Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse is gearing up for a wild ride towards world championship glory. Come March 7th, the WBC heavyweight crown is up for grabs, and she’s in the ring against Abril Argentina Vidal, setting the stage for a thunderous showdown at the Montreal Casino. This rumble serves as the appetizer to the main dish, where Steven Butler and Steve Rolls will throw down, all set to light up screens on Punching Grace and ESPN+ stateside, kicking off at 7 PM.
Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse (6-1, 2 KOs), the comeback queen, stepped out of the shadows on March 23, 2023, after licking her wounds from a gut-wrenching setback in a world title tussle down in Mexico. Fueled by an unbreakable will, she dove back into the fray, eyes locked on the elusive WBC strap.
Her ring return was nothing short of a spectacle, as she ran rings around American Princess Hairston, commanding the fight from start to finish. Riding the wave, she notched a knockout win against Valeria Segovia Alonzo on Mexican soil, and then clinched a unanimous decision over Timea Nagy. Her triumph before a home crowd at an EOTTM gala in the Casino Lac-Leamy Theatre last September wasn’t just a win; it was a clarion call, pushing her up the WBA ladder and securing the 3rd spot in the IBF rankings. With the world title in her crosshairs again, March 7th dangles the golden chance to seize the day.
Enter Abril Argentina Vidal (10-1, 4 KOs), the Argentinian dynamo, standing in Joanisse’s path. Her resume glimmers with a near-perfect record, including a gritty 10-round saga against Hannah Gabriels for the WBA world title in Costa Rica. Known as “Tina,” her aggressive approach promises to spark fireworks against the Québécoise’s style, promising a clash that’s anything but mundane. With a trove of sixty rounds under her belt, she edges out Lepage-Joanisse’s twenty-six in the ring, adding an intriguing layer to this high-octane faceoff.
Camille Estephan, the big boss at Eye of the Tiger, can barely contain his excitement for this explosive card;
“This gala on March 7th is shaping up to be legendary. We’ve got the Canadian titans Butler and Rolls squaring off, and now we’re throwing a world title fight into the mix. Vanessa’s journey is a saga of resilience and grit. She’s earned her stripes and this shot at redemption is well-deserved.”