NEW YORK (Sept. 14, 2017) – Three weeks after establishing its first 200,000-viewer audience prior to Mayweather-McGregor, Facebook FIGHTNIGHT LIVE and CES Boxingplan to partner once again this Saturday with a three-hour show leading into HBO PPV coverage of GGG-Canelo. Renowned promoter Jimmy Burchfield Sr. has set the stage with an excellent card filled with local competitors on Sept. 16 at Twin River Casino and the tech-forward, fan-friendly Facebook broadcast platform will carry the action, beginning at 7 p.m., to complete its first “doubleheader weekend” – as FIGHTNIGHT LIVE delivers back-to-back shows on Friday and Saturday.

“For more than 25 years, CES has delivered boxing excitement to fans all over the world. The tradition continued [at Foxwoods on Aug. 26] when we teamed with FIGHTNIGHT LIVE by using cutting edge technology allowing fight fans to view the fights live on Facebook. This historic, record-setting event was the result of a great production team and action-packed, competitive fights,” said CES President Burchfield Sr.

The main event stars two intriguing welterweights battling for championship glory. After defeating Bronx vet Issouf Kinda by knockout in a controversial bout at Foxwoods on Aug. 26, New Haven, Conn., vet Jimmy Williams jumps right back into the fire less than three weeks later to face New Jersey’s “The Beast” Juan Rodriguez Jr. Shortly after his Sept. 16 return was announced, Williams’ wife, Christina, gave birth to twin boys, Logan and Austin. Now 14-0-1 (6 KOs), Williams has won 10 consecutive bouts and Saturday marks the second defense of his WBC USNBC welterweight championship.

Also featured on Saturday night in separate bouts: hard-hitting New England heavyweight Joey Cusumano (11-9, 9 KOs), Anthony Marsella Jr. of Providence (5-0, 2 KOs), Ray Oliveira Jr. of New Bedford, Mass. (7-1, 1 KO) and others.

“We’re extremely proud to watch Facebook FIGHTNIGHT LIVE reach another milestone this weekend, with outstanding shows in New England on back-to-back nights,” said Mark Fratto, Principal and Director of Business Development, Linacre Media. “Fight fans will be fired up for GGG-Canelo – including us – but we’re particularly excited to fulfill our mission to showcase local and regional up-and-coming fighters. We’ll be delivering at least 12 bouts across the two nights this weekend, providing a wide-reaching platform for 24 boxers of varied backgrounds and accomplishments to showcase their skills.”

Over the first five months of programming, the numbers on the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series have showed promise and potential for the new platform with an average of more than 113,000 fight fans tuning in per event. The Sept. 9 “Real Deal Promotions: Empire State” from Resorts World Casino (224,658), the August “Super Saturday” from Foxwoods (203,000), the July Roy Jones Jr. “Desert Showdown” from Phoenix (63,000), the May “Slugfest at the Sun” from Mohegan Sun (45,000) and the June “Rosemont Rumble” from Chicago (32,000) saw a total of more than 12,700 total hours of Facebook video consumed by 567,000-plus users across all devices.

In addition to the raw viewership numbers, the fully-interactive, fan-friendly productions have seen more than 71,000 collective live post engagements (14,000-plus per show), including more than 40,400 “likes” or “loves,” more than 10,300 comments and 3,200-plus shares. FIGHTNIGHT LIVE broadcasts are viewed by 76 percent men, 24 percent women. The top demographic is comprised of males aged 25-34, which encompasses approximately 30 percent of the audience, on average.

The Sept. 9 “Real Deal Promotions: Empire State” set a new bar with 224,658 views and carried the series to over half-a-million views in just under four months, while the Aug. 26 Foxwoods “Super Saturday” show stands out individually with 201,935 views across 3,336 live hours of content, with 8,224 viewer interactions including 1,133 “likes” or “loves,” 1,570 comments and 1,392 shares.

Facebook FIGHTNIGHT LIVE has been delivered to fans absolutely free since its May 2017 launch courtesy of corporate partners like Barbour One 9, Talent Management and Entertainment Production (www.barbourone9.com) and Northeastern Fine Jewelry (www.nefj.com).

On Saturday night, August 26, live from Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., fans can expect a high-impact, multi-camera streaming experience complete with graphics, animations, replays, interviews and an announce team anchored by blow-by-blow announcer Michael Woods of the TalkBox Podcast, NYFights.com and The Ring and analyst Xavier Porter of BrooklynFights.com, Notorious Boxing and the “Shoot the 5” radio show. To provide spectators with a fully-interactive ringside experience, commentators will ask and respond to questions from the Facebook audience throughout the broadcast.

Created and produced by Linacre Media out of New York City, the FIGHTNIGHT LIVE series features professional announcers, multiple camera angles, television graphics, replays and behind-the-scenes access and interviews. The streamed shows are available globally wherever Facebook is available. The initiative not only enables fans from around the world to tune in, but also gives up-and-coming fighters a global platform to showcase their abilities, gives promoters an accessible “broadcast” solution and gives sponsors the ability to reach a mass audience via branded content.

More FIGHTNIGHT LIVE Fall 2017 dates will be officially announced in the coming weeks.

FIGHTNIGHT LIVE is available online at: https://www.facebook.com/FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE/

Follow all the action via social media at FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Facebook, @FaceFIGHTNIGHTLIVE on Instagram and @FIGHTNIGHTLIVE_ on Twitter, or by using the hashtag #FIGHTNIGHTLIVE. For the latest Linacre Media events and broadcast schedule, follow @LinacreMedia across all social platforms or use the tags #LinacreMediaEvents or #LinacreMediaOnTV.