Featherweights will bring their own version of March Madness to New York.
First, Shakur Stevenson will make the first defense of his 126-pound title against veteran Colombian challenger Miguel Marriaga on March 14 at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater on ESPN.
Three days later, Irish featherweight Mick Conlan will be at Hulu Theater for his annual celebration of Saint Patrick’s Day against Belmar Preciado, also of Colombia.
The featherweight two-step, announced Tuesday by Top Rank, will begin with Stevenson (13-0, 7 KOs) in his first bout since scoring a unanimous decision over Joet Gonzalez on Oct. 26.
“We’ve been trying to make this fight with Miguel Marriaga for a long time now,” Stevenson said. “I wanted a strong opponent for my first title defense. He’s been in the ring with multiple world champions, and I am ready to prove that I am the best featherweight in the world. This is my fourth fight at Madison Square Garden, but my first as a world champion, and it will be my best performance yet.”
Marriaga (29-3, 25 KOs) has challenged for world titles three times, losing all three to Nicholas Walters, Oscar Valdez Jr. and Vasiliy Lomachenko. He has won his last four fights, all by stoppage.
“I always wanted this fight, and the time is right now that he’s a world champion,” Marriaga said. “He speaks often about how people are ducking him, but here I am. Colombia will have a new world champion March 14.”
Conlan (13-0, 7 KOs), who will make a fourth straight St Paddy’s Day appearance at Hulu, looms as a potential challenger for the Stevenson-Marriaga winner.
“I know how tough Preciado (20-2-1, 13 KOs) is, but this fight is a great test as I continue on my path towards becoming a world champion,’’ Conlan said.
On the March 14 card, former junior-featherweight champion Jessie Magdaleno (27-1, 18 KOs) will face unbeaten Sakaria Lukas (23-0, 16 KOs) of Namibia in a 10-round featherweight bout.
On the March 17 card, unbeaten Mikaela Mayer (12-0, 5 KOs) will take on Melissa Hernandez (23-7-3, 7 KOs), a former featherweight champ, in a junior lightweight bout.