NEWS ON: All-Access, Glazkov Camp, Boxcino

ALL ACCESS: CANELO VS. ANGULO PREMIERES THIS FRIDAY AT 9 P.M. ET/PT ON SHOWTIME

SHOWTIME Sports® Takes Fans Into the Lives of Canelo Alvarez and Alfredo Angulo In Advance of the SHOWTIME PPV® TOE TO TOE: CANELO VS. ANGULO

ALL ACCESS: CANELO VS. ANGULO, the latest installment of the critically acclaimed original series from SHOWTIME Sports, returns this Friday, February 28 at 9 P.M. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) with the first of three episodes in support of the SHOWTIME PPV TOE TO TOE: CANELO VS. ANGULO.

ALL ACCESS: CANELO VS. ANGULO chronicles the preparation of the main event fighters, Canelo Alvarez and Alfredo Angulo, for the first boxing blockbuster event of 2014, Saturday, March 8 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The series takes viewers behind the scenes of their training camps and into the lives of the power-punching Mexican countrymen as the intensity builds towards their 12-round super welterweight showdown.

Episode two of the series will premiere Wednesday, March 5 (10 P.M. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast), just three days before the big event. The final episode, titled Epilogue, will premiere Saturday, March 15 (immediately following SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: Garcia vs. Herrera) and will feature unprecedented access from Fight Week in Las Vegas, highlights of the drama inside of the ring and a rare look inside of the minds of the fighters’ and their camps in the aftermath of the fight.

Click on the below graphic for a preview look inside Episode 1.

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Bethlehem PA:In a little more than two weeks veteran heavyweight Tomasz “Goral” Adamek will take on 2008 Olympic Bronze Medalist Vyacheslav “Czar” Glazkov for the IBF North American Heavyweight title and the IBF #2 Eliminator at Sands Resort and Casino in Bethlehem, PA. The March 15th fight will be aired on NBCSN Fight Night along with the Chilemba v. Grachev co-feature beginning at 9:00 PM ET / 6:00 PM PT.The young challenger, Glazkov, 29, opened his training camp to the media and the general public yesterday for an inside look at his workout regime as he prepares to face the dangerous Adamek.

Czar began training at Underground Boxing and Fitness in Brooklyn, NY when he arrived from the Ukraine on Friday, February 21, 2014, but claims to have already adapted to the change in time zone and location: “We just came about three days ago. We have adapted a little bit. Now that we have had our second sparring I think the next two weeks of training before the championship are going to be great.”

Czar Glazkov

Photo credits to Mike Gladysz/Main Events

Glazkov’s sparring partner yesterday, Newton Kidd, said “He’s got that Klitschko punch.” To which a humble Czar replied, “That is a great compliment but the ring will show the truth. I have prepared myself the most for this fight and we will see what happens after that.” Despite being humbled by the compliment, Czar was not short on confidence. He said, “I don’t see any other way to come into the ring than with confidence that I am going to win the fight. There is no other way for me.”

Preparation is key for this fight because these two competitors are not strangers. Prior to Adamek’s fight with Dominick Guinn on August 3, 2013, Czar sparred with Tomasz. However, Glazkov does not think this will give him any advantage on March 15th, “I think we are on equal grounds here since I sparred with him, he also sparred with me. So whatever I have learned about him, I am sure he learned about me as well.”

Czar Glazkov with trainer Eduard Mienchakov

Photo credits to Mike Gladysz/Main Events

With so much at stake both men are at a crossroads in their careers. Adamek, 37, is looking to prove he still belongs among the elite members of the heavyweight division. A win for Vyacheslav will catapult him to the top of the heavyweight division. However, he tried to downplay its importance when he said, “I don’t consider this fight to be anything out of the ordinary or special. I take each fight the same. I come responsibly, I train hard but after winning this fight I will take a #2 position in the heavyweight division and that is very important.”

Both men are promoted by Main Events. This presents a bittersweet challenge for Main Events’ CEO, Kathy Duva, who said, “I hate putting two of our fighters against each other. I feel like Archie Manning when the Giants play the Broncos! But we made this fight because it’s the right fight for both guys and it will be fantastic in the ring. I won’t enjoy it but the fans at the Sands and watching on NBCSN will see a great fight.

Boxcino 2014 Continues Feb. 28 on ESPN Friday Night Fights and Noche de Combates with Middleweight Quarterfinals ESPN2 Studio Show On-Site The February 28 edition of ESPN Friday Night Fights presented by Corona Extra and ESPN Deportes’ Noche de Combates presentado por Corona Extra will feature the quarterfinals of the Middleweight portion of Boxcino 2014 sponsored by 1800 Tequila. Friday’s show, from Harrah’s Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Ind., will air live at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2, broadband Spanish-language ESPN Deportes+ and WatchESPN. ESPN Deportes will televise the fights at 10:30 p.m. The card is promoted by Banner Promotions. Boxcino 2014: The tournament, which started last week, is a single-elimination, two-weight class competition featuring eight fighters in the Lightweight and Middleweight divisions. Tournament details, TV schedule and brackets can be found on ESPN MediaZone. ESPN senior director of programming and acquisitions Brian Kweder, who oversees content strategy and acquisition for ESPN’s soccer, boxing and bowling properties,discusses the tournament in a Q&A on ESPN Front Row.

Positive Social Media Reaction to start of Boxcino 2014:

Steve Kim—MaxBoxing

Mark Ortega—Behind the Gloves, Ring TV, Boxing Monthly

Ramon Aranda—3 More Rounds, Oakland Examiner

Commentators: Joe Tessitore will be ringside with Teddy Atlas describing the action for ESPN2, while studio host Todd Grisham (@GrishamESPN) will be on site. Delvin Rodríguez and Pablo Viruega will call the fights for Noche de Combates (Fight Night) on both ESPN Deportes and ESPN Deportes+, while Leopoldo González and Claudia Trejos will anchor the studio. Bilingual reporter BernardoOsuna (@osunaespn) will present live interviews and reports for both shows.

Middleweight Quarterfinal Matchups: Six Rounds Each

The first round of the Middleweight tournament will feature: Donatas Bondas (18-4-1, 6 KOs) vs. Willie Monroe Jr. (15-1, 6 KOs) Cerresso Fort (17-2-1, 11 KOs) vs. Vitalii Kopylenko (21-0, 11 KOs) Daniel Edouard (23-4-2, 14 KOs) vs. Brandon Adams (12-0, 8 KOs) Raymond Gatica (13-2, 8 KOs) vs. Sena Agbeko (15-0,15 KOs)

Middleweight Division Bracket (full-size bracket attached)

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