Photos: Terence Crawford, Viktor Postol Go Face To Face in LA

LAS VEGAS, NV.  -- Undefeated junior welterweight champions TERENCE "Bud" CRAWFORD and "The Iceman" VIKTOR POSTOL will go mano a mano, in a 12-round world title unification fight, to determine the lineal king of the exciting 140-pound division.  The Crawford vs. Postol world championship event will take place on Saturday, July 23, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.  It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT. Photos by Mikey Williams.

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with the motion picture "Hands of Stone" and Tecate, tickets to Crawford vs. Postol, priced at $304, $204, $104, and $54, not including applicable service fees,  go on sale Today! Tuesday, May 10, at 4:00 p.m. ET / 1:00 p.m. PT.  To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000.  Tickets will also be available for purchase at mgmgrand.com or ticketmaster.com.  

"This is a great opportunity to show the world I'm the best champion at 140," said Crawford.

"We are about to show the world that I am indeed a better trainer than Postol's trainer Freddie Roach," added Brian McIntyre, Crawford's trainer and co-manager.

 "I believe this is a GREAT fight and Terence will prove he's not only the best 140-pound fighter in the world but that he is pound for pound the best fighter in the world," said Cameron Dunkin, Crawford's co-manager.

"I have been waiting for this fight for a long time and I want to thank my promoters Elite Boxing and Top Rank for making this fight a reality for the fans," said Postol.

"This has Fight of the Year written all over it," said Hall of Fame Trainer World-Famous Freddie Roach.  "For the second consecutive time Viktor will be involved in a world title tilt pitting the two best fighters in the division.  He'll be ready."    

 "This is one of those fights where no one knows who will come out victorious," said Vadim Kornilov, Postol's manager. "It's the type of fight fans crave but rarely get to see.  There are no opponents in this battle, only champions.  Postol and Crawford each have  28-0 records and they have both fought great opposition."

"This title unification battle between Terence Crawford and Viktor Postol is evenly matched and both undefeated champions are determined to prevail.  This is must-see television," said Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum

 “We look forward to hosting what very well could be the ‘fight of the year’ this summer at MGM Grand,” said Richard Sturm, president of entertainment and sports for MGM Resorts International.  “These two fighters will make their Grand Garden Arena debut and undoubtedly provide an exciting evening for boxing fans worldwide.”

“We are excited to present two accomplished champions in a major unification title showdown at 140 pounds” said Peter Nelson, Executive Vice President, HBO Sports. “Terence Crawford stands today among boxing's elite attractions. His opponent Viktor Postol, Crawford's toughest to date, seeks to seize that star power for himself with an upset under the bright spotlight in Las Vegas."

Crawford (28-0, 20 KOs), of Omaha, Neb., a two-division world champion who has won four of his last five bouts by stoppage, will be making his MGM Grand Garden debut in his third title defense as World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior welterweight world champion.  The consensus Top-10 pound-for-pound fighter will be looking to build on his star-making 2014 which featured three world championship victories as well as Fighter of the Year honors from the Boxing Writers Association of America and major media alike. 

Crawford, 28, captured the vacant WBO junior welterweight crown on April 18, 2015, via a devastating sixth-round knockout of once-beaten No. 2 world-rated contender Thomas Dulorme.  He has successfully defended the title twice -- stopping No.2 world-rated contender Dierry Jean in front of a packed house at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha on October 24, 2015, and knocking out Top-10 contender Hank Lundy in the fifth round last February 27, at a soldout Theater at Madison Square Garden. 

Crawford began his career-best year on March 1, 2014, just 13 days short of the sixth anniversary of his professional debut.  He captured the WBO lightweight title, dethroning defending champion Ricky Burns on Burns’ home turf of Glasgow, Scotland. Scoring a powerful and unanimous decision, Crawford put the boxing world on notice with his virtuoso performance as he pulled out all stops in dismantling Burns, rocking the defending champion throughout the fight, while switching back and forth between orthodox and southpaw stances. 

He followed that with a dramatic and critically-acclaimed knockout victory of undefeated former world champion and Cuban Olympic gold medalist Yuriorkis Gamboa on June 28, 2014, in a Fight of the Year nominee.  It was one of the most-watched fights of the year with over 1.2 million viewers catching the live, first-time airing of the fight, according to Nielsen Media Research.  He concluded 2014 on November 29 with a thorough shellacking of one-time world title challenger and No. 1 contender Ray Beltran, winning 11 of the 12 rounds.   Crawford, who is friendly with Warren Buffet, is only the second Nebraska native to be recognized as a boxing world champion.  Perry “Kid” Graves, from Rock Bluff, captured the welterweight crown, knocking out Johnny Alberts in Brooklyn, in 1914, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

Postol (28-0, 12 KOs), from Kiev, Ukraine, put his stamp on the boxing landscape when he scored a 10th-round knockout of the heavily-favored former interim world champion Lucas Matthysse to capture the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) super lightweight world title on October 3, 2015.  World-rated No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, Postol and Matthysse went toe to toe throwing every weapon in the arsenals at each other until Postol caught  Matthysse with a right uppercut and a left hook effectively turning out the lights on one of boxing's most fearsome punchers.  A former sparring partner of eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao, Postol's resume includes victories over top-rated contenders Selcuk Aydin, Jose Lopez, Lundy, and former world champion DeMarcus Corley.  Postol, who has been trained by Hall of Famer Freddie Roach for his last three fights, with two of those ending in knockouts, will be making his first defense as the WBC super lightweight champion.