HBO's BOXING AFTER DARK to Return with Doubleheader, 6/13

HBO Boxing's hit late-night franchise presents an all-action doubleheader featuring four undefeated fighters when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: NICHOLAS WALTERS VS. MIGUEL MARRIAGA AND FELIX VERDEJO VS. IVAN NAJERA is seen SATURDAY, JUNE 13 at 10:00 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports team will be ringside for both bouts, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

Other HBO playdates: June 14 (9:45 a.m.) and 15 (11:30 p.m.)

HBO2 playdate: June 16 (midnight)

In the main event, featherweight titlist Nicholas Walters (25-0, 21 KOs) defends his world championship against Miguel Marriaga (20-0, 18 KOs) in a 12-round fight. Walters, 29, captured his first world title in 2012 when he knocked out Daulis Prescott in his home country of Jamaica and has successfully defended his belt three times by knockout. In his HBO debut last October, Walters grabbed the attention of the boxing world with a sensational KNOCKOUT of former five-division world champ Nonito Donaire. Making his own HBO debut, Colombia's Marriaga, 28, will be seeking a world title for the first time.

On the eve of New York's Puerto Rican Day parade, the co-main event features boxing's fastest-rising prospect, Felix Verdejo (17-0, 13 KOs) of San Juan, Puerto Rico, taking on Ivan Najera (16-0, 8 KOs) of San Antonio, Tex., in a ten-round lightweight contest. During his rise in the division, Verdejo has remained exceptionally active, fighting seven times in 2014 and eight times in 2013. Both undefeated 22-year-olds will be making their HBO debuts as they rekindle boxing's longstanding Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry, and both will be appearing in just their second ten-round fight. For Verdejo, this fight will be his third at The Theater at Madison Square Garden, a fight venue that launched rewarding ring careers for fighters like Arturo Gatti, Sergio Martinez and Gennady Golovkin.

Follow HBO boxing news at hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/hboboxing.

It's a special weekend for HBO Boxing. On Sunday, June 14, Jim Lampley, who has been broadcasting fights on the network since 1988 and has been ringside for many of the sport's signature moments the past 27 years, will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York.

The executive producer of HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is Rick Bernstein; producer, Jonathan Crystal; director, Johnathan Evans.

® HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.

Photo courtesy of HBO

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