ARLINGTON, TX (Sept. 15, 2016) – Canelo Alvarez (47-1-1, 33 KOs) and Liam “Beefy” Smith (23-0-1, 13 KOs) held their final press conference, today at the great AT&T Stadium, ahead of their highly anticipated showdown that will be aired live on Saturday, September 17, presented by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 6:00 p.m. PT/9:00 p.m. ET. The fighting stars were joined by Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Oscar De La Hoya, Future Hall of Famer and Golden Boy Promotions Partner, Bernard Hopkins, Dallas Cowboys Owner, President and General Manager Jerry Jones, Director of HBO Sports Tony Walker, and the full pay-per-view undercard.

Below is what the fighters had to say at today’s press conference.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions

“This Saturday night-over Mexican Independence weekend-former two-division world champion, Canelo Alvarez will look to reclaim the holiday for all Hispanics fight fans. Many boxing legends such as Julio Cesar Chavez himself have fought over Mexican Independence weekend, which has been a time for all boxing fans to gather with their friends and family and enjoy a great night.

“We are overjoyed to be bringing this fight to all of Canelo’s many fans here in Texas to one of the biggest and most iconic sporting stadiums in the nation-AT&T Stadium, home to America’s team, the Dallas Cowboys. They say everything is bigger in Texas, and this certainly couldn’t be truer with this venue for Canelo vs. Smith.
“For this particular fight, the stakes are high and everything is on the line for both Canelo Alvarez and Liam Smith, as these fighters seek to establish themselves as the true WBO Junior Middleweight Champion of the world.

“Tickets are still available for purchase and sales have been through the roof, we are already close to 40,000 have been outpacing Manny Pacquaio’s last two fights held at AT&T Stadium, but luckily there are still some available for the Saturday night showdown. So get them while you can by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000, or visiting www.ticketmaster.com. Additionally, walk up purchases are available at the AT&T Stadium Box Office.”

JERRY JONES, Dallas Cowboys Owner, President and General Manager:

“I dreamed I was going to spend my days around men and women that could or would be world champions. Men and women who were willing to lay on it all on the line, athletically. I wanted to rub elbows with the top. Oscar the fact that I get to stand with you, have your fighters stand in this stadium chief combatants: Canelo Alvarez and Liam Smith, has been a fulfillment on that dream.

“We had Oscar talk to the Dallas Cowboys, and he mentioned that ‘There’s a champion in each of you. You’ll find out when you get ready.’ When I think about the legacy and how you’re moving, you really encourage a whole team; that is not only because of this particular fight, but you really are a leader in this.

“The biggest source of pride for me and one of the our largest dependencies are on the Latino fans. The Cowboys depend on them, and they love boxing, so the cowboys love boxing. Saturday night, will be one of the best-selling boxing events for this stadium and we are all looking forward to an exciting night.”

CANELO ALVAREZ, Former Two-Division World Champion:

“Thank everyone for coming and supporting this great event.

“We know how dangerous and difficult Liam Smith will be. We have not taken him lightly and we know he will come to fight on Saturday.

“But that will make a great night of boxing for Mexicans and boxing fans all over. Hopefully by the end of it, I will have my hand in the air screaming Viva Mexico!”

EDDY REYNOSO, Head Trainer of Canelo Alvarez:

“Thank you to all of you who are involved in this great event. There is nothing left to say, we’ve had a great camp, and thanks again for all the help and support.”

JOSE “CHEPO” REYNOSO, Manager and Trainer of Canelo Alvarez:

“Thank everyone for coming and attending this great show. We are coming off a tremendous 10 week training camp.

“We have great goals and one is to break the attendance record in a boxing match here at this great stadium.

“This is another opportunity to become a world champion, another opportunity to continue to make history.

“We can’t wait to hear all the people yell at the end of this fight Viva Mexico and Viva Canelo Alvarez!”

LIAM “BEEFY” SMITH, WBO Junior Middleweight World Champion:

“Thank everyone, team Canelo and my team for this opportunity. We are very calm about entering this fight.

“Canelo is an elite fighter and this is my chance to go up in the ladder.

“I look forward to Saturday and the show we are going to put on for all the fans.”

FRANK WARREN, President of Box Nation and Promoter of Liam Smith:

“Thank Oscar, Eric, and Robert. Thank you Jerry Jones for the stadium and to the

“Liam is a great fighter, a come forward fighter, he has the style of Mexican brawlers something we call in Liverpool a Scousce fighter. This is a great battle, potentially ‘Fight of the Year.’

“You guys are going to be great fans of him. He is coming in as a lion, an undefeated fighter on an eight-fight knock out streak.”

JOE GALLAGHER, 2015 Ring Magazine Trainer of the Year and trainer of Liam Smith:

“This is going to be a great fight, he’s a superstar.

“We know that Saul wants to be a world champion, but Liam is ready to stay that way.”

“KING” GABE ROSADO, Former World Title Challenger:

“I want to thank god for this opportunity, without him noting would be possible and I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions. I wasn’t spoon fed coming up, but this is a new and approved Gabriel Rosado.

“Vargas and I work well together, he lit up the fighter in me. I know this is a fight, but this is also entertainment. I’m going to bring a knock out on the 17th.”

WILLIE “EL MONGOOSE” MONROE, JR. Former World Title Challenger:

“I come from nothing and I want to thank my team and my brother for everything.

“We worked hard for these opportunities, we gave gone from fighting out of the garage and living off of food stamps and now we are on the big stage. This is one of the biggest stage and I want to thank you all for your support today.”

JOSEPH “JOJO” DIAZ JR, NABF Featherweight Champion:

“I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions, Jerry Jones, HBO, Adriana’s Insurance and my team for this great opportunity.

“This is the biggest stage in my career, thus far, and I promise all my fans to expect the best from me. I will put on a great fight and show all the fans who Jose Diaz, Jr. is! See you all in two days.”

ANDREW “EL CHANGO” CANCIO, Featherweight Contender:

“Stylistically, it’s a great match up. I am well prepared and I’m thankful for this fight. I am excited to brawl and to showcase myself in front of all the fans at this great stadium.”

DIEGO DE LA HOYA, WBC Youth Super Bantamweight Champion:

“I am very excited for this opportunity and I am very thankful to Golden Boy Promotions.

“This fight is going to open many doors for me and I can’t wait to give everyone a good show.”

ORLANDO ‘ORLANDITO’ DEL VALLE, Super Welterweight Contender:

“I guarantee you fireworks on Saturday, September 17. I want to thank all my sponsors and my team for this great opportunity.

“The Puerto Rico vs. Mexico, rivalry always grantees action, and Fireworks on fight night.

“I know the odds are crazy against me, but encourage you all to bet on me, because I am going to win on Saturday night.”

ARTHUR R. PELULO, President of Banner Promotions:

“Most great fighters enter the ring knowing they’re going to be great fighters and that is who Willie Monroe, Jr. is. He is a very entertaining fighter, a young man who I know as family.

“I know he will be giving all boxing fans a great show this Saturday.

“Eight months ago I was in Manchester, my guy was fighting Liam Smith, challenging him for the vacant title. I figured I was going to win, I was told we are going to win, but my guy was knocked out in the fifth round. And let me tell you, Liam is the real deal. I have been promoting for 30 years, and I have no skin in this, but Liam Smith just keeps coming, he is the real deal. I am not promoting the fight, Oscar is, but Liam Smith took the victory that night and I know he is an intense fighter. Fans will be in for a great fight.”

FERNANDO VARGAS, Former World Champion and Trainer to Gabriel Rosado

“We are excited, ready, Gabriel is a great listener. Starting at 18 and being where he is and his boxuing IQ has improved.

“We’ve worked hard and are ready.”

TONY WALKER, Director of HBO Sports:

“On behalf of Peter Nelson and the staff at HBO, it’s an honor to be a part of so many premiere organizations and to be able to open up this grand palace.

“Thank you Liam and Canelo for taking this challenge and reach in to fans on this great weekend of boxing.”

GREG ALVAREZ, Combative Sports Manager of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation

“There’s a lot of work that goes into these fights, to make them all happen. Watch these guys back here, they are great fighters and this is going to be a great event. Let’s buy more tickets and create bigger and better fights.”

Canelo vs. Smith, a 12-round fight for the WBO Junior Middleweight World Championship, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Frank Warren and Canelo Promotions. Gabriel Rosado vs. Willie Monroe, Jr. is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Banner Promotions and Diego De La Hoya vs. Luis Orlando Del Valle is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Roc Nation Sports. The event is sponsored by “Tecate, BORN BOLD,” O’Reilly Auto Parts, “Hennessy. Never Stop. Never Settle,” “Adriana’s Insurance, El seguro que necesitas Al precio que quieres pagar,” “AT&T, mobilizing your world,” and Casa Mexico Tequila and will take place on Saturday, September 17 at AT&T Stadium. Doors open at 2:00 p.m. CT, first fight and the RingTvLive.com live stream begins at 3:20 p.m. ET/2:20 p.m. CT/12:20 p.m. PT; the preliminary live stream begins at 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT/3:30 p.m. PT; with the main show produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. CT/6:00 p.m. PT.

B-roll and images of the fighters are available for use and download HERE or by copying and pasting: bit.ly/CaneloSmith. Video and photo credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions.

Tickets are priced at $750, $500, $300, $200, $100, $85, $50 and $40, not including applicable service charges with a total ticket limit of 8 per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also will be available for purchase online at www.ticketmaster.com. Additionally, walk up purchases are available at the AT&T Stadium Box Office (Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. CT to 5:00 p.m. CT).

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 12, 2016) – With September being National Hispanic Heritage Month, former two-division world champion Canelo Alvarez (47-1-1, 33 KOs) will take back Mexican Independence Day weekend for Latino fight fans in his upcoming battle against WBO Junior Middleweight World Champion Liam “Beefy” Smith (23-0-1, 13 KOs). Reclaiming the distinctive weekend is a greater symbol of the arrival of Canelo Alvarez to the very top of the sport, as the last Mexican fighter who owned the action-packed weekend was Golden Boy Promotions’ Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya.

The prized Mexican Independence weekend was a tradition started by the legend himself, Julio Cesar Chavez. Chavez’s relentless Mexican style of attack is what made holiday weekends worthy of gathering family and friends together to watch the matches – a legacy that all Mexican boxers strove to live up to. That legacy was officially passed on to Oscar De La Hoya in a career defining match on September 18, 1998, where De La Hoya met with Cesar Chavez in the ring for the WBC World welterweight title. From that point on, the “Golden Boy” was in charge of headlining on the two biggest dates for the Latino fan base – Mexican Independence Day and Cinco de Mayo weekends.

Though some of boxing’s biggest and most talented fighters come from all over Latin America, the September 17 weekend is not just for Mexican fight fans – but all Latinos who share a passion for boxing.

Here is what Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya and Latino Fighters of the Canelo-Smith card had to say about fighting on the historic weekend:

Canelo Alvarez, Former Two-Divison World Champion

“Getting to fight at the AT&T Stadium in Texas is a huge privilege for me and my career. Fighting on this weekend is powerful because it tells the story of Mexicans all over, making a win even more important. This fight is going to be historic; from the venue, the title, to the fans who are going to show up – I take all of this into consideration as I train hard for this match.”

Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions

“Mexican Independence Day has always been a huge weekend in boxing. Boxing’s biggest giants have all fought on the historic weekend, and to have a talented Mexican boxer like Canelo Alvarez take it back for the Latino community is amazing, and a huge win for us Latinos, especially as we enter Hispanic Heritage Month.

“Some of my biggest fights were held on the historic Mexican Independence Day weekend – from Julio Cesar Chavez, Bernard Hopkins to Shane Mosley and Felix Trinidad just to name a few. I remember the fights I had in the ring on this historic weekend; the emotions, pride, and excitement from the crowd becomes contagious and gives you the fuel needed to give a top level performance.

“Fight fans should expect a night of explosive talent on September 17, as these fighters will be stepping on to the mat with thousands of fanatics cheering them on, representing their Latino roots. It will be a night that Latinos will be proud to see someone like Canelo representing them in the sport, an event no Latino should miss. This is our turn to dominate boxing once again.”

“King” Gabriel Rosado, Former Middleweight World Title Challenger:

“I’m proud being Latino from Puerto Rican heritage. I grew up speaking Spanish. My culture is a way of life, it’s who I am.
“Fighting on Mexican Independence Day is an honor for me. I have a big Mexican fan base! So I’m looking forward to putting on a show in Texas. I think that’s a very big date for Boxing. To headline a card itself it’s a huge deal, but doing it on Hispanic heritage month it’s a bonus. I admire and look up to the most is Roberto Duran. He came from nothing like many other fighters do, and had a legendary career. I try to take his aggressive smart pressure. He was a master at breaking down his opponents.

“September 17 fans can expect a hungry warrior willing to do whatever it takes to be victorious! I want to give the fans a Knock Out win…Team KGR is working hard!”

Willie Monroe Jr, Former WBA-NABA and WBO NABO Middleweight Champion:

“It’s big to me because I have Cuban blood. To have Independence in a country like America, It makes you proud to have Latino Independence. I remember, Chavez, Canelo and even Mayweather having big fights on this weekend. I love Guillermo Rigondeaux, Felix Trinidad and ironically Fernando Vargas – since I am now fighting his pupil, Gabriel Rosado.

“I plan on headlining Cinco de Mayo weekend next year. What would be a better fight then me and Canelo? I hope Canelo calls me into the ring after he fights.”

Joseph “Jojo” Diaz, Jr., NABF Featherweight Champion:

“Knowing that September is Hispanic Heritage Month makes me feel more confident to go out there and be the best I can be for my people! It’s an honor fighting on Mexican Independence Day weekend. A lot of great fights have been on this special day, and I’m ready to put everything on the line to give the fight fans another fight to remember.

“Hopefully one day I can be a main event fighter on Mexican Independence Day weekend. This would mean a lot to my career because it’ll show everyone that I can be the next big Mexican American star. I admire Oscar De La Hoya Canelo and Chavez Sr. as these great fighters have done a lot for the sport and are great at it. I hope to be as good as them one day.

“Fight fans can see a very determined Joseph Diaz that is going to give it his all for all the fans tuning in. Especially, because it’s Mexican Independence Day. I will be ready for whatever my opponent brings to the ring.”

Andrew “El Chango” Cancio, Super Featherweight Contender:

“I am proud to be Mexican-American every day. I appreciate that in the United States we dedicate a month to celebrate Hispanic heritage and Mexican independence.

“I am glad to be part of such a big event. As a Mexican-American fighter, it was one of my goals to one day fight on this stage and now I am here and will make the most of it. One of my favorite fights on this weekend is Oscar De La Hoya v. Fernando Vargas. I would like to one day headline such big events in boxing. At this point in my career it would be a great accomplishment to headline any big event in my career. Some of the fighters that I admire are Juan Manuel Marquez, Marco Antonio Barrera, and Erik Morales. What I like about them is their versatility. They could brawl, box, and counter punch. As I develop as a fighter, I try to implement some of their techniques that fit my style.

“The fans can expect a war. It will be a fight to be remembered during the Mexican festivities. I will leave it all in the ring. I guarantee it. I am here to win to move to bigger things.”

Diego De La Hoya, WBC Youth World Super Bantamweight Champion:

“September is the month of our independence, fighting away from my country in this special date makes me want to make my Mexican people proud. I know Mexicans will be very excited to watch all the Mexican fighters that day.

“Like I have said before, it’s going to be a very intense fight, but I feel ready. One of my favorite fights I watched that was on Mexican Independence Day weekend was Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Hector Macho Camacho because of the rivalry between Mexicans and Puerto Ricans.

“It would be something very great in my career being the main event on a Mexican Independence Day weekend, and even more representing my hometown city Mexicali. Like all Mexican fighter our idol Julio Cesar Chavez, gave a lot of accomplishments to our Mexican boxing fans and there will never be someone like him, because his style is unique.

Luis Orlando “Orlandito” Del Valle, Super Bantamweight Contender:

“It feels incredible to fight on this weekend. The Hispanic community is like a big family. There’s nothing like being a part of that community and the celebration of our heritage. That sense of pride gives me HUGE motivation. Feels great to be a part of the event and celebration.

“My favorite Mexican Independence Day Weekend fight has to be Felix Trinidad vs. Oscar de la Hoya in 1999. It was a huge celebration that weekend for my beloved Puerto Rico. I’ve already headlined an event the night before the Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York and that was a huge accomplishment and honor. I am looking forward to doing it again on a bigger stage.

“Fighting in Texas during Hispanic Heritage Month and Mexican Independence Day weekend will be a great platform!

Felix Trinidad. Just an amazing fighter and a role model. He is my favorite fighter, I love everything about him.”

Eddie “E-Boy” GomezIBF North American Welterweight Champion:

“It makes me feel proud to be Hispanic and proud that I’m able to step in the ring and represent Hispanic heritage my country and all Hispanics around the world. I feel very happy and motivated to be fighting on such a big weekend in the history of boxing.

“My favorite fight held on this big weekend from the past would have to be De la Hoya vs Vargas. I would love to fight during Hispanic heritage month/weekend especially since I’m from Honduras. I would like to represent my country while being the first Honduran world champion, being giving the opportunity to showcase my talent and represent for my country during Hispanic heritage month would mean the world to me.

“I admire Roberto Duran and Oscar de la Hoya. I like how they represent their heritage. They put their country high and represent where they’re from each time they step foot in the ring.”

