An injury to 200-pound champion Beibut Shumenov is putting an interim 126-pound title bout on a bigger stage.
Dominican southpaw Claudio Marrero (right) has won seven straight fights since losing to eventual world champion Jesus Cuellar by unanimous decision in an interim title bout in August 2013. (Suzanne Teresa/Premier Boxing Champions)
Beibut Shumenov suffered an eye injury while training Wednesday and is now unable to defend his world title against Yunier Dorticos on April 29. The 200-pound championship fight will be rescheduled as soon as Shumenov is healthy enough to return to training.
Now elevated to the main event, unbeaten Carlos Zambrano (26-0, 11 KOs) will defend his interim 126-pound world title against talented southpaw Claudio Marrero (21-1, 15 KOs) at Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas on April 29 (FS1, 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).
“It is disappointing that Shumenov suffered an eye injury in training. Unfortunately, that's the nature of boxing,” said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. “We were looking forward to seeing him defend his cruiserweight world title against Dorticos. I hope he makes a full recovery and we can reschedule the match.
“Now, we're looking forward to Carlos Zambrano making his Mayweather Promotions debut in a scintillating match against a very tough challenger in Claudio Marrero on FS1 and FOX Deportes.”
Televised fight coverage also will include unbeaten Jeison Rosario (12-0, 9 KOs) taking on Nathaniel Gallimore (17-1-1, 14 KOs) in a 160-pound bout scheduled for 10 rounds.
Zambrano, 32, gained his interim title by earning a unanimous decision over Daniel Ramirez in March 2015, and retained it with a unanimous decision over Jose Sanmartin that August.
The Peru native will be fighting for the United States for the first time since October 2010, with all 14 of his subsequent bouts occurring in his home country.
Marrero has won seven straight fights since losing to eventual world champion Jesus Cuellar by unanimous decision in an interim title bout in August 2013.
The 28-year-old native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, last fought in August, when he gained a fourth-round TKO of Luis Hinojosa at New York’s Coney Island.
For a complete look at Zambrano vs Marrero, visit our fight page.
