Following a rib injury suffered in training, former three-division world champion Abner Mares has been forced to withdraw from his Saturday, Feb. 15 rematch with WBC Featherweight Champion Jhonny Gonzalez, causing a postponement of the entire SHOWTIME® televised event at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
A new date for the rematch will be announced once Mares is cleared to resume training.
“I’d like to apologize to all of my fans, Golden Boy Promotions and Jhonny Gonzalez,” said Mares. “I was looking forward to getting back into the ring with Jhonny to avenge my loss, and once I recover from this injury, I’ll be back in the gym and ready for this rematch as soon as possible.”
“I’m disappointed of course, but I know that these things happen in boxing, and I wish Abner a speedy recovery,” said Gonzalez. “We both know that we’ll meet again and when we do, we’ll give the fans a fight to remember.”
“It’s never a good thing when injuries like this occur, and I know Abner tried to fight through it, but it’s best that we postpone this event and reschedule it so that both fighters are at their best on fight night,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “The fighters’ safety is always paramount and both Abner and Jhonny understand this completely.”
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