MONTREAL (December 12, 2012) – Laval’s popular Jean Pascal (26-2-1, 16 KOs) finally returns to the ring at the Bell Centre in Montreal, away since his heart-breaking loss 19 months ago to Bernard Hopkins, which cost him his World Boxing Council (WBC) light heavyweight title belt.

Contrary to his normally calm approach to a fight, Pascal feels anxious and nervous over his time away from the ring going into Friday night’s fight against an opponent who also boxed in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, as Pascal did, 2004 Polish Olympian Aleksy Kuziemski (26-2-1, 16 KOs). It is not the fear of his opponent’s attack – Pascal has never been afraid of another fighter – rather the anxiety of having lost his bearings, not being able to fulfill the expectations of the loyal Quebec public. He is well prepared, as skilled as ever, and he will give his best effort on Friday night.

Pascal’s potential world title fight on HBO against WBC World Champion Chad Dawson, at least for now, remains down the road. All that Pascal is focused on right now is Friday, Dec.14, and his tough European opponent.

?Lemieux against Russian Ayrapetyan
?As previously announced, Friday evening’s co-feature will showcase relentless Montreal slugger David Lemieux (27-2-1, 26 KOs) in a 10-round fight. His opponent is 31-year-old Russian Alberto Ayrapetyan (20-3-0, 9 KOs), who resides and fights out of Germany. Ayrapetyan has suffered only one defeat before the limit, losing to the great middleweight champion of the world, Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez, in the 11th round of their WBC Latino Championship fight. Ayrapetyan, as Lemieux, is of Armenian origin. Lemieux speaks French, English, Armenian, Spanish and Arabic; Ayrapetyan is also multilingual, according to his Facebook page, fluent in German, Spanish, Portuguese, Armenian and Russian. These two should find it easy to understand each other the ring.

Alvarez vs. 2011 European champion Danny “The Big Mac” McIntosh

Englishman Danny “Big Mac” McIntosh (13-3-0, 7 KOs), 32, will challenge talented North American Boxing Association (NABA) lightweight champion Eleider “Storm” Alvarez (10-0-0, 6 KOs). McIntosh was the Great Britain light heavyweight champion from 2008 to 2009, as well as European titlist in 2011. He lost his last two fights by technical knockout in valiant efforts against aspiring world champions. In May of 2011, he lost his European title in the eighth round to Eduard Gutknect (24-1-0, 9 KOs) in Germany. The judges’ scoring indicated a close fight going into the eighth round. In a similarly contested fight last April in Liverpool, England, McIntosh was stopped in the fifth round by his United Kingdom compatriot, Tony Bellew (19-1-0, 16 KOs). McIntosh’s three career losses (his other defeat was to current World Boxing Organization 175-pound champion Nathan Cleverly) have been to some of the best light heavyweights in the world.

“Storm has so much talent and determination,” said Alvarez’ promoter, GYM president Yvon Michel, “it has been tempting to move him faster. He has demonstrated that, despite having had only 10 professional fights, he can do as good as the best in the light heavyweight division, even against those with twice his experience.”

?Bizier, McGuinness and Rivas, confirmed opponent

Quebec favorite Kevin Bizier (18-0-0, 13 KOs) will back into the ring for the second time this year, matched Friday night with welterweight Doel “Amish Guy” Carrasquillo (16-22-1, 14 KOs), of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

?Toronto’s unbeaten Logan McGuinness (18-0-1, 9 KOs), a protégé of Adam Harris (Hennessy Sports Canada), will defend his NABA super featherweight title against Carlos Manuel Reyes (23-1-1, 15 KOs), from the Dominican Republic.

?Quebec heavyweight Oscar Rivas (11-0-0, 6 KOs), who has fully recovered from a recent hand injury, takes on 36-year-old Hungarian invader Lazlo Peczeli (4-2-1, 3 KOs). ??The opening fights on the stacked “Fast & Furious” card pits spectacular featherweight prospect Marc “Gwapo” Pagcaliwangan (1-0-0, 1 KO), fighting for the second time straight time in Montreal, against Hungarian boxer Richard Voros (4 -10-0, 1 KO), followed by heavyweight battle between Ottawa favorite Andrew Gardiner (5-0-0, 2 KOs) and Attila Nagy Tibor (4-5-0, 3 KOs), of Budapest, Hungary.??Friday night’s event will be available for viewing by fans in the comfort of their homes via Canal Indigo, Bell TV, Shaw TV in Canada, as well as on WealthTV in the United States.

Tickets for the Dec. 14 event at the Bell Centre are on sale now, as well as for the three remaining GYM boxing series shows this season, the innovative and popular “Fast and Furious.” Tickets, starting at $36.00, are available to purchase at the Bell Centre, or at evenko.ca, or by calling GYM at (514) 383.0666. Despite the magnitude of The Return of Jean Pascal, GYM resisted the urge to raise ticket prices.

