The Premier Boxing Champions series continues to come out swinging, announcing a multiyear partnership with CBS, which will televise up to eight live fights in 2015. The PBC, created for TV by Haymon Boxing, debuts on CBS on April 4 with 175-pound champion Adonis Stevenson, one of boxing’s hardest hitters, battling former 168-pound champ Sakio Bika.
Adonis Stevenson will fight Sakio Bika when the Premier Boxing Champions series debuts on CBS on April 4.
Also on the broadcast, which starts at 3 p.m. ET/noon PT, will be fast-rising 175-pound contender Artur Beterbiev taking on former world champ Gabriel Campillo.
The PBC on CBS returns on May 9, when undefeated former 135-pound champion Omar Figueroa, who recently vacated his title, moves up in weight to challenge former 140-pound champ Ricky Burns.
CBS will also air PBC fight cards in June, July and September, with up to three more events scheduled for later in the year.
CBS’ coverage of the PBC series marks boxing’s return to the network on a regular basis for the first time in 15 years. Leo Santa Cruz, a 122-pound world champion, won a one-off fight on CBS in 2012, but prior to that, the last bout the network aired was Bernard Hopkins’ knockout victory over Glen Johnson in 1997.
Boxing has a rich legacy on CBS, dating back to 1948 when storied blow-by-blow commentator Russ Hodges presided over the Pabst Blue Ribbon Bouts.
In the 1980s, future Hall of Famers such as Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini and Sugar Ray Leonard starred on the network.
