RUSSELL JR. FIGHT HIGHLIGHTS, INTERVIEW ON SHOBOX CARLOS ABREGU vs. IRVING GARCIA MARVIN QUINTERO vs. WES FERGUSON FINAL QUOTES AND WEIGHTS

TELECAST NOTE: 2008 Olympian Gary Russell, Jr., takes on Alvaro Muro in a four-round featherweight bout Friday night before the SHOWTIME telecast begins. Between the two featured fights, highlights will be shown of Russell’s fight and he will be interviewed about his transition from the amateur to professional ranks and what is next for the Washington D.C., resident. Russell is 2-0 since turning pro in January. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Russell never got to enter the ring as he missed the Olympic weigh-in hours after losing consciousness in his Olympic Village dorm room.

THURSDAY’S WEIGHTS – Carlos Abregu weighed in at 148 pounds on Thursday in Santa Ynez , Calif. , a day before he’s scheduled to face Irving Garcia on ShoBox: The New Generation on SHOWTIME (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast). Garcia tipped the scales at 147-1/4. Both boxers in the telecasts’ opening fight – Marvin Quintero and Wes Ferguson—weighed in at 134 pounds.

Abregu puts his stellar, unblemished 26-0 record, with 21 knockouts, on the line Friday, May 1. The Argentine will face Puerto Rico’s Garcia (17-3-3, 8 KOs ) in the 10-round welterweight main event at the Chumash Casino Resort. In the co-feature, Quintero (15-1, 12 KOs) of Tijuana , Mexico , will take on Ferguson (20-3-1, 6 KOs) of Las Vegas in an eight-round lightweight bout. The event is promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, LLC.

What the principals had to say prior to Thursday’s weigh in:

CARLOS ABREGU

“The difference between my opponent when I last fought on SHOWTIME (a win over David Estrada on Dec. 5, 2008) and Garcia is that Estrada just wanted to win, period. He’s always coming forward. But Garcia is a front-runner. He goes two, three rounds and then he fades.”

“There were a lot of doubters on whether I could finish a 10-round fight back home. I think a lot of people were impressed that I went that far even though some were disappointed in the way I fought.”

ABEL SANCHEZ (Abregu’s trainer)

“Just because Carlos has the glittery record doesn’t mean anything here. He has to put on a show. He has to be money in the bank. Guys that he’s going to be facing now are just going to be that much stronger and are going to want to take that perfect mark from him.”

IRVING GARCIA

“The only thing I know about Abregu is his fight against Estrada. I know how he throws his punches. It’s a big fight for me. It’s all or nothing now.”

“It’s been five years since my last fight on SHOWTIME. I’ve had a lot of experiences since then.”

“I have to keep the fight in the middle of the ring. I can’t go outside. But I have to be ready to adapt to whatever comes my way.”

MARVIN QUINTERO

“Wes is very strong and a good fighter. He’ll be ready for me.”

“I learned so much training a total of 20 rounds recently with Ricky Hatton in Las Vegas .”

“My plan on Friday is to throw more and get hit less. That’s the goal.”

WES FERGUSON

“I know Marvin is durable. He’s like a tank. He throws and he throws.”

“I’m so excited to get this chance to fight for the first time on SHOWTIME. I’ve fought on the other networks before but this is huge. The whole world will be watching.”

“I don’t think I’ll be nervous. It’s the same drill as any other fight. I don’t care how I look. A win is a win at the end of the day. I want to be the one holding my hand high after this fight.”

NICK CHARLES (ShoBox Commentator)

“(Carlos) Abregu really fell apart down the stretch against (David) Estrada when they met here at Chumash on Dec. 5. I’d expect to see dramatic improvement from Carlos. For him to be a genuine prospect in his talent-heavy division he’s going to have to put on a show. It’s just going to be a real good test for both him and Marvin Quintero.”

“As far as the first fight goes, I’m pretty anxious to see how Quintero fares against a very slick opponent like Ferguson . To be considered a legitimate contender, Quintero has to dominate this fight against someone as slick as the young American Ferguson.”

Charles and Steve Farhood will call the ShoBox action. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.

For more information on SHOWTIME Sports, including exclusive behind-the-scenes video and photo galleries, complete telecast information and more, please go to the new SHOWTIME Sports website at http://sports.sho.com.

About ShoBox: The New Generation

Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talent matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise exciting, crowd-pleasing and competitive matches while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. The growing list of fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes: Leonard Dorin, Scott Harrison, Juan Diaz, Jeff Lacy, Ricky Hatton, Joan Guzman, Juan Urango, David Diaz, Robert Guerrero, Kelly Pavlik, Paul Malignaggi, Kendall Holt, Timothy Bradley and Bernard Dunne.

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