2012 FIGHTER OF THE YEAR NONITO DONAIRE,

IBF LIGHTWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION MICKEY BEY AND UNDEFEATED CONTENDERS REX TSO, KK NG

AND JOSE RAMIREZ FEATURED ON WORLD TITLE EVENT

Saturday, July 18, 5:30 p.m. at The Venetian Macao's Cotai Arena

Tickets Are On Sale Now

(MACAO - June 9, 2015) -- Undefeated No. 2 world-rated junior welterweight contender and fan favorite of the People's Republic of China "IK" YANG LIAN HUI gets his first world title shot in a homecoming fight when he battles undefeated No. 1 contender CÉSAR "El Distinto" CUENCA of Argentina for the vacant International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior welterweight world championship, Saturday, July 18, at 5:30 p.m. at The Venetian® Macao's Cotai Arena.  "Victory at The Venetian," a world championship boxing event, will also feature IBF lightweight world champion MICKEY "The Spirit" BEY, JR. of the United States, defending his title against No. 1 contender DENIS "Genghis Khan" SHAFIKOV of Russia.  The undercard card will feature former five-division world champion and 2012 Fighter of the Year NONITO "Filipino Flash" DONAIRE of the Philippines in a 10-round super bantamweight bout against ANTHONY SETTOUL of France, popularundefeated contenders  REX "The Wonder Kid" TSO and "The Macao Kid" KUOK KUN NG and 2012 U.S. Olympian and undefeated lightweight contender JOSE RAMIREZ in separate bouts.  Their opponents will be announced shortly.

          Promoted by Top Rank® and presented by The Venetian Macao and Lander Real Estate, in association with Tecate and SECA, tickets to Victory at The Venetian are on sale now and can be purchased via Cotai Ticketing™; prices start at MOP/HKD 180, with ferry and hotel packages also available.

            “Sands China is thrilled to host yet another boxing event at the Cotai Arena this July,” said Dave Horton, global chief marketing officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp & Sands China Ltd. “We are delighted to see 'IK' Yang Lian Hui to fight for his world title at The Venetian Macao in the upcoming fight, and this would be another must-see boxing event for his fans and the boxing enthusiasts. In addition, we are very happy to see that these sports events have helped to promote the growth of boxing in the region, as well as to assist in raising the profile of Macao as a world centre of tourism and leisure.”

            "On July 18, world-class boxers from all parts of the world will compete at Cotai Arena, The Venetian Macao, in a night of exciting professional boxing.  The principle bout of the evening will feature China's own "IK" Yang Lian Hui who will attempt to win a world championship against a talented Argentine foe in Cesar Cuenca," said Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank.

            Yang (19-0, 14 KOs), from Dalian, China, is trained by Hall of Famer Freddie Roach, who also trains Fighter of the Decade Manny Pacquiao and two-time Chinese Olympic gold medalist Zou Shiming.  Yang, who made his pro debut in 2007, enters this fight having won seven of his last eight fights by way of knockout.  Having fought exclusively at Cotai Arena and in Shanghai since 2013, Yang has built up a loyal and rapid fan base in China due to his exciting style of fighting.  With 2014 knockout victories over Sukkasem Kietyongyuth and Fahsai Sakkreerin for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Asia Pacific lightweight title and the IBF Pan-Pacific junior welterweight title, respectively, and a sixth-round stoppage of Patomsuk Pathompothong, in an IBF junior welterweight world title elimination bout on March 7, Yang has seen his boxing stock, and his world ratings, soar.  He is now the IBF No. 2 world-rated junior welterweight contender.

            Cuenca (46-0, 2 KOs), a southpaw who hails from Chaco, Argentina, made his pro debut in 2002.  Fighting exclusively in Argentina, Cuenca has steadily risen up the world ratings the old fashioned way -- by winning!  Just three fights shy of matching Rocky Marciano's mythical mark of 49-0, Cuenca has captured numerous regional titles throughout his 13-year career, all fought at the junior welterweight level.  His 12-round unanimous decision victory over Albert Mensah last year, in an IBF junior welterweight title elimination bout, made Cuenca the No. 1 contender and mandatory challenger for the world title.

            Bey (21-1-1, 10 KOs), a native of Cleveland, Ohio who now fights out of Las Vegas, will be fighting outside the U.S. for the first time in his 10-year professional career.  He'll be making his first defense of the world title he captured last September where he ended the four-year reign of world champion Miguel Vazquez via a 12-round split decision. Trained by Floyd Mayweather Sr. and promoted by Mayweather Promotions,   Bey's world title victory completed a dramatic career comeback that had seen him suffer a knockout loss to John Molina and a brief suspension for testing positive for a significantly elevated level of Testosterone in 2013.  Bey boasts an outstanding amateur pedigree, which includes qualifying for the 2014 U.S. Olympic team though he was forced to sit out the summer games due to a bout with pneumonia.