Hector “El Finito” Tanajara, Jr.Lightweight Contender:

“I’m proud to be Mexican American and proud to represent my heritage every time I step in the ring. Fighting on arguably the biggest weekend in boxing is an honor for me and gives me motivation to one day headline my own cards in San Antonio on this weekend.

“My favorite fight from this weekend has to be De La Hoya-Vargas. Nothing compares to that type of rivalry and that type of atmosphere on such a big stage. I would love to headline an event on this weekend. Not only headline such a big card, but make sure I headline it in San Antonio. Without a doubt my two favorite Mexican fighters are “Finito” Lopez and Erik Morales. Finito’s flawless style and Morales’ charisma and heart are what stand out the most to me.

“The fans can expect a great show this weekend from me. This is my first pro fight in Texas and I want to make it a memorable one.”

Joshua “El Professor” Franco, Bantamweight Contender:

“I’m proud to be Mexican American and proud to know that that our heritage is represented well during the two biggest weekends in boxing. One fight that stands out from this weekend’s history is Vargas De La Hoya. That’s still one of my favorite fights ever even though my family and I were big Fernando Vargas fans.

“I’m very happy Golden Boy gave me the chance to fight on Mexican Independence Day weekend. I’m working even harder to showcase my skills in such a big event. It’s every Mexican or Mexican American fighters dream to headline a card during this weekend in boxing. It’s a great tradition that I one day hope to leave my mark on as well.

“My favorite Mexican fighters are Marco Antonio Barrera because of his calm demeanor but relentless style in the ring. Julio Cesar Chavez because of the way he put pressure. It was an all action type style but he had great reflexes and a great defense. Fernando Vargas. He accomplished a lot at such a young age and never backed down from any other top fighter.”

Zachary “Zungry” Ochoa, Super Lightweight Contender:

“Hispanic Heritage Month makes me feel more thankful for my family and ancestors that led the way for us to be here in the US and express our culture! I feel moved and excited to be in an atmosphere so electric.

“Canelo-Mayweather was my favorite fight held on the Mexican Independence Day weekend because that same day my nephew was born. So I went from the hospital to running home to watch the fight.

“I would love to one day headline an event this big or bigger on an important month like this. Accomplishing this would mean a lot to my career, opening many doors to new opportunities and more fans.”

Alexis Salazar Super Welterweight Contender:

“I am proud to be Mexican, representing Guadalajara, Jalisco Mexico. I remember growing up and watching Oscar De La Hoya and Canelo Alvarez as some of the heaviest hitters and the biggest combatants.

“To be able to fight on the special weekend – especially as a Mexican fighter, it would be a dream come true. I admire Canelo Alvarez for his discipline, for all his accomplishments despite his young age, and over everything the value he has representing Mexicans, especially those from Jalisco.”

Tickets are priced at $750, $500, $300, $200, $100, $85, $50 and $40, not including applicable service charges with a total ticket limit of 8 per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also will be available for purchase online at www.ticketmaster.com. Additionally, walk up purchases are available at the AT&T Stadium Box Office (Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. CT to 5:00 p.m. CT).

Canelo vs. Smith, a 12-round fight for the WBO Junior Middleweight World Championship, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Frank Warren and Canelo Promotions. Gabriel Rosado vs. Willie Monroe, Jr. is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental Middleweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Banner Promotions, Joseph Diaz, Jr. vs. Andrew Cancio is a 10-round fight for the NABF Featherweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Diego De La Hoya vs. Luis Orlando Del Valle is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Roc Nation Sports. The event is sponsored by “Tecate, BORN BOLD,” O’Reilly Auto Parts, Hennessey, Adriana’s Insurance, AT&T, and Casa Mexico Tequila and will take place on Saturday, September 17 at AT&T Stadium. Doors open at 2:00 p.m. CT, first fight and the RingTv.com live stream begins at 3:20 p.m. ET/2:20 p.m. CT/12:20 p.m. PT; the preliminary live stream begins at 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT/3:30 p.m. PT on HBO Boxing YouTube page and select pay-per-view channel providers; with the four fight pay-per-view card produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View and also available via live stream on www.goldenboyppv.com beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. CT/6:00 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.frankwarren.com, www.attstadium.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, follow us on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @Canelo, @LiamBeefySmith, @KingGabRosado, @WillieMonroeJr, @JosephDiazJr, @AndrewCancio, @DiegoDeLaHoya, @OscarDeLaHoya, @FrankWarren_tv, @ATTStadium and @HBOboxing, become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.Facebook.com/frankwarrenpromotions, www.Facebook.com/ATTStadium or www.Facebook.com/HBOboxing, join us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @Canelo, @LiamBeefySmith, @KingGabRosado, @Willie_elmongoose_monroejr, @JosephDiazJr, @Aa_Cancio, @DiegoDeLaHoya94 @ATTStadium, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, and follow the conversation using #CaneloSmith.

B-roll and images of the fighters are available for use and download HERE or by copying and pasting: bit.ly/CaneloSmith. Video and photo credit must be given to Golden Boy Promotions.

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 7, 2016) – “I’m sad to hear of the passing today of legendary boxer Bobby ‘Schoolboy’ Chacon. Bobby was one of the best fighters to emerge on the scene in boxing the 1970s. Hailing from Southern California, Bobby was someone I looked up to as a young fighter growing up in East Los Angeles. Bobby had the natural talent, good looks, personality and power to be a memorable fighter in the ring that attracted crowds.

“Bobby fought during the glory days of boxing at the Olympic Auditorium, LA Sports Arena, and The Forum in Los Angeles. This was the Golden Era of boxing on the West Coast, and those were times I remember well, having gone with my father to watch fights at these venues just a short distance from our family home.

“Bobby fought the best of the best in those days, including Ruben ‘El Púas’ Olivares, Rafael ‘Bazooka’ Limon and more. I always admired him for this a professional fighter myself. Legendary West Coast boxing promoter Don Chargin helped develop Bobby into a world champion fighter though it was Bobby’s will to win, courage and big heart that brought him the victory in difficult battles.

“After a long and storied career, Bobby was rightfully inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005. I’m pleased to share that honor as a fellow Hall of Famer alongside him.

“Bobby’s life was not one without struggle and tragedy, but I pray he has now found peace in eternal rest. He accomplished much for the sport of boxing and will be dearly missed.”

What does Liam Smith provide in term of helping Canelo to get ready for a potential fight with GGG? As a promoter, what do you tell boxing fans that wanted to see Canelo-GGG instead of Canelo-Smith?

“Well, first of all, Canelo takes every fight seriously and never looks past anyone. Liam Smith is an undefeated fighter, the WBO Junior Middleweight Champion of the world, has knocked out his last eight opponents and comes from an outstanding boxing family.

“As of today, Canelo is a 154-lb fighter. He only fought for a Middleweight championship because fans wanted a fight with Miguel Cotto, and Canelo delivered by winning that fight convincingly.

“I have been clear that Canelo will fight Golovkin at 160 pounds and we have a verbal agreement to do it in the fall of 2017. But in the meantime, Canelo is going to build up to being a true middleweight.

“The plan is to face Smith – a big, bruising 154-pounder – in September, and if Canelo emerges victorious, to start making his way up to 160 pounds and fight Golovkin on equal turf (in terms of weight).

“We envision Canelo doing a third fight in 2016 either at or close to the middleweight limit and then a fight on Cinco De Mayo at 160 before facing Golovkin in the fall.

“I know Canelo/Golovkin is the biggest fight to make; the fighters know it’s the biggest fight to make; and the fans know it’s the biggest fight to make. Everyone agreed that a fight for the middleweight championship should take place at the middleweight limit and once Canelo builds up to that weight, the fight will be on.

“In the meantime, we are hopeful and confident that Canelo will continue to perform at a level that has led to back-to-back knockouts of the year over James Kirkland and Amir Khan and when his body is ready, GGG should look out.”

The HBO Sports special ROAD TO CANELO/SMITH debuts Saturday, September 10 at 12:45 a.m. (ET/PT) immediately following HBO World Championship Boxing.

Alvarez challenges Britain’s Liam Smith for his junior middleweight crown when Canelo vs. Smith takes place Saturday, September 17 from AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, live on pay-per-view beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

LOS ANGELES (September 7, 2016): Eric Gomez, longtime executive at leading boxing promotional company Golden Boy Promotions, has been promoted to President of the organization, Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO, Oscar De La Hoya announced today.

Gomez has spent his entire professional career in boxing, first working with De La Hoya as a fighter before going on to become a renowned matchmaker at Golden Boy Promotions and later Senior Vice President overseeing all elements of the company.

“Eric has been a trusted adviser, confidante and friend throughout my career both as a fighter and a promoter,” De La Hoya said. “From close relationships with our fighters, to sharp insight into the business of the sport, to an ability to manage a growing team of professionals, there is no one in the sport who has a better or broader view of boxing.”

Effective immediately, Gomez will begin overseeing day-to-day functions of all boxing-related aspects of Golden Boy Promotions, working with a stable of dozens of superstar fighters including the sport’s biggest headliner, Canelo Alvarez.

De La Hoya’s role will not change, as he will remain CEO and Chairman of the global Golden Boy company, and continue running all Golden Boy entities including Golden Boy Media and Entertainment; Golden Boy Productions; the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation; Golden Boy’s interest in the Houston Dynamo; and all other real estate and business interests.

“I have spent my entire life around boxing — to have the opportunity to become president of the world’s greatest promotional company is truly an honor,” Gomez said. “From our super-talented fighters to our incredible staff, Golden Boy has always felt like a family, and I look forward to working with this amazing team for years to come.”

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Los Angeles-based Golden Boy Promotions was established in 2002 by 10-time world champion in six divisions Oscar De La Hoya, the first Hispanic to own a national boxing promotional company. Golden Boy Promotions is one of boxing’s most active and respected promoters, presenting shows in packed venues around the world and has worked with networks such as HBO, HBO Latino, Estrella TV, ESPN, TeleFutura, FOX Sports 1, FOX Deportes, Televisa and TV Azteca. The company has also promoted some of the top boxing events in the history of the sport including De La Hoya vs. Mayweather, Mayweather vs. Canelo and other notable pay-per-view fights featuring fan-favorites Bernard “The Alien” Hopkins, Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Marco “Baby Faced Assassin” Antonio Barrera, Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Sugar Shane Mosley.

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 9, 2016) – Golden Boy Promotions rolled out the red carpet in celebration of a year’s worth of action-packed fights in partnership with Estrella TV for the September 9 edition of LA FIGHT CLUB in downtown Los Angeles. Celebrities and fight fans piled into a sold-out Belasco Theatre to witness a night of stellar performances that only Golden Boy Promotions could put together. Celebrities in attendance included Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya, International Music Producer and Celeb Judge on Estrella TV’s “Tengo Talento Mucho Talento” Pepe Garza, stars from Estrella TV’s Smash Hit “Rica Famosa Latina”including Victoria del Rosal, Luzelba Mansour, Niurka Marcos, Sissy Fleitas, Sandra Vidal, Mayeli Rivera, and Andrea Garcia, Fenomeno Studios Celebrity Vlogger Elisa Beristain, and Golden Boy Promotions professional fighters: “King” Gabriel Rosado, Jesus “Renuente” Soto Karass , NABO Lightweight Champion Michael “The Artist” Perez, NABA Featherweight Champion Abraham “Chamaco” Lopez, Undefeated NABA Super Featherweight Champion Carlos “The Solution” Morales, Nick “La Calavera” Arce, Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro, Joshua “The Professor” Franco, Hector “Finito” Tanajara Jr, Genaro “El Conde” Gamez, Niko “Baby Face” Valdes, David Mijares, and Rafael “El Alikin” Gramajo.

In the main event of the night, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico native Antonio “La Joya” Gutierrez (20-2-1, 9 KOs) faced the tough Jorge “Destroyer” Melendez (28-6-1, 26 KOs) of Manati, Puerto Rico in a 10-round middleweight event. The classic Mexico vs. Puerto Rico battle kept all the fight fans at the edge of their seat as both fighters aggressively pressured each other in 10 intense rounds. In the first round Gutierrez, was shaken holding on to the ropes, while Melendez was visibly shaken in rounds seven and eight. After 10-rounds of intense continual action the judges ruled in favor of Gutierrez with scores of 97-92, 97-92, and 96-93, winning the bout via unanimous decision.

“These Mexico versus Puerto Rico fights are always a war,” said Gutierrez. “I came in knowing we were going to go the distance. He was a tough opponent, and he made me fight for this win. I came out with more Mexican pride in my heart, and I am glad that I was able to provide a good show for the fans.”

In the co-main event, Buena Park, California’s Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (15-0, 13 KOs) clashed against Phoenix, Arizona’s Jonathan “Johnny” Corrales (8-3-2, 3 KOs) in a scheduled eight-round lightweight bout. Corrales hit the mat after “Chimpa” launched a left hand uppercut and left hand hook in the first round; however Corrales got back up, and withstood the rest of the round. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for the knock out artist, as Gonzalez stopped Corrales at the 1:57 mark in the second round, maintaining his undefeated status.

“It feels really special to fight at LA FIGHT CLUB,” said Gonzalez. “I was on the first edition when they first opened LA FIGHT CLUB, and I love fighting here. With every fight, the game plan is to go for the knock out, and I was glad I was able to get it with this fight.”

Opening up the televised portion of the night, Parral Mexico’s Oscar Duarte (7-0-1, 3 KOs) performed in a four round lightweight bout against Tamaulipas, Mexico’s Rafael Reyes (6-9, 5 KOs). Duarte landed some tough punches, causing Reyes to hit the mat in the second round after a frenzy of blows. Reyes, demonstrating his endurance and retaliated with combinations at Duarte. The fight went the distance, and with a score of 38-37, the judges all unanimously agreed that Duarte was the victor.

“He was a tough fighter, and I’ve learned a lot,” said Duarte. “I knew he was going to get back up after he hit the mat, and I was ready to finish all four rounds. I am excited to hit the gym and train hard to keep up my undefeated record.”

Tenochtitlan Nava (3-0, 1 KO) dazzled the crowd in a super featherweight match that only lasted three of the four scheduled rounds against Juan Byrand of Laredo, Texas(1-5-1). “T-Dog” was in clear control, as he led Byrand to the ropes various times throughout the bout releasing a storm of heavy hitting punches. It was at the 1:47 mark on the clock in the third round where the judges called the fight, giving Nava his first career technical knockout.

“I got my first knock out of my career tonight, which makes me feel great about how we have been training,” said Nava. “I don’t think the win is going to hit me, and I am so glad my fans came out to support me. They aren’t just my fans, they are lovers of boxing.”

Lamont Roach, Jr. (12-0, 4 KOs), of Washington D.C. represented the East Coast in a scheduled eight-round super featherweight fight against Mexico City’s Mario Macias (26-19, 14 KOs). Roach, Jr. landed some powerful punches, destabilizing Macias and causing the referee to start the count. In the second round. Roach, Jr’s one-two combinations hurt the fighter, with body punches that slowly broke down the fighter, causing him to drop to the mat. Macias valiantly rose back up, only to fall again at the beginning of the third round, leading for the referee to call the fight at the seven second mark.

“I spar with world champions, former world champions, and anything else in-between,” said Roach, Jr. “I knew Macias was tough since he had fought for world titles before in his career, making me enter the ring even more cautious and even more determined. I knew my punches were breaking him down at the beginning, and it was going to be a matter of time before I knocked him out.”

Edgar Valerio (8-0, 4 KOs) opened the nights action as he fought against Emmanuel Castro (2-3, 2 KOs) of Los Mochis, Valerio set the tone of the night, entering in calm and relaxed. It was in the second round that Castro turned up the heat, launching a series of hits to Valerio’s face resulting in a cut over his eye. The two fighters went the distance and engaged in a series of exchanges that had fans cheering them on. By the end of the fight it was clear that Valerio was the victor, and he was granted a unanimous decision victory by the judges.

“I’m glad we go the win tonight,” said Valerio. “However, I am disappointed in myself for not making it through all six rounds straight. I wanted to give the fans tonight a show worth watching, and this was a learning experience for me. My opponent sure could take a punch, and I can’t wait to hit the gym to improve for my next performance.”

LA FIGHT CLUB: Gutierrez vs. Melendez was presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by “Tecate, BORN BOLD,” Casa Mexico Tequila and Carmelita Coconut Water. Doors opened at 5:00 p.m. and the first bout began at 5:30 p.m. The Estrella TV Boxeo Estelar broadcast aired live on Friday, September 2 at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT and streamed live simultaneously on estrellaTV.com and on YouTube via LBI Media, Inc.’s multiplatform digital network Fenomeno Studios: youtube.com/FenomenoStudios. The Ring TV live stream began at approximately 5:30 p.m. PT through 7:00 p.m.

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.belascous.com, www.estrellatv.com, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @EstrellaTV and become a fanon Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/TheBelascoLA, www.facebook.com/EstrellaTVNetwork, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @belascola and @EstrellaTV, follow the conversation using #LAFIGHTCLUB and #BoxeoEstelar.

What does Canelo have to do for the Mexican fans to embrace him as one of their best? How does he become one of the best in the rich history of Mexican boxing?

“Mexican fighters have long been known for their toughness, their ability to walk through fire, their willingness to take three punches to land a solid shot.

“That is Canelo Alvarez.

“There is no doubt that Canelo is today already the biggest boxing star in Mexico and the United States. He is in the process of crossing over as a worldwide superstar, but he will never forget where he came from and the rich boxing tradition of Mexico.

