ESPN’s Friday Night Fights presented by Corona Extra will kick off its 14th season January 6 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and ESPN3 featuring super middleweights Dyah Davis (20-2-1, 9 KOs: son of 1976 U.S. Olympic Gold medalist Howard Davis) and Alfonso Lopez (22-1, 17 KOs). The 10-round main event, outdoors at Mallory Square in Key West, Fla., is presented by DiBella Entertainment.
The January-August series concluded the 2011 season averaging 543,000 viewers, up 9% from 497,000 viewers in 2010. ESPN’s Friday Night Fights also saw gains in younger demos among adults ages 18-34 (+19%) and 18-49 (+22%).
“We look forward to building on the tremendous success of 2011 by showcasing familiar names that we trust will bring action and excitement to our Friday Night Fights fans,” said Doug Loughrey, ESPN director of programming and acquisitions. “I am most encouraged to have Dyah Davis, Teon Kennedy, Ruslan Provodinkov, Demetrius Andrade and John Molina in main events to kick-off our season.”
Matt Sandulli, ESPN senior coordinating producer, said, “We are really excited to get back at it. The 2011 season was a very good year for us and the fans of Friday Night Fights. We were fortunate to consistently have quality action in the ring. It’s one thing to have names on paper but it’s all about what the two fighters do when they face off. Last year we had great battles, breathtaking knockouts, tremendous storylines, and seemingly every week big-time upsets. We hope to continue with more of the same starting in January.”
