TOKYO (April 13, 2018) — Ryota Murata became a star in his home country of Japan after winning a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics. Now a word champion, he will make the first defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) middleweight title on Sunday against Italian challenger and former European middleweight champion, Emanuele Blandamura, at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan.

Nine months after being defeated by Jeff Horn, eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao (59-7-2, 38 KOs) has announced he will return to the ring this summer.

You’ve probably seen this line everywhere, but let’s say it one more time: The NBA playoff order is finally set. That means the top eight teams in each conference will scrap it out, sending the victors to the Finals for a shot at a championship.

Boxing icon and Philippine senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao is expanding his game beyond the boxing ring. This time, fully funding the seed round of Philippine-based car rental platform Graventure for an undisclosed amount. Pacquiao’s latest investment, his first tech investment in the Philippines, comes barely a month after he invested in Singaporean blockchain startup Global Crypto Offering Exchange (GCOX).

YOKOHAMA, JAPAN (April 10, 2018) — It’s breakfast with the middleweights on Sunday, April 15, as Ryota Murata makes the first defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) middleweight title against Italian challenger Emanuele ‘Sioux’ Blandamura at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. This special, international edition of Top Rank on ESPN will air live on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes and stream on the ESPN App at 8 a.m. ET, with a same-day replay scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

NEW YORK CITY (April 11, 2018) — On a night where VASILIY ‘Hi-Tech’ LOMACHENKO will challenge WBA and Ring Magazine lightweight champion JORGE ‘El Niño de Oro’ LINARES for division supremacy, a slew of prospects and contenders will look to steal the show May 12 at Madison Square Garden.

(April 9, 2018) — ESPN and Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International today announced today an extensive line up of exclusive boxing programming for ESPN+, the new direct-to-consumer sports streaming service launching April 12. Additionally, through an expansion of ESPN’s agreement with Top Rank, ESPN+ will add 12 exclusive world-class Top Rank on ESPN cards to the annual line up.

LAS VEGAS (April 5, 2018) — Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford is ready to take on the role of a Las Vegas Strip headliner for a second time. Crawford will aim to win a world title in a third weight class when he challenges World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion Jeff ‘The Hornet’ Horn on Saturday, June 9 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

PHILADELPHIA (April 4, 2018) — A pair of 2016 Olympic medalists — USA silver medalist Shakur Stevenson and Brazilian gold medalist Robson Conceicao — will see action on the undercard of the WBO junior featherweight title fight between defending champion Jessie Magdaleno and No. 1 contender Isaac Dogboe on April 28 at The Liacouras Center on the campus of Temple University.

LAS VEGAS (March 29, 2018) — Pound-for-pound superstar TERENCE “Bud” CRAWFORD is ready to conquer the welterweight division. Crawford, the former lightweight champion and undisputed junior welterweight kingpin, will challenge JEFF “The Hornet” HORN for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title on Saturday, June 9, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

By Anna Mae Areja -
There’s a big chance the historic world junior bantamweight title clash between Filipino boxers--champion Jerwin Ancajas and his challenger Jonas Sultan--will take place in California.

PHILADEPHIA (March 22, 2018) — There will be no Brotherly Love when JESSIE MAGDALENO defends his World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior featherweight title against No. 1 contender ISAAC DOGBOE on Saturday, April 28, at The Liacouras Center.