We are pleased to publish the press release from The Art of Fighting regarding this Saturday’s exciting event, headlined by the bout for the vacant EBU Silver Super Featherweight Title between our own Francesco Paparo and Spain’s Juanfe Gomez. Boxe Punch will be present at the Allianz Cloud with a ringside correspondent.
Here we go: The Art of Fighting is set to return. The event is scheduled for Saturday, March 7, at the Allianz Cloud in Milan with TAF 12, marking the promotion’s fourth anniversary.
It promises to be an evening full of evenly matched and unpredictable fights, featuring some of the best Italian boxers of the moment. Public enthusiasm was immediate: entire sections sold out within days and tickets are nearly gone.
Edoardo Germani, founder of TAF, stated: “We are bringing renewed interest to Italian boxing. We work to create high-quality matchups, attract media attention and sponsors, and support the athletic development of our fighters. Paparo is the example of an athlete capable of sweeping aside national competition, and on Saturday he will compete at European level. 2026 will be the first year in which we organize three events at the Allianz, and we will also be present in the three most important Italian cities. Our goal, by 2027, is to double the current five annual events.”
In the TAF 12 main event, Francesco Paparo (12-1-1) will face Spain’s Juanfe Gomez (15-2-1) for the EBU Silver super featherweight belt, formerly the European Union title. The two share a couple of common opponents, stopped inside the distance by Paparo and defeated on points by Gomez, a former European champion. For the Italian boxer, this is a true career crossroads, decisive in opening the door to even more prestigious opportunities.
The co-main event was supposed to feature Italian champion Mohamed Elmaghraby (13-0) against Vincenzo Lizzi (4-0). However, a few days ago Lizzi had to withdraw due to shingles, a viral infection not to be underestimated. Elmaghraby will still fight in front of his home crowd in a scheduled bout midway through the card.
Promoted to co-main event status is therefore the clash between Christian Mazzon (14-5) and Francesco Faraoni (8-0) for the Italian middleweight title. Both are coming off bouts against puncher Francesco Russo: Faraoni defeated him on points, while Mazzon knocked him out in the third round. Two results that clearly reflect their styles: technical and methodical Faraoni, aggressive and powerful Mazzon. Who will prevail?
Just before that, Paolo Bologna (12-0-2) is eager to face Nicholas Esposito (20-1) at super welterweight, in a high-hype matchup between two fighters with tremendous heart and character, promising fireworks.
Opening the evening will be the bouts between Paul Amefiam (6-0) and Stiven Leonetti Dredhaj (13-5-1) at light heavyweight, Simone Brusa (15-4-2) and Tiziano Barilotti (10-4-3) at middleweight, and Cezar Ieseanu (9-0) and Yaya Kone (4-3) at super welterweight.
Tickets are available here:
https://ticket.taftheartofighting.com/it/shop/biglietti