“Canelo is built from the mold of all-time Mexican greats like Julio Caesar Chavez, Salvador Sanchez and Ruben Oliveras – strong fighters with knockout power that focus on two things; being the best fighter in the world and putting on a show for the fans. And that’s what Canelo will continue to do for the rest of his career.

“Incredibly, he has been embraced as Mexico’s biggest and best boxer for years, despite being only 26 years old, and that’s because the Mexican fans know a true champion when they see one.

“The only thing that has even remotely tempered his star power is the lack of availability of the two biggest days in boxing on Cinco De Mayo in May and Mexican Independence Day in September.

“Now that Canelo has locked down those dates (Sept. 17 will be his first time as the A-side, headlining a fight on Mexican Independence Day), the sky is the limit for his popularity not just in Mexico, but around the globe.”

The HBO Sports special ROAD TO CANELO/SMITH debuts Saturday, September 10 at 12:45 a.m. (ET/PT) immediately following HBO World Championship Boxing.

Alvarez challenges Britain’s Liam Smith for his junior middleweight crown when Canelo vs. Smith takes place Saturday, September 17 from AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, live on pay-per-view beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

What made you decide to go to Texas for this fight? What does it mean for Canelo to fight at the home of the Dallas Cowboys? What’s it like working with Jerry Jones?

“After Canelo knocked out James Kirkland in Houston last year, he was clear that he wanted to come to Texas at least once a year from then on out.

“Canelo drew more than 33,000 people in Houston after drawing more than 45,000 in San Antonio for his fight with Austin Trout.

“It’s clear that Texans love Canelo, but working with Jerry Jones and the Cowboys will take it to another level.

“The Cowboys are among the most recognizable sports teams in the country and Mr. Jones shared that distinction as an individual.

“I was recently up in Oxnard, California with Mr. Jones for Cowboys training camp and to see not only how excited he is about the fight — but how knowledgeable he is about boxing — it’s clear he is going to play a huge role in generating massive interest for the fight.

“As for the stadium itself, it is just spectacular. They say they do things bigger in Texas, and AT&T Stadium is no different. We expect a sold-out show and one that will be packed with not just rabid boxing fans, but local Texans and casual fans around the country who are eager to see everything the venue has to offer.

“Beyond the fight itself, we will activate a full week of events that will give fans multiple, exciting ways to spend their time ahead of the big show Saturday.

“I am hopeful and confident that Mr. Jones, the Cowboys and Golden Boy will have a long and successful partnership that brings fight fans huge shows year after year.”

The HBO Sports special ROAD TO CANELO/SMITH debuts SATURDAY, SEPT. 10 at 12:45 a.m. (ET/PT) immediately following HBO World Championship Boxing.

Alvarez challenges Britain’s Liam Smith for his junior middleweight crown when Canelo vs. Smith takes place Saturday, September 17 from AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, live on pay-per-view beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

LOS ANGELES (Aug. 19, 2016) – It was a night of knock outsat a sold out Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles as a series of jaw-dropping matches kept the crowd at the edge of their seats. The spectacle had special guests, including Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya, NABA Super Featherweight Champion Carlos “The Solution” Morales, Ronny Rios, Jason “El Animal” Quigley, Antonio “La Joya” Gutierrez, Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez, Oscar “Jaguar” Negreje, Roy
“Pitbull” Tapia, EmilioSanchez, Vergil Ortiz, Jr. and Niko “Baby Face” Valdes.

The main event, airinglive nationally on Estrella TV’s Boxeo Estelar and live streamed by the Ring TV, featured Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chigonsky” Shabranskyy (17-0, 14 KOs) taking on Laredo, Texas fighter Oscar “El Monstruo” Riojas (10-6-1, 3 KOs) for a scheduled eight-round light heavyweight bout. In the first round, Shabranskyy was clearly feeling out his opponent, entering the ring calm and steady as he threw a couple of jabs, with Riojas responding. At the one minute and 43 second mark in the third round, Shabranskyy landed a straight right punch to the chin that made Riojas fall to the boxing mat. As Riojas got back up to continue the fight, “Chingonsky” released power punches that Riojas could not handle, making the referee stop the fight. Shabranskyy’s ultimately retained his undefeated status with a technical knockout victory.

“In the first round, I wanted to feel him out, find out what he had as a fighter,” said Shabranskyy. “By the second round I started to expose his weaknesses and knew that I could finish the fight early, and that was what my corner was telling me to do. I try to make sure I listen to my corner as they can see things that I can’t. Luckily we were able to finish the fight early, and I am looking forward to the next fight.”

“I feel really disappointed, this fight was not how I expected it to go,” said Riojas. “The knockout caught me by surprise and there was nothing I could do. I feel really disappointed about how this ended but everyone can definitely expect me back in the ring soon again.”

In the co-main feature also broadcast live on Estrella TV’s Boxeo Estellar, undefeated super featherweight prospect Ivan “Striker” Delgado (10-0-1, 3 KOs) took on Alejandro Ochoa (7-12-2, 1 KO) in an eight-round event. The first rounds featured equally matched fighters, both landing impressive power punches. The heated exchanges of packed punches featured the warriors’ heated exchanges that wore down Ochoa. It was in the seventh round where the “Striker” saw his opportunity at the one minute and 46 second mark, where he landed three left hooks in a row that sent Ochoa straight to mat. The knock out gave yet another victory to the undefeated Delgado.

“I kept going really hard throughout all the rounds, and I knew I would eventually get the knockout because I hurt him early on by knocking him down,” said Delgado. “I never got frustrated because I knew I had to keep my cool and land my punches so I didn’t get sloppy-that’s how I was able to successfully capture the knockout.”

Opening up the televised portion of the night, Alexis Rocha (4-0, 3 KOs) of Santa Ana, Calif. faced Israel “Isra” Villela (4-3, 1 KO) in a four-round welterweight bout. Rocha entered the ring taking clear control of the fight, releasing his flurry of punches onto Villela. Rocha landed massive combination of blows to the body, with a left hook to the face that sent Villela straight to the mat. Villela valiantly rose up again, only to be given another heavy dose of combination punches to the face, leading the referee to stop the fight, and giving Rocha the technical knock out victory to maintain his undefeated record.

“I always prepare for every fight with the same intensity and this fight was not the exception,” said Rocha. “I thought he was going to rush me in the first round so I made sure to stay focused and aggressive. Once I had him down I knew I had to apply smart pressure to win this fight. I am glad I was able to finish it early and secure another victory.”

In a scheduled six-round lightweight fight, Oscar Duarte (6-0-1, 3 KOs) of Parral, Mexico faced Omar Garcia (5-4, 1 KO) of Monterrey, Mexico. It only took 58 seconds into the first round for Duarte to dominate Garcia, knocking him down to the canvas via a devastating left hook, winning the fight via knockout.

“I feel so blessed to have another victory under my belt,” said Duarte. “My game plan was to enter the ring calmly, and relaxed. I knew I could get the knock out when I felt like I hurt him with my body punch. I am going to keep up the discipline that I have, and turn that into more results like this.”

Kicking off the RingTVLive.com, live stream portion of the night, David Mijares (3-0, 2 KO) of Santa Monica, California took on Jorrell Sparenberg (0-2) from Houston, Texas in a scheduled four-round super lightweight bout. Mijares dominated the first round, cornering Sparenburg various times throughout the round landing various combinations to the body. It was during the second round that Mijares took advantage of Sparenberg’s inability to keep his hands up, landing various blows to the head and prompting the referee to wave off the fight on the 1:36 mark. Mijares was awarded his third victory and second technical knockout to add to his record.

“It feels so great to have a dramatic victory in front of my hometown crowd,” said Mijares. “I feel like I put on a great show for all the fans supporting me tonight. There are still some things I need to work on, particularly taking my time and exercising my patience in the ring, but I am just very excited about my victory tonight. I am ready for the next fight.”

Vyacheslav Shabranskyy vs. Oscar Riojas was presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila and Carmelita Chorizo. Doors opened at 5:00 p.m. and the first bout began at 5:30 p.m. The Estrella TV Boxeo Estelar broadcast aired live on Friday, Aug. 19 at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT and streamed live simultaneously on estrellaTV.com and on YouTube via LBI Media’s Fenomeno Studios: youtube.com/FenomenoStudios. The Ring TV live stream began at 5:30 p.m. PT through 7:00 p.m.

Tickets for LA FIGHT CLUB starting at only $20 with Flex Passes for multiple fight packages, Group Tickets and Knockout Experience upgrade are available for purchase now at www.goldenboypromotions.com, the Golden Boy Promotions Facebook page, by calling 213-233-2957 or by emailing LAFightClub@goldenboypromotions.com. Mark your calendars and purchase tickets in advance before they sell out for the remaining summer dates taking place September 2 and October 7.

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.belascous.com, www.estrellatv.com, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @EstrellaTV and become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/TheBelascoLA, www.facebook.com/EstrellaTVNetwork, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @belascola and @EstrellaTV, follow the conversation using #LAFIGHTCLUB and #BoxeoEstelar.

LOS ANGELES (July 25, 2016) – Boxing fans are gearing up for a full card of action set to take place on Saturday, July 30 at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino featuring number one rated contender by the WBC, “Relentless” Antonio Orozco (24-0, 16 KOs) taking on Abner “Jaeger” Lopez (25-5, 19 KOs), of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico in a 10-round super lightweight main event on HBO Latino® Boxing beginning at 11:30 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT). Tickets are moving fast for this event, with just a limited number of tickets left available for purchase.

In the televised co-main event of the night, undefeated featherweight sensation and NABF Featherweight Champion Joseph “Jojo” Diaz, Jr. (20-0, 11 KOs) will put his title on the line in a 10-round fight against Victor “Pitufo” Proa (28-1-2, 21 KOs) of Monterey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

Additionally, fans attending the event will get a chance to meet Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO, Oscar De La Hoya. “The Golden Boy,” who is a 10-time world champion in six weight divisions and 1992 Olympic Gold Medalist, will greet fans before the televised main event from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino’s Special Events Center to sign autographs and take photos.

“I love my fans and I’m looking forward to seeing many of them at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino on July 30,” said Oscar De La Hoya. “Plus, this card on July 30 topped by Antonio Orozco and Joseph Diaz, Jr. promises to be thrilling with non-stop action. Orozco and Diaz, Jr. are among the best fighters in the Golden Boy stable right now, and they are both headed towards becoming world champions in the not-too-distant future.”

Rounding out the undercard on the non-televised portion of the evening, Roy “Pitbull” Tapia (11-1-2, 6 KOs) of East Los Angeles will take on Jairo “Roca” Hernandez (17-9, 9 KOs) of Torreon, Coahulia, Mexico in a scheduled eight-round super bantamweight fight. Los Angeles’ fan favorite Nick “La Calavera” Arce (8-0, 6 KOs) will fight in a six-round super featherweight event against Jesus Aguinaga (4-4-1) of Phoenix. Additionally, newly signed Golden Boy Promotions fighter Virgil Ortiz of Dallas will make his professional debut in a four-round super lightweight fight against Julio Rodas (0-2) of Flagstaff, Ariz. Palmdale, California’s Cesar Diaz (1-0, 1 KOs) will open up the night in a four round featherweight fight against Nicholas Rodriguez (1-4-1) of Somerset, Ky.

All floor seats are sold out and a limited number of tickets at the $25 level are still available for purchase at the Fantasy Springs Box Office, by calling (800) 827-2946 or online at www.fantasyspringsresort.com.

Antonio Orozco vs. Abner Lopez is a 10-round welterweight bout, presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by “Tecate, BORN BOLD,” Casa Mexico Tequila and Carmelita Coconut Water. Doors open at 5:00 p.m. PT and the first fight begins at 5:10 p.m. PT. The HBO Latino® Boxing telecast begins at 11:30 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT).

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.hbo.com/boxing, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @HBOLatino, and become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/hbolatino, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing.

LOS ANGELES (July 1, 2016) – Sparks flew at this special edition of LA FIGHT CLUB in front of a sold-out crowd this Friday night at downtown Los Angeles’ historic Belasco Theater. This event marked the beginning of the summer season for LA FIGHT CLUB with LA’s finest officers taking on the NYPD boxing team all to benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Tonight’s can’t-miss event was attended by the likes of boxing legends old and new: Oscar de la Hoya, Ronny Rios, Carlos “The Solution” Morales, Ivan “Striker” Gonzalez, Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez, Alexis Rocha, Nick Arce, Jason “El Animal” Quigley, Gilberto “El Flaco” Gonzalez, and Pablo “The Shark” Rubio Jr were all witness to the action ringside.

In the televised main event of the night, undefeated Colombian bantamweight warrior Oscar “Jaguar” Negrete (14-0, 5 KOs) of Los Angeles took on Ciudad Juarez, Mexico’s Jose “Flash” Bustos (11-6-3, 7 KOs) in a 10-round televised fight airing live nationally on Estrella TV’s Boxeo Estelar. Fight fans did not go home disappointed after witnessing the all-out brawl between rising Colombian fighter Oscar “Jaguar” Negrete and Jose “The Flash” Bustos. The Estrella TV Televised event demonstrated Negrete’s endurance and slick moves, as Negrete strung together several combinations to the head and managed to slip several of Bustos offenses throughout the fight. Neither man backed down, as Negrete and Bustos both stood their ground in their exchange of bashes on the inside to finish the fight. Bustos attempted to work the jab, however Negrete dodged many of them, looking to land counter strikes. With his movement, aggression and clean punching, the “Jaguar” won over the judges and earned a unanimous decision victory over Bustos to remain undefeated.

The live telecast, co-main event featured still undefeated super bantamweight prospect Emilio Sanchez (13-0, 9 KOs) of Los Angeles facing off against Hugo “Olímpico” Partida (20-8-2, 15 KOs) of Mexico City in an eight-round bout. There was much attrition throughout the fight, as both fighters launched their blows correspondingly. Partida’s left upper hand cut punches were distinctive of the fighter, however the fighter ran out of breath by the second round causing the referee to pause the fight. By the end of the second round, Sanchez began to dominate, over powering Partida with his punches while cornering him against the ropes. During the fight, the heated exchanges caused Partida to lose a point in the sixth round for spitting out his mouth guard three times. By the eighth round, Sanchez attempted to close out the fight with a bolstering amount of combination punches to the face. The judges all agreed–Sanchez was the clear winner, maintaining his undefeated record status via unanimous decision.

“My uppercuts were the key to pulling out the decision,” said Emilio Sanchez. “He kept his head low, so I thought my uppercuts were hurting him. He was a tough fighter and had great experience. I feel after this, I can continue facing tougher opponents and keep climbing the ladder in the super bantamweight division.”

Opening the televised portion of the night, Miami’s Niko “Baby Face” Valdes (2-0, 2 KO) fought in a scheduled four-round, super middleweight match against Michael Andrews (0-2) of New Mexico. In the first and second rounds, Andrews tripped over his foot, losing his balance as Valdes landed various left and right arm punches to the face leaving Andrews stunned various times throughout the rounds. Valdes kept putting the pressure on Andrews, overwhelming him with a series of jabs. By the end of the third round, Andrews suffered a bloody nose, resulting in his corner stopping the fight. The stoppage awarded Valdes with a technical knockout victory.

“I’d give myself a B+ after that performance,” said Niko Valdes. “I was keeping my hands too far down during that fight and wasn’t putting together my combinations, but I felt very comfortable out there, maybe the most comfortable I’ve felt in the ring. It was very important for me to be patient when I saw he kept coming back, I didn’t want to flurry and unleash my entire punch load at once.”

The last amateur fight of the night presented action from Daniel Rosales of the LAPD Southwest division taking on Nelson Cordero of NYPD participating in a three-round middleweight match showcasing both of the fighters’ intensity. In the second round, Rosales knocked Cordereo down, but Cordero bounced back quickly to retaliate against Rosales. The third round was difficult to watch for fight fans, as both fighters tackled each other in the ring. The judges all unanimously decided that Rosales was the clear winner.

“It felt good out there, I felt strong,” said Daniel Rosales. “The atmosphere, the officiating, and the preparation made you feel like a superstar, and we’re doing it for a great cause so it was an all-around great night.”

“It was an intense fight,” exclaimed Nelson Cordero. “Coming into the second round it felt close, my opponent was tough. I always say that the best man should win, and tonight it was him.”

Heavyweight amateurs Carlos Rosas of the LAPD Newton Division went head to head with Luis Pena of the Oxnard PAL Program. Rosas was ready to take on his opponent, knocking the wind out of him at the top of the second round. Pena, in exchange, landed various uppercuts and jabs to the face, stunning Rosas. The fighters were in a crossfire for most of the fight, with the judges awarding a split decision to Pena.

“It was great,” spoke Rosas, “I hope Oscar De La Hoya keeps giving us this platform, it was such a great experience. These fans are awesome, they’re not just here for us but they’re also here for such a great cause, the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and I hope we get to do more of this in the future.”

“Boxing at the Belasco Theater for a Golden Boy fight was amazing. The atmosphere and energy was electric, especially getting to fight and do what I love for such a great cause, there’s no better feeling,” said Pena of his victory.

Dennis Burgess of the NYPD defeated Brian Petrella of the Pasadena Police department in their scheduled three-round light heavyweight fight. During the fight, the fighters exhibited their resilience in the ring, enduring the explosive amount of punches exhibited by both fighters. The judges all agreed that Burgess was the clear winner, awarding him the victory via unanimous decision.

“I love participating in these events. Anything that I can do to help the community is a very rewarding experience for me,” said Burgess.

