Nigerian contender Efe Ajagba (18-1, 13 KOs) is set to face upset-minded Australian Joe Goodall (10-1-1, 9 KOs) in a 10-round heavyweight attraction this Saturday, Nov. 4 at Tahoe Blue Event Center in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Ajagba and Goodall fought as amateurs, with Goodall earning a decision in the semifinals of the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. Nearly 10 years later, the two are ready to settle the score in a fight that could propel the winner towards an eventual title opportunity.
In the 10-round lightweight co-feature, Raymond “Danger” Muratalla (18-0, 15 KOs) takes on unbeaten Mexican banger Diego Torres (18-0, 17 KOs).
Ajagba-Goodall and Muratalla-Torres headline a loaded bill streaming live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ beginning at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
The ESPN+-streamed action includes the Top Rank debut of heavyweight Brandon Moore (12-0, 8 KOs), who takes on Robert Simms (12-3-1, 3 KOs) in an eight-round fight, as well as a junior lightweight showdown between unbeaten standouts Henry Lebron (18-0, 10 KOs) and William Foster III (16-0, 10 KOs)
The undercard will also feature an all-Mexico junior welterweight showdown between rising unbeaten contender Lindolfo Delgado (18-0, 13 KOs) and Luis Hernandez (23-3, 20 KOs) and a home region appearance by Carson city-born lightweight Christian Avalos (0-1-2), who faces Estevan Partida (1-1-1) in a four-rounder.
Promoted by Top Rank, in association with DiBella Entertainment, tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster.com.
At Thursday’s press conference, this is what the fighters had to say.
Efe Ajagba
“The ‘Silent Roller’ is my nickname, so I’m going to come out as a beast in the fight. I’m silent outside, but in the ring, I’m a different guy.”
“This fight means a lot to me. For me, this fight is going to get me closer to a world title fight. So, after this fight, we’ll see where we go from there.”
“We sparred each other a long time ago. And I lost to him in the Commonwealth Games in 2014. So, that’s the guy I lost to. This fight will be a rematch for me. This fight means a lot to me because of that loss.”
“I’m going to come as beast in the ring. I’m going to come with everything, the training, the sparring, everything I did. I’ve been knocking people out in sparring. I’m going to put all of that in the fight.”
Joe Goodall
“This is a big clash Saturday night. Efe Ajagba is a tough fighter. I believe I’m up there with the top fighters in the world. It’s no secret that with the WBC Silver title on the line, the winner may get a world title shot. Being the winner of this means everything to me.”
“Without giving away too much, his only loss was to Frank Sanchez. I watched that fight. Frank’s movement was pretty good in that fight. I don’t want to say that I’ll copy him, but there are some things in that fight that I can implement. But once again, we’ve sparred before. We know each other well. So, it’s about executing the plan on fight night.”