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NEWS ON: Mike Perez, Sullivan Barrera, Devon Alexander

Published

10 years ago

June 17, 2014

BRYANT JENNINGS TRAINS IN VEGAS BEFORE PEREZ FIGHT

LAS VEGAS, NV (June 16, 2014) – Gary Shaw Productions and Antonio Leonard Promotionsheavyweight contender, Bryant “By-By” Jennings (18-0, 10 KOs), has set up training camp in Las Vegas for two weeks before his upcoming WBC title elimination bout against Mike Perez (20-0-1, 12 KOs).

Jennings, who hails from Philadelphia, PA, left home for two weeks to avoid the distractions that go along with training near family and friends. In the biggest fight on his career, he chose Las Vegas, to train in high elevation for a couple of weeks, before returning home to finish out camp.

“I wanted to come out to Las Vegas for a couple of weeks and train in high elevation,” said Jennings. “I’ve been running up at Mt. Charleston in high elevation, training alongside Erislandy Lara. Leaving Philly for a couple of weeks is only going to help me focus on getting fully prepared for Perez. I’ll head back home to finish out camp after this week.”

“Jennings is taking this fight very seriously,” said promoter Gary Shaw. “I know he doesn’t want to leave any stone unturned. That is why he went out to Vegas to train with the best guys in the business. I know he’ll be in great shape for this fight. He’s a dedicated and amazing athlete.”

Bryant “By By” Jennings and Mike “The Rebel” Perez will take place on Saturday, July 26 at The Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden as the co-feature to Gennady Golovkin vs. Daniel Geale. The fight will be televised Live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT.

GOLOVKIN VS. GEALE is presented by K2 Promotions, GGG Promotions in association with Gary Shaw Productions and Grange Old School Boxing.

Advance tickets priced at $500, $300, $200, $100, $50 and $25 can be purchased starting at 10:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, June 5 at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com and www.thegarden.com

Hot Light Heavyweight Prospect Sullivan Barrera Headlines Stacked Undercard on 6/21 at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs

Wilkes-Barre, PA: Before NBCSN Fight Night viewers at the Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs are treated to the IBF Light Heavyweight Title Eliminator between Anatoliy “The Gladiator” Dudchenko (19-2, 13 KOs) and Nadjib Mohammedi (34-3, 20 KOs) and the “Fight for Philadelphia Bragging Rights” between Karl “Dynamite” Dargan (15-0, 7 KOs) and Anthony Flores (11-4-1, 6 KOs), the live audience will be treated to a stacked undercard filled with exciting fights and hot prospects. The doors at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs will open at 5:00 PM for this unbelievable event.

Barrera vs. Pryor
Photo Credits: Rich Graessle/Main Events

Hot Cuban light heavyweight prospect Sullivan Barrera (11-0, 6 KOs), who dazzled audiences at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA with his six-round unanimous decision victory over Larry Pryor on April 4, will face off against Lee “The Silverback” Campbell aka Alpha Male (7-0, 3 KOs) of Larinburg, NC in an eight-round light heavyweight battle. Campbell is also coming off a victory at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA on April 4. He defeated Roberto Acevedo in an eight-round majority decision. Campbell is replacing Jeff Lacy, who was originally scheduled to take on Barrera but had to pull out due to managerial complications.

About the change of opponents the undefeated Barrera said, “I just want to fight. I am grateful that Campbell stepped in so I can keep this opportunity to fight on June 21. I am ready for whoever steps in the ring against me.” Campbell, also undefeated, replied, “I thank God for the opportunity to fight Barrera. Secondly, I want to thank Main Events for their support. I pray that all fighters exit the ring without serious injury. I am confident in my coach and team that we will give the fans a great show. I look forward to future opportunities.”

Acevedo vs. Campbell

Photo Credits: Rich Graessle/Main Events

Another undefeated prospect, Khalib Whitmore (5-0, 4 KOs), of Philadelphia, PA is scheduled for four rounds of light heavyweight action but his opponent is still to be determined. Whitmore is coming off a second round KO over Antonio Liles on January 25, 2014 at the Sands Resort Casino in Bethlehem, PA.

