Lithuanian world champion Eimantas Stanionis makes his ring return on Saturday, May 4 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where he faces Gabriel Maestre of Venezuela. The contest kicks off the PPV action topped by Canelo Alvarez vs Jaime Munguia on Cinco de Mayo weekend. The championship bout is scheduled for 12 rounds.
Stanionis (14-0, 9 KOs) goes through the ropes for the first time in over two years and makes the first defense of his WBA “Regular” welterweight title. The undefeated 29-year-old native of Kaunas, Lithuania claimed the belt by split decision against Radzhab Butaev in April 2022.
“I’m so excited to get back in the ring, I feel like a kid in a candy store who gets to choose any kind of candy he wants,” Eimantas Stanionis said. “This is especially exciting for me because I am a big fan of Canelo Alvarez. I love watching his fights and as a kid, I dreamed of fighting on Cinco de Mayo in front of all those great Mexican fans. It motivates me even more to give them a great fight. I know that Gabriel Maestre is tough and has power. We fought in the amateurs and I know it’s a great matchup of styles. I’m going to bring the action and so will he. You can definitely expect fireworks on May 4.”
Two-time Olympian Maestre (6-0-1, 5 KOs) won two of his previous bouts in 2023 inside the distance against Travon Marshall and Devon Alexander. Earlier in his career, the 37-year-old native of Barcelona, Venezuela held the WBA interim welterweight belt.
“I’ve wanted to fight Stanionis for years and get revenge from our amateur match,” Gabriel Maestre said. “It was a tough close fight and I’m ready to face him again for another war. We are ready for a great fight and to leave the ring with my hand raised. May 4 will be a historic day for me and Venezuela.”
In the all-Mexican main event, Canelo Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) defends his undisputed super middleweight title against undefeated Jaime Munguia (43-0, 34 KOs). In the co-main event, Mario Barrios (28-2, 18 KOs) of San Antonio, Texas defends his interim WBC welterweight belt against Fabian Andres Maidana (22-2, 16 KOs) of Argentina. Also on the card, Brandon Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KOs) of Weslaco, Texas defends his interim WBC featherweight strap against Jessie Magdaleno (29-2, 18 KOs) of Las Vegas.