“This fight was an improvement for me and I want to thank the Pasadena Police department and my team for helping me participate in this great event,” exclaimed Petrella, “My mother passed away from cancer and this event was very important for me personally. I am thankful to have the ability, strength, shape, will and determination to continue to give back to those in need fighting cancer.”

The fourth fight of the night featured Dustin Rodriguez, of the Santa Monica Fire Department taking on amateur fighter Billy Ramirez of the NYPD. Dusty was quick with his punches, landing significant blows to the face. Ramirez retaliated, cornering Rodriguez and landing good shots by the end of the first round. In the second round, Rodriguez landed a power punch to the head causing Ramirez to lose his balance. The event turned into an all-out brawl by the last round, with both fighters engaging in a series of punches. Rodriguez landed the victory via unanimous decision.

“It feels great to perform in front of a crowd and also give back to the community,” said Dustin Rodriguez. “I am glad that the fight tonight will provide funds to find a cure for cancer.”

“This is my first event with the NYPD boxing team,” said Billy Ramirez. “And it has been a great learning experience. I will take back what I learned tonight and only improve for the next event.”

In the third fight of the night, Eriverto Montano of the LAPD Foothill Division,took on Jonathan Alvarez of the NYPD in a light heavyweight bout full of action. Both fighters traded blows equally with Alvarez consistently cornering Montano on the ropes. In the end, the judges gave the victory to Alvarez via unanimous decision.

“I feel privileged to have participated in this event. I have a family member currently battling cancer and I feel glad that the money raised today will help contribute to all of the people battling cancer,” said Montano.

“This is my fifth fight with the department and I am glad to give back to a great cause,” said Alvarez, “I’m always up to fight for charity and am a proud member of the NYPD.”

Dre Fonseca of the LAPD’s Northeast Division represented the red corner, as she took on fellow City of Angels PAL Program’s Isabel Reyes as the first female amateur fight of the night. The fighters were eager to get into the ring, landing their punches to the body and face. Fonseca’s uppercut punches dominated and wore down Reyes. In the end it was Fonseca’s consistent pressure on Reyes that lead her to claim a unanimous decision victory.

“I am just so excited to be able to represent LAPD in this positive light,” said Fonseca, “I wish more people could see all the work we do, and this event is proof of that-that we support charity organizations like Susan G Komen. I am filled with adrenaline after my win, and I love the fact that I am following some of my father’s footsteps being a police officer and fighting in these kinds of fights.”

“I am so glad that this was my amateur debut-I wish I had another three rounds to go in!” said Reyes, “The energy in the ring is incomparable to anything I have ever experienced, and hearing the fans shout in excitement was insane. I can’t wait to do this again.”

John Byun representing LAPD took on Alex Cintron of NYPD to kick off of the night in a light heavyweight match. The amateur fight featured two zealous fighters who were eager to land their punches. Byun’s effective right punches to the body went up against the right arm jabs to the face of Cintron. By round 3, the fury of punches were too much for Byun, and resulted in a TKO 55 seconds into the round.

“It was a good experience that made me determine my weaknesses,” said Byun, “I am taking this as a learning experience and I am proud to have represented by team in for a great cause. I have had people in my life that have dealt with breast cancer and I am glad that I can do my part to support their fight.”

“This is my first victory as a NYPD officer and I am glad I was able to share the ring with my LAPD brother,” said Cintron, “I want to thank Tiger Schulmanns of the MMA for all their help training for this fight.”

LA FIGHT CLUB: Negrete vs. Bustos, was presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, Casa Mexico Tequila, Carmelita Coconut Water and Hands of Stone in theaters August. Doors opened at 5:00 p.m. and the first bout begans at 5:30 p.m. The Estrella TV Boxeo Estelar broadcast will aired live on Friday, July 1 at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT and streamed live simultaneously on estrellaTV.com and on YouTube via Fenomeno Studios: youtube.com/FenomenoStudios. The Ring TV live stream will began at approximately 5:30 p.m. PT through 7:00 p.m.

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.belascous.com, www.estrellatv.com, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @EstrellaTV and become a fanon Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/TheBelascoLA, www.facebook.com/EstrellaTVNetwork, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @belascola and @EstrellaTV, follow the conversation using #LAFIGHTCLUB and #BoxeoEstelar.

LOS ANGELES (June 3, 2016) – Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya has issued the following statement with regard to the passing of “The Greatest” Muhammad Ali:

“It is with great sadness today that we mourn the loss of the Greatest of All Time – Muhammad Ali. I send my deepest condolences to his family, and pray for strength and peace for them during this difficult time.

“Muhammad Ali is a legend and one of the world’s most celebrated athletes, the fighter who ushered in the golden era of boxing and put the sport on the map. He paved the way for professional fighters, including myself, elevating boxing to become a sport watched in millions of households around the world.

“Ali’s talent was undeniable – he was an Olympic Gold Medalist, three-time lineal world heavyweight champion, and the only one to accomplish that to this day, and reached the pinnacle of our sport as the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1964.

“Beyond his incredible talent, he also made boxing interesting. Ali was fearless in the ring, and took on the toughest, most challenging opponents. Ali exemplified courage—he never took the easy route, something to be admired in and outside of the ring.

“As he grew older, he didn’t let his physical condition become an excuse to stop working; he continued to work hard, focusing on giving back to the community. Today, as we reflect on his life, let us remember a man who pursued greatness in everything he did and be inspired to hold ourselves to that same standard. Rest in peace, my friend.”

# # #

SALT LAKE CITY (May 23, 2016) – CharityVision, a Utah-based non-profit providing medical equipment, clinics, vision screenings, eye surgeries, and training to doctors in poverty-stricken areas across the globe, is partnering with Golden Boy Promotions to host its second annual Fight Night fundraising event on Saturday, June 11 at 6:30pm at the Rail Event Center in Salt Lake City. Boxing legend, ten-time world champion in six weight classes and Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya and host of “Extra” and boxing enthusiast Mario Lopez will participate in the night’s main event. CharityVision will also partner with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions to put on three professional boxing undercard bouts, to be announced at a later date, which will precede the main event.

Josh Romney, CharityVision president, will serve as the night’s emcee and Jenn Blosil, a top 15 finalist on this season of American Idol, will sing the national anthem. Governor Mitt Romney, who participated in last year’s main event, will also be in attendance.
This year’s black-tie event, which is using the hashtag #givesight25, is expected to raise $1 million, allowing CharityVision to perform 40,000 sight-restoring surgeries. At an average cost of $25, one person’s sight can be restored with a simple procedure. For about the same cost as lunch with a friend, a mother can see her children for the first time, a family can be lifted out of poverty because sight brings new opportunities, and hope can be brought back to families and communities. With a $25 donation a commemorative Fight Night t-shirt is available www.givesight25.com. There, donations of any amount can also be made. All proceeds benefit CharityVision and its work to restore sight.

Last year’s Fight Night main event, headlined by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and five-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, raised $1 million. In 2015 Charity Vision saw almost 400,000 patients, donated over 70,000 pairs of glasses, and performed over 42,000 surgeries.

A separate media advisory will be issued with further event, coverage, and credentialing details. Click HERE for preliminary media credential requests.

For more information about Fight Night, visit www.fightnight.vision.

STATEMENT FROM 10-TIME WORLD CHAMPION OSCAR DE LA HOYA:
“I am excited to get back into the ring with a good friend for a great cause. CharityVision Fight Night is an incredible opportunity to give back to so many across the world that live with blindness but who could see with a simple, low-cost procedure. CharityVision’s work is changing lives, families and communities and I’m proud to be a part of an event that will raise funds to help restore sight for thousands.”

STATEMENT FROM HOST OF “EXTRA” MARIO LOPEZ:
“CharityVision is a great cause and I’m excited to be a part of this night for the second time. I can’t wait to get into the ring with Oscar and have some fun with him, but most importantly, bring attention to the work that CharityVision does to give many deserving individuals the gift of sight. It’s a honor to be a part of their great work and we’re going to have a great night that will change many lives.”

STATEMENT FROM CHARITYVISION PRESIDENT, JOSH ROMNEY:
“The work that CharityVision does around the world to restore sight couldn’t be done without the support we receive from Fight Night. Last year’s event was an enormous success, raising $1 million and helping tens of thousands of people see. Because we can do so much with only $25, our supporters don’t have to give a lot to do a lot. This year’s event is poised to be an even bigger success. We are incredibly grateful to Oscar, Mario and all of the other fighters who will make this night a success.”

ABOUT CHARITYVISION: CharityVision is focused on empowering local physicians in 25 developing countries to overcome curable blindness and poor vision by providing eye exams, glasses, surgeries, and eye-care clinics. In 2015, doctors in CharityVision clinics around the globe restored the sight of more than 40,000 patients. www.charityvision.net

ABOUT GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS: Los Angeles-based Golden Boy Promotions was established in 2002 by 10-time world champion in six divisions Oscar De La Hoya, the first Hispanic to own a national boxing promotional company. Golden Boy Promotions is one of boxing’s most active and respected promoters, presenting shows in packed venues around the world and has worked with networks such as HBO, HBO Latino, Estrella TV, ESPN, TeleFutura, FOX Sports 1, FOX Deportes, Televisa and TV Azteca. The company has also promoted some of the top boxing events in the history of the sport including De La Hoya vs. Mayweather, Mayweather vs. Canelo and other notable pay-per-view fights featuring fan-favorites Bernard “The Alien” Hopkins, Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Marco “Baby Faced Assassin” Antonio Barrera, Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Sugar Shane Mosley.

LOS ANGELES (May 18, 2016) – Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Champion Canelo Alvarez today issued the following statement:

“After much consideration, today, I instructed my team at Golden Boy Promotions to continue negotiating a fight with Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin and to finalize a deal as quickly as possible. I also informed the WBC that I will vacate its title. For the entirety of my career, I have taken the fights that no one wanted because I fear no man. Never has that been more true than today. I will fight ‘GGG,’ and I will beat ‘GGG’ but I will not be forced into the ring by artificial deadlines. I am hopeful that by putting aside this ticking clock, the two teams can now negotiate this fight, and ‘GGG’ and I can get in the ring as soon as possible and give the fans the fight they want to see.”

Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya today issued the following statement:

“There is no denying that Canelo is the biggest star in the sport of boxing. He is eager to get in the ring with ‘GGG’ to show the world that he is also the best pound for pound fighter in the sport, but we won’t negotiate under a forced deadline. Now that the WBC title is off the table, I am hopeful that ‘GGG’ and his promoter K2 Promotions will come to the table in good faith and get this deal done.”

LAS VEGAS (May 6, 2016) – On the eve of the Canelo vs. Khan showdown, Golden Boy Promotions gave back by to boxing fans by offering a day full of excitement free and open to the public. First, fans onsite were able to witness the final face-off between Canelo Alvarez and Amir Khan at the new Toshiba Plaza in from of the T-Mobile Arena, in Las Vegas. Immediately after, a free three-title fight night was staged featuring Marvin Quintero vs. Petr Petrov for the NABA and NABF Lightweight Titles. Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions’Oscar De La Hoya and future hall of famer and Golden Boy Promotions business partner Bernard Hopkins were in attendance enjoying the action packed fights, along with WBC Lightweight World Champion Jorge “El Nino de Oro” Linares, and Golden Boy Promotions stablemates WBC Silver Featherweight Champion Ronny Rios, NABF Featherweight Champion Joseph “Jojo” Diaz, and Eddie “E-Boy” Gomez.

Headlining the televised main event in a fight for Marvin “Cachorro” Quintero’s (28-7, 6 KOs) NABF Lightweight title, Petr “Zar” Petrov (37-4-2, 17 KOs) put his NABA Lightweight Tile on the line and gave every ounce of his strength and power to defeat his opponent. Quintero battled against Petrov’s jabs and hooks suffering from a dangerously swollen left eye starting in the fourth round. By the end of the sixth round and before the beginning of the seventh round, the doctor stopped the fight from moving forward due to the left eye swelling impairing Quintero’s vision, ultimately awarding Petrov the victory by technical knockout in the sixth round.

“This was a great fight for me, my opponent was a strong fighter and I give my respect to him and his team. I have been off for over a year and half and I did feel sluggish and slow at times, but the win is all that matters,” said Petrov of his NABF/NABA victory. “I feel honored to have fought in Las Vegas on Cinco de Mayo weekend as the first boxing event at the new Toshiba Plaza and I hope this is the first of many more fights in Las Vegas.”

“I am very disappointed with the doctor’s decision, I had been fighting like this for two rounds and physically felt strong to continue, but they made the decision and that is something that I cannot control,” said Marvin Quintero of his technical knockout. “It’s the Mexican blood in me that wills me to continue fighting and never give up. I will not stop fighting for my dream to one day become a world champion.”

In the co-main event, the vacant WBC Continental Americas Welterweight title was on the line as, Pablo Cesar “El Demoledor” Cano (29-5-1, 21 KOs) of Tlanepantla, Mexico went head to head against Fairfield, CA’s Alan Sanchez (18-3-1, 9 KOs) in scheduled 10-round welterweight fight. Going the distance, the exciting match incited cheers from boxing fans in the crowd which heavily favored Cano. The judges awarded the belt to Sanchez, via split decision who proudly displayed his new title in the ring to show off for his newfound fans.

“I’m going home with my belt! This is just the beginning, and I am excited for the doors that will be opened because of this,” said Alan Sanchez of his big victory. “I want the big title and I want to be a world champion one day–this is the first step to achieving that goal.”

“I don’t feel the decision was a good one, because I felt I was ahead in the rounds, landing more of my punches harder and more effectively,” said Pablo Cesar Cano. “I felt that my opponent was running most of the time, and I didn’t get a chance to hurt him the way I wanted to.”

In the televised swing bout of the night, rising southpaw standout star Alexis Rocha (2-0, 2 KOs) of Santa Ana, CA knocked out San Juan, Puerto Rico’s Abdel Vera (0-3) in the first round showing Rocha’s sheer strength and power punches.

“When the referee made the call, I felt so excited because I knew all of my hard work paid off. I knew I was coming in to the ring with more experience so I was able to dominate the round. I wanted to start the fight with ferocity on my terms to control the fight. Looking forward, I’m very excited for more fights.”

Opening the televised fight night was Guadalajara, Mexico’s Horacio “Violento” Garcia (30-1-1, 21 KOs) facing Erik “El Trompo” Ruiz (15-5-1, 6 KOs) of Oxnard, CA battling it out over the vacant NABF Super Bantamweight title. The crowd couldn’t get enough of the quick exchanges between both fighters eager to take a home a belt during their 10-round scrap. For every punch thrown by “Violento,” “El Trompo” effectively counterpunched. In a shocking split decision draw, the judges gave 92-98 to Ruiz and 97-93 to Garcia and 95-95.

“My opponent started out slow, and my game plan was to build out more momentum in the fight,” said Horacio Garcia of the split decision draw. “I feel that I needed more rounds to get the job done, but I respect the judge’s decision. Next time, I hope to take more chances and throw more punches when I can.”

“After this fight, I want a rematch,” said Erik Ruiz of the decision. “I want to take home my belt because I know I made cleaner and harder punches. I am extremely disappointed with the results of the fight.”

Capturing the opening victory of the night in the first boxing event to ever take place at the newly opened Toshiba Plaza was the always swift Joet Gonzalez (13-0, 6 KOs) of Glendora, CA against Chihuahua, Mexico’s own Ricardo “Cepillo” Proano (11-4, 9 KOs) in an eight round featherweight fight. With his consistent counterpunches against Proano, Gonzalez was able to corner his opponent in almost every round. Never one to back down, Proano came back with his consistent head shots to Joet who used his blocks awarding him the win by unanimous decision.

“During the fight, I was very angry because my opponent kept head-butting me,” said Joet Gonzalez of the bout. “At one point during the fight, I was unable to see from my right eye. However, I could tell he was nervous and he really made me work for the victory so I kept my distance and tried to neutralize his hits.”

Marvin Quintero vs. Petr Petrov was a 10-round fight for the NABF and NABA Lightweight title and was presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Banner Promotions and sponsored by “Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold.” The first bout began at 4:30 p.m. The Estrella TV Boxeo Estelar broadcast will aired on Friday, May 6 at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT and streamed live simultaneously on estrellaTV.com and on YouTube via Fenomeno Studios: youtube.com/FenomenoStudios. The Ring TV live stream began at approximately 4:30 p.m. PT through 9:00 p.m.

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.estrellatv.com, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @EstrellaTV and become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/EstrellaTVNetwork, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing, and @EstrellaTV, follow the conversation using #BoxeoEstelar.

By Norm Frauenheim–

LAS VEGAS – Donald Trump and Oscar De La Hoya are accusing each other of cheating and lying. There’s nothing to the rumor that De La Hoya will be Trump’s running mate, either. At least, we don’t think so. But that could all change in a TMZ minute.

The only certainty Thursday was that boxing and presidential politics were one and the same when it comes to the truth. There is none.

In a sequence of tweets and news reports that turned into a rapid-fire farce throughout a few hours, Trump countered De La Hoya’s charges of cheating on the golf course, saying he had never played golf with the Hall of Fame fighter-turned promoter.

http://www.usnews.com/news/sports/articles/2016-05-05/trump-i-have-too-much-integrity-to-cheat-in-golf

Then, TMZ posted video of De La Hoya on the golf course, playing a round of golf in 2010 with the former promoter-turned-Republican presidential nominee.

http://www.tmz.com/2016/05/05/oscar-de-la-hoya-donald-trump-golf/

De La Hoya can be heard praising Trump, who swings a club as if he got a lesson from Charles Barkley.