Local favorite, Erik Spring (1-0), of Reading, PA and Jamil Gadsden (0-4) of Newark, NJ will meet up for four rounds of junior middleweight action. Spring made his professional debut on April 24, 2014 with a four-round majority decision victory over Lionel Charles at the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, PA. Gadsden is looking for his first professional victory since making his professional debut in 2012.

In an all-Jersey showdown two junior middleweights will make their professional debuts. Hakeem Bryant of Middletown, NJ and Al Johnson of Vineland, NJ are scheduled to face each other for four rounds.

Smith vs. Romero

Photo Credits: Rich Graessle/Main Events

Finally, Wellington Romero (3-0, 1 KO), the undefeated light welterweight from Newburgh, NY who defeated then-undefeated Gerald Smith on March 29 at the Ballroom at Boardwalk Hall on the undercard of the Kovalev-Agnew fight will return to take on Mack Babb (0-2) of Brooklyn, NY for four rounds.

Jolene Mizzone, Main Events’ matchmaker, wanted to showcase Barrera on this undercard and to include a lot of local talent, “Barrera is an up-and-coming prospect that is eager to stay busy to show he belongs in the competitive light heavyweight division. The rest of the card is packed with local boxers looking to showcase their talent in front of their hometown fans.”

Main Events’ CEO Kathy Duva said, “There are six undefeated fighters on this card (two facing each other) and two pro debuts (also facing each other). Everyone is matched well. This should be incredibly exciting for the fans in attendance at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs.”

About June 21:

June 21 features Anatoliy “The Gladiator” Dudchenko and Nadjib Mohammedi in a twelve-round light heavyweight bout for the #1 position in the IBF live on NBCSN Fight Night from Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs in Wilkes-Barre, PA. The co-feature includes a ten-round fight between Philly natives Karl “Dynamite” Dargan and Anthony Flores for the USBA Atlantic Coast Region Title. The Fight Night telecast will begin at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT. Doors will open at 5:00 PM. The card is presented by Main Events and Peltz Boxing, in association with Greg Cohen Promotions. The undercard is subject to change. Ticket are available at ticketmaster.com or at the Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs box office.

DEVON ALEXANDER THROWS OUT FIRST PITCH

FOR HOMETOWN ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

Former two-division world champion Devon Alexander “The Great” took a break from training camp for this Saturday’s showdown with Jesus Soto Karass to throw out the first pitch for his hometown St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on Father’s Day. Alexander was joined by his children, Cesily and Devon Alexander Jr.

The 27-year-old Alexander (25-2, 14 KOs) returns against the hard-hitting Soto Karass (28-9-3, 18 KOs) in the opening bout of Saturday’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® tripleheader, live on SHOWTIME® (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) from StubHub Center in Carson, Calif.

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2015 Fight of the Year – Francisco Vargas vs Takashi Miura

Published

9 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

The WBC World Super Featherweight title bout between Francisco Vargas and Takashi Miura came on one of the biggest boxing stages of 2015, as the bout served as the HBO pay-per-view’s co-main event on November 21st, in support of Miguel Cotto vs Saul Alvarez.

Miura entered the fight with a (29-2-2) record and he was making the fifth defense of his world title, while Vargas entered the fight with an undefeated mark of (22-0-1) in what was his first world title fight. Both men had a reputation for all-out fighting, with Miura especially earning high praise for his title defense in Mexico where he defeated Sergio Thompson in a fiercely contested battle.

The fight started out hotly contested, and the intensity never let up. Vargas seemed to win the first two rounds, but by the fourth round, Miura seemed to pull ahead, scoring a knock-down and fighting with a lot of confidence. After brawling the first four rounds, Miura appeared to settle into a more technical approach. Rounds 5 and 6 saw the pendulum swing back towards Vargas, as he withstood Miura’s rush to open the fifth round and the sixth round saw both men exchanging hard punches.

The big swinging continued, and though Vargas likely edged Miura in rounds 5 and 6, Vargas’ face was cut in at least two spots and Miura started to assert himself again in rounds 7 and 8. Miura was beginning to grow in confidence while it appeared that Vargas was beginning to slow down, and Miura appeared to hurt Vargas at the end of the 8th round.

