Former First Take host Molly Qerim has secured her first job since her abrupt resignation from ESPN in September.
Ryan Glasspiegel of Front Office Sports reports that Qerim will be the host for upstart boxing promotion Zuffa Boxing, with its first event taking place on Friday night in Las Vegas and airing on Paramount+.
Qerim is slated to be the host for Zuffa Boxing, Front Office Sports has learned. Zuffa has its first event Friday at the META Apex in Las Vegas, airing on Paramount+.
Qerim will be hosting the desk with former light heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver, insider Mike Coppinger, and longtime boxing reporter Mark Kriegel.
Zuffa Boxing, a joint venture between TKO and Sela, was founded in June 2025 by UFC CEO and president Dana White and Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (GEA).
In September, it was announced that Paramount+ would become the exclusive home for Zuffa Boxing.
Max Kellerman, who worked alongside Qerim for several years at ESPN on First Take, will call Zuffa Boxing events for Paramount+.
Qerim joined First Take full-time in September 2015, 10 years to the day of her resignation, and was the unsung hero of the ESPN morning debate show. On Oct. 1, she hosted a Q&A with Connecticut men’s basketball coach Dan Hurley in her first public appearance after the resignation. It will be interesting to see how this new role goes for Qerim and what’s to follow.
The middleweight main event for Zuffa Boxing 01 on Friday night at the UFC Apex will feature Callum Walsh (15-0, 11 KOs) against Carlos Ocampo (38-3, 26 KOs) at 9 p.m. ET on Paramount+, with the prelims set for a 6 p.m. ET start.
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