Trump also said reports of him attending the De La Hoya-promoted fight Saturday between Canelo Alvarez and Amir Khan as “Totally untrue.” De La Hoya said at a Wednesday news conference at the MGM Grand that he had “confirmed” Trump would attend the fight at the T Mobile Arena.

De La Hoya had offered him two tickets. De La Hoya wasn’t sure where he would sit. Given the nature of any fight crowd and Mexican anger at Trump for his controversial comments about immigration, he might have had to watch the bout from a seat in an armored personnel carrier.

Meanwhile, Trump showed up in other photos and video, eating a taco salad. It was his way of celebrating Cinco de Mayo. He said it was made at a Mexican restaurant in the Trump Tower, perhaps by some of the undocumented immigrants he promises to deport if he gets elected.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/05/05/trump-uses-taco-bowl-try-reach-out-hispanic-voters-cinco-de-mayo/83981070/

Anybody for a game of liar’s poker?

LONDON (May 5) – Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya has tipped Amir Khan as a ‘huge favourite’ ahead of his showdown with Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez.

The Golden Boy Promotions boss believes the British ace is a genuine threat to middleweight world champion Canelo and thinks those with knowledge of the fight game would not be surprised should he prevail against the odds.

“There’s a reason Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao didn’t want to fight Amir Khan because he possesses skills like no other,” said De La Hoya.

“He may come in as the underdog, but he also comes in as a huge favourite to those who know the sport and to many of those who have seen him fight,” he said.

The six-division world champion was also quick to praise Khan’s willingness to face the very best, comparing his impending battle, exclusively live on BoxNation, to Muhammad Ali’s stunning upset over George Foreman.

“It’s great to be beside a fighter who dares to be great. Amir is a hard worker, not only an Olympic silver medallist, but here is a fighter who is a multiple weight world champion, always asking for the big fights and never getting them.

“Guess what? He’s now here facing the top fighter in the world, and he’s ready for it and excited to face him,” said De La Hoya.

“Whoever thought that Muhammad Ali could knock out George Foreman? I just talked to Foreman and people were praying he didn’t hurt Ali and look what happened there,” he said.

25-year-old Canelo, who is regarded by many as one of boxing’s pound-for-pound kings, knows that he will need to show that come fight night.

He takes on the Bolton born fighter at a catchweight of 155-pounds and says he has done a lot of work to deal with Khan’s speed.

“There’s not too much more left to say, the fight is here. I’m very happy with the work I have done.

“Khan is a very fast, very elusive, and very tricky fighter, but I am happy with the work I have done and I am ready to go in the ring and break him down.

“And again, I am much honoured to be opening the T-Mobile Arena. Come Saturday, I’m excited to yell, ‘Viva Mexico!’,” Canelo said.

Khan v Canelo is exclusively live on BoxNation (Sky/Freeview/Virgin/TalkTalk/Online & App) this Saturday night. Go to boxnation.com to subscribe.
– ENDS –

About BoxNation

BoxNation, the Channel of Champions and proud partner of Rainham Steel, is the UK’s first dedicated subscription boxing channel. For £12* a month and no minimum term customers can enjoy great value live and exclusive fights, classic fight footage, magazine shows and interviews with current and former fighters.

Previous highlights have included Haye vs Chisora, Khan vs Collazo and Mayweather vs Maidana.

The channel is available on Sky (Ch.437), Freeview (Ch.255), Virgin (Ch.546), TalkTalk (Ch.415), online at watch.boxnation.com and via apps (ios, Android, Amazon).

BoxNation is also available in high definition on Sky (Ch. 490), at no extra cost to Sky TV subscribers, providing they are already HD enabled.

BoxNation is also available to commercial premises (inc. pubs, clubs and casino’s) in the UK and Ireland, for more information on a commercial subscription please call 0844 842 7700.

For more information visit www.boxnation.com

*Plus £8 registration fee for Sky TV customers.

LOS ANGELES (April 27, 2016) – Laying down the gauntlet against Presidential Candidate Donald Trump for his disparaging comments about Mexicans and Muslims, Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO today offered the GOP frontrunner two free ringside seats to watch the Canelo vs. Khan super-fight showdown on May 7 in Las Vegas during a live interview on Fox Business News TV’s “Cavuto Coast to Coast.”
On Cinco de Mayo weekend, De La Hoya will bring together Mexican superstar, WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight Champion Canelo Alvarez (46-1-1, 32 KOs) and British Muslim boxing star Amir “King” Khan (34-3, 19 KOs) at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for an international boxing event that will be broadcast live on HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

“I want to take this opportunity to invite Mr. Trump to the Canelo vs. Khan fight on May 7 in Las Vegas,” said Oscar De La Hoya during his interview with Neil Cavuto on “Cavuto Coast to Coast” today. “I have Amir Khan, a Muslim fighter from the UK, fighting against the most popular boxer in Mexico, Canelo Alvarez, opening up the new T-Mobile Arena. We have an opportunity to show Mr. Trump just what Mexicans and Muslims can achieve — and in a city that screams America: Las Vegas. Trump, let me invite you so that you can see what a Mexican and a Muslim can generate.”
Raised in East Los Angeles by Mexican immigrant parents, De La Hoya named Trump when asked how he came up with the Canelo vs. Khan match, citing Trump’s controversial comments of Mexican immigrants and Muslims as an incentive to bring these two popular and diversely cultural fighters together in the ring.
Canelo vs. Khan, a 12-round fight for Canelo’s WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Championships, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and sponsored by “Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold,” O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila, DOOM® — Fight Like Hell on May 13, and HANDS OF STONE: The True Story of Roberto Duran, in theaters this August. David Lemieux vs. Glen Tapia is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management and Patrick Teixeira vs. Curtis Stevens is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Main Events. The mega-event will take place Saturday, May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
Episode two of HBO’s reality series “24/7 Canelo/Khan” premieres Saturday, April 30 at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. Liev Schreiber narrates the 18-time Emmy-Award-winning series.
Tickets priced at $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600, $400, $250 and $150, not including applicable service charges and taxes, with a total ticket limit of 12 per person (a limit of 10 per person at the $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600 and $400 price levels and a limit of two [2] per person at the $250 and $150 price level) are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849). Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.t-mobilearena.com or www.axs.com.
For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, follow us on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing or www.Facebook.com/HBOboxing, join us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, and follow the conversation using #CaneloKhan.
Photos and videos are available for download in the official Canelo vs. Khan press kit here: bit.ly/canelokhan.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions:
Thank you to all the media, all the international media for today’s call. We have WBC Ring Magazine and lineal middleweight world champion, Canelo Álvarez, who holds a record of 46 wins with one defeat and 32 KOs.

Canelo, as you know, will be defending his WBC Ring Magazine World Championship against Amir “King” Khan Cinco de Mayo weekend, which is May 7 at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas live on HBO Pay-Per-View.

We are counting down the days now to this mega fight with two of the biggest international fighters fighting at the biggest arena in the world. It’s going to be a great event and the first boxing event at the T-Mobile Arena since the venue opened earlier this month.

Canelo versus Khan is guaranteed to give the fans action. This is because history has shown us that when you get speed and power in that ring, it makes for a high-intensity, action-packed fight, and that’s exactly what the fans want to see, and they want to be entertained.

I was at Amir Khan’s training camp yesterday with all the media and he’s looking incredible. He’s looking strong. He’s looking powerful, and he has not lost his speed. He’s looking fast. So obviously this goes to show you that this is a fight that’s dangerous for both guys, but obviously I know that Canelo, as I’ve seen many times in camp now, he’s looking in great shape, and he’s ready to go against Amir Khan on May 7.

Tickets are still available. They are going extremely fast, and we expect a total sellout on fight night, and obviously if you can’t be in Las Vegas, this fight is being televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View, the best network for boxing.

Last thing, I want to thank the sponsors, Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila, and “DOOM – Fight Like Hell” on May 13. The sponsors have been doing an incredible, incredible job on activations on a national scale, so we greatly appreciate that.

Now, let me introduce to you, Team Canelo. I’m extremely happy to introduce my friend, he is the manager and trainer to Canelo Alvarez, and to say a few words, that is José ‘Chepo’ Reynoso.

JOSE ‘CHEPO’ REYNOSO, Manager and Trainer to Canelo Alvarez: Good morning. Basically, we’re towards the end of final stages of training camp, which would be one of the biggest events in Canelo’s career. We’re very happy and training hard so that we can be victorious, and so that we can celebrate and say ‘Viva Mexico’ and ‘Viva Canelo.’

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Gracias, Chepo. Now, next, it is my pleasure to introduce to you the trainer of Canelo Alvarez. He’s been doing a tremendous job, along with Chepo, with Canelo. They have a great dynamic together and they are preparing like no other for this fight. Let me introduce to you Eddy Reynoso.

EDDY REYNOSO, Head Trainer to Canelo Alvarez: Good afternoon to everybody, and I want to say hi to everyone.

So we’ve had great preparation. There’s three weeks to go till fight time. We haven’t had any mishaps. Everything is going just as planned and we’ll be ready to fight.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: It is my pleasure now to introduce to you the champion, at the age of 25, Guadalajara, Jalisco México’s Canelo Alvarez has conquered the boxing world over, captivating fans both at home and around the globe with his action-packed fighting style, his charisma, and willingness to take on the toughest challenges.

The 2015 Fighter of the Year candidate’s road to stardom began in 2011 with a win over Matthew “Magic” Hatton for the vacant WBC Super Welterweight World title, his first title defense against Ryan Rhodes and stoppage victories over Alfonso Gomez and Kermit Cintron.

Canelo has already faced the likes of Sugar Shane Mosley, Josesito Lopez, Austin Trout, in front of 40,000 fans at the Alamo Dome. He’s already fought Mayweather; the second-highest grossing bout only behind Mayweather and Pacquiao. He’s faced Angulo, and Cuba’s Erislandy Lara. He’s fought Kirkland in the Minute Maid Park in front of more than 31,000 fans where he received ESPN.com’s Knockout of the Year.

In November, he defeated feature Hall of Fame champion Miguel Cotto for the WBC Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight Championship in front of a packed arena at the Mandalay Bay Event Center where they generated to more than 900,000 homes across the country.

And now Canelo will look to remain on top of the sport by defeating Amir “King” Khan on May 7 in Las Vegas.

It is my pleasure, with a record of 46-1, 32 knockouts, to introduce to you Canelo Alvarez.

CANELO ALVAREZ, WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Champion: Good afternoon to everyone. I’m very happy to be on this call with you. We’re just a few weeks away from the fight. I’ve had a great preparation. I can’t wait to get in the ring and to give everyone a great fight. Thank you.

Q. Canelo, there’s a lot of folks out there that look at this and do find it to be a match up of speed versus power. Some say ‘why is Canelo fighting a much smaller fighter?’ I would like to know your response to the folks who say, ‘come on, Canelo, fight a guy your own size.’

CANELO ALVAREZ: There’s always going to be critics. There’s people supporting you and there’s always people that are against you. I really don’t worry about that.

I never underestimate anyone in the ring because anything can happen in the ring. My job is to be prepared, to be ready for the best possible fighter so I can give a great performance.

It doesn’t really bother me. I really don’t think about it. At the end of the day, it’s going to be a great event and I’m going to be ready for the fight.

Q. I know you’re preparing for an important fight in your own career, but I wonder if part of you is going to take a little break on Saturday night and maybe watch and see what GGG does in the ring in the Forum in Los Angeles. Will you watch that fight as scouting perhaps for a future show down with Golovkin?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Yeah, if I have the time, if I’m free on Saturday night, I’ll watch it. I’ll sit down and watch it. If not, I’ll probably record it and watch it later. I follow boxing, so yeah, most likely I’m going to watch it.

Q. Will you be watching it because you’re a fan or because this is the fighter that, all due respect to Amir, everybody wants to see you fight Golovkin in the fall. In other words, you’re watching not as a fan, because this is a guy you may step in the ring with in the future.

CANELO ALVAREZ: That fight’s going to happen. It’s going to have to happen. The fight is eventually going to happen. But I’m watching it because I’m a fan, I’m a boxing fan, and I like to watch it. It’s what we do when we’re in training camp. We try to watch all the fights that are televised when we have time to watch them.

Q. Where do you stand as the promoter? Are you going to try to make that fight for the fall?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Well, look, obviously it’s a fight that, you know, the question is not if, but when. That’s a fight that as a promoter, it’s a fight that I want to see; that the world wants to see, but as a promoter, I want it to be the biggest event in the history of this sport to attract fans and to bring back the fans that we lost when people witnessed Manny Pacquiao versus Mayweather.

So my question every single day is: How can I accomplish that? And in order to accomplish that, there’s a famous saying in boxing, that one certain promoter once said — and you know what that is. But this fight has to happen at the perfect moment, at the perfect time, and I think we’re getting close.

Q. What saying were you referring to? I’m not sure what you meant.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Well, the marination. The marination.

Q. Okay. That sounds to me — I understand where you’re coming from, from the business point of view, but it does sound to me that wouldn’t be this coming fall.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: You never know. In this sport, you never know. And look, Canelo is a competitor. We’re all competitors here. You just never know. So first thing’s first; he has to take care, and we have to get through Amir Khan, and then we’ll sit down and we’ll see what happens.

Q. But you’re not committing to the fight even though it’s mandated out — you don’t think about it, maybe you’ll do it, maybe you won’t, but you’re not going to commit to it even though it’s the fight that’s been ordered; is that my correct assessment?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Exactly.

Q. How similar are your careers, yours and Canelo? Obviously you had your great career, and Canelo is starting his now. How similar are the careers?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: You know, there’s some similarities, but I feel that Saul is more advanced at this point of his career. He’s more advanced. He’s accomplished a lot more than I did at 25 years old. A lot of people forget, he’s just 25. He’s just 25 years old.

So at this early stage of his career, he’s a little more advanced. And for me, I admire that. I admire his career and I’m going to support him 100 percent, because he’s still young and he still has so much more to go.

Q. You’re fighting a fighter from England. I’m told that you’re learning English, so you’re going to obviously tap into the European market now. You have a great campaign not only in Spanish but in English, as well. Are you trying to broaden your market? What exactly is it you’re trying to do?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Look, I really don’t look for these things to happen. My job, and I’m very fortunate, is to box, and I train hard and I give the best of me. These deals come and I’m not trying to tap into my market. It’s just something very fortunate that my career, that I’ve been able to have this in my career.

Obviously with Tecate, I’m extremely happy with them and it’s a great responsibility and it’s a great campaign, as well. I’m very excited, and I’m very happy for what they have done for me.
But look, my whole thing is I want to be a legend. I want to be a legend, and I train hard so I can do legendary things in boxing, and that’s what I train for; and these deals come, and I’m very thankful.

Q. In the 30-day weigh-in, we saw you were somewhere around 162 pounds. Does that indicate that you’re going to be a lighter, faster Canelo; maybe getting ready for the Khan fight because he’s a fast fighter?

CANELO ALVAREZ: I hope so. I hope so. I hope that really does happen that I am faster.

Look, what I’m doing, I’m working hard. I’m doing my work and working hard. Obviously we’re concentrating on the style that Amir has. That’s part of my work.

But I’m working hard, and we won’t know until fight night how I feel or how I come out. But as of right now, I’m just working hard and trying to adjust to the game plan and get ready for the style that Amir is going to bring.

Q. Obviously everybody is talking about the Golovkin fight. Oscar says it’s not if; it’s when. What are you thinking and what would you like to see about the fight? When will you be ready for Golovkin?

CANELO ALVAREZ: It’s in my future plans. It’s definitely in my future plans. I want to have that fight. I want to give that to the fans. I’m just not sure when.

Right now I’m focused on Amir Khan. That’s my fight. I want to fight three times this year. That’s my goal. That’s my plan. But anything can happen in this fight with Amir Khan. So sometimes you have a plan and it changes, so I’m focused 100 percent on Amir Khan and we’ll see right after that.

Q. Eddy, would it surprise you if Canelo ends up with knockout in this fight, and would that validate you being Trainer of the Year finally? 2015 they gave it to Sanchez.

EDDY REYNOSO: We’re training hard. He’s a very good fighter. He has a very good defense. We’ll see what happens in the fight. We don’t look for that to happen.

As far as for the Trainer of the Year, look, I do my job and I keep advancing little by little and all I can do is work hard and I leave that up to other people to decide.

Q. Obviously Canelo was passed over for Fighter of the Year. He had some great performances; one that comes to mind is the Kirkland fight. How do you feel about that, Oscar? Do you think that there should be some reform on the way its picked? He obviously deserved it.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Everyone has their own opinion. You know, I think that Saul has been doing a wonderful job as a fighter.
But look, it’s only the beginning. I think Canelo is going to have many, many more opportunities to win Fighter of the Year.

Q. Do you think it was an injustice that you didn’t win the Fighter of the Year? And do you even care about that?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Look, it’s nice. It’s nice winning awards. It’s something that’s nice. But I don’t think about that.

What I worry about is winning fights. At the end of the day, you have to win fights, and that’s what really counts and that’s what I train for and that’s what I work hard for, is to win fights.

The last thing I worry about is winning awards. I concentrate on winning fights.

Q. Now that Floyd is out of the picture and you’re the one that’s going to be fighting for the first time at the T-Mobile Arena, do you think that you can become the next king of boxing or the king of Las Vegas for boxing, and how do you feel about opening up the T-Mobile Arena?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Look, I don’t give myself titles. I don’t think of that. What I do is I do my job. If other people want to say that I’m the next person in boxing or call me or give me titles, then that’s up to them. That’s their opinion.