Vargas turned the tide again at the start of the ninth round, scoring a knock down with an uppercut and a straight right hand that took Miura’s legs and sent him to the canvas. Purely on instinct, Miura got back up and continued to fight, but Vargas was landing frequently and with force. Referee Tony Weeks stepped in to stop the fight at the halfway point of round 9 as Miura was sustaining a barrage of punches.

Miura still had a minute and a half to survive if he was going to get out of the round, and it was clear that he was not going to stop fighting.

A back and forth battle of wills between two world championship level fighters, Takashi Miura versus “El Bandido” Vargas wins the 2015 Fight of the Year.

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Jan 9 in Germany – Feigenbutz and De Carolis To Settle Score

Published

9 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

This coming Saturday, January 9th, the stage is set at the Baden Arena in Offenburg, Germany for a re-match between Vincent Feigenbutz and Giovanni De Carolis. The highly anticipated re-match is set to air on SAT.1 in Germany, and Feigenbutz will once again be defending his GBU and interim WBA World titles at Super Middleweight.

The first meeting between the two was less than three months ago, on October 17th and that meeting saw Feigenbutz controversially edge De Carolis on the judge’s cards by scores of (115-113, 114-113 and 115-113). De Carolis scored a flash knock down in the opening round, and he appeared to outbox Feigenbutz in the early going, but the 20 year old German champion came on in the later rounds.

The first bout is described as one of the most crowd-pleasing bouts of the year in Germany, and De Carolis and many observers felt that the Italian had done enough to win.

De Carolis told German language website RAN.DE that he was more prepared for the re-match, and that due to the arrogance Feigenbutz displayed in the aftermath of the first fight, he was confident that he had won over some of the audience. Though De Carolis fell short of predicting victory, he promised a re-vamped strategy tailored to what he has learned about Feigenbutz, whom he termed immature and inexperienced.

The stage is set for Feigenbutz vs De Carolis 2, this Saturday January 9th in Offenburg, Germany. If you can get to the live event do it, if not you have SAT.1 in Germany airing the fights, and The Boxing Channel right back here for full results.

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2015 Knock Out of the Year – Saul Alvarez KO’s James Kirkland

Published

9 years ago

December 29, 2015

The Sweet Science

On May 9th of 2015, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez delivered a resonant knock-out of James Kirkland on HBO that wins the 2015 KO of the Year.

The knock-out itself came in the third round, after slightly more than two minutes of action. The end came when Alvarez delivered a single, big right hand that caught Kirkland on the jaw and left him flat on his back after spinning to the canvas.Alvarez was clearly the big star heading into the fight. The fight was telecast by HBO for free just one week after the controversial and disappointing Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao fight, and Alvarez was under pressure to deliver the type of finish that people were going to talk about. Kirkland was happy to oblige Alvarez, taking it right to Alvarez from the start. Kirkland’s aggression saw him appear to land blows that troubled the young Mexican in the early going. Alvarez played good defense, and he floored Kirkland in the first round, displaying his power and his technique in knocking down an aggressive opponent.

However, Kirkland kept coming at Alvarez and the fight entered the third round with both men working hard and the feeling that the fight would not go the distance. Kirkland continued to move forward, keeping “Canelo” against the ropes and scoring points with a barrage of punches while looking for an opening.

At around the two minute mark, Alvarez landed an uppercut that sent Kirkland to the canvas again. Kirkland got up, but it was clear that he did not have his legs under him. Kirkland was going to try to survive the round, but Alvarez had an opportunity to close out the fight. The question was would he take it?

Alvarez closed in on Kirkland, putting his opponent’s back to the ropes. Kirkland was hurt, but he was still dangerous, pawing with punches and loading up for one big shot.

But it was the big shot “Canelo” threw that ended the night. Kirkland never saw it coming, as he was loading up with a huge right hand of his own. The right Alvarez threw cracked Kirkland in the jaw, and his eyes went blank. His big right hand whizzed harmlessly over the head of a ducking Alvarez, providing the momentum for the spin that left Kirkland prone on the canvas.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez went on to defeat Miguel Cotto in his second fight of 2015 and he is clearly one of boxing’s biggest stars heading into 2016. On May 9th Alvarez added another reel to his highlight film when he knocked out James Kirkland with the 2015 “Knock Out of the Year”.

Photo by naoki fukuda

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