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New Pit Fighting Card Led By Rosado and Vera In Las Vegas
It’s not bareknuckle fighting.
If you’re a fight fan tired of seeing two grown men grappling on the ground for up to five minutes or frustrated from watching one fighter run around a boxing ring an entire prizefight, a new promotion company is gambling they have the answer.
Big Knockout Boxing has its debut fight card, featuring Bryan Vera (23-8, 14 Kos) meeting Gabe Rosado (21-8, 13 Kos) in the main event, on Saturday Aug. 16, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. It’s one of several matches that will also be televised on pay-per-view.
It all takes place in a pit and grappling is not allowed, but boxing gloves are used.
“It looks like a velodrome,” said Bruce Binkow, a former employee of Golden Boy Promotions and one of the organizers of the new promotion company based in L.A. “Kind of like in the movie Mad Max.”
The fighting will take place in a sunken pit and inside of that is a 17-feet circle.
“But you can’t step out of the circle,” Binkow said. “The idea is it was designed to promote the most offensive fight that is possible.”
You can’t get any more offensive guys than Vera and Rosado. Both are bangers and would rather wear dresses than move backward. Rosado has lost several fights, including to J’Leon Love, that many fans felt he won. The same can be said of Vera, who a majority of observers felt defeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in their first encounter.
“I don’t think either of them has ever been in a boring fight,” Binkow says, adding that wins and losses will be recorded on a separate ledger aside from boxing. “It’s a different combat sport.”
The match will be set for seven rounds and each round is two minutes long.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission is sanctioning the prizefight but not under boxing or mixed martial arts rules. It is a separate form of prizefighting and again, the records of each fighter participating will not be including in boxing or MMA ledgers.
“I think from a fighter’s standpoint a lot of guys are going to want to come along,” said Binkow, who is also working with Mayweather Promotions, adding that they are not connected to this organization.
Others on the card: cruiserweights Anthony Johnson (8-0) vs. Dimar Ortuz (10-0-1), junior middleweights David Estrada (26-6) vs. Eddie Caminero (7-8) and Javier “Pelos” Garcia (10-3-2) vs. Darnell Jiles (9-3-2) are some of the feature bouts on the card that includes a lot more. The feature bouts are slated for seven rounds and the others are tabbed for five rounds.
“It’s an evolution of ideas that’s come together,” Binkow said. “I’m all excited for this event.”
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