            Shafikov (35-1-1, 18 KOs), a native of Chelyabinsk, Russia who fights out of Los Angeles, will be making his second world championship appearance at Cotai Arena.  The Russian southpaw unsuccessfully challenged Miguel Vazquez for his IBF lightweight world title on February 22, 2014, losing a competitive 12-round unanimous decision.  He returned to the ring six months later and knocked out Rustam Nugaev in the ninth round of their IBF lightweight world title elimination bout, last August, becoming the IBF's No. 1 world-rated lightweight contender and mandatory challenger to Bey.  In his most recent bout, Shafikov won a lopsided unanimous decision over Miguel Mendoza in December. 

            Donaire (34-3, 22 KOs), a native of General Santos City, Philippines, now living in Las Vegas, is a former five-division world champion on the comeback trail for another world title. His banner year in 2012 featured four world championship victories which included beating former world champion Israel Vazquez, Jr. to capture the vacant WBO junior featherweight title, unifying the title by defeating IBF junior bantamweight champion Jeffrey Mathebula, followed by Donaire collecting his third belt of the with a knockout of World Boxing Council (WBC) Diamond Belt super bantamweight champion Toshiaki Nishioka, ending Nishioka's eight-year, 16-bout, winning streak, and concluding his magnificent year by blasting out Mexican icon Jorge Arce in the third round and sealing his 2012 Fighter of the Year honors while extending his 12-year, 30-bout winning streak.  He lost his title to undefeated Cuban sensation and WBA super bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux in a title unification bout at a sold-out Radio City Music Hall on April 13, 2013.  He bounced back in 2014, dethroning World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight world champion Simpiwe Vetyeka at Cotai Arena.  Career highlights for Donaire also include knockout victories of world champions Vic Darchinyan, Wladimir Sidorenko, and Fernando Montiel, ending Montiel's 25-bout winning streak. That victory was named the 2011 Knockout of the Year. Donaire returns to the ring fresh from capturing the vacant NABF super bantamweight title via a second round knockout victory of William Prado in March 28. 

            Settoul (20-3, 8 KOs), from Clermont-Ferrand, France, will be making his Asian ring debut on this card.  A former French and European Union bantamweight champion, six of his last nine victories have come by way of knockout.  He made his professional debut in 2008.

            Tso (16-0, 9 KOs), the Pride of Hong Kong, has been a Cotai Arena mainstay since 2013 where fans on both sides of the South China Sea have flocked to watch his exciting fights and his ascent up the world ratings.  Having already captured Asian and WBO Asia-Pacific junior bantamweight and WBC Asian super flyweight titles, Tso returns to the ring fresh from a 10-round unanimous decision Cotai Arena victory over Michael Enriquez on March 7, where he captured the vacant WBA International super flyweight title.  Tso is currently world-rated No. 4 by the WBO, No. 6 by the IBF and No. 8 by the WBA.

            NG (7-0, 3 KOs), from Macao, has fought exclusively at Cotai Arena since 2013.  The junior middleweight prospect is on track to becoming Macao's first home grown world title contender.  In his last fight, fought at Cotai Arena on March 7, Ng scored a third-round knockout of Chingchai Kiatpracha which brought the soldout crowd to its feet.

            Ramirez (14-0, 11 KOs), of Avenal, Calif., will be venturing outside the U.S. for the first time as a professional.  Seven of his last eight fights have ended with knockout victories.  A member of the 2012 U.S. Olympic team, Ramirez was an 11-time National Amateur Champion. Trained by Freddie Roach, the highly-respected junior welterweight prospect returns to the ring looking to extend his current knockout streak to four bouts.  His last fight was a fifth-round knockout victory of veteran Robert Frankel on May 9.

Tickets to the July 18 Victory at The Venetian can be purchased at all Cotai Ticketing box offices*, and are available in 7 categories: MOP/HKD 4,680 (Gold), 1,680 (Silver), 1,280 (Bronze), 980 (A Reserve), 580 (B Reserve), 280 (C Reserve) and 180 (D Reserve).  Add MOP/HKD 108 for a round trip Cotai Water Jet ferry ticket between Hong Kong and Macao (MOP/HKD 180 event tickets excluded).

Tickets can be booked online at www.cotaiticketing.com, or by phone at +853 2882 8818 (Macao) / +852 6333 6660 (HK) / 4001 206 618 (China). Tickets are also available through Hong Kong Ticketing (customer service fee applies), online at www.HKTicketing.com or by phone at +852 3128 8288, and via Macao Kong Seng Ticketing Network, online at www.macauticket.com, by phone at +853 2855 5555, or in person at selected retail outlets (for locations, visit www.macauticket.com/TicketWeb/
ServiceStations.aspx).

Hotel packages including 2 tickets and one night's accommodation at a choice of The Venetian Macao; Conrad Macao, Cotai Central; Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central; Holiday Inn Macao Cotai Central or Four Seasons Hotel Macao are also available for purchase starting at MOP/HKD 3,440++ by phone only at +853 2882 8818 (Macao) / +852 6333 6660 (HK) / 4001 206 618 (China).

++ Rates are subject to a 5% government tax and 10% service charge

NOTE: Bouts and times subject to change

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing or facebook.com/trboxeo, or and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing or twitter.com/trboxeo.  Use the Hashtag #VictoryAtVenetian to join the conversation on Twitter.