Old amateur rivals Troy Isley and Javier Martinez have a date set for their clash as pros for Friday, June 21 at BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau Las Vegas. The pair battles it out on the card headlined by Rafael Espinoza vs Sergio Chirino live on ESPN+.
Isley and Martinez previously fought four times. Isley defeated Martinez in the finals of the 2016 and 2017 U.S. National Championships. Martinez paid back with victories at the 2018 U.S. National Championships and 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
Going through the ropes in Las Vegas in June, Troy Isley (12-0, 5 KOs) targets his second victory for the year. In his previous outing in March, the undefeated 25-year-old native of Washington, D.C. stopped Marcos Hernandez in the seventh round.
“This isn’t the amateurs anymore,” said Isley. “Javier is going to see the difference in skill when we fight on June 21 in Las Vegas. He’s a tough fighter with a lot of heart, but that won’t be enough for him to win the fight.”
Riding a two-fight winning streak, Javier Martinez (10-0-1, 3 KOs) also fights for the second time in 2024. The 28-year-old southpaw of Milwaukee, Wisconsin earned a unanimous decision against Raul Salomon last time out in February.
“This is the end of the rivalry. We fought some great battles as amateurs, and this one is the tiebreaker,” said Martinez. “I’ve wanted this fight ever since I turned pro, and on June 21, I will show Troy that our last two amateur fights were not a fluke. I was the better fighter then, and I am the better fighter now.”
The main event is an all-Mexican showdown between undefeated WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza (24-0, 20 KOs) and contender Sergio Chirino (22-1, 13 KOs). The co-main event is a junior lightweight matchup between unbeaten Andres Cortes (21-0, 12 KOs) of North Las Vegas and Puerto Rico’s recent title challenger Abraham Nova (23-2, 16 KOs).