As far as fighting for the T-Mobile Arena, it’s a big honor. It’s a huge honor. It’s something new in my career, something that’s going to go down as one of the best arenas for boxing. I think there’s going to be some great fights there, and to be the first one, it means so much for me and I’m very happy and I’m honored.

Q. If you guys do not face GGG in the fall, is it an option to have a rematch with Miguel Cotto, just based on how well box office-wise that fight did?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Well, we’re obviously focused on May 7. I mean, look, we’re not going to talk about possible opponents. But we strongly feel that, look, Amir Khan possesses a real threat and we have to focus on Amir Khan, and after the fight, then we’ll sit down once again and decide what we’re going to do.

Q. But is that a possible option, though, just going forward?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: It might be.

Q. One thing about what you were saying, with you say that you’re not committed to doing the GGG fight in the fall, that you’re not sure what will happen; can you explain why you’re not committed to it at this point and why you’re not certain that will be his next fight?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Well, look, because in boxing, you never know what’s going to happen. I cannot talk to you and say that Amir Khan is an easy fight, because it’s not. You know, there’s a rematch clause in place for a reason because, you know, Amir Khan is a real threat.

I cannot commit to something, I mean, if this fight hasn’t even happened.

Q. Just again, given all this talk about who you might face after May 7, because most people do believe that you’ll be able to take Amir, what do you think about giving up your WBC belt if you didn’t play GGG?

CANELO ALVAREZ: I’m not even thinking about that. I’m preparing for this fight on May 7. I’m not even thinking about that.

After the fight, we’ll see. We’ll decide and see what’s the best course of action. But right now, it’s not even in my mind. Hasn’t even crossed my mind. I don’t know.

Q. What do you worry about with Khan when you analyze the matchup? What things worry you for this fight?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Well, he’s a fighter that’s very fast. He’s explosive. He’s a very, very good fighter. He’s fast, explosive. That’s why I’m training so hard. I want to be 100 percent because I don’t like surprises.

Q. It’s pretty wide open for pound-for-pound fighter in the world. You’re obviously somebody that could be considered that. Is that something you think about or that you want? In the past you’ve said that you’re not worried about titles you’re given; that you don’t worry about that stuff. But is this something that personally you would like to achieve, become pound-for-pound fighter, best fighter in the world?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Of course it’s something that I would like. Of course I would love to be considered the best fighter pound-for-pound. That’s the reason why I train so hard. That’s the reason why I want to fight the best.

But it’s not for me to say. It’s the public. If the public considers me that or I’m named pound for pound the best fighter, that’s great. But yeah, that’s something I would love to attain.

Q. Now that Floyd and Manny are retired, can Canelo be the top draw? Can he be the top guy in boxing, Pay-Per-View-wise, weight-wise. Obviously he’s opening up the T-Mobile Arena which is a great new facility. Oscar, do you consider that he could be the top draw in boxing?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Yes, I think that Saul could be considered not only the top draw but the most popular around the world. He’s already proved it.
You know, he broke records when he fought against Floyd Mayweather, so he’s already been there. He’s done that. So of course, I think that he is, and he’s going to continue to be, the top draw in boxing.

Q. With all due respect, you as a young boy, you wanted to always come in boxing and fight the best. Now that you’re at the top, everybody wants to come and fight you now. They want to treat you like a piñata and everybody wants to come and hit you and take their turn with you. How do you feel about that? Does that motivate you? What do you feel?

CANELO ALVAREZ: It’s a great motivation for me. It has a lot to say that everybody wants to come and try to take their turn and try to beat me. That’s why I train so hard; so that it doesn’t happen. So I’m always prepared. Yeah, it’s a big motivation for me.

Q. Obviously you’re a very good fighter: You can do it all, you can box, you can punch, you can stand toe-to-toe in a fight. What else is needed to make you a complete fighter, to make you an elite fighter? What does your team have to do or work on?

CANELO ALVAREZ: I think that obviously, look, there’s always going to be people that criticize me. They are always going to have tests and I have to pass different tests. And every fight, I keep learning and I keep getting better and I pass all the tests. There’s people that are always going to put more tests in front of me.

You know, I just keep — I have to keep doing what I’m doing, and I’m satisfying myself. Obviously I’m getting better each time out there.

I think about the people that are criticizing me that are with me; that are helping me get better that know what I’ve accomplished and where I come from, and that’s what’s important to me and that’s what I concentrate on.

Q. There’s comments that Oscar made in the British papers that Khan has a very good chance of winning and he could easily win the fight.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: No, that’s not what I said.

You know, this fight is a tough fight, just like any other fight, and you have to be prepared and you have to be ready, because you never know what’s going to happen in the ring.

Q. A lot of people are talking about the weight, the difference in weight. What do you feel about the difference in weight and what advantages do you have?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Look, I don’t think about that. I don’t worry about that. I just train hard. I think about having a great preparation and being ready for the fight.

I’ll repeat it again, I don’t like surprises, so I don’t think about that stuff. Obviously both of us are going to have our advantages, and the key thing is during the fight to take advantage of those advantages.

Q. Everybody is talking about the advantages of the fight. Do you think that you can possibly win by a knockout?

CANELO ALVAREZ: I feel that I’m obligated to win the fight, not necessarily to win by knockout, but to win the fight. That’s why I train hard, so I can win this fight. I don’t think about the knockout.

Q. By beating Cotto, do you think you gained some credibility that you might have lost when you lost to Mayweather? And have you ever faced anybody with the same style as Amir Khan?

CANELO ALVAREZ: As far as losing to Floyd, I don’t think I lost any credibility. You know, to go in there and perform like I did against Floyd at 22 years old, I don’t think I lost any credibility at all.

You know, I lost to a guy that nobody beat. Nobody was able to beat. None of the big names were able to beat him, so I don’t think I lost any credibility.

As far as beating Miguel Cotto, what it did, it gave me confidence. And it was historic for me, for my career, and it gave me a lot of confidence: A fighter, the stature of Miguel Cotto, the experience he has, the brand, the name, everything. It just gave me a lot of confidence and it’s something that was historic for me.

Look, I think I faced every kind of style. There’s so many different styles I’ve faced. I’ve faced people like that that are fast, elusive. I have the experience to be victorious May 7. I think it’s something that he doesn’t bring anything different that I haven’t faced before in the past to the table.

Obviously I have to be prepared, but yes, I have faced guys like him before.

Q. Eddy, obviously everybody is dangerous. Are you worried about the Amir Khan style? Are you worried or are you confident about his style?

EDDY REYNOSO: No, I think everybody’s dangerous. Anybody you face in the ring is dangerous. Amir Khan has a lot of qualities. That’s the reason why we’re training hard, and we’re getting prepared because he’s got many qualities and he can be a dangerous fighter.

Q. What has changed for you since your loss from Floyd Mayweather?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Many things have changed. I’m more experienced now. I’m more of a complete fighter. I’ve learned so much in that fight. So many things have changed. I think I have more confidence around the ring, so there’s many things that have changed.

Q. What is it that makes Canelo successful, not only inside of the ring but outside of the ring?
OSCAR DE LA HOYA: I think the desire is very, very important. I admire desire. He’s got so much desire, not only inside the ring but outside of the ring. He’s very focused and he takes it serious. He takes it very, very serious.

He works hard at his craft, so I think that’s something that I admire and you have to really love that about him.

Q. You’re only 25 years old. Is the best yet to come?

CANELO ALVAREZ: Of course there is. There’s many more things and many more goals. I have so much more that I want to accomplish in the sport. I think that I can reach many of them. I just have to concentrate more and keep working hard at my craft.

I just want to thank everybody for all your support and thank you so much for taking time to be on this call. I want to obviously invite everybody to see the fight May 7, and I just want to thank everybody for all the support. Thank you so much.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you to all the media. We greatly appreciate it. And please mark your calendars, Monday, April 25, we have Canelo’s media work out in San Diego. Additional details will be coming soon, but that is April 25 will be Canelo Álvarez’s media workout in San Diego. Thank you very much.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports
Visit our archives at asapsports.com

Canelo vs. Khan, a 12-round fight for Canelo’s WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Championships, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and sponsored by “Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold”, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila, DOOM® — Fight Like Hell on May 13, and HANDS OF STONE: The True Story of Roberto Duran, in theaters this August! David Lemieux vs. Glen Tapia is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management and Patrick Teixeira vs. Curtis Stevens is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Main Events. The mega-event will take place Saturday, May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

Tickets priced at $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600, $400, $250 and $150, not including applicable service charges and taxes, with a total ticket limit of 12 per person (a limit of 10 per person at the $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600 and $400 price levels and a limit of two [2] per person at the $250 and $150 price level) are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849). Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.t-mobilearena.com or www.axs.com.

An all-new edition of HBO’s Emmy-Award-winning reality series “24/7” premieres Saturday, April 23 at 12:15 a.m. ET/9:15 p.m. PT with episode one of “24/7 Canelo/Khan.” Liev Schreiber narrates.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, follow us on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing or www.Facebook.com/HBOboxing, join us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, and follow the conversation using #CaneloKhan.

Photos and videos are available for download in the official Canelo vs. Khan press kit here: bit.ly/canelokhan.

LOS ANGELES (April 15, 2016) – Golden Boy Promotions kept its promise in bringing the best to boxing fans, putting together the biggest fight to hit LA FIGHT CLUB yet. Former WBC Continental Americas and former NABF Welterweight Champion Jesus “Renuente” Soto Karass (29-10-4, 18 KO) faced Japan’s mighty warrior and former OPBF Welterweight Champion Yoshihiro “Maestrito” Kamegai (26-4-2, 23 KO) in a spectacular 10-round super welterweight performance at The Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles broadcast live on Boxeo Estellaron Estrella TV. It was a packed house tonight at The Belasco Theater, and the stellar sold out show saw the likes of Golden Boy stablemates Jason “El Animal” Quiqley, Glen “Jersey Boy” Tapia, Carlos “The Solution” Morales, Rashidi “Speedy” Ellis, Hector “El Finito” Tanajara Jr., Oscar “El Jaguar” Negrete, Joet Gonzalez, and Pablo “The Shark” Rubio were in attendance, along with television star Mario Lopez and Golden Boy Promotions President & CEO Oscar de la Hoya, who met and mingled with fans during this action-packed night.

Former WBC Continental Americas and former NABF Welterweight champion, Soto Karass was matched in strength and power by opponent Kamegai, former OPBF Welterweight Champion. The two fighters refused to give the other the upper hand and battled it out until the end, exchanging hits, jabs, and blocks. Both boxers remained adamant against their opponents, each counter punching speedy hits and hard blows. Unable to decide a victor, the judges named a match a draw with scores of 97-93 (Kamegai), 96-94 (Soto Karass), and 95-95.

“This fight was a war, exactly what the fans expected,” said Jesus Soto Karass. “The people truly won tonight. I felt really good in the ring, but Kamegai was a true, Japanese warrior. I feel we both delivered an exciting night of boxing.”

“I’m still getting used to the time zone here, but I feel really good about my performance tonight,” said Yoshihiro Kamegai. “Soto Karass did catch me a few times, but every time he did, he was met with my counterpunches. Soto Karass was the kind of fighter I was expecting to fight-a true warrior.”

Golden Boy Promotions fan favorite, Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chigonsky” Shabranskyy (16-0, 13 KOs) of Los Angeles added another knockout under his belt tonight with his epic takedown of Chicago’s Derrick “Superman” Findley (23-19-1, 15 KOs) in the eight-round cruiserweight co-main event match-up. From the beginning of the first round, Slava delivered swift blows to Findley’s chest and by the second round, Shabranskyy had his opponent cornered. Findley could only fend off “Lion Heart-Chigonsky” with his blocks for so long as Shabranskyy boxed around his opponent and executed power punches securing him a third round knockout victory.

“I have the best teams and the best fans. I’m so happy Los Angeles has welcomed me to in to their familia,” said Shabranskyy of his victory. “In the ring, I’ve learned to become more patient, waiting for my opponent, but I’m also ready to pounce for an attack. I embrace my “chingonsky” and I’m looking forward to training hard to give my fans more shows.”

Starting off his professional career with a knockout victory, Genaro “El Conde” Gamez, (1-0, 1 KO) took on Archie Weah (1-6) of Norcross, Georgia in an impressive professional debut. The fight began with fire, as both fighters pounced to get their win. However, Weah could not keep up with Gamez’s speed and hard punches, landing a series of punching combinations that put a stop to Weah in the first round.

“I made sure to start the fight slow so I could figure out Weah,” said Genaro Gamez. “Once I was aware of Weah’s style I proceeded to take control of the fight and I am glad I was able to stop him early. I feel excited about this victory as my professional debut and look forward to the next fight.”

Making his professional debut tonight on the super middleweight division, Miami, Florida’s southpaw star Niko “Baby Face” Valdes (1-0, 1 KO) faced Roberto Ramirez (0-3) in a ground shaking first round knockout bash. Beginning the bout, Valdes knocked down his opponent with a hit, after Ramirez got back on his feet he was met first with a body punch and then a series of combination punches to the chest which stopped him the first round.

“Today was the day my dreams came true, just as I envisioned it,” said Valdes of his victory. “As I look forward to my career, I want to aspire to have a career like Canelo, because he is a world champion super-star. In Miami, I train alongside amazing world champs, and they have built me to be an aggressive fighter, prepared for it all.”

Representing East Los Angeles, Jonathan “Thunder” Navarro (5-0, 4 KOs)brought some serious rumble in to the ring with his third round knockout over Tavorous Teague (3-11-2, 2 KOs) of Paramount, CA in their scheduled six-round welterweight fight. Navarro was applying pressure to Teague the second the bell rang, with his consistent heavy-hitting jabs. In the second round, Navarro’s aggression was mounting and the force proved too much for Teague to handle as he lost his footing, but rebounded looking to catch Navarro. After an exchange of hits and jabs, Navarro came back and took his opponent down in the third round to win the fight via knock out.

“It was a good fight tonight. I came in more patient, waiting to strike,” said Navarro. “I learned a lot from this fight because it was my first time coming across my opponent’s fighting style. I feel ecstatic about adding another knockout, and I am very excited for my next fight.”

Eager to begin his professional boxing career, Glendora, California’s Jousce Gonzalez (1-0, 1 KO) entered the ring with a bang knocking out opponent Noe Perez (1-2) of Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico in the first round as the opening bout of the night. Gonzalez has boxing in his blood as his brother Joet Gonzalez is a professional fighter and his sister is Jajaira Gonzalez is a finalist for the 2016 Olympic Women’s Boxing Team. Gonzalez impressively knocked down Perez three times before the fight was called off by the referee, awarding him his first victory by knockout.

“I feel so blessed to start off my professional career how I did tonight,” said Jousce Gonzalez of his winning knockout. “Coming out to my song, to the lights, and to the fans, I can’t help but feel excited for the future. I’m from a boxing family, and having Joet Gonzalez as my brother makes me really competitive against him, so I push to train harder in the ring and this is what makes me a better boxer.”

Jesus Soto Karass vs. Yoshihiro Kamegai was presented by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD and Carmelita Chorizo. Doors opened at 5:00 p.m. and the first bout began at 5:30 p.m. The Estrella TV Boxeo Estelar broadcast aired live on Friday, April 15 at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT and streamed live simultaneously on estrellaTV.com and on YouTube via Fenomeno Studios: youtube.com/FenomenoStudios. The Ring TV live stream began at approximately 5:30 p.m. PT through 7:00 p.m.

For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.belascous.com, www.estrellatv.com, follow on twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @EstrellaTV and become a fanon Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/TheBelascoLA, www.facebook.com/EstrellaTVNetwork, visit us on Instagram at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @belascola and @EstrellaTV, follow the conversation using #LAFIGHTCLUB and #BoxeoEstelar.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions: Thank you for joining us today on this international media conference call for 2004 Olympic silver medal winner and former two?time world champion Amir “King” Khan. As you know, Amir Khan will battle Canelo Alvarez for the WBC and Ring Magazine Lineal Middleweight Championship which will be on Cinco de Mayo weekend on May 7th, live from the T?Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and if you can’t make it to Las Vegas, you can watch it on HBO Pay?Per?View.

We’re really excited once again to be working with Amir Khan, and as you know, Golden Boy Promotions is the exclusive promoter to Canelo?Khan, and we are thrilled that Amir Khan is once again working with us.

This fight is all about speed and power, and history has shown us that these types of fights make for an exciting one, action?packed fight. I’ve said it before: This fight takes me back to Maidana, who had Amir in a really, really tough fight, and Khan with his amazing footwork and speed and strength, you know, he was able to be victorious.

We are extremely thrilled and excited, and we certainly can’t wait for May 7th. I do want to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors, Cerveza Tecate, “Born Bold,” O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila, and DOOM, “Fight Like Hell,” on May 13th. All of the marketing, if you haven’t seen it yet, will start kicking in in these next couple of days. They are doing a tremendous, tremendous job on a global scale to make sure that everyone knows about this tremendous, tremendous fight.

Tickets are still available, and they are moving fast. We expect a sellout, a sellout crowd. We expect a lot of Brits. We expect a lot of wonderful fans from all over the world supporting these two great fighters. If you haven’t gotten your tickets, they are moving fast.

The person I will introduce to you now I’m happy to call a friend, a man that I’ve always admired. He’s brought up Amir Khan in such a way that a lot of people should be envious about. He is Amir’s father and manager, and that is Shah Khan. Shah?

