Mikey Garcia to Open HBO’s June 4 ‘Boxing After Dark’ Card

LOS ANGELES (May 19, 2011) – Top-rated contender MIKEY GARCIA will risk his undefeated record and No. 1 ranking when he faces the power-punching MIGUEL BELTRAN Jr. on June 4 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. The Garcia-Beltran 10-round featherweight rumble will be the co-main event on “The Son Also Rises,” headlined by the Sebastian Zbik vs. Julio César Chávez Jr. World Middleweight Championship. Both fights will be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark®, beginning at 10 p.m. ET/PT(delayed on the West Coast.)  Garcia and Beltran boast a combined record of 49-1 (38 KOs) — a winning percentage of 98% and a victory by knockout ratio of 78%.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Universum Media Network, TECATE and STAPLES Center, “The Son Also Rises: Zbik vs. Chávez, Jr. World Middleweight Championship” marks the first fight Chávez Jr. has fought in Los Angeles in six years. Remaining tickets, priced at $250, $150, $100, $75 and $50, can be purchased online at www.staplescenter.com, via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000, or at the STAPLES Center box office.

Garcia (25-0, 21 KOs), of Oxnard, Calif. makes his Los Angeles debut having won nine of his past 10 bouts by knockout. Considered to be one of boxing’s top young prospects, Garcia, 23, returns to the ring fresh from a career-best victory, knocking out previously undefeated contender Matt Remillard in the 10th round last March to capture his NABF and NABO title belts. He ended 2010 with knockout victories against Cornelius Locke in an IBF featherweight title elimination bout, and former world title challenger Olivier Lontchi, in 11 and five rounds respectively. Trained by his father Eduardo Garcia and co-managed by his brother Robert Garcia, the former IBF junior lightweight champion, Garcia is currently world-rated No. 1 by the IBF, No. 2 by the WBA, No. 4 by the WBC and No. 5 by the WBO.

Beltran (24-1, 17 KOs), of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México, will be making his U.S. debut when he tangles with Garcia. A professional with four years experience, Beltran, 21, has earned a reputation as a crowd-pleasing fighter who boasts an aggressive style, two-fisted punching power and experience against very good opposition. Career highlights include winning the Campeon Azteca featherweight tournament in 2009 via an exciting 10-round decision over Mickey Roman and a unanimous decision victory over previously undefeated Eduardo Lazcano that same year. Trained by Manuel Montiel Sr. and Eduardo Montiel, Beltran is the son of former Méxican bantamweight champion Guadalupe “Barretero” Beltan.