_2020_07_17_090337.jpg)
American heavyweight prospect Jared “Big Baby” Anderson will close out 2021 on December 11 in his Madison Square Garden debut. The scheduled 10-round bout against Oleksandr Teslenko will serve as the co-feature to Vasiliy Lomachenko’s lightweight match-up with Richard Commey. The 22-year-old Anderson heads to the east coast for the first time since his third professional fight in Verona, N.Y., in January of 2020.
The highly touted heavyweight prospect will be stepping in to the ring for the fourth time this year following three straight stoppage wins. Most recently, Anderson scored a second round TKO victory over the formerly undefeated Vladimir Tereshkin on the undercard of Fury-Wilder III on October 9.
Anderson is preparing for his upcoming match with a heavy heart following his friend Dominique “Neko” Davis’ death in mid-November. His friend’s loss has weighed heavily on Anderson’s mind since his passing, but he is channeling his grief in to motivation and wants to help keep Davis’ name alive in his own unique way.
Anderson and his team completed his preparatory training camp in Las Vegas and flew to New York on Sunday. While he has yet to hear the final bell in any of his 10 professional bouts, Anderson and his coaches Darrie Riley and Kay Koroma remain focused on improving with each and every fight. Many in the boxing world, including heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury and his team are touting Anderson as the next big heavyweight star but Anderson hasn’t allowed the hype to diminish his work ethic and focus on his craft. He said that he is currently working on picking his shots, not rushing in and limiting the shots he takes.
The December 11 card featuring Anderson’s bout with Teslenko will be showcased on ESPN and ESPN Deportes with the broadcast beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT following the 2021 Heisman award ceremony.