SHAH KHAN, Father and Manager of Amir Khan: Hi, everybody, and thank you for coming online for this media conference call.

Yeah this is a tough challenge for him, and Amir is up for the challenge. The interest in the UK is incredible. Massive interest, just alone, just from the office, we’ve sold like 1,000 tickets, you know, not talking about the ticket ?? or the ticket outlets, and it’s a massive interest in the UK, and I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be a great night for boxing.

The preparations are going really, really well, and Amir is really up for this fight, and it’s going to be a great fight, two great fighters. You’ve got power and you’ve got speed, and I think it’s going to be easily a contenders’ fight in boxing. Thank you.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you very much, Shah. Next up to say a few words, he really needs no introduction. He’s trained some of the top fighters in the world today, and my hat’s off to him for doing a wonderful job a couple of weeks ago with probably one of the top fighters on the planet today, so let me introduce to you Amir’s trainer, Virgil Hunter.

VIRGIL HUNTER, Trainer to Amir Khan: Thanks, Oscar. Hello, everyone. Once again, glad to be part of such a big, big event in boxing, a sport that I love.

Amir is having a great training camp in preparation for a fight that we know is a very dangerous fight, and I commend him and his courage and his insight on taking the fight and thanking everybody who is involved, and looking forward to seeing everyone May 7th.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you very much, Virgil. And now the man of the hour. He’s Britain’s top fighter, Amir “King” Khan. He was catapulted into the media spotlight after winning the silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, and he went on to turn pro the following year in July of 2005 with a first?round technical knockout victory over Phil Edwards, which obviously has taken him to the top of the sport. Amir Khan is a fighter who is a technical challenge, is a fighter who wants to fight the best, is a fighter who has been a multiple world champion, and yes, he continues to work hard and can push himself to new heights and push himself to the limit. He’s the kind of fighter who I personally have admired ever since he turned pro, ever since I saw him in the Olympic Games, and so I want to introduce to you a man who, like I said, shies away from no challenge and is willing to fight the very best, to be the best, and let me introduce to you Amir “King” Khan.

AMIR KHAN, Former Two Time World Champion: Hi, everyone. Thanks for joining the conference call. Training camp is going really well. It’s going really well. We’re still continuing all the camp.

It’s been tough, obviously, working on these strategies with my trainer Virgil, being more focused, because I know that one little mistake in a fight like this could get me in trouble, so I’m making sure that I’m not making any mistakes from being in the ring, scoring, or being in the gym training, doing work, or even outside the ring when I’m recovering and how long I’m going to be keeping the weight on, keep my ?? because I want to walk into this ring strong. I don’t want to be too light because by being too light, it could only ?? it won’t make me real strong.

I’m up against a very big middleweight fighter, which Canelo, he’s a middleweight world champion. We’re doing everything right. I mean, look, my skills are what’s going to win me this fight. I know I’m not going to be stronger than Canelo in any way. I’m not going to be thinking I’m stronger than Canelo, but I’m going to stand with him and fight with him. I think my skills in this fight will win me the fight, and I don’t know if the speed I have is something that ?? I don’t think that Canelo’s experienced speed with combinations and speed with power. I think there will be a lot of people who will be ?? I would say I will definitely shock the world come May 7th, otherwise I wouldn’t take the fight.

I’ve been watching video of Canelo, and day after day it’s getting more and more confident that I can beat this guy. So I’m really looking forward to it, and we still have another three to four weeks left of training where I’m going to be focusing, and I’m still going to be giving 100 percent so when I do walk into that ring, I’m not only going to do myself proud, but I’m going to do my family proud, I’m going to do my country proud, and I’m going to bring back home the belt. Thanks.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you, Amir. Before we go to questions, just a quick reminder, we’re going to host the media on Monday, April 18th, in Oakland, so if you don’t get a chance to ask a question, then hopefully you can make some time to go out there and see Amir train live in person. Thank you.

Q. Amir, you’ve been training a while now at this weight. How have you felt? Is this possibly the best you’ve ever felt not having to take weight off?

AMIR KHAN: I think I do feel stronger. I feel strong. I’m sparring with some very tough guys in the gym, and I do see that by holding on to the weight, it’s given me a lot of ability and a lot of strength and a lot of power, as well. That’s something that I know I’m not going to be naturally stronger than Canelo. Canelo is going to be stronger, obviously. He’s one of the bigger guys, but I think what’s going to happen to me is just happier at this weight and not killing myself.

Q. And having not to lose weight, meaning have you had more time to work on tactics and technique and improving that side of your game?

AMIR KHAN: Correct, yeah. That’s what we’re working on because obviously normally we have to be losing a lot of weight, and going down in weight and stuff like that weakens me, so this time I won’t be doing that. I’ll just be focusing on my game plan for the fight and improving my boxing skills.

Q. Could I ask Virgil a question, please. What did you think, Virgil, when Amir came to you with this fight? What was your first reaction?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, it was Shah who came to me with the fight, and initially I wasn’t for the fight, but I hadn’t seen Amir yet. Well, I take that back. He was here in the States. I wasn’t for the fight.

I think what changed my outlook on it was Amir’s response to me when I asked him why do you want this fight, and his response to me was quite assuring that he understood what he was going up against and what he was getting into.

Off of that, I felt much more confident in his ability to be competitive and win the fight.

Q. And how do you think he is looking at this weight in training?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, I’ve seen him come past through this weight before, and I’ve always been impressed when he was at this particular weight on his way down to making weight. It’s good, like he said, to be able to train and to be able to just focus on boxing and not have the worry and the grind of taking off pounds and doing it right and making sure you’re going to peak right and all these things. It’s been a plus. It’s been a plus.

Q. My first question is for Virgil. My question for you, I heard what you were just saying about when you asked Amir why he wanted to fight. When you heard that he wanted to fight, besides your opinion and as far as how Amir could match up against Canelo, what was your thought about what it said about Amir’s sort of mentality and desire to fight the best fighters? What did you think about that when he asked you about this match?up?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, again, maybe I said it wrong; he didn’t ask me initially. I was conversing with Shah, and once Shah let me know that the fight was on the table, I asked Amir why he wanted to fight.

Q. I heard that part. I heard that part. I meant your thought about that, when he told you.

VIRGIL HUNTER: When he asked? Well, what he told me as I was thinking also when he went into the fight, and usually it takes maybe two to three weeks sometimes for a fighter to buy into any strategy or plans you might have, maybe sometimes even longer, but to go into a camp already on the same page, that’s really a plus. You can get right to work.

So it was quite convincing, but it let me know that he understood what he was going up against, and he understood what he could and could not do.

Q. So how impressed are you by the desire to fight a bigger guy who’s got as much ?? a lot of experience against top fighters where your fighter is certainly the underdog? Do you like the idea that he wants to be great like that? What is your thought about that?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, you have to be impressed. I mean, it’s a step that not many fighters would take under those circumstances, so you have to be impressed.

I always said one thing about Amir, even in some of his setbacks, I’ve never really seen it affect him to the point where he got gun shy or not competitive. He has a personality and characteristics about him that he believes in himself, and he understands why he lost when he lost, and he just moves forward. That’s a plus in itself.

Yeah, I give him all the credit in the world. He’s got more than guts and balls; he’s got audacity. So it means a lot.

Q. Is it going to be difficult do you think for Amir and for you to sort of get it through his mind that he’s going to have to stay very disciplined with the way he boxes against a fighter that’s as big and strong as Canelo Alvarez because obviously that would appear to be part of the plan where you’re ?? nobody is going to expect Amir to stand there and slug it out with this guy. As he said in his statement, it’s going to be his skills that win this fight, not necessarily because he’s a bigger, stronger fighter. Can you keep him disciplined for 12 rounds?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, first of all, if he’s disciplined, I can keep him disciplined. If he doesn’t have the discipline and focus now, he’ll never have it, but I believe it’s there, and I think it’s very intact, and he understands what he needs to do, when he needs to do it. He understands the danger, and he also understands how to win the fight.

So it’s just going to be a great fight, I believe, and I believe that he has a fight in him that hasn’t come out yet, like all fighters when they get around 29 to 30 if they’re winners. They can just bring a fight out, bring it up, and I believe that that fight is in him somewhere, and I expect to see the fight come up that night because of all the elements. It should, and it will. If it’s ever going to come up, it’ll come up May 7th.

Q. Amir, I know that you were very disappointed that you did not get a fight with Mayweather, you did not get a fight with Manny Pacquiao, but now you’ve got probably the best guy other than them, and those other two guys now claim to be retired. What was your thought process to constantly strive to have the biggest fight possible, and not only have the biggest fight possible with Canelo, but then to go up in weight against a guy that’s going to be bigger and stronger than you? What is it that drives you to take that type of risk?

AMIR KHAN: I’m thinking about making history in boxing and leaving a great legacy behind and fighting the best out there. I wanted the big fights against Mayweather, Pacquiao, and both fights didn’t happen. I wanted the next big thing, and the next big thing was Canelo, and I remembered a long time ago being asked to speak about that fight, and you know, it seems to be more realistic now. I’m in a position where I’m growing up now and getting stronger, and I’m knowing and getting to understand boxing a lot better now, and having a good team around me with Virgil and the team, I think that helps, also, so I just needed that big fight now because that was something that was only going to give me more confidence and kind of give me that more drive.

Q. It kind of strikes me, Amir, I get the feeling from hearing some of your comments, from seeing some of your interviews and seeing some of the stories that you kind of like the fact that you’re the underdog because it will give you even more satisfaction should you be victorious? Can you speak about that and that mentality?

AMIR KHAN: I think it’s great, yeah. I think it’s great to be the underdog. This is the first fight I’m walking into as the underdog because normally I’m walking in as the favorite, and possibly a bit of pressure on you, where this time I’m going to be walking in as the underdog, and that way it’s a time where I can prove people this is where I belong. I belong as one of the best fighters in the world, and it’s going to be a great test for me.

Q. Oscar, when you boxed, there’s nobody that would doubt that you always strived to fight the very best fighters out there. You fought everybody in your career. When you look at Amir Khan and you see the desire for him to take on these types of challenges, does it in some ways remind you of the attitude that you had, and can you speak about that and the mentality of that as far as desiring to fight the best out there because you always did it?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Yeah, that’s who Amir Khan is. He’s a fighter, a human being that believes in himself, believes in his abilities. He’s a hard worker. I strongly feel that every fight should look at Amir Khan and dare to be great. That’s exactly what takes it to the top, whether they’re tough fights or whether they’re winnable fights. As long as you take the challenge, that’s the only way you’re going to know if you’re going to be great or not.

Q. Does it remind you of yourself a little bit?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: You know, it actually does. It actually does. I won some, I lost some, but one thing about my career today is that nobody can take that away from me. I dared to be great and fought everybody that was in front of me, and that’s who Amir Khan is.

Q. I have a question for Virgil. Virgil, you were saying that your initial reaction to the match?up is that you were against it. Can you explain what your thinking was there just when you first heard the idea of Amir facing Canelo?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, just being logical. Size difference being first and foremost, and the fact that Amir had been off for a while. Those are the first two things that came to my mind. Canelo has been fighting quite regularly, and you can get into a groove fighting as frequent as he’s been fighting and Amir having some time off.

But also on the other end, I believe that fighters who have started out as young as Amir has at nine and eight years old, that they need periods of time off. I think that it refreshes them, and I think that that’s been proven, Pacquiao the other night, Mayweather fighting Marquez, even Andre coming back and fighting No. 1. When you’ve been fighting since you were a kid, those muscle memories, they stay intact, and you don’t really get ring rust unless you’re doing things in your lifestyle, staying up, staying out drinking, whatever you’re doing that’s detrimental to your physical well?being, that can throw you off, of course, and it would exhibit to the viewers some sort of rust and things that are missing.

But the size and his frequency of fighting, that was the first concern.

Q. Virgil, when you spoke to Amir you mentioned that his excitement kind of changed your thinking and changed your mind on that. Was there anything else that changed your opinion about the fight, or was it just Amir’s ?? just his confidence?

VIRGIL HUNTER: No, his response. That pretty much did it. I didn’t entertain any other thoughts. Just his response.

Q. And lastly, about the size issue, heading into the fight, how do you think Amir ?? obviously Amir is going to be bigger. How do you think he’s going to respond to being a bigger fighter? Will that affect his speed do you think at all?

VIRGIL HUNTER: His speed has not been compromised at all, and I know it’s a lot of photos out there, outlets or public, make your own determination, weigh?in or during the fight, but he has not lost an iota of speed. When you’re gifted with it like he is, you’ll grow with it. It’s no different than LeBron James being in high school touching the white square at 190, and he still can do it at 230. It’s really not that much different than a sprinter, Bo Jackson running a 9.1 in the 200 and still doing it at 225. No, his speed hasn’t been compromised at all.

Q. Amir, just wondering, did you have to convince Virgil that this was the right match?up, and what was that conversation like when Virgil, I guess, expressed that maybe he had some second thoughts on the match?up? Just take us through that conversation that you had with him.

AMIR KHAN: We had to think about it, because there’s always a bit of ?? we don’t want to walk into a fight and get hurt. There’s a life after boxing, and I think that my thinking about this fight, and I think by me taking this fight, I think even Virgil probably understood and knew that I’m going to be more focused, and I know that I can’t make any mistakes against a guy like this. I’ve made mistakes in the past against guys my own weight because I know naturally I’m more gifted than them and I’m more skilled than them and I’m a better fighter than them, but these are ones that probably could be my worst opponents because I don’t really have that fear element, whereas when you’re fighting someone who’s tough and who’s dangerous and it’s going to be a tough fight, then that’s what brings out the A game in me.

I think Virgil understood that, as well, and I definitely understand that myself, that I’m going to train more, I’m going to be more focused for a fight like this than I would be for a fight against someone my own weight and someone I know who I’m better than.

Q. Virgil, we heard Amir say maybe 10 minutes ago that he intends on shocking the world. It sounds like he recognizes he’s the underdog of this fight. Given the way that the odds seem to be stacked against him, the size difference, et cetera, how does this compare to your greatest challenges as a trainer?

VIRGIL HUNTER: I’m sorry, I didn’t get the last part. How does it compare to what now?

Q. Your greatest challenges as a trainer.

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, every fight is a challenge. You know, that’s how I feel about it, from an amateur to a prospect to the level that Amir is on.

Of course I understand the whole content of the fight. I understand what comes off a victory, and I understand that by him saying that he intends to shock the world that quite possibly it could be a shock. It’ll be a shock to a lot, but I it won’t be a shock to some. So he falls somewhere right in that 60 percent shocked, 40 percent I’m not shocked.

But it means a lot to be able to participate in the sport that you love at this level and in an event of this magnitude. It’s very humbling. I feel fortunate. I feel blessed to have been here, not just one time but a few times.

To me, to be able to maybe one day be retired and hopefully have enough health to reflect back, it means quite a bit.

Q. When was the last time you felt or you had a fight where you felt like the underdog?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Probably Andre going into the Super Six. I know everybody viewed him as an underdog, but I didn’t. I don’t view Amir as an underdog in this fight. I’m very confident in his abilities. I think I would be doing him a disservice if I viewed him as an underdog. I view him as the top dog, and that’s how we’re approaching the fight. We’re not approaching the fight hoping to get the victory. We’re not approaching the fight hoping that it goes our way. We’re approaching the fight determined to get the victory and to make it go our way. That’s the approach.

Q. Amir, this is the biggest fight of the year. You can’t sit on the fence. Those that love you support you, those that go for Canelo go for Canelo. What do you tell your supporters, and what do you tell the people that are doubting you?

AMIR KHAN: Well, I know it’s the biggest fight this year that’s going to happen, and I just want to tell them to tune in and watch this fight because this is going to be a fighting style a lot of people are going to love. You’ve got a boxer versus a fighter, and you’ve got speed versus power, and it’s going to be exciting from round 1 until the end.

It’s a fight for me that I want to prove to people that I really do belong up against the best fighters in the world, and I want to be the best one there. This is a great fight for the fans to watch, as well, and I’m going to give it to the fans of the UK because they’ve always been waiting and expecting a big fight from me, especially with Floyd Mayweather not happening and then Manny Pacquiao not happening. I want to do this for the UK crowd and hopefully bring back home the belt, and definitely it’s going to be a big, big Mexican holiday. I believe that the UK fans are going to turn out for me and they’re going to come and support this big fight.

Q. Virgil, if you could compare in the history of boxing, who does Canelo remind you of and who does Amir Khan remind you of?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Boy, you’re putting me in a position where I’d be doing somebody a service and a disservice.

Look, I’d like to give each one their own identity. They’re one of a kind. I would probably have to search high and low to get a close comparison, so to speak. But there is a time in an athlete’s career if they’re gifted that they should be able to stand alone in their own aura, and I give both of these gladiators that respect.

Q. Oscar, with Manny retiring, Mayweather retiring, what are the implications of this fight? Where does it put the winner?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Well, I mean, it puts the winner as being the man. You know, now that Pacquiao retired, Mayweather is retired, the winner of this fight becomes the man. You know, it doesn’t happen often, including other sports, where just because you beat the man doesn’t make you the man, but in this case here, you have two elite fighters, elite athletes, who are at the peak of their career, who are at the top of their game, and whether Amir wins or whether Canelo wins, the winner is going to be the man in boxing for a very long time.

Q. Amir, my first question is when you opted to take the fight with Canelo, why didn’t you tell Virgil that this was a discussion you were having?

VIRGIL HUNTER: I did know. I did know there were discussions with his dad, so I did know. He didn’t keep me uninformed.

