Olympic rivals Vladimir Nikitin and Michael “Mick” Conlan look headed toward a rematch of their quarterfinal bout from the 2016 Rio Olympics, won by Nikitin via highly controversial decision. Nikitin (2-0, 0 KOs) will fight Juan Tapia (8-2, 3 KOs) in a six-round featherweight bout on the undercard of Conlan’s 10-round featherweight tilt against Ruben Garcia Hernandez on Sunday, March 17 at Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden.
After Nikitin’s win in Rio, Conlan’s double middle-finger salute to the AIBA-appointed judges became the indelible image of the 2016 Games.
“The fight I want after I take care of business on March 17 is Michael Conlan,” Nikitin said. “He wants revenge, and I want to show everyone that I was, and still am, the superior fighter. I respect Michael and his team. While there is no bad blood outside the ring, we have unfinished business inside the ring.”
The St. Patrick’s Day card is headlined by a welterweight showdown between Luis Collazo and Samuel Vargas. In the newly announced co-feature, two-time Irish Olympic bronze medalist and former world title challenger Paddy Barnes (5-1, 1 KO) will look to get back in the win column against Oscar Mojica (11-5-1, 1 KO) in a six-rounder at bantamweight. Barnes challenged Cristofer Rosales for the WBC flyweight world title last August and lost via fourth-round knockout.
The entire card will stream live on ESPN+.
In other undercard action:
Joseph “Blessed Hands” Adorno (11-0, 10 KOs), the 19-year-old power punching prodigy, will face the durable Victor Rosas (10-8, 4 KOs) in a six-rounder at lightweight. Adorno has seven first-round stoppages on his ledger.
Bronx native Josue “The Prodigy” Vargas (12-1, 8 KOs) will take on Adriano Ramirez (10-2, 6 KOs) in an eight-round super lightweight bout. Vargas has won six in a row since a controversial disqualification loss.
Puerto Rican super lightweight prospect John “El Terrible” Bauza (11-0, 5 KOs) will make his Top Rank debut against Ricardo Maldonado (8-8-1, 1 KO) in a six-rounder.
Lee Reeves (2-0, 2 KOs), a two-time Irish national champion as an amateur, will continue his professional journey against Eduardo Torres (1-1, 0 KOs) in a four-round welterweight fight.