NEW YORK – December 12, 2012 – NBC Sports Group and Main Events continue the Fight Night series on December 22 at 4 p.m. ET on NBC, and will feature Hall-of-Fame ring announcer Michael Buffer, who is famous for his “Let’s get ready to rumble” phrase. In addition to serving as ring announcer for the event, Buffer will serve as the voice for NBC’s promotional campaign and tune-in spots leading up to the broadcast.

After six successful Fight Night telecasts on NBC Sports Network, the event on December 22 will air on NBC and become the first boxing broadcast on the network since 2004.

“It’s always great to announce a good fight, but for me, as a fan, it’s even better when it’s an excellent match up like we’re going to see on NBC with Adamek and Cunningham, on December 22nd,” said Buffer.

The main event features current IBF North American Heavyweight Champion Tomasz “Goral” Adamek (47-2, 29 KO’s) of Kearny, N.J. vs. Steve “USS” Cunningham (25-4, 12 KO’s) of Philadelphia, Pa., in a 12-round heavyweight fight at Sands Casino in Bethlehem, Pa. The two heavyweights will fight for Adamek’s IBF North American Heavyweight Championship belt and the vacant No. 2 IBF heavyweight position.

In the co-feature, Tor Hamer (19-1, 12 KO’s) of New York, N.Y., steps in to the ring against undefeated Vyacheslav “Czar” Glazkov (13-0, 9 KO’s) of Langansk, Ukraine, in an eight-round heavyweight bout.

NBC Sports Groups’ Fight Night broadcast team of Kenny Rice (play-by-play), Hall-of-Fame boxing trainer Freddie Roach (analyst), cruiserweight contender B.J. Flores (analyst) and Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix (reporter) will call the action.

*SPECIAL NOTE: During the events marked “GBP Toy Drive Event,” individuals donating an unwrapped, unopened toy valued at $20 or more will receive two free tickets to the Khan vs. Molina fight on December 15. There is a limit of two tickets per person, per toy and the offer is only good while supplies last.

Thursday, December 13
12:00 p.m. Golden Boy Holiday Toy Drivewith Special Appearance by Oscar De La Hoya
*GBP TOY DRIVE EVENT
Location: Golden Boy Building Lobby (626 Wilshire Blvd.; Los Angeles, CA 90017)

New York, NY(12/13/12) – On Wednesday, December 19, at the Roseland Ballroom, DiBella Entertainment (DBE) will host an exciting 10-bout card as a benefit for Hurricane Sandy victims. The card will be the latest installmentof DBE’s Broadway Boxing series and all the proceeds from the show will be donated to victims of Hurricane Sandy.

While a number of the local fighters on the card were either directly affected or know someone close to them that was affected by the tragic storm, main event participant Will “Power” Rosinsky (16-2, 9KO’s) witnessed a very up close and personal account of the devastation left by Sandy.

In addition to his professional boxing career, Rosinsky, who is scheduled to take on Otis Griffin (24-10-2, 10KO’s) in the 10-round light heavyweight feature bout of the evening, also works as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) at FDNY’s Station 39 in East New York, Brooklyn.

Below is an account from Rosinsky about the aftermath left by Sandy.

WILL ROSINSKY – “A few days after Hurricane Sandy, my ambulance was relocated to Far Rockaway, Queens. The scenery spoke volumes on the damage it had caused both physically and emotionally. There were street lights out, homes with no electricity, and a beach worth of sand spread across the middle of the streets. This gave a clear picture of how high the water came and the power it possessed. Every patient had to be evaluated in the dark and some were carried down as many as 15 flights of stairs due to down elevators. To see firsthand just what these people were going through days after was truly tragic. As with many of us in the tri-state area, there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about the effects this horrible storm had on so many people. My heart truly goes out to all those who were affected and are still feeling the aftermath of what happened. Hopefully, the event on the December 19 will not only raise money to help those in need, but also serve to further raise awareness that there is still so much to be done, and so many people who still need our help.”

The DBE-promoted Broadway Boxing card is being held as a benefit for Hurricane Sandy victims with all of the proceeds from the show being donated to victims of the tragic storm. A silent auction will be held throughout the evening with DiBella Entertainment’s President Lou DiBella donating items from his own extensive personal collection.

Tickets are currently on sale and can be purchased through Ticketmaster by calling (800) 745-3000, or by calling the DiBella Entertainment office at (212) 947-2577. Tickets are priced at $125, $85, $65 and $45. Doors open at 6 p.m. ET with the first bout scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. The event is sponsored by Manfredi Auto Group and Newlio.com, in association with Everlast and will be aired live on FIGHT NOW TV.