Fight week is officially underway in Puerto Rico as Xander Zayas and Abass Baraou launched proceedings with a public workout Monday at Distrito T-Mobile in San Juan, just three days ahead of their historic world title unification clash.
Zayas (22-0, 13 KOs), the undefeated WBO junior middleweight world champion, will headline a major event on home soil for the first time in nearly six years when he takes on WBA champion Abass Baraou (17-1, 9 KOs) this Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
Both fighters captured their respective world titles last summer and wasted no time agreeing to a winner-take-all unification bout. Their showdown marks only the second time in history that two reigning world champions will meet in a title unification fight on the island of Puerto Rico.
Also taking part in the public workout were undefeated Dominican welterweight contender Rohan “El Rayo” Polanco (17-0, 10 KOs) and hard-hitting Mexican veteran Christian Gomez (23-6-1, 21 KOs), who will collide in a scheduled 10-round welterweight co-feature.
The event will also showcase rising second-generation prospect Juanmita Lopez De Jesus (4-0, 2 KOs), the 19-year-old son of former two-division world champion Juan Manuel “Juanma” Lopez. Lopez De Jesus is set to face Conner Goade (8-4-2, 7 KOs) in a six-round junior bantamweight bout.
The full fight card—including Zayas vs. Baraou and Polanco vs. Gomez—will stream free in the United States on the Top Rank Classics FAST Channel, beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT.
The main event is expected to begin at approximately 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.
Fans can watch on mobile or desktop by visiting trboxing.co/TopRankClassics, or stream on smart TVs via FAST channel apps on The Roku Channel, Tubi, and Vizio.
The event is promoted by Top Rank, in association with ICON+, Move Concerts, and Noah Assad Presents. Tickets are available now through Ticketera.com.
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