David Morrell (right) en route to knocking out Aidos Yerbossynuly in November 2022. (Photo by Esther Lin/Showtime)
David Morrell has a new opponent for his fight on April 22.
Morrell, who is ranked No. 5 by The Ring at 168 pounds, will now face fringe contender Yamaguchi Falcao. The 12-round bout will precede the main event bout between unbeaten fighters Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia.
Both fights will take place at the T-Mobile Arena and will air live on Showtime Pay-Per-View (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT).
The 25-year-old Morrell (8-0, 7 knockouts), who is originally from Santa Clara, Cuba, and now lives and trains in Minneapolis, Minnesota, was originally scheduled to fight Sena Agbeko of Ghana, but Agbeko was forced to withdraw after the Nevada State Athletic Commission refused to license him.
“Although I have a new opponent, the mission is still the same: seek and destroy,” said Morrell, who owns a secondary world title belt, in a Showtime press release. “I’ve been fighting my whole life. I’ve seen every style and I’m prepared to face anyone that’s in front of me. It’s go time as usual.”
In his last bout on November 5, Morrell battered Aidos Yerbossynuly of Kazakhstan, before stopping him in the 12th round. The win over Yerbossynuly took place over five months after scoring a knockout win over once-beaten Kalvin Henderson in the fourth round.
Morrell has stopped his last five opponents.
Falcao (24-1-1, 10 KOs), who resides in Serra, Brazil, won the Olympic bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. He is the older brother of middleweight contender and Olympic silver medalist Esquiva Falcao.
The 35-year-old last fought on December 11, stopping Ernest Amuzu in the seventh round. He fought six weeks prior, defeating Alex Theran by unanimous decision.
Falcao has won his last eight bouts since fighting to a majority decision draw against D’Mitrius Ballard in December 2019. His only defeat came at the hands of Christopher Pearson by unanimous decision.
Also announced late Friday, two fights will air live on the Showtime PPV Countdown Show, which will stream live on Showtime Sports YouTube channel and the Showtime Boxing Facebook page (6 p.m. ET/ 3 p.m. PT).
Unbeaten middleweight Fiodor Czerkaszyn (21-0, 13 KOs), who is originally from Ukraine and now resides in Warsaw, Poland, will square off against Mexico’s Elias Espadas (22-5, 15 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
Junior welterweight Vito Mielnicki Jr. (14-1, 9 KOs) of Roseland, New Jersey, will face Mexico’s Jose Sanchez Charles (20-3-1, 12 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]
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