Kahshad Elliott is ready to make a splash in the pro ranks.

A 10-time national champion in the amateur ranks, Elliott is officially set for his pro debut which comes in a scheduled four-round junior middleweight clash versus Oxon Hill, Maryland’s Akeem Jackson (1-1, 1KO). Their bout takes place Friday evening, as the opening bout on an ESPN+ livestream, preceding an ESPN-headlined vacant featherweight title fight between Emanuel Navarrete and Ruben Villa from The Bubble at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

"I am feeling great,” Elliott told BoxingScene.com. “I have no thoughts on my opponent. I know that he has had some professional fights, but I have experience,

“I am excited to get in there because I know that there are a lot of people waiting to see what I bring to the table.”

The bout comes 10 months after Elliott—a 20-year blue-chip talent from Plainfield, New Jersey—saw his Olympic dream take a hit following losses to Troy Isley and Francis Hogan at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials last December in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The event was not without its rewards for Elliott, who became the first among a handful of top amateurs to sign with Split-T Management’s Tim VanNewhouse.

"I’m really excited for Kahshad’s debut tonight," VanNewhouse told BoxingScene.com. "He’s a wonderful boxer-puncher with a good ring IQ for his age. He’s been really eager to introduce e himself and showcase his skill sets to the world. Tonight he gets to do that live on ESPN +."

With the move came the end of an impressive amateur run, where Elliott—who began boxing at age six—boasted a record of 117-23 along with a slew of national championships. 

Now comes the next step in his boxing journey. While his run at the Olympic Trials took place at middleweight (amateur limit 165 pounds/75 kg.), Elliutt will campaign as a junior middleweight.

“I have been waiting to turn professional, and finally got my first weigh-in done,” notes Elliott, who weighed 152.8 pounds for his pro debut. “I am ready to go out there and perform to show people that I am the one.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox