Ardmore, Oklahoma, power puncher Eric “Danger” Fields (21-1, 15 KOs) is hoping he’ll be underestimated when he brings his heavy fists to Germany on February 2, 2013, to face IBF Cruiserweight Champion Yoan Pablo Hernandez (27-1, 13 KOs) at Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin.

Fields and Hernandez will meet in the main supporting bout of the European Light Heavyweight Championship main event between Eduard Gutknecht and Juergen Braehmer.

“This is his third defense and he’s had some big wins and he’s a southpaw, so I bet he’s feeling real confident fighting a guy in the top 15. Well, guess what? He’s in danger and he won’t know it till it’s too late. I’m taking the title from him and bringing it back to America.”

Fields’ promoter, Greg Cohen of Greg Cohen Promotions, has been looking like a boxing genius of late, after maneuvering WBA world junior middleweight champion Austin Trout from relative obscurity to boxing’s newest star.

Cohen says Fields has exactly the kind of power that has bothered the German-based Cuban Hernandez throughout his career.

“His (Hernandez’s) only official loss came by KO to big punching Wayne Braithwaite. In his last fight he was fortunate to get a decision over Troy Ross, another fighter with heavy, fast hands. Eric has the athleticism, the speed and the strength to go in and get this guy out of there,” said Cohen. “I’m looking forward to adding another world champion to the GCP stable February 2nd.”

“Eric is 100% focused and committed to this fight and an Eric Fields in top shape is a big problem for anyone in the world. Some fighters try to weather the storm and wait for him to tire. He’s not going to tire in this fight. He’s too focused and driven. Now is Eric’s time. ”

Tickets for the fight can be purchased at www.eventim.de and www.boxen.com

CHESTER, PA (December 27, 2012)–On Saturday night January 26th, boxing returns to Harrahs Philadelphia as Joey Eye Boxing and David Feldman present a big show to kick off the new year.

In the main event, fan favorite Victor Vasquez will take on Esteban Rodriguez in a Lightweight bout scheduled for six rounds.

Vasquez of Philadelphia has a record of 15-7-1 with seven knockouts and is always in action packed fights.

Vasquez has quality wins over Thomas McCuiston (1-0), Tyric Robinson (9-4-1) and Angel Rios (9-5). The “Blood and Guts” Warrior of Philadelphia has been in many memorable scraps which includes his bout which he dropped a close unanimous decision to Naim Nelson (7-0) on September 14th in a bout that contested for the Pennsylvania State championship at Harrahs in Philadelphia.

Rodriguez of Lebanon, PA has a record of 6-4-1 with one knockout likes to mix it up and has a fan friendly style. He has a good win over undefeated Luis Quezada in his native Puerto Rico. Rodriguez is looking to get back in the win column after dropping two consecutive fights which includes being stopped in his last bout by undefeated Angel Luis Ocasio (6-0-2) on December 8th in Philadelphia.

There will be three separate six round co-features featuring returning Heavyweight Chuck Cavallo (16-1, 6 KO’s); Jr. Middleweight DeCarlo Perez (8-2-1, 3 KO’s) and Jr. Middleweight Julio DeJesus (6-3-3, 3 KO’s)

Cavallo of Trenton, NJ will be making his return to the ring after a five-plus year hiatus.

Still just twenty-eight years old, Cavallo was a touted Light Heavyweight prospect as he racked up impressive wins over Dhafir Smith and an ESPN 2 televised decision over Marlon Hayes. Cavallo was stopped in his last bout by Shannon Miller on September 27, 2007.

Perez of Atlantic City will be looking for his third consecutive win with the latest being his best win to date when he stopped crosstown rival Shamone Alvarez (21-5) in three rounds on September 29th

Dejesus of Chester, PA is unbeaten in his last three as he has a win over Gabriel Diaz that was sandwiched in between two draws with Korey Sloane with the latest coming on December 22nd.

Cavallo, Perez and Dejesus will have their opponents announced shortly.

Seeing action in four round fights will be Light Heavyweight Amir Shabazz (2-0) of Philadelphia fighting a rematch with Abdellah Smith (2-4, 2 KO’s) of Queens, NY

Althea Saunders (3-0-1) of Atlantic City will take on an opponent to be announced in a female Welterweight bout.

Tyrone Crawley Jr. (2-0) of Philadelphia squares off with Benjamin Burgos (1-1) of Mount Pocono, PA in a Welterweight bout.

Undefeated Heavyweight John Mecurio (5-0, 4 KO’s) of Philadelphia takes on rugged Lonnie Kornegay (1-7-2) of Baltimore, MD.

Heavyweight Mark Rideout (2-0) of Philadelphia boxes debuting Aaron Braxton of Baltimore, MD.

Jr. Middleweight Gilbert Alex Perez (2-1, 2 KO’s) of Camden, NJ will take on an opponent to be named.

Rounding out the card will be the pro debut of Lightweight Sam Teah of Philadelphia taking on an opponent to be named.

Tickets are now on sale for $100 (VIP); $65 (Ringside) and $45 (General Admission) and can be purchased at the Harrahs Philadelphia Gift Shop; By calling Joey Eye (267-304-9399); David

Feldman (610-291-0806); 800-480-8020 or on http://www.webtix.net/

December 27, 2012 – Undefeated cruiserweight contender, Lateef Kayode (18-0, 14 KOs), who fights under the Gary Shaw Productions promotional banner, will now be campaigning at the Heavyweight division.

“Kayode is a heavy handed puncher who can easily bring his power up to the heavyweight division,” said Gary Shaw. “Right now my matchmaker John Beninati is looking at potential opponents and we are confident Lateef will be successful moving up in weight.”

“We made a lot of headway campaigning as a cruiserweight,” said Kayode’s manager Steve Feder. “Considering the fact that we appeared more times on Shobox then any other cruiser in a decade, in a division far more suited for the European market, ultimately our options since the Tarver debacle have diminished.”

“The IBO completely ignored our ranking when granting Green a title shot, not allowing Kayode to challenge. At this point, the heavyweight division which we fought our first nine fights in. seems to be calling. Lateef is in the gym and feels very strong at his new weight. We expect to preview back at heavyweight in February.

New York, NY (12/27/12) – On Wednesday, January 23, DiBella Entertainment (DBE) will kick off its 9th consecutive season of the popular New York based Broadway Boxing series at New York City’s famed BB King Blues Club. The card will feature a number of DBE’s top up-and-coming prospects, including unbeatens Lamar Russ (11-0, 7KO’s), Luis “K.O. King” Rosa (11-0, 6KO’s) and Delen “Sniper” Parsley (9-0, 2KO’s). Additional bouts and information on the card, including a must-see main event will be announced shortly.

“This is going to be our ninth consecutive season of Broadway Boxing and I truly believe that each year has been better than the last,” stated Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment. “Nearly every Broadway Boxing card we staged last year in New York was a complete sell-out, and we are looking to continue that run with another great event on January 23rd. The card will be stacked with some of the most promising young prospects in boxing.”

Both Parsley and Rosa, have been featured on the Broadway Boxing series multiple times already in their young careers, but the bout on the 23rd will be the first appearance on the series for the highly touted middleweight Russ.

The 25-year-old Russ joined the DBE roster late in 2012, and in his first bout under the promotional banner scored a first round annihilation on ShoBox: The New Generation over previously undefeated Jonathan Cepeda (12-0, 11KO’s). In his previous bout, Russ scored a fourth round TKO over yet another undefeated prospect, 13-0 Jose Alonzo. Russ is looking to kick off what he hopes to be a breakout year with another impressive performance on the 23rd.

Rosa, a native of Caguas, Puerto Rico, but now living and training in New Haven, CT, scored an impressive sixth-round TKO over Victor Valenzuela in his last bout on the HBO Boxing After Dark undercard on September 29 at Foxwoods. At just 21-years-old age the super bantamweight Rosa is truly one of the bright young stars on the DBE roster.

The Broadway Boxing series is the longest current running series in boxing and has included appearances in their early careers by such former and current world champions, Paulie Maglinaggi, Andre Berto and Yuri Forman, just to name a few.

Tickets are priced at $125, $100, $75 and $55 with a limited number of $1000 V.I.P. tables available. There are 5 seats to each V.I.P. table. Tickets can be purchased by calling the DiBella Entertainment office at (212) 947-2577. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the first bout scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The card is promoted by DiBella Entertainment and sponsored by Manfredi Auto Group, Newlio.com and Everlast.

December 27, 2012 – Undefeated Puerto Rican power puncher, Jonathan “Mantequilla” González (15-0-1, 13 KO’s) will be facing off against Derek Ennis (23-3-1, 13 KO) of Philadelphia on Friday, January 4 at the Magic City Casino in Miami, Florida. The co-feature bout is scheduled for 10 rounds at the junior middleweight division and will be televised on ESPN2 “Friday Night Fights” starting at 10pm ET/ 7pm PT.

Ennis has victories over Puerto Ricans, Gabriel Rosado and Edwin “Zazule” Vázquez.

For this fight, “Mantequilla” is training in Miami, Florida under the supervision of trainers, John David Jackson and Melvin “Chico” Ramos.

“I’m very happy with the preparation. I’m in the best shape of my career, and at the end of the fight, the result will be a knockout” said a confident González, who is promoted by Warriors Boxing, Universal Promotions and Gary Shaw Productions.

“I have been in the gym regularly during this camp, and Jonathan has never looked better,” Leon Margules, President of Warriors Boxing” said. I truly believe Jonathan is an incredible talent who the boxing world will take notice of on January 4th.”

“Once again Jonathan will have another opportunity to display the kind of boxing skill that made him a terrific amateur,” said Gary Shaw. “The fact that Gonzales trained outside of Puerto Rico, proves he’s dedicated to this important fight on ESPN.”

“Jonathan is an incredible talent” said Javier Bustillo, president of Universal Promotions. “On January 4, we will see the beginning of another major Puerto Rican boxer, who will give so much to talk about in 2013”.

Headlining the event is a bout at the lightweight division between Rances Barthelemy (17-0, 11 KO’ s) against Arash Usmanee (20-0, 10 KOs) in a 10 round bout.

Gonzalez vs. Ennis can also be seen on ESPN Deportes, as well as online through WatchESPN.com, and on smartphones/tablets via the WatchESPN app.

LOS ANGELES, December 27 – Throughout the years, several British superstars, including Amir “King” Khan, Ricky “Hitman” Hatton and David “Hayemaker” Haye, have fought under the Golden Boy Promotions banner. Today, the Los Angeles-based promoter is pleased to announce the signing of a promotional agreement with a young man it believes will follow in his countrymen’s footsteps, 2012 Olympic Bronze medalist for Great Britain, Anthony Ogogo.

“I am delighted to be signing with the premier promoter in boxing, Golden Boy Promotions,” said Ogogo. “So many great fighters have come before me at Golden Boy and in the coming years I hope to live up to the standard they’ve set. I can’t wait to get started.”

“2012 has been without doubt one of the greatest years of my life,” continued Ogogo. “To represent my country at a home Games was an incredible experience and the bronze medal I won will always be close to my heart. Following the Olympics I’ve been looking to the future and considering a number of options, and feel that the time is now right to turn professional with Golden Boy.”

“Anthony Ogogo has everything you look for in a boxer,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “He can fight, he has style and charisma and he has amazing crossover potential. I have no doubt that Anthony has the skills in the ring and the personality outside of it to make him a global boxing star. We are proud to have him on our team and this is just the first step in our growing commitment to British boxing.”

A talented soccer player who played for Norwich City FC when he was younger, Lowestoft, England’s Anthony Ogogo found his true love in the ring where he has been competing since the age of 12. After winning a Junior Olympic Gold medal and Silver medals at the Commonwealth Games and European Championships, Ogogo earned a place on Great Britain’s 2012 Olympic team. In London this past summer, Ogogo beat representatives from the Dominican Republic, Ukraine and Germany to win a Bronze Medal, thrilling his fans from throughout the United Kingdom. Outside the ring, the 24-year-old Ogogo is a former model and was also a cast member of the 2008 hit reality show, “Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack.”

A date, venue and opponent for Ogogo’s professional debut will be announced shortly. For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com; follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.twitter.com/AnthonyOgogo, or visit us on Facebook at Golden Boy Facebook Page.

Five time women’s boxing world champion Carina Moreno is enjoying the fruits of her labor this Holiday Season.

After winning the WBA Flyweight title in Germany on December 1st, the slick fight veteran found a multi-fight contract with Zeferino Entertainment nestled safely under her tree.

The California based fighter feels blessed to have the support of an ambitious promoter once again.

“It’s nice to have a promotional group like Zeferino Entertainment behind me,” states the three division world titlist. “Without the benefit of promotional representation, I’ve had to take fights in other countries while being the visiting fighter in a hostile environment.”

Over the past 3 years, the talented boxer/puncher has seen her not so fair share of questionable decisions while fighting in Mexico and Argentina. Moreno looks forward to eventually defending her title within the friendly confines of the USA.

“It will be really nice to be able to fight in front of my friends, family, and supporters again. The excitement of being able to fight while hearing your fans giving you their love and support is something I really look forward to.”

And at age 31, Carina feels like she’s just getting started.

“There’s so much that I still want to do in this sport. I love boxing and there are so many great fights out there for me. I’m really looking forward to 2013.”

The nine year fight veteran insists she wants to step in the ring with the best fighters in the world.

“I will have an immediate title defense with Susi Kentikian of Germany in February. But after I defend my belt in the Flyweight division, I would like to challenge the various champions at 105 and 108 pounds. I feel like those are my strongest weights.”

While Carina possesses the ability to defend her title at 112 pounds, the experienced professional feels most comfortable fighting at Junior Flyweight or Straw-weight.

“I want to take on the top fighters in boxing. I would love to fight for the WBC Junior Flyweight title against Esmeralda Moreno or Jessica Chavez for her IBF title. I would also jump at the chance to rematch Yesica Bopp for her WBA and WBO titles in neutral territory.”

“I also look forward to the eventual rematch with Anabel Ortiz for the WBC 105 pound title. I felt that I should have retained my title that night and would love to face her once again to win back my belt.”

Regardless of who Carina is paired with throughout the upcoming year, the future looks bright for the hungry Ms. Moreno in 2013.

“I’m excited to fight under the Zeferino Entertainment banner. I want to thank all of my fans for always believing in me. They’re the ones who give me the strength and passion to continue fighting. I’m really anticipating great things in 2013. It’s going to be a great New Year for Carina Moreno.”

The postponed fight between World Super Middleweight champion Andre Ward and former Middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik is now off due to Ward needing shoulder surgery according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

The bout was originally scheduled for January 26th and then moved to March 2nd after Ward suffered the injury.

Pavlik’s manager Cameron Dunkin told ESPN.com that he was notified Wednesday night by Top Rank’s Bob Arum, Pavlik’s promoter, that Ward would be sidelined for an extended period.

“Bob called me up and told me the fight was out and said, ‘What are we gonna do with Pavlik?’ He said Goossen called him and told him that Ward needed shoulder surgery,” Dunkin said. “So I don’t know what we’re gonna do, but we’re going to move forward and get Kelly a fight and get him back in the ring.

“I sent him a text to let him know what was up because I couldn’t get in touch with him.”

“I wasn’t jumping up and down for the fight,” Dunkin said. “I wasn’t excited for it, but it’s something Kelly wanted and that is my job, to create opportunities for my clients. Kelly told me that fighting Ward was what he wanted to do. He said to get the fight done, so sometimes that’s what you gotta do. And now we will look for something else.”

UPDATE

Andre Ward said Thursday that he has a tear in his right shoulder that will require surgery.

“When I first got injured, there was a lot of inflammation, and the MRI was misread by the first radiologist,” Ward said in a statement. “I’ve been doing extensive rehab and the shoulder was getting stronger, but after three-and-a-half weeks of rehab, there was still slight pain that had me concerned enough to get two additional opinions.

“It was then diagnosed that there is a small tear in my shoulder capsule. It’s not a major tear, but I can either rest it and see if it heals itself or speed up the process by surgically repairing it, and be stronger than I was before the injury and that’s what we opted to do.”

“I’m working with one of the best orthopedic surgeons and physical therapists in Northern California, and I know that I will come back stronger than before,” said Ward, a native of Oakland, Calif. “I appreciate all the support that I’ve already received and my fans can rest assured that I’m going to be back in the ring as soon as possible.

“Despite the injury, I still plan to have a big 2013 and hope to have two fights in the New Year.”

“I was really looking forward to the fight with Pavlik,” Ward said. “Everything was on board and situations happen, but I wish Kelly Pavlik and his team nothing but the best in the future.”

TOKYO, Japan (Dec. 26, 2011) – Women’s superstar Marloes Coenen (20-5) of the Netherlands has been added to the stacked DREAM 18 MMA card at Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo, Japan on New Year’s Eve.

The featherweight (145 pounds/66 kilograms) submission specialist faces ‘Ferocious’ Fiona Muxlow (6-1) of Queensland, Australia. Like Coenen, the majority of Muxlow’s wins have been by way of submission and she is riding a three-fight winning streak.

“I’m so excited to fight at the most anticipated event of the year in Japan. GSI is producing DREAM on New Year’s Eve and it’s great that they have a female fight so prominently on the card. On the other side of the world there’s also a highly-anticipated female fight coming up, so I’m really happy that women are getting the attention that they deserve,” says Coenen.

“Knowing that I already submitted one half of the UFC’s first-ever female fight, I’m keen on testing myself here in the Far East where martial arts started. I’m still one of the world’s top females and have been ever since winning my first world title in Japan in 2000. I’m strong in my mission to dominate the women’s MMA world.”

Coenen fought for the highly successful all-female US promotion Invicta FC in her last outing, taking a unanimous decision win over Romy Ruyssen. In her three fights before that she won, defended and then lost the Strikeforce women’s bantamweight championship that was most recently held by Ronda Rousey until her move to the UFC several weeks ago.

Rousey’s first defense of the UFC title will be against Liz Carmouche in February. Coincidentally that was also the first opponent that Coenen faced after winning the Strikeforce title. Coenen submitted Carmouche with a triangle choke in the fourth round of their fight in March last year.

New Year’s Eve will be Coenen’s 15th fight in Japan, having spent the first half of her career fighting in front of audiences in Tokyo and Shizuoka. By contrast Muxlow has spent her entire career fighting in her native Australia apart from one trip to neighboring New Zealand for a fight in June last year. Muxlow fought in October this year and took a unanimous decision win.

In the main event of DREAM 18, which represents one-half of the ‘GSI presents DREAM 18 and GLORY 4 Tokyo – New Year’s Eve Special’ double-header fight card, former DREAM lightweight (155 pounds/70 kilograms) champion Shinya Aoki (31-6) will face battle-tested wrestling specialist Antonio McKee (28-4-2). Heavy hitters Melvin Manhoef (26-9-1, 1 NC) and Denis Kang (35-15-2, 2 NC) will face off at middleweight (185 pounds/84 kilograms) and former DREAM bantamweight (135 pounds/61 kilograms) champion Bibiano Fernandes (12-3) will square off with Yoshiro Maeda (30-11-2) in a 139-pound/61-kilogram catchweight contest. Former world No. 1 lightweight Tatsuya ‘Crusher’ Kawajiri (31-7-2) will face Judo specialist Michihiro Omigawa (13-12-1) at featherweight (145 pounds/66 kilograms).

All-time great Hayato ‘Mach’ Sakurai (38-12-2) will meet hard-hitting brawler ‘New York Bad Ass’ Phil Baroni (15-15) in a welterweight (170 pounds/77 kilograms) affair. DREAM Featherweight Champion Hiroyuki Takaya (17-9-1) will collide with standout Georgi Karakhanyan (19-3-1) and Satoru Kitaoka (30-11-9) will battle undefeated rising star Will ‘Ill Will’ Brooks (7-0) at lightweight.

GSI presents DREAM 18 and GLORY 4 Tokyo – New Year’s Eve Special will commence at 4 p.m. JST with the DREAM 18 card and continue with the GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam, one-night 16-man single-elimination tournament featuring the world’s top heavyweight stand-up fighters, including world No. 1 ranked Semmy Schilt (39-6, 18 KO’s), Gokhan Saki (77-15, 53 KO’s), Daniel Ghita (44-7, 34 KO’s), Remy Bonjasky (77-14, 40 KO’s), Peter Aerts (104-30-1, 78 KO’s), Errol Zimmerman (76-16-1, 41 KO’s), Anderson ‘Braddock’ Silva (32-8-1, 22 KO’s) and Sergei Kharitonov (22-7, 12 KO’s).

The winner of the heavyweight tournament will take home a Grand Prize of $400,000, and a total of $600,000 in prize money will be awarded to tournament participants.

For more information, visit www.gloryworldseries.com.

About GLORY:

The GLORY World Series (www.gloryworldseries.com) is the world’s premier martial arts stand-up fighting league, staging events across the globe and offering up to $1,000,000 in prize money to the winners of 16-man ‘Grand Slam’ tournaments, which are open to only the best fighters in each weight class. The fight series also includes 8-man ‘Slam’ tournaments and events with traditional, single bouts.

With television deals spanning every continent, plus a groundbreaking online video streaming system and the world’s largest online martial arts library, GLORY is one of the world’s most widely-broadcast sporting organizations.

Owned and operated by Glory Sports International (GSI), the organization has offices in Holland, the UK, Tokyo, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Its personnel includes a diverse mix of award-winning hedge-fund and private equity investors; principals from pioneering sports marketing agency Total Sport Asia; and senior level executives from several leading sports franchises, including WWE, FIFA, Golden Glory, Champions League and It’s Showtime.

CHICAGO, IL (December 26, 2012) ESPN Friday Night Fights will return to the UIC Pavilion on FEBRUARY 1, 2013 headlined by an IBF Junior Middleweight Title Eliminator between Chicago fan favorite and perennial contender “King” Carlos Molina and two division and five-time world champion Cory “The Next Generation” Spinks.

Presented by 8 Count Productions, Round 3 Productions, Warriors Boxing and Blue Wave Boxing in association with Don King Productions, advance tickets are priced are $151, $101, $51 and $31 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster (Ticketmaster.com, 1-800-745-3000), the 8 Count Productions Offices, 312-226-5800 or the UIC Pavilion Box Office, 312-413-5740.

Also featured at ESPN Friday Night Fights is a sensational ten round welterweight clash between Mexican boxing legend and two-time former world champion Jose Luis “EL Terrible” Castillo and upset minded Miami, Florida’s Antwone “The Truth” Smith.

In a special attraction eight round clash, fast rising Polish heavyweight prospect Artur “The Pin” Szpilka will battle Chicago based heavyweight contender “Merciless” Mike Mollo.

Additionally featuring in separate bouts will be local favorites; middleweight contender Donovan “Da Bomb” George, 23-3-1 (20KO’s), highly regarded and undefeated super middleweight prospect Mike “Hollywood” Jimenez, 8-0-0 (5KO’s) and popular welterweight newcomer Jimmy Murphy, 1-0-0 (1KO).

“We’re very proud to work with the terrific team at ESPN on this Friday Night Fights presentation and we’ve got a sensational card to kick off the 2013 year in style for Chicago boxing fans.” said Dominic Pesoli. President of 8 Count Productions.

“This the first time in over four years that Carlos has fought at home in Chicago and it’s a huge opportunity for him to face a multiple time world champion in Cory Spinks.”

“In the co-main we’re bringing back former world champion Jose Luis Castillo who won a fantastic “blood and guts” war with Ivan Popoca in July at the UIC Pavilion and our special attraction between Szpilka and Mollo should be bombs away from the opening bell.”

“Complimenting these three fights Donovan George is returning to fight in Chicago for the first time in two years, ‘Hollywood’ is back at the UIC Pavilion where he won his first three pro fights by knockout and we’re excited to have Jimmy Murphy fight on our card for the first time.”

“We’ve had massive crowds at the UIC Pavilion for our last two events and we’re expected another tremendous crowd of Chicago boxing fans. For the best seats, I strongly encourage fans to purchase tickets in advance for this event.”

The 29-year-old Molina, 20-5-2 (6KO’s), known for his sensational upset performances over his eight-year professional career, is coming off a ten round shutout unanimous decision win over Damian Frias on AUGUST 17 which was also broadcast on ESPN Friday Night Fights.

Earlier this year, Molina was the victim of horrendous judgment as he was disqualified him after the tenth round enroute to a decisive victory over James Kirkland on MARCH 24 in Houston, Texas.

In a bout broadcast on HBO’s World Championship Boxing, Molina’s corner mistakenly entered the ring before the bell rang following the tenth round. At the time of the stoppage Molina was significantly ahead on two of the scorecards.

Born in Patzcuaro, Michoacan de Ocampo, Mexico, Molina holds victories over former world champion Kermit Cintron, very highly controversial draws with former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Erislandy Lara and clear-cut victories over contenders Danny Perez, Allen Conyers, Ed Parades and Alexis Camacho.

Fighting out of St. Louis, Missouri and from the legacy of his father, heavyweight champion Leon Spinks and uncle, light heavyweight champion Michael Spinks, Cory Spinks has won world titles three times in the welterweight division and twice as a junior middleweight.

Spinks’ illustrious career included an up and down 2012 as he looked sensational defeating Sechew Powell in a twelve round unanimous decision on JANUARY 28 but getting stopped by Cornelius Bundrage in the seventh round on JUNE 30 as he challenged for the IBF Junior Middleweight Title.

Molina is currently world ranked #4 by the IBF and #7 by the WBC while Spinks is ranked #12 by the IBF.

The 23-year-old Szpilka, 12-0-0 (9KO’s), a native of Wieliczka, Poland, will be making his Chicago debut in front of the huge legion of Polish fight fans.

Sporting an undefeated record of 12-0-0 (9KO’s), the hard hitting southpaw is coming off his career best victory, a dominant ten round unanimous decision on JUNE 30 over two-time world title challenger Jameel McCline in Lodz, Poland.

Born and raised in nearby Oak Lawn, Illinois, the heavy handed Mollo, 20-3-1 (12KO’s), is best known in Chicago for two brutal second round knockouts; over Mike Tyson conqueror Kevin McBride at the Allstate Arena in 2006 and contender Art Binkowki at the Sears Centre in 2007.

In his last start, Mollo battled to a hard fought eight round draw with Gary Gomez on AUGUST 6, 2010 at the UIC Pavilion.

Fighting in the ten round televised co-main event, former two-time world champion Jose Luis Castillo, 64-11-1 (55KO’s) will return to the UIC Pavilion against Antwone Smith following his eighth round stoppage of Chicagoan Ivan Popoca on JULY 13 which was broadcast on ESPN Friday Night Fights.

The 25-year-old Smith, 22-4-1 (12KO’s), heads back to the ring following a career highpoint with a ten round decision win over previously undefeated Ronald Cruz on SEPTEMBER 21, broadcast on NBC Sports Network from the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Further details on this world-class evening of professional boxing will be announced shortly.

The UIC Pavilion is located at 525 S. Racine, at the corner of Harrison and Racine on the campus of University of Illinois-Chicago. Doors on the night of the event will open at 7pm with the first bell at 7:45pm.

ABOUT 8 COUNT PRODUCTIONS/ROUND 3 PRODUCTIONS

8 Count Productions, HOME OF THE BEST IN CHICAGO BOXING, was started by Dominic Pesoli in 1998 and has consistently presented the highest quality professional boxing events in Chicagoland.

Joining forces with Frank Mugnolo’s Round 3 Productions in 2011, their partnership is currently among the premier boxing promotional firms in the United States.

Fighters currently under the 8 Count Productions/Round 3 Productions banner include; IBO Light Heavyweight World Champion Andrzej Fonfara, super middleweight contender Donovan George, world class junior welterweight prospect Adrian Granados, former world title challenger Edner Cherry, super middleweight prospect Paul Littleton, middleweight prospect Viktor Polyakov and welterweight prospect Jaime Herrera.

For more information on 8 Count Productions/Round 3 Productions please visit their new website, www.8countproductions.com. Follow them on Twitter at 8_Count and Facebook at “8 Count Productions”.

ABOUT WARRIORS BOXING

Launched in 2003, Warriors Boxing operates under a simple philosophy—bring the best boxers in the world to fight fans, match them in competitive bouts, and in doing so help re-establish the sport of boxing for a new generation.

With a series of successful Pay-Per-View shows and packed houses to it’s credit, the Warriors business model is working wonders in a sport that was sorely in need of the innovation and energy that the company brings to the table.

When it comes down to it though, a promotional company is only as good as the fighters and fights it promotes. Warriors Boxing has delivered on all fronts, with outstanding bouts such as Lara-Molina, Cayo-Peterson, Abraham-Miranda I and II, Miranda-Pavlik, Miranda-Green, Ibragimov-Briggs, Ibragimov-Klitschko, Urango-Hatton, Urango-Bailey, Cayo-Maidana and Ibraginov-Holyfield.

For more information on Warriors Boxing, visit their website at www.WarriorsBoxing.com.

NEW YORK, NY (Dec. 26, 2012) — GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam, a one night single-elimination kickboxing competition featuring 16 of the world’s hardest hitting KO artists, will be televised on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012 at 10:00 p.m. EST on CBS Sports Network.

Unprecedented and historic in the sport of kickboxing, GLORY 4 is the first-ever 16-man tournament where the winner has to defeat four opponents in one night to be crowned GLORY World Champion and walk away with $400,000.

“We are very excited to provide fight fans in the U.S. with the first real look at GLORY KICKBOXING with the broadcast of our GLORY 4 Tokyo Heavyweight Grand Slam on CBS Sports Network on New Year’s Eve,” said Marcus Luer, CEO Glory Sports International. “We have lined up the best heavyweight stand-up fighters from every corner of the globe who come with professional KO records that will astound and excite American fight fans! A world first—there will be no denying that the ’last man standing’ in this tournament will be hailed as the top stand-up fighter on the planet.”

The line-up consists of heavyweight KO superstars such as Peter Aerts (104-30-1, 78 KO’s), Remy Bonjasky (77-14, 40 KO’s) and Semmy Schilt (39-6, 18 KO’s) plus dangerous rising stars such as the explosive Gokhan Saki (77-15, 53 KO’s) and the clinical leg-kick specialist Daniel Ghita (44-7-0, 34 KO’s), known to his Japanese fans as ‘The Savage Samurai.’

Luer added “We have improved the GLORY rules further to allow for amazingly fast, furious and explosive fights. The action will be presented in the tradition of the best Japanese fight shows, with new video mapping technology as seen at the recent Olympics, heart-pounding music, pyro and special effects. It will be a feast for all the senses!”

CBS Sports Network is available across the country through local cable, video and telco providers and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 613 and Dish Network Channel 158. For more information, and to access the CBS Sports Network channel finder, go to www.cbssportsnetwork.com.

For more information go to www.gloryworldseries.com.

About GLORY:
GLORY World Series (www.gloryworldseries.com) is the world’s new premier kickboxing league, producing live events across the globe and offering up to $1,000,000 in prize money to the winners of one-night, 16-man ‘Grand Slam’ tournaments, which are open to only the best fighters in each weight class. The fight series also includes 8-man ‘Slam’ tournaments and events with traditional, single bouts.
With television deals spanning every continent, online live video streaming of all shows and the world’s largest online martial arts library, GLORY is one of the world’s most widely distributed sporting organizations.
Owned and operated by Glory Sports International (GSI), the organization has offices in the UK, Holland, Tokyo, Malaysia, Singapore and soon in the USA. Its personnel include an unprecedented mix of accomplished entrepreneurs and senior level executives from the diverse worlds of finance, sports marketing, television and martial arts fighting.

PHILADELPHIA (December 24, 2012)—Just moments after Tomasz Adamek scored a controversial split decision over Steve “USS” Cunningham in a rematch of their thrilling 2008 fight, Adamek’s own co-promoter told Ring Magazine’s Joseph Santoliquito & Philadelphia Daily News Boxing maven Bernard Fernandez that he doesn’t believe that his man won the fight.

“He Got a Christmas present”, Said Ziggy Rozalski of the decision that just about every ringside observer and Millions of fans watching the fight thought that Cunningham should have been awarded the fight but instead it was Adamek getting the win via disputed decision by 116-112; 115-113 for Adamek and 115-113 for Cunningham.

The bout highlighted the return of boxing on NBC.

“By him saying that just further puts a stamp on the point that I clearly won the fight”, said Cunningham.

“I worked so hard and executed my game plan perfectly and won this fight. There is outrage all over the internet about the decision and I feel bad that my promoter Main Events has done such a wonderful job to get a fight of this caliber back on big network television and for these judges to see a different fight then everybody else is disappointing. Now its time to sit down with my management and promoter to discuss what is next and what to do from here. I trust that Main Events will find the justice here and make sure my career only moves ahead and onto bigger better fights”

Re-air Dates and Times

(All times are ET

Sunday, December 23: 11PM -1AM

Tuesday, December 25: 5PM – 7PM

Thursday, December 27: 9:30PM -11:30PM

Friday, December 28: 11PM – 1AM

Thursday, January 3: 9 PM – 11PM

Thursday, January 3: 12AM – 2AM

To find the location of the NBC Sports Network on your local cable, satellite or IPTV provider, click here:http://www.nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/30092015/ns/sports/

On DIRECTV NBC Sports Network has moved to channel 220.

Tweet the link to NBC Sports Network Fight Night channel finder: bit.ly/175UuU

2012-2013 NBC FIGHT NIGHT SCHEDULE

(All times ET and subject to change)

Saturday, January 19 9 p.m. – 11 p.m. NBC Sports Network Mohegan Sun Casino, CT

Saturday, February 23 10:30 p.m. – 12:30 a.m. NBC Sports Network TBA

Saturday, March 9 10 p.m. – 12 a.m. NBC Sports Network TBA

FOLLOW US:

www.mainevents.com

facebook.com/maineventsboxing
Twitter: @main_events or twitter.com/main_events

Facebook:facebook.com/MainEventsBoxing facebook.com/NBCSports

Abner Cotto scored a stoppage after round six in his ten round Lightweight bout with Sergio Perez in Caguas, Puerto Rico.

Cotto dropped Perez in round one from a hard three punch combination and continued to dominate the bout until Perez did not come off his stool for round seven.

Cotto, 133 lbs of Aguas Buenos, PR is now 16-0 with seven knockouts. Perez, 133 lbs of Tijuana, MX is 27-14.

Cesar Seda Jr. scored four knockdowns en route to a second round stoppage over Lorenzo Trejo in a scheduled eight round Bantamweight bout.

Seda dropped Trejo with a body punch in round one and two more times later in the same round that ended almost a minute too soon/ Seda dropped Trejo just seconds into round two and the bout was stopped seventeen seconds into the second frame.

Seda, 122 lbs of Puerto Rico is now 24-1 with seventeen knockouts. Trejo, 122 lbs of Sinora, MX is now 31-26-1.

Jose Lopez remained perfect as he scored a four round unanimous decision over Eric Gotay in a Featherweight battle of previously undefeated Featherweights.

Lopez scored a knockdown in round one after a punch made Gotay take a knee and a left hook deposited Gotay in round four.

Lopez, 125 lbs of Carolina, PR is now 6-0. Gotay, 124 lbs of San Juan, PR is 3-1.

BRONX, NY (December 21, 2012) Tickets will go on sale this Saturday, DECEMBER 22 at 10am, as popular, world ranked junior middleweight contender Delvin “EL Peligro” Rodriguez battles George “Comanche Boy” Tahdooahnippah on Friday, FEBRUARY 15 in the ten round main event of ESPN Friday Night Fightsat the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT, it was announced today by Joe DeGuardia, President of Star Boxing.

Priced at $75, $45 and $30 (with a $5 facility fee, and limited 1st row VIP seats at $150), tickets will be available through Ticketmaster,www.Ticketmaster.comphone (800) 745-3000, the Mohegan Sun Box Office, the Star Boxing website,www.StarBoxing.com or by calling the Star Boxing Office at (718) 823-2000. Doors will open on the night of the event at 6:30pm with the first bell at 7:30pm.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to bring Delvin back to the Mohegan Sun for the first time in three years. The fans in Connecticut have been extremely supportive of him throughout his career and he is very excited to return” said DeGuardia. “Going on sale this Saturday, these tickets make a great last minute gift or stocking stuffer for boxing fans.”

“For ‘Comanche Boy’ a fight against Rodriguez represents a terrific opportunity. This will be the first time he has fought on the East Coast and his first main event on ESPN so this is a chance for him to truly impress. He’s an undefeated Native American-Indian and a very colorful and aggressive fighter.”

A native of nearby Danbury, CT, the Dominican born Rodriguez, 26-6-3 (14KO’s), is among the most popular fighters on the East Coast having continuously drawn huge crowds to his all-action fights. In July 2011 on ESPN Friday Night Fights, perennial contender Rodriguez fought to a draw with Pawel Wolak in a legendary battle that was voted “2011 Fight of the Year,” returning in December 2011 to beautifully outbox Wolak towards a dominant victory at Madison Square Garden.

In June of this year, Rodriguez challenged WBA Junior Middleweight Champion Austin Trout, losing a hard fought decision in a nationally televised bout.

Fighting out of Lawton, Oklahoma and a proud member of the Comanche Nation, Tahdooahnippah sports a record of 31-0-1 with 23 knockouts and is coming off a third round stoppage of Gundrick King on SEPTEMBER 28 in his hometown winning the NABA USA Middleweight Title.

The Rodriguez/Tahdooahnippah bout will be contested at a catch weight of 157 pounds. An exciting undercard will be announced shortly.

The Mohegan Sun is located at I Mohegan Sun Boulevard, Uncasville, CT 06382. For more information please visit their website at www.mohegansun.com

ABOUT STAR BOXING:

Star Boxing Inc. is celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2012. Star Boxing has worked to produce some of the most exciting and memorable boxing events in recent history. Star has continued to work with and develop a number of very exciting world champions, world rated contenders and young prospects. Star has consistently brought credibility, integrity, and exciting fights to the boxing industry. For more information on Star Boxing, visit their official website atwww.StarBoxing.com and follow them on Twitter @ Star Boxing and Facebook atStar Boxing

LOS ANGELES, December 21 – This holiday season, get ready for a gift all boxing fans will love, as Golden Boy Promotions teams up with FOX Deportes to re-air classic fights for four days and nights of epic fights featuring current and future Hall of Famers, world champions and rising stars engaging in some of the most pivotal bouts of their careers.

Included in these marathons are “The Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao, Julio “JC” Cesar Chavez, Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker, Erik “El Terrible” Morales, Marco Antonio “Baby Faced Assasin” Barrera, Miguel Cotto, Sugar Shane Mosley, Canelo Alvarez, Abner Mares, Ricky “Hitman” Hatton and Danny “Swift” Garcia, just to name a few.

The action begins this Saturday, December 22 at 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT with the following lineup:

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Pernell Whitaker – 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT

Manny Pacquiao vs. Marco Antonio Barrera I – 4:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Shane Mosley I – 5:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. PT

Erik Morales vs. Pablo Cesar Cano – 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT

Israel Vazquez vs. Rafael Marquez III – 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT

Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Mosley – 8:00 p.m.ET/5:00 p.m. PT

Floyd Mayweather vs. Victor Ortiz – 9:00 p.m.ET/6:00 p.m. PT

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Felix Trinidad – 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT

The next day of classics begins on Tuesday, December 25 at 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT with 10 more bouts:

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Ike Quartey – 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT

Shane Mosley vs. Ricardo Mayorga – 2:00 p.m. ET/11:00 a.m. PT

Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Oscar De La Hoya – 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT

Floyd Mayweather vs. Ricky Hatton – 4:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Fernando Vargas – 5:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. PT

Israel Vazquez vs. Rafael Marquez II – 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Felix Trinidad – 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT

Amir Khan vs. Marcos Maidana – 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT

Canelo Alvarez vs. Ryan Rhodes – 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT

Canelo Alvarez vs. Mathew Hatton – 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT

On December 29, it’s a Saturday night doubleheader featuring:

Abner Mares vs. Vic Darchinyan – 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT

Danny Garcia vs. Nate Campbell – 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT

Finally, on Saturday, January 5, it’s another marathon of elite level boxing action with the following bouts:

Rigoberto Alvarez vs. Austin Trout – 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT

Lamont Peterson vs. Victor Ortiz – 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT

Amir Khan vs. Paulie Malignaggi – 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT

Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley -9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Felix Trinidad – 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT

For more information on Golden Boy Promotions, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GoldenBoyBoxingor visit us on Facebook at Golden Boy Facebook Page. For more information on FOX Deportes visit www.FOXDeportes.com, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/FOXDeportes or visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FOXDeportes.

December 21, 2012 – Maryland’s undefeated light-middleweight prospect, Alantez “Sly as A” Fox (8-0-1, 4 KOs), makes a quick return to the ring when he faces in-state rival Julius Kennedy (7-2-1, 3 KOs) on January 12, 2013. The 6-round bout will take place at the Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, Maryland as both fighters will have hometown fans cheering them on.

Fox, who stands 6’5, brings a unique look to the boxing ring with his enormous height and reach advantages. In his last fight on December 8th, Fox demolished veteran Jimmy LeBlanc via first round TKO. Promoted by Boxing 360, Fox is looking forward to a busy 2013.

“As promised, my promoter Mario Yagobi is keeping me active,” Fox said. “I just fought earlier this month and now I have another fight scheduled for January. The more I fight the better and more comfortable I feel in the ring. I’m happy to be fighting under the Boxing 360 banner and I feel together we will make some big noise next year. I’ll be ready to go every time my name is called.”

“What I love about Fox is he’s the type of fighter that will take on all challenges,” said Boxing 360 promoter Mario Yagobi. “I have big plans for Alantez and I can see him fighting for a regional title by the later part of 2013. There is no doubt in my mind the he has all the tools to become a world champion. He’s a great addition to Boxing 360.”

The fans at the Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin, Germany have another great
fight to look forward to. Not only will they get to watch the all-German
affair between current European Light Heavyweight Champion Eduard Gutknecht
and Juergen Braehmer but it has now been confirmed that Yoan Pablo Hernandez
(27-1, 13 KOs) will be defending his IBF Cruiserweight Title against the
American Eric Fields (21-1, 15 KOs).

Hernandez took the championship of Steve “USS” Cunningham back in October
2011. Since then he also won a rematch against Cunningham in February and
also defended the IBF Crown in a close fight with Canada´s Troy Ross on
September 15. Now the 28-year-old prodigy of Coach Ulli Wegner has the first
title defense of 2013 firmly in his sight.

“I am very excited“, said Hernandez. “Berlin has become my new home. I live
and train here. Never before have I stood inside the ring of the
Max-Schmeling-Halle as the champion of the world.” Nevertheless, the third
title defense of the southpaw will not be a walk in the park. 30-year-old
Fields, also known as “Danger”, has won all of his last ten fights.

Due to a loss to the hands of Ola Afolabi back in 2008, Fields had to wait a
little longer for an opportunity to challenge for a world title. However,
the man fighting out of Ardmore, Oklahoma has fought his way into the top-15
of the IBF and will give it his best shoot in order to take the belt back to
the States.

Yoan Pablo Hernandez: “He is a fighter, who is always looking to move
forward and is always up for a real punch up. But I have already started
with my preparations and will not get too comfortable during the festive
season. I will have to be in tip-top shape and be prepared to give it my all
until someone falls. That being said, it won’t be me who will fall. The only
one going down on February 2 is Eric Fields.”

Tickets for the big fight night in Berlin, Germany can be purchased at
www.eventim.de and www.boxen.com.

SAN JOSE, CALIF. December 20, 2012 – World champion boxer, Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, will join the Cathedral of Faith this Friday for the Church’s annual Celebration of Love, where they distribute over 2,500 turkeys and food boxes to the economically disadvantaged in the Santa Clara Valley. The Ghost will be in attendance from 10:00 am to 11:15 am.

This has been an annual event for over 25 years. Held Friday, Dec. 21 at The Cathedral of Faith from 10:00 a.m. – 12 noon, the recipients will receive fresh produce, baked goods, canned goods, and meat.

The Cathedral of Faith is a 12,000 member, non-denominational Christian Church that has reached out to 200 ministries to meet the needs of their congregation, their local community, and the world. For more information about Cathedral of Faith, log onto www.cathedraloffaith.org.

The Cathedral of Faith is located at 2315 Canoas Garden Avenue San Jose, CA 95125 (408) 267-4691

BETHLEHEM, PA – The participants of Saturday’s big NBC broadcast TV boxing show met for the event’s final press conference today in Bethlehem, PA. The conference was hosted by promoter Kathy Duva, CEO Main Events, and included the fighters and teams involved in the heavyweight double header.

In the 12-round main event, Tomasz Adamek, 47-2, 29 KOs, faces Steve Cunningham, 25-4, 12 KOs, in a highly anticipated rematch of their classic first encounter in 2008. Adamek won that fight by close split decision. In the 8-round co-feature, Vyacheslav “Czar” Glazkov, 13-0, 9 KOs, takes on Tor Hamer, 19-1, 12 KOs, in a battle of rising prospects.

KATHY DUVA (CEO, Main Events):
“Welcome everyone to “Bigger, Better, Stronger” at the Sands Hotel and Casino, here in beautiful Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. And what better place to be than Bethlehem over Christmas weekend. There are two heavyweight fights on this card, and they’ll both tremendous. We’ve seen one of them before, so we know what to expect, and the other one is going to be a nice little Christmas surprise I think. I know that everyone up here is determined, they’re heavyweights, they’re bound to throw punches, and when you have a combination like that and as much at stake as we have here, you get fireworks. It’s just got to happen.”

Kathy Duva speaks at final press conference
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

“Just to be clear, this is on NBC network. That’s Channel 4 in New York, and different channels across the country. This is a big thing. Back in the afternoon, 4PM. That is the primetime spot in Saturday afternoon sports.”

(About the main event) “We’ve seen this fight before, and yet it’s going to be all new. They are both in a different weight class. They both have different trainers. They both have taken the long path back to each other from very different directions. So this is one of those fights that when the bell rings, I’m going to sit back and just try to enjoy it.”

STEVE CUNNINGHAM”
“I’m feeling very blessed to be in this position to fight on network television. My team is great. I feel confident. I feel good. I’m just ready to fight. It’s show time, or I guess it’s NBC time. I hope you guys enjoy what you see on Saturday. I’m going to bring my best. I’m sure he’ll bring his best, and hopefully we’ll live up to the hype.”

Steve and Cruz Cunningham
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

ZIGGY ROZALSKI (Event Co-Promoter):
“Thank you Kathy, it’s a pleasure working with you. We’ve worked (together) for many years. Thank you Main Events staff; thank you NBC. Also Steve Cunningham, thank you for taking the fight because this is good for us and good for you. Whoever wins is going to go forward. Whoever loses is going to go fishing. And may the best man win.”

Bloodworth, Adamek and Rozalski
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

ROGER BLOODWORTH (Head Trainer of Tomasz Adamek):
“It’s great to be back on NBC, on network. Everybody gets to see a fight. I said before that there are not going to be any losers in this fight, because we expect Steve to bring his best. We’re bringing our best. We had a great camp. The fans are going to love it. It’s going to be a great fight. I don’t have to tell you to buy tickets because it’s on free TV.”

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“I know everybody is waiting for Saturday. I’m waiting too. I’m ready. We had a good camp. This is Steve’s big chance, the rematch from (our fight in) 2008. But I’m working very hard. I started with Roger (Bloodworth) in 2009, and I am a different fighter, as everybody will see. I’m feeling good. I had good sparring. And I’m ready for war.”

Adamek speaks at final press conference
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

DON TURNER (Head Trainer of Vyacheslav Glazkov):
“He’s been over here about three and a half weeks. We’ve been working hard. I know the guy he’s fighting. I’ve seen him. It’s a good test. It’s should be a great fight, but this kid (Glazkov) is in good shape.”

VYACHESLAV “Czar” GLAZKOV:
“Sorry, my English is poor. (Via translator) I’m coming to fight and it’s going to be a great show. Thank you. ”

Czar Glazkov
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

TOR HAMER
“Nice to meet you guys. I look forward to a good fight. I think it’s going to be a great show. It’s good to perform on NBC. It’s going to be a very great night for boxing nationwide. I hope we live up to it, and (that there are) not too many surprises.”

Tor Hamer
Photo credits to Rich Graessle

QUESTIONS FROM THE PRESS:

What was your first reaction on getting this fight and how do you feel about getting the rematch now?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“It just came out of the blue. It’s just one of those things, opportunity presents itself. You can either sit back and watch it go down without you, or you can do something about it and be part of it yourself. This is a very good opportunity for me. If I beat him, I take his ranking, I take his belt, and put myself in position to be heavyweight world champion, which is my goal now. So I couldn’t pass it up. What heavyweight would pass it up? Of course in an ideal world, we would like more fights at heavyweight to build up, but let’s do it.”

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“My career is long, since 1999. For me, looking for the heavyweight title (shot) again, I have to beat everybody. I was happy when I heard that Steve got the chance because we can have the rematch. I think he was angry after our fight in 2008. That fight was very good, interesting for TV, for fans, and I believe it will be the same on Saturday afternoon.”

Will this fight be like the fight of four years ago (2008)?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“Well the poster says it all – “Bigger, Better, Stronger”. I feel I’m a little bigger. I feel I’m stronger. I feel I’m better. It’s the same thing with him. It’s the same with him. It’s going to be different, it’s going to be similar. I can’t tell the future. I’m going to go out and perform my best, just as I know he is. We’re going to see what happens.

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“We’re going to see what Cunningham brings to the ring. I’m ready for everything. For war? I love war because the fans love watching war, and I’ll have more fans after these kinds of fights. I’m ready for everything. It’s my job.”

How important is this fight?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“I look at every fight like that. Of course this is like every other fight – the biggest fight of my career. I look at it like that. I train with that mindset, and I pray to perform.

In what round is this fight going to end?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“I’ve never been a guy to predict. I leave that to Muhammad Ali. I fight. I fight to win. If I see that I can end the fight, I’ll go for it. If not, I’m still working. I’m still fighting to win. So I’m not predicting.”

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“Only God knows what will happen on Saturday. I’m healthy. I’m ready to fight. God gave me talent, a big heart. Let’s go do it. It’s my job.”

What do you think the main difference in the fight will be given the higher weight class?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“Of course a little more power. I feel stronger. I feel more comfortable at this weight. I feel confident. I’m just ready to go. Like he says, we fight. That’s what we do. That’s what we get paid to do. That’s our job. I’m ready to fight. I can show you better than tell you. Then after the fight we can talk.”

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“As you’ll see, I’m a different fighter. I have a new coach. I don’t stand in front of an opponent. I stand side to side and slip a lot of punches. I can hit harder too. It depends what Steve brings to the ring. If he wants a war, I’m ready. I’m a tough mountain boy.”

(For Adamek) How do you handle being the favorite in this fight?

TOMASZ ADAMEK:
“For me it doesn’t matter. I’m the favorite, not the favorite. I’m going into the ring, bring my heart, show my class, and win this fight. I was many times, not the favorite, and (still) won the fight. I’m never looking for this.”

(For Cunningham) Is this fight personal for you?

STEVE CUNNINGHAM:
“No. It’s not personal at all. The first fight he won fair and square. Two judges said he won, and one said I did. He gets the decision. I didn’t harbor any hate, or any anger. I don’t have any hate or anger. Shoot, I was rooting for him in some of his fights. We have much respect for the man and his team, but we have to face each other again. No hard feelings. It’s the business. It’s what we do. We put on a show for America and hopefully they accept it, and enjoy it.”

DECEMBER 22 FIGHT INFO:

December 22nd at Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem in Pennsylvania. 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.

The main event and co-feature will be broadcast on NBC network TV beginning 4PM ET. The card is presented by Main Events and Ziggy Promotions in association with Peltz Boxing, DiBella Entertainment and Pushka.

To purchase the remaining tickets while they last, contact the Sands Bethlehem Event Center box office 610-297-7414, Main Events 973-200-7050 and Peltz Boxing 215-765-0922, Ticketmaster, http://www.ticketmaster.com/Tomasz-Adamek-vs-Steve-Cunningham-tickets/artist/1794999 , and Ticketmaster Sales: during regular hours 800-745-3000, Ticketmaster Express: automated phone line for self-service ticket sales, even after hours, 866-448-7849.

For additional information on the event, seating arrangements, or ticketing, visit the event page located on the website. www.sandseventcenter.com

FOLLOW US:

www.mainevents.com

facebook.com/maineventsboxing
Twitter: @main_events or twitter.com/main_events

Twitter: #AdamekCunningham2

Facebook:facebook.com/MainEventsBoxing facebook.com/NBCSports

Video streaming by Ustream

Las Vegas, Nevada – STRIKEFORCE® welterweight champion and seasoned UFC® veteran Nate Marquardt will defend his title against current number one contender Tarec Saffiedine on Saturday, Jan. 12 as STRIKEFORCE® visits Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Okla. In the night’s co-main event, Oklahoma State University All-American wrestler and STRIKEFORCE Grand Prix heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier takes on kickboxing veteran Dion Staring. The event will air live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) as part of the premium network’s Free Preview Weekend whereby more than 80 million households nationwide will have access to SHOWTIME, SHOWTIME HD, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND and more.

This will mark the final STRIKEFORCE event on SHOWTIME.

“Since 2009, SHOWTIME has been a great partner and we appreciate its support of STRIKEFORCE and our athletes,” Scott Coker, STRIKEFORCE CEO, said. “For our final event, we’ve loaded the card with some outstanding fights. This is going to be a memorable night for the sport of mixed martial arts.”

“We are proud of our association with Scott Coker and the entire STRIKEFORCE team,” said Stephen Espinoza, Executive Vice President and General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports. “From Gina Carano to Ronda Rousey, Fedor Emelianenko to Daniel Cormier, Nick Diaz to Gilbert Melendez, SHOWTIME Sports and STRIKEFORCE have built some of the biggest stars in the sport and have produced many of the most watched and most intriguing fights in the history of MMA. We look forward to another night of competitive and explosive STRIKEFORCE fights on SHOWTIME on January 12 in OKC.”

In addition to the main and co-main events, STRIKEFORCE® will also feature the following matchups that include several past champions and many of the sports top prospects:

· Former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett meets Austrian powerhouse Nandor Guelmino

· Former light heavyweight champ Gegard Mousasi takes on the heavy-handed Mike Kyle

· Former middleweight champ “Jacare” Souza faces UFC star Ed Herman

· Top lightweight contender Pat Healy will be in action against an opponent yet to be determined

· Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Roger Gracie takes on talented striker Anthony Smith at middleweight

· U.S. Army Ranger Tim Kennedy vs. Trevor Smith in a fight involving top middleweights

· Elite kickboxer KJ Noons meets second-generation star Ryan Couture in a lightweight matchup

· Cincinnati’s Jorge Gurgel is set to battle Brazilian prospect Adriano Martins at lightweight

· At lightweight, winner of four straight Estevan Payan vs. Team Alpha Male’s Michael Bravo

STRIKEFORCE® will air live on SHOWTIME® at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast), while preliminary fights will be shown live on SHOWTIME EXTREME® at 8 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on West Coast). Additional fights scheduled for the event are expected to be released shortly.

Tickets for STRIKEFORCE® are on sale now and are priced at $150, $100, $70 and $50. Tickets are available at the Chesapeake Energy Arena box office, all Ticketmaster locations, at Ticketmaster.com or 1-800-745-3000. Applicable service charges may apply.

For more information or the latest STRIKEFORCE news, visit www.strikeforce.com. All bouts live and subject to change.

About STRIKEFORCE® – www.strikeforce.com

Owned and operated by Forza, LLC, a subsidiary of Zuffa, LLC, which also owns the Ultimate Fighting Championship® brand, STRIKEFORCE® is a world-class mixed martial arts promotion based in Las Vegas, Nev. that currently holds live events annually across the United States. First established as a mixed martial arts entity in 2006, STRIKEFORCE now broadcasts its events live on SHOWTIME® and has produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network. With a growing roster featuring the world’s elite competitors, STRIKEFORCE has cemented its place as a leader in providing quality mixed martial arts action.

About Showtime Networks Inc.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME 2™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILY ZONE® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD™, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ HD, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel™. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®.

Chesapeake Energy Arena:
Chesapeake Energy Arena is celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2012 and recently completed a more than $90 million renovation that included a new grand entrance and other significant upgrades. The arena is managed by SMG, which since 1977 has provided management services to more than 220 public assembly facilities including arenas, stadiums, theatres and performing arts centers, equestrian facilities and convention, congress and exhibition cen­ters.

Former world champion Juan Manuel Lopez will return to the ring against an opponent to be named on February 2nd in Puerto Rico according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

“I’ve been training since August and I feel in good shape for my comeback,” Lopez said. “I will fight in another division, but the featherweights should know that I’m not out of that division. I’m going to fight in the junior lightweights in my return bout and I’m going to see what happens.”

In mid-November, Henry Neumann, Puerto Rico’s secretary of sports and recreation, ended Lopez’s suspension.

“Juanma Lopez can continue his career starting today,” Neumann said at the time. “Practically, this is a pardon, taking into consideration Juanma’s career as an amateur and professional. Juanma has been an example, serving his community work and adding the forgiveness of the referee.”

“I learned a lot from this experience,” Lopez said. “I feel so good because I can fight again and continue my career. This is my sport, but is my job too.”

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (December 20, 2012) – Negotiations are about to begin for arguably the most anticipated match-up in women’s professional boxing history between 14-time, three-division world champion Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm (32-2-3, 9 KOs) and undefeated Cecilia “First Lady” Braekhus (21-0, 5 KOs), considered by most to be the top two female pound-for-pound boxers in the world, for July in Las Vegas.

Braekhus issued a challenge by way of a video tape shown after Holm’s recent victory against Diana Prazak at Route 66 Casino Hotel in Albuquerque. After introducing herself as the World Boxing Council, World Boxing Association and World Boxing organization welterweight champion, Braekhus said the following, directed to Holm: “I have an important message for you. Your promoter (Lenny Fresquez) has been saying that this fight (vs. Anne Sophie Mathis) confirms that Holly is the No. 1 female fighter in the world. I do understand that you are avoiding me, but listen carefully: next July I will be in Las Vegas. You will meet me there? Let’s find out who is the best female fighter in the world.”

The Colombian-born, Norway-residing Braekhus has never fought outside of Europe as a professional. Thirty-four of Holm’s 37 home fights have been in her hometown, Albuquerque, where she regularly sells-out with crowds in excess of 3,000.

“I’d love to fight her to make that happen,” Holm proclaimed as she accepted Braekhus’ challenge. “Lenny (Fresquez) will talk to them. I appreciate her wanting to make the fight, as well; that’s the only way we can get a good fight. Two fighters mutually agreeing to fight is what it comes down to. I’m honored that she has challenged me.

“I would never make a video of myself to send to someone. That’s not my style. I’m open to fighting her, really, wherever. I’ve always been open to fighting, wherever, and I think there’s a big misconception that, oh, I only fight here. I fight here (Albuquerque) because the opportunities have been here, and that’s the bottom line. If there’s an opportunity that it’s going to be in Las Vegas, then, by all means, let’s make it happen.”

Holm and Braekhus, combined, are 33-1-1 in world title fights, as well as 19-1-1 in fights against other world champions (Holm is 22-1-1 and 14-1-1, respectively, Braekhus 11-0 and 5-0). Holm has an overwhelming advantage in experience fighting quality opponents, having defeated a Who’s Who of women boxers, from the light welterweight through light middleweight divisions, including Christy Martin, Jane Couch, Mary Jo Sanders, Chevelle Hallback and Terri Blair twice apiece, Duda Yankovich, Myriam Lamare, and Mia St. John. Braekhus, who has also defeated Hallback, is coming off a 10-round decision over Mathis, whom Holm split two fights with in the past year. An amazing 212 of Holm’s 275 pro rounds fought have been in world championships; Braekhus has 100 of 154

Fresquez hopes that Braekhus and her promoter, Sauerland Boxing, are serious about coming to Las Vegas and fighting Holm. “I’ve been negotiating with them for two years and they’ve avoided Holly,” Fresquez reported. “I sent Katie Sauerland, I think that’s her name, an email but have not gotten a response back. I understand why – Holly is the pound-for-pound champion of the world. Cecilia carries a lot of belts but most are those that Holly vacated. Cecilia is kind of carrying Holly’s leftovers.

“I know who the best fighter is, the reigning Queen of Boxing, Holly Holm! It’s Cecilia’s job to fight Holly and try to take her crown away by beating her. We know that she’s in the top five, pound-for-pound, but Holly is the best. You have to beat the best to be the best.”

The great Lucia Rijker, who trained Prazak for her fight with Holm, added, “That (Holm vs. Braekhus) would be a phenomenal fight.”

Women’s mega-fights are difficult to pull off for a wide variety of reasons. Two perfect examples of mega-fights that failed to materialize are Laila Ali vs. Ann Wolfe and Rijker vs. Martin.

Fresquez is pressing hard to make what potentially could be the greatest fight in women’s boxing history.

For more information go to www.fresquezproductions.com or follow Holly Holm on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HollyHolm.

Singapore (Dec. 20, 2012) – GLORY announced today that it has signed seven new athletes from six different countries to its ever-growing powerhouse roster of elite stand-up fighters.

Four-time Muay Thai champion and flyweight (143 pounds/65 kilograms) sensation Kevin “El Presidente” Ross (36-9, 12 KOs) and rising middleweight (187 pounds/85 kilograms) star Eddie “Showtime” Walker (9-1, 7 KOs) of The United States, light-heavyweight KO artist Stephane Susperregui (32-4-1, 27 KOs) of France, surging welterweight “Bazooka” Joseph Valtellini (6-1, 6 KOs) of Canada, heavyweight Tae Kwon Do phenom Yong Soo Park (14-7, 8 KO’s) of South-Korea, lightweight champion (154 pounds/70 kilograms) Roman “Thunder” Mailov (23-3, 12 KOs) of The Ukraine and former two-time amateur boxing champion turned lightweight kickboxing champion Max Baumert (17-1, 10 KOs) of Germany have all joined the ranks of the world’s premier martial arts stand-up fighting league.

“We are excited about bringing this outstanding collection of highly-accomplished world champions and emerging young stars from diverse martial arts backgrounds and nationalities into the GLORY fold and we are looking forward to seeing them compete on the big stage where they will have the opportunity to take their budding careers to all-new, unprecedented levels,” said GLORY CEO Marcus Luer.

The 32-year-old Ross, who fights out of Dublin, Calif. was named Muay Thai North American Fighter of the Year in 2010 and has since been recognized as the face of the sport in The United States. He holds notable victories over decorated Thai champions Malaipet “The Diamond” Sasiprapa and “Coke” Chunhawat as well as American stars Justin Greskiewicz and Chike Lindsay.

Despite an advanced skill set and a handful of highlight reel worthy performances in the ring, Walker of Atlanta, Ga., was relatively unknown amongst martial arts fight fans until Oct. 13 when the protégé of six-time world champion Manu N’toh staged an incredible comeback KO victory against hard-hitting fellow American Joe “Stitch ‘Em Up” Schilling in Las Vegas, Nev.

Walker survived a knockdown at the hands of Schilling in the first round and, another in the second stanza, but weathered the storm and suddenly unleashed a monstrous right hook in close quarters that dropped Schilling for the 10-count at the 2:13 mark of the second round.

Mailov is a ferocious 21-year-old battler who is in the midst of a 15-fight win streak after going unbeaten in both 2011 and 2012 while competing mostly in Russia and his native Ukraine. A five-time title holder, Mailov’s last win came on Nov. 8 when he scored a crushing fourth round KO on Armin Pumpanmuang Windy Sport of Thailand with a knee strike to the body during a matchup in Moscow.

Susperregui, a 26-year-old, four-time national champion in his native France, made a big mark in the sport in April, winning a one-night, four-man tournament in Geneva, Switzerland. Despite his relatively young career, the heavy-handed Susperregui has had considerable exposure to the international fight scene, facing rivals Steve McKinnon in China and Nathan Corbett in Australia.

Universally regarded as the hottest prospect out of Canada, the hard-hitting 27-year-old Valtellini stormed onto the professional fight scene after amassing a perfect 11-0 record as an amateur and has since claimed all six of his wins on the professional circuit by way of KO. A high school teacher by day, Valtellini is a lifelong martial artist who began his training in Tae Kwon Do at age seven, eventually earning his second degree black belt in the discipline before transitioning to Muay Thai.

Just 20 years old, Baumert has already made a mark in the martial arts fight world. A veteran of 35 boxing bouts, Baumert has captured stand-up fighting championships on national and continental levels and has competed four times in the last four months, winning each of his bouts by way of unanimous decision.

Known for his dangerous, yet graceful kicking skills, the 31-year-old Soo Park is a veteran of the national Korean Tae Kwon Do team who has claimed the Korea National Invitation Tae Kwon Do Championship at heavyweight. Soo Park established his presence on the international fight scene in his professional debut, scoring a first round KO with a low kick on former Japanese sumo wrestler turned professional boxer, Rikijyo, and then taking out Japanese Karate fighter Daisuke Watanabe, also in the first round of their matchup, with a front kick to the face.

GLORY matchups for each of the newly-signed competitors will be announced soon. In the meantime, GLORY will hit Saitama Super Arena on Saturday, Dec. 31 with its highly-anticipated ‘GSI presents DREAM 18 and GLORY 4 Tokyo – New Year’s Eve Special’ double-header event that will begin at 4 p.m. JST with a stacked DREAM Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight card and continue with the GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam that will be headlined by a one-night, 16-man heavyweight tournament

The single-elimination tournament field is loaded with the world’s top heavyweight stand-up fighters, including world No. 1 ranked Semmy Schilt (39-6, 18 KO’s), Remy Bonjasky (77-14, 40 KO’s), Peter Aerts (104-30-1, 78 KO’s), Gokhan Saki (77-15, 53 KO’s), Daniel Ghita (44-7, 34 KO’s), Errol Zimmerman (76-16-1, 41 KO’s), Anderson ‘Braddock’ Silva (32-8-1, 22 KO’s) and Sergei Kharitonov (22-7, 12 KO’s). The winner of the tournament will take home a Grand Prize of $400,000, and a total of $600,000 in prize money will be awarded to tournament participants.

Visit www.gloryworldseries.com for more information.

About GLORY:

The GLORY World Series (www.gloryworldseries.com) is the world’s premier martial arts stand-up fighting league, staging events across the globe and offering up to $1,000,000 in prize money to the winners of 16-man ‘Grand Slam’ tournaments, which are open to only the best fighters in each weight class. The fight series also includes 8-man ‘Slam’ tournaments and events with traditional, single bouts.

With television deals spanning every continent, plus a groundbreaking online video streaming system and the world’s largest online martial arts library, GLORY is one of the world’s most widely-broadcast sporting organizations.

Owned and operated by Glory Sports International (GSI), the organization has offices in Holland, the UK, Tokyo, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Its personnel includes a diverse mix of award-winning hedge-fund and private equity investors; principals from pioneering sports marketing agency Total Sport Asia; and senior level executives from several leading sports franchises, including WWE, FIFA, Golden Glory, Champions League and It’s Showtime.

Following a previous successful joint promotion last February in the Wishaw Sports centre, Chris Gilmour and Paul Graham stage their next joint venture in the new state of the art regional sports facility at Ravenscraig in Motherwell on Saturday March 9th. This will be the third time the venue has been used for professional boxing and it is also used frequently for amateur boxing tournaments

“It will be a bumper bill with possibly up to ten fights on the card with hopefully a few all Scottish contests and maybe even a Scottish title fight” Said Prospect Boxing’s Paul Graham.

“It’s early days just now but Chris, myself and Chris’s father Tommy Gilmour MBE will be sitting down and discussing what fighters will be available and if possible who can fight who from their respective camps. Looking through the respective roster’s, there are some good match ups.

Initially pencilled in for the card is Iain Butcher, Sean Watson and Rhys Pagan from Prospect Boxing, while Chris Gilmour’s will also showcase Jordan McCorry, Darren McAdam and Gary McCallum.

With six fights already added to the card, Paul Graham anticipates that further fighters will be added including a title fight “I have a couple of débutantes that will probably be on the bill should they be licensed in time by the BBB of C and I think that Chris has ideas for another couple of his stable.

He adds “March 9th will be a cracking start to the next season with some all Scottish fights for some and testing fights for others. This year Scottish boxing was quite vibrant considering the current economic climate, so lets hope that it can continue into 2013.

More details will be revealed after the new year.

For More details please follow on Twitter @prospectboxing or on Facebook www.facebook.com/prospectboxing

Since acquiring his promotional license with successful entrepreneur Mike Battah, two-time World Champion Jesse James Leija has produced four successful fight cards in a collaborative effort with industry stalwarts Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, Inc.

Although the pairings have been fruitful, the San Antonio boxing legend sees the future of Leija-Battah Promotions achieving long-term success upon adopting a much different and time tested business model.

“Things have been great up to this point,” professes Jesse James Leija. “But moving forward, we believe that we will yield greater long term success by focusing our efforts on building a quality stable of young, talented fighters in and around the San Antonio, Texas area.”

A lot like within the classic era of boxing when promoters were successful without the benefit of television dates and already established fighters, the former Super Featherweight Champion believes that community involvement will prove to be the winning ingredient in his recipe for success.

“It’s about achieving community support, and we feel the best way to gain this is by building up an exciting group of young local fighters and developing their skills over time. Casual sports fans are more willing to support their own, rather than supporting a fighter from another part of the world. So we have to establish the prominence of charismatic young fighters who will capture the imagination of the casual sports fan and bring them out to the events.”

Just like during the days of the classic Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, Leija-Battah Promotions looks to establish their reputation for delivering quality fights on a consistent basis to the casual sports fans in San Antonio, Texas.

The architects of this time-tested business model were Hall of Fame matchmaker Don “War a Week” Chargin and Hall of Fame promoter Aileen Eaton. At the world renowned Olympic Auditorium, the dynamic duo of west coast boxing produced over 2,500 successful fight cards, 100 championship bouts, and 10,000 individual matches.

The Great Mr. Don Chargin cultivated numerous world champions from the local level, like Loreto Garza, Tony “The Tiger” Lopez, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, and Bobby Chacon.

Jesse James Leija hopes to follow in the footsteps of “War a Week” Chargin.

“San Antonio has always been a great fight community that has supported their local fighters for decades. But it’s been a while since anyone has given them someone to really gravitate towards, so that’s what we’re going to do. Our first effort in re-establishing the old school model of fight promotions will take place on Friday, December 21st, at La Villita Assembly Hall in Downtown San Antonio. The response has been overwhelming so far. The venue is almost sold out and everyone is energized about our grassroots effort in live boxing.”

With over a million inhabitants in the greater San Antonio area and only one established major sports franchise, Leija hopes to create the next great sports franchise in the Alamo City. Over time, the former world champion hopes to establish a loyal fan base filled with regular season ticket holders…just like during the legendary two decade run at the famed Olympic Auditorium in LA.

“Leija-Battah Promotions hopes to become San Antonio’s next great sports franchise that offers a quality product on a regular basis. Rather than offering the local fight fans the seasonal fight card, we want to give the great fight fans of SA consistent events over the next several years and hopeful cultivate the next world champion in boxing from San Antonio, Texas.”

Leija–Battah Promotions presents “River City Rumble” at La Villita Assembly Hall in San Antonio, Texas, on Friday, December 21st. The singular Holiday boxing event will feature 9 professional, action filled bouts on one fight card.

The spectacular Leija-Battah presentation will showcase current WBC USNBC Flyweight Champion Joseph Rios in the main event of the evening.

The holiday bout sheet will also include San Antonio favorites Kendo and Jairo Castaneda, as well as Briton Steven Hall, Benjamin Whitaker, Javier Rodriguez, and Joseph Rodriguez.

Please call 210-979-3302 for ticket availability to this special Christmas time event.

Doors open at 6PM CST, and tickets start as low as $20 for the fantastic 9 bout fight card.

Leija-Battah Promotions – San Antonio’s newest franchise in sports entertainment!!

opportunity of a lifetime after being brought in to the GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam event as a replacement for an injured Fabiano ‘Cyclone’ Aoki, and will take on superstar Daniel Ghita (44-7-0, 34 KO’s) in the opening round of the one-night, 16-man elimination tournament at Saitama Super Arena on New Year’s Eve.

The switch was confirmed by Glory Sports International yesterday following Cyclone’s withdrawal from the event due to a torn ligament sustained in his left knee during a recent sparring practice with fellow Japanese heavyweight Koichi. Cyclone did not want to withdraw from the tournament, but doctors told him it would not be feasible for him to attempt to fight with such an injury.

“Naturally we are disappointed to see Fabiano Cyclone withdraw from this tournament. He has a crowd-pleasing style and we were looking forward to seeing him perform in front of his home fans. Such injuries are sometimes a side-effect of the hard training these fighters go through and we wish him a speedy recovery,” says Glory Sports International CEO Marcus Luer.

“His replacement is Jhonata Diniz, a young fighter from the famous fighting Brazilian city of Curitiba. He exemplifies that city’s infamously aggressive martial arts style and, from what we saw of his organization debut at GLORY 2 Brussels earlier this year, I think it’s safe to say that the crowd will definitely be entertained by what he brings to the ring.

“He’s facing Ghita first, and Ghita is second-favorite to win the tournament. It’s a tall order, but Diniz didn’t hesitate to accept; he says is very much looking forward to the challenge.”

Interestingly, Cyclone is half-Brazilian, with one of his parents coming from the same Brazilian city – Belem – that is home to the former UFC light-heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida, who is also half-Japanese, half-Brazilian. So it is fitting that it is a Brazilian that has replaced him, albeit one from a different city.

Curitiba is well known in the martial arts world as being the home of the famed Chute Boxe team which dominated PRIDE FC and produced legendary names such as Wanderlei Silva, Anderson Silva and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua.

Diniz came up through the Thai Boxe team, Chute Boxe’s main rival for dominance on the regional Muay Thai and kickboxing circuit. Curitiba teams seem to have developed a super-aggressive, almost reckless fighting style, either independently or as a response to each other continuously upping the ante. Diniz’s past fights confirm this, displaying at times almost a complete disregard for his own safety as he looks to finish his opponents.

He recently moved to the Netherlands to pursue his training and has been taken under the wing of the accomplished Cor Hemmers and his son Nicky Hemmers. According to the elder Hemmers, “Diniz is going to become a serious force to be reckoned with over the next few years and this tournament will be the start of that journey.”

Two other matches have also been confirmed for the GLORY event on New Year’s Eve. A 187 pound/85 kilogram match between Toshio Matsumoto (37-9-6,1NC, 30 KO’s) and Jason ‘Tyson’ Wilnis (18-2-1) forms one of the evening’s Superfights and sees the more experienced Matsumoto taking on a 22-year old who is nicknamed ‘Tyson’ for a reason. Wilnis – younger brother of fellow professional Jaffar – has been knocking all comers out on his way to the big show and will be looking to shine in Japan.

The second match sees 21-year old Mutsuki ‘Double Dragon’ Ebata putting his impressive 16-1-1 record on the line against Korean opponent Sang-Jae Kim at 117 pounds/53 kilograms.

‘GSI presents DREAM 18 and GLORY 4 Tokyo – New Year’s Eve Special’ is a double-header mega-event which will provide a dynamite ending to the 2012 fighting calendar. The first half consists of the DREAM 18 mixed martial arts event while the latter half is the biggest stand-up fighting event in history. ‘GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam’ features 16 heavyweight strikers in a one-night elimination tournament to determine which of them is the best.

Among those participating in the heavyweight tournament are world No. 1 ranked Semmy Schilt (39-6, 18 KO’s), Remy Bonjasky (77-14, 40 KO’s), Peter Aerts (104-30-1, 78 KO’s), Gokhan Saki (77-15, 53 KO’s), Daniel Ghita (44-7, 34 KO’s), Errol Zimmerman (76-16-1, 41 KO’s), Anderson ‘Braddock’ Silva (32-8-1, 22 KO’s) and Sergei Kharitonov (22-7, 12 KO’s).

The winner of the tournament will take home a Grand Prize of $400,000, and a total of $600,000 in prize money will be awarded to tournament participants.

Visit www.gloryworldseries.com for more information.

About GLORY:

The GLORY World Series (www.gloryworldseries.com) is the world’s premier martial arts stand-up fighting league, staging events across the globe and offering up to $1,000,000 in prize money to the winners of 16-man ‘Grand Slam’ tournaments, which are open to only the best fighters in each weight class. The fight series also includes 8-man ‘Slam’ tournaments and events with traditional, single bouts.

With television deals spanning every continent, plus a groundbreaking online video streaming system and the world’s largest online martial arts library, GLORY is one of the world’s most widely-broadcast sporting organizations.

Owned and operated by Glory Sports International (GSI), the organization has offices in Holland, the UK, Tokyo, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Its personnel includes a diverse mix of award-winning hedge-fund and private equity investors; principals from pioneering sports marketing agency Total Sport Asia; and senior level executives from several leading sports franchises, including WWE, FIFA, Golden Glory, Champions League and It’s Showtime.