Weight-in alert: Radivoje Kalajdzic-Mickey Ellison and undercard
Radivoje Kalajdzic received assistance from an unlikely person in preparation for tonight’s fight.
Kalajdzic will face Mickey Ellison at the Whitesands (also known as the ProBox TV) Events Center in Plant City, Florida. The 10-round bout will stream live on the ProBox TV app and YouTube page (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT).
At Tuesday’s weigh-in, Kalajdzic weighed in at 174.4 pounds. Ellison came in at 174.6 pounds.
The 32-year-old Kalajdzic (27-2, 19 knockouts), who is originally from Belgrade, Serbia and now resides in Saint Petersburg, Florida, has not fought since May 14 of last year, stopping Ernest Amuzu in the opening round.
Kalajdzic faced Marcus Browne in a clash of unbeaten prospects in April 2016, losing a close split-decision. Both fighters were dropped, but the consensus amongst boxing media and insiders was Kalajdzic deserved the victory.
Including his win over Amuzu, Kalajdzic has won his last three fights since his knockout loss to unified world titleholder Artur Beterbiev in May 2019. Over the last several months, both Kalajdzic and Beterbiev developed a friendship, in and out of the ring. In preparation for the Ellison fight, Kalajdzic spent six weeks in training camp with Beterbiev.
Manager Ryan Rickey believes the amount of sparring Kalajdzic received during his time with Beterbiev made him a better overall fighter.
“It was an excellent camp,” Rickey told The Ring Monday night. “This is his first fight since becoming a promotional free agent. Camp with Beterbiev affirmed that he is a much more complete fighter than when they fought. He’s confident he beats anyone in the division. This Wednesday, Ellison will be the catalyst to bigger and better things.
“(Kalajdzic and Beterbiev) established a friendship.”
Chris Glover, ProBox TV producer, confirmed Kalajdzic is under a promotional deal with ProBox TV. He believes Kalajdzic is a legitimate contener, but will have his hands full against Ellison.
“Kalajdzic is a top contender at 175 pounds,” Glover told The Ring Tuesday. “He needs to be active. We’re glad he’s under contract for him to fight as often as he can.
“Mickey Ellison is a legit fighter. He is coming off a win over an unbeaten prospect. Ellison is no slouch and is coming to win.”
Ellison (14-4, 5 KOs), who resides in Darwen in the United Kingdom, last fought on October 29, defeating Thomas Whittaker Hart by decision. In his previous fight on July 9 of last year, Ellison stopped Jake Barton in the sixth round. Both Hart and Barton entered the fight unbeaten at 7-0.
The 33-year-old has won five of his last seven bouts, including a victory over Charlie Schofield, who entered the fight unbeaten.
In the co-feature, unbeaten junior lightweight prospect William Foster III (15-0, 9 KOs) of New Haven, Connecticut will square off Denver’s Misael Lopez (14-3, 5 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
Former world junior bantamweight title challenger Jonas Sultan (18-6, 11 KOs) of Cebu City in the Philippines will face Florida’s Frank Gonzalez (12-3, 6 KOs) in a eight-round junior featherweight bout.
In the opening bout of the ProBox TV stream, unbeaten Dominic Valle (6-0, 5 KOs) of Lutz, Florida will square off against Tijuana’s Damian Alcala (7-2, 1 KO) in a six-round bout.
Undercard weights:
William Foster III (15-0, 9 KOs) 130 lbs. vs. Misael López (14-3, 5 KOs) 129.4 lbs.
Jonas Sultan (18-6, 11 KOs) 121.2 lbs. vs. Frank González (12-3, 6 KOs) 122.8 lbs.
Dominic Valle (6-0, 5 KOs) 130 lbs. vs.Damián Alcalá (7-2, 1 KO) 129.8 lbs.
Yojanler Martínez (1-0) vs.Donnis Reed (4-13-1, 2 KOs)
Kamar Bray (2-0, 2 KOs) vs. Dajuan Robinson (1-1, 1 KO)
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com
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