Rising contender Fiodor Czerkaszyn and prospect Vito Mielnicki Jr. will compete in separate bouts that highlight the Showtime PPV Countdown Show on Saturday, April 22 leading up to the much-anticipated Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia pay-per-view event taking place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions.
The unbeaten middleweight Czerkaszyn will take on Mexico’s Elias Espadas in a 10-round showdown, while the impressive super welterweight prospect Mielnicki, Jr., faces Mexico’s Jose Charles in a 10-round bout streamed live on the Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Showtime Boxing Facebook page beginning at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
The show will be hosted by award-winning Morning Kombat live digital talk show co-host Brian Campbell, who will be accompanied by a pair of special guests. Sports broadcaster Kate Abdo, who covers UEFA Champions League for CBS Sports and is a former PBC studio host, and Ariel Helwani, renowned combat sports journalist and SHOWTIME Basketball podcast host, will both join Campbell in what should be a memorable night of streaming.
These fights lead into a four-fight pay-per-view telecast beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT headlined by undefeated rivals Gervonta “Tank” Davis and “King” Ryan Garcia in a 12-round showdown.
The event is promoted by GTD Promotions, TGB Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions and the telecast is produced by SHOWTIME PPV.
The 27-year-old Czerkaszyn (21-0, 13 KOs) made a successful stateside debut in August 2022, stopping Gilbert Venegas, Jr., in the fourth-round. He followed that up in his most recent outing, as he won a dominant 10-round unanimous decision over veteran power-puncher Nathaniel Gallimore last November on SHOWTIME. Originally from Ukraine and a citizen of Warsaw, Poland, Czerkaszyn turned pro in 2015 and now owns four 10-round unanimous decisions on his record, hardly losing a round throughout the contests. The 32-year-old Espadas (22-5, 15 KOs) had a five-fight winning streak snapped in his last fight, as he dropped an August 2022 contest to unbeaten prospect Xander Zayas. A native of Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, Espadas has fought professionally since 2012 and has also challenged Olympic Bronze Medalist Yamaguchi Falcao.
Representing Roseland, N.J., Mielnicki (14-1, 9 KOs) returns to the ring for the second time this year after stopping Omar Rosales in four rounds in January. The 20-year-old picked up three wins in 2022, earning unanimous decisions over Dan Karpency and Limberth Ponce, plus a stoppage of Jimmy Williams. Mielnicki first turned heads during his exceptional amateur career where he compiled a 147-22 record and was named the Most Outstanding Boxer of the 2011 Junior National Golden Gloves, amongst many accolades before turning pro. Fighting out of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico, Charles (20-3-1, 12 KOs) will look to start a new winning streak after his four-bout run was halted by former world champion Austin Trout in December 2022. The 29-year-old will be fighting in the U.S. for the third consecutive outing when he steps into the ring on April 22.
The non-televised undercard lineup will feature unbeaten lightweight prospect Floyd Schofield (13-0, 10 KOs) dueling Mexico’s Valentin Leon Jr. (23-1-2, 19 KOs) in a fight scheduled for 10-rounds, plus heavyweight prospect Tristan Kalkreuth (9-1, 7 KOs) in a six-round matchup.
Rounding out the card is middleweight prospect Lorenzo Simpson (12-0, 7 KOs) in a six-round bout against Iowa’s Pachino Hill (8-1-1, 6 KOs), super welterweight prospect Jalil “Major” Hackett (5-0, 4 KOs) battling Jason Phillips (3-3-2) in a four-round fight and bantamweight prospect Cuttino Oliver (2-0, 1 KO) in a four-round attraction facing Mexico’s Roberto Cantu Pena (3-2, 3 KOs).