat Torosyan. “We are proud to promote and organize the first international pro boxing event in El Salvador. Toro Promotions also welcomes the opportunity to work with former Illinois Boxing Commissioner Joel Campuzano and his expert team to ensure the highest global standards of safety and fairness for athletes competing under our banner.”
"The Black Lion" Ibeh is riding a five-fight stoppage streak in which his bouts have lasted a total of six rounds. Ibeh, a 31-year-old Nigerian based in Arizona, has revived his career with an overall 10-fight winning streak after a knockout loss to Jared Anderson in 2021 and fighting to a draw against Guido Vianello in '20.
Washington, 43, is used to the big stage and was previously a mainstay on PBC shows. The former title challenger holds a career-best knockout win against Robert Helenius in 2019 but has lost to
Deontay Wilder, Jarrell Miller, Adam Kownacki, Charles Martin and
Derek Chisora in between. The former USC college football player is 3-6 since 2017.
Los Angeles-based Toro Promotions has
emphasized on signing a heavyweight-centric roster since it started staging shows in 2023.
Ukrainian Olympian Tsotne Rogava (12-0, 8 KOs) and Dante Stone (19-1, 12 KOs) are two of Toro's other top heavyweights.
Rogava and Stone are in the WBC Boxing Grand Prix and were victorious over the weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. They’re set to face each other in the quarterfinals in Phase 3 of the tournament.
Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram: @ManoukAkopyan