Q. Okay, because it seemed like when we spoke to you in Los Angeles that you didn’t know the discussions were going on, so then Virgil, I’ll ask you, since Amir has joined your stable, what do you think is the biggest change in him from that time until now?

VIRGIL HUNTER: Well, you know, change is always subtle. I’ve seen him tremendously focused, and I’ve seen him slightly distracted. So I think in Amir’s case, it’s where his focus is. If his focus is locked in, he becomes a very formidable opponent. If he’s slightly distracted, then he can make his way a little tougher. But even in those situations, I’ve seen his competitiveness, his will to win, even when he’s distracted and he’s come up against a tougher situation than is expected. I’ve seen his competitiveness take over and still pull out the victory. I mean, he’s a silver medalist at 17, so he’s a winner. But when he’s focused, he can do some things that you really can’t prepare for, and for this fight he is focused, as he very well knows he has to be.

Q. I’ve just got a couple for Amir. Obviously you know that Canelo is going to wear you down, therefore your speed is going to be major in this fight. Are you worried that putting on the extra weight you’re going to run out of gas in the championship rounds at the end?

AMIR KHAN: No, look, we’ve been conditioning well. We’ve been training very hard, so we know ?? we’re going to expect that Canelo is going to come forward and try to grind me down, and we know what to expect. I’ve got some great sparring partners who are going to get me conditioned and get me ready for that kind of pressure. So I’m looking forward to whatever Canelo brings, really. I’m just going to be working towards a very strong, hard?hitting, come?forward fight with Canelo, and we’re going to be ready for that, and if he wants to do that, we’re going to have answers for it. If he wants to do ?? whatever Canelo does in the fight, we’re going to have answers, also. We’ve basically worked on two different strategies for this fight.

Q. How are you feeling about the weight long?term because if you pull this off and your hand is lifted at the end of this fight, there will be pressure for you to stay at that weight and not drop back down to 147 or 154.

AMIR KHAN: Yeah, it just depends on ?? we’re going to wait and see how everything ?? how the outcome becomes and what naturally feels good for me.

I mean, look, this weight could be amazing for me where I feel strong and it suits me better, so it just depends on ?? we’ll see after the fight. Me and Virgil will sit down afterwards, but naturally I think I am a middleweight, naturally, but who knows. By putting this extra bit of muscle and strength on, I think it’s only going to maybe make me stronger, and time will tell. It’s hard to tell at the moment, but while I’ve been sparring and while I’ve been in the gym training, I do feel really strong and really good, and I feel really happy, as well. It gives me enough time to spend on skill and to work on my defense and work on my boxing skills.

Q. Away from this actual fight, this is an Olympic year. Obviously you showed success in our country with your fantastic escapades in the Olympics. We’ve heard from Oscar earlier on about the start of his career in the Olympics, as well. What’s your attitude about professional boxers going into the Olympics?

AMIR KHAN: I think it’s hit and miss, really, because a lot of the world?class professionals might not enter. It’s something that I’d love to maybe enter because me winning a silver medal and I want to turn it into a gold medal by going to the Olympic Games, it would be a little different because obviously you’re only fighting three rounds, but the minutes of the rounds are going to be the same. It could work and it could not work. It’s just a matter of it would be too much of a big risk for these world champions as professionals to go into.

I think it just all boils down to what I think ?? it’s hard to say, really, but I think if it was me and I had the opportunity to go back to the Olympic Games and change out a silver medal to a gold medal, because when I was in Doha certainly I was invited by AIBA and they invited me to be there, and I watched the guys who were fighting at my weight category, and I was watching them and thinking, I can still beat these guys, even having the same work rate and everything, and even not fighting 12 rounds but fighting three rounds.

Yeah, it’s something I would probably maybe consider. Like I said, time will tell, but before that I have a big fight to focus on, and we’ll get past this fight and then we’ll see what goes on.

Q. Amir, do you think boxing is a logical sport, or do you think the boxing logic ??

AMIR KHAN: What do you mean, sorry?

Q. Do you think that boxing is a logical sport?

AMIR KHAN: I mean, boxing really is a sport, but at the end of the day you’ve got ?? it’s a sport that you need skill, I think, and you need to have a big heart. There’s a lot of fights out there that don’t happen because a lot of fighters don’t basically have the balls to take the fights on, but I think with this fight, me taking this fight, I hope it inspires other fighters out there and other professionals to take big fights in their boxing career, and if you want to be remembered as a great fighter, you need to take big fights like this.

So yeah, that’s what boxing is all about, really, and that’s one of the reasons I’m in boxing, because I want to be remembered as a great fighter and I want to achieve everything and fight the biggest fights in my boxing career because one day when I leave, I don’t want to ever be like, oh, I regret not having this fight and I should have taken this fight and I should have had this fight. So that’s something different, yeah. Everyone is different.

Q. The last time that a Mexican opened a big arena like this time, like Canelo will open the T?Mobile, was Chávez vs. Randall ’94, so do you believe that you are the Randall of Canelo?

AMIR KHAN: Canelo is a great fighter. He’s a great fighter, and this is going to be a big event. Whoever comes to this fight is going to be really happy because you’ve got a style there, and it could be bigger than the Chávez?Randall fight because you have the whole of Mexico, you have the whole of ?? you have the whole world watching that fight, and I think in this fight, especially two big superstars from two different parts of the world fighting each other, I think this could be a massive fight really because not only you’ve got Great Britain, you’ve got like ?? you’ve got the whole of Asia, India, you’ve got Pakistan, you’ve got the Middle East, you’ve got America, you’ve got so many nations who are going to be choosing and watching this fight, this is a very big fight, and it’s just great for boxing. It’s only promoting our sport of boxing, and it’s going to, like I said, promote big fights in the future.

Q. Last week I talked with Mayweather Sr., and he said that you are wrong about gaining weight and losing your velocity. Do you believe that you are gaining weight and you don’t lose the velocity?

AMIR KHAN: I don’t think it’s going to really make a difference on the speed or anything, because I’ve been training, and this is more natural for me. Normally what I do, I have to go down in weight and I have to lose weight normally, but this time I’m not going to be losing the weight, this time I’m going to be at my natural weight. I’ll be happy making the weight. I’ll be keeping the strength, I’ll be keeping the speed, so this is all natural for me.

Q. Can you tell me something about your Mexican trainer, Luis García, how he’s doing in Oakland?

AMIR KHAN: Yeah, we love Mexican people. I mean, a lot of people said my fighting style is like a Mexican. A lot of people say my style is like a Mexican fighter. I’ve been watching a lot of Mexican boxers for a long, long time, you know, and I like the fighting style they have. So this is going to be a great show. I mean, you’ve got two warriors in the ring come May 7 that both want to be the best in the world and both want to win, so it’s what makes this fight even more better and classic.

Q. How close do you think that you are for Mayweather blueprint with Canelo?

AMIR KHAN: Mayweather is his own fighter, and everyone is their own fighter, everyone is different in that way, so I’m not going to say that I’m going to do what Mayweather did. I think since Mayweather beat Canelo, Canelo is a better fighter. I’ve been watching his fights, and I think he’s improved a lot as a fighter.

So really I’m just going to have to beat the Canelo who is going to be in front of me. I know he’s going to be changing his style a lot, but whatever Canelo brings we can have answers for. Canelo is a strong guy. There’s not much of a blueprint there. There’s only one guy who beat him, which is Mayweather, and like I said, he’s changing as a fighter. He’s getting better.

Once we get in that ring, we have a game plan. We have a game plan. We have a strategy to win this fight, and it’s all about sticking to that, and I know I can win this fight that way.

Q. Do you think that the winner of this fight after Mayweather and Pacquiao leave boxing should be the next star of boxing, Canelo or Amir Khan?

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Look, I was asked that question before, and what I said was the winner of this fight is going to be the man, yeah, and when you take everything into consideration, you look at the regimens, you look at the fight, the number that it’s going to generate, this is going to be a mega, mega, mega event, and whoever wins this fight is going to call themselves the Pay?Per?View King. This is part of the stakes that goes along with a fight of this magnitude, you know, and so that’s why this fight is so important for both guys, for many reasons.

CECILIA ZUNIG, Golden Boy Promotions: Amir, do you have any final comments to the press on this call?

AMIR KHAN: I just want to say a big thank you very much for being on this conference and supporting me. The UK press has been great. I mean, the press around the world have been great. They’ve been very supportive in this fight, and they have given me a chance ?? a lot of people at first didn’t give me a chance, and now I think as time is getting closer, they’ve really seen that I can go into this fight and win this fight, so I hope to see you all at the fight. It’s going to be a big fight, and just a big thanks to you guys again, and hopefully we’ll see you soon. Thank you.

CECILIA ZUNIGA: Oscar, we’re ready for your final comments and any reminders.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you very much. I gave you the reminder. Amir Khan will be working out, whoever didn’t have a chance to ask a question. He is opening up his training camp which will be Monday, April 18, in Oakland, so we will see you there. Thank you very much.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports

Canelo vs. Khan, a 12-round fight for Canelo’s WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Championships, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and sponsored by “Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold”, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila and DOOM® — Fight Like Hell on May 13. David Lemieux vs. Glen Tapia is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management and Patrick Teixeira vs. Curtis Stevens is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Main Events. The mega-event will take place Saturday, May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, follow us on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing or www.Facebook.com/HBOboxing, join us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, and follow the conversation using #CaneloKhan.

Tickets priced at $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600, $400, $250 and $150, not including applicable service charges and taxes, with a total ticket limit of 12 per person (a limit of 10 per person at the $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600 and $400 price levels and a limit of two [2] per person at the $250 and $150 price level) are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849). Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.t-mobilearena.com or www.axs.com.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions:
Thanks so much to Frankie for joining us today on this international conference call with Mauricio Herrera versus Frankie Gomez (Indiscernible). Televised on May 7th at the new T?Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and live on HBO Pay Per View.

This is the second of our series of media conference calls with our fighters. So on Cinco de Mayo weekend as part of the televised undercard, top rated contender Mauricio Herrera will be squaring off against East L.A.’s very own Frankie Gomez. Additionally, we have opening up the pay?per?view telecast Patrick Teixeira with a record of 26?0 and 22 knockouts taking on Curtis “Showtime” Stevens. He has a record of 27?5 with 20 knockouts, and that will be a ten?round career defining middleweight bout.

These bouts in addition to the co?main events between David Lemieux and Glen Tapia will surely be thrilling and action?packed, thus giving the fight fans what they want to see and that’s action. Tickets are still available, but they are going extremely, extremely fast.

Lastly, I just want to thank our sponsors; all the national activations for Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold will start in the next few days, and you will be seeing a huge campaign like never before in English and Spanish featuring Canelo Alvarez and the fight on May 7 with Amir Khan.
Also, O’Reilly Auto Parts the activations that they’ll be doing on a national scale will be like no other. Also I want to thank Casa Mexico Tequila as the official sponsor of Golden Boy Promotions and Canelo Alvarez versus Amir Khan. And “Doom”,- Fight Like Hell on May 13th out in theaters nationally.

Let me take this opportunity to say a few words. It always is a pleasure to work with such a professional and great promoter that we’ve had for many years in this sport to introduce the first participant, and that is my friend, Kathy Duva.

NICOLE DUVA, Vice President of Marketing and General Counsel for Main Events:
We have a slight change of plans. Kathy had to step out, this is Nicole Duva, I’m the vice president of marketing and general counsel for Main Events, and I’m here with Jolene Mizzone who is our matchmaker. So if anybody has questions for Main Events, we should be able to handle it.

We’d like to thank Oscar and Eric for including Curtis on this card. We’re really looking forward to this fight. We think it’s going to be great. We think Curtis is going to perform really well. That sums it up. Okay, and with that, I’ll introduce Curtis.

CURTIS STEVENS, Former World Title Challenger: Good afternoon, everyone.

NICOLE DUVA: Curtis, can you say a few words before we get into the question portion of the call?

CURTIS STEVENS: Excellent card to be on Canelo versus Khan. My camp and I are getting ready, and it should be an explosive night come May 7th.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you. I’m happy to introduce to you for the first time on this card, this fighter who hails from Brazil, he’s very impressive. He’s ready to make his mark as a fighter who is ready to make a huge statement on May 7th. This fight is surely going to be an exciting one for the fans.

Let me introduce to you with a record of it 26?0 and 22 knockouts, Patrick Teixeira.

PATRICK TEIXEIRA, Undefeated Middleweight Contender: First thing, I’d like to say is I’m very happy this fight is in Las Vegas. This is my first time there. I’m working very hard for this fight. I’m looking to have a great fight that day.

CECILIA ZUNIGA, Golden Boy Promotions: Thank you, Patrick. I think we’re ready to start the Q & A portion with Curtis Stevens and Patrick.

Q. Patrick, your two fights this last year in the United States have been fairly spectacular knockout TKO victories. Was that important for you to put on a good show to get this kind of opportunity you have now against Stevens?

PATRICK TEIXEIRA: Those two fights were very important. They were two fights in the United States. They were two by knockouts and as a result of that I’m fighting here in Las Vegas.

Q. Will you be pressing for the same kind of result in Las Vegas, not just a win, but a show?

PATRICK TEIXEIRA: I’m preparing for a good, long fight. If a knockout comes, it comes, but that’s the consequences of all my training. I’m not looking for it specifically.

Q. Curtis, the inevitable question is I’m sure the question of ring rust since you’ve been out of the ring for a little bit. How are you working on that and do you have any concerns about that layoff time?

CURTIS STEVENS: Well, we know I haven’t fought within about a year has already passed. But I’ve been training in general just in case something did come up spontaneously, so I’ve always been working. But I’m a fighter. You’ve got to be ready at all times, so I just plan to go in there and do what I do.

Q. Curtis, you have been out the ring for a while, but you’re coming in against a guy who is a big puncher, young guy, hasn’t fought at the level that you’ve competed at. Have you seen Teixeira fight? And if you have seen him fight, is there anything that concerns you about him?

CURTIS STEVENS: Well I’ve seen the footage that they have shown. He punches in numbers is what I can see. He has a very high work rate. But what I’ve seen actually, the opponents that he faced were on last?minute notice, two weeks, one week. But he did what he had to do. But taking nothing away from him, he has great output.

But I’ve just got to be ready. Sometimes I wasn’t mentally in the game. I was always physically ready for it, but I wasn’t mentally there for the past two years, but now I’m mentally back focused again. So this should be a heck of a Saturday night come May 7th.

Q. You’ve been a contender for a while and you’ve been in with some good names in the sport. If you lose to Teixeira, are you willing to take that step back and become an opponent, gatekeeper type opponent, or do you view this as a do or die fight?

CURTIS STEVENS: To tell you the truth, I don’t have that on my mind of me losing, so I can’t even answer that question, to tell you the truth. I’m going in there to win. So whatever happens after May 7th, we’ll get to that point. I’m coming in there to win. I’m not thinking about losing or coming with the opponent or anything like that. I’m coming to win. I’m not coming to lose.

Q. Curtis, in your career, it’s never been a question about talent. It’s always been activity in the ring and letting your hands go. What are you working on in camp just to make sure you’re going to be active enough and letting your hands go in this fight?

CURTIS STEVENS: Not looking for the power so much. You know, we all know I have the equalizer going. Back in the day I just used to rely on one shot just to take you out, but just being more relaxed and not looking for the one shot. When it comes, it comes. Just getting back to being more relaxed and just having fun.

Q. Has that been tough for you to do, just because again, your identity has been to just knock people out with one punch and now to look at that, has that been a transition to make?

CURTIS STEVENS: No, no, not really. For the past couple years I’ve been going through a little something family?wise, so my mind wasn’t really in the game. I always was physically ready coming to fight, but mentally I wasn’t all the way there. So I thank God that everything’s been hashed out, and so I’m back in the game mentally and physically. I’m going to be well?prepared come May 7th.

Q. Do you want to explain whatever you were going through or is it just personal stuff?

CURTIS STEVENS: Oh, no, no. My son’s mother she ran off with my son and I couldn’t find her for about a year and a half, but that’s all out the window now. I have him back now, so I’m ready to go in there and put in the work.

Q. Lastly, Curtis, do you still have the same team behind you? Are you still being trained by Andre?

CURTIS STEVENS: No, no, me and my uncle took a little break. We went our separate ways. He still makes my hours though. That’s my uncle, but we went our separate ways.

Q. Who’s training you now?

CURTIS STEVENS: John David Jackson.

Q. And how is that going working with John?

CURTIS STEVENS: Everything’s good. Camp is going great. I’m in the gym right now as we speak. Chemistry’s there. Just putting our puzzle pieces all together so the puzzle can be complete for May 7th.

Q. How did you and John hook up?

CURTIS STEVENS: Well, we always knew of each other. I live in Florida now, so I came down to see him one day. We worked together. We’ve been working the whole of March getting everything together, and we make a good match?up. We just took it from there.

Q. Do you feel John complements your style just the way that he trains you?

CURTIS STEVENS: I’m not going to say he complements my style, but you know, he’s been a fighter. So a fighter that fought back in the day, he’s turned coach now, he see things that other people can’t see. So he’s making me more relaxed instead of making me more so much just going in there and kill, you know.

Q. Curtis, we’re sort of overlooking the fact that even though we haven’t seen you in the boxing ring that you were in the BKB pits not that long ago. Was that a weird transition for you and has it been strange for you after kind of becoming acclimated with fighting that kind of style and then coming back full circle?

CURTIS STEVENS: Yeah, like I said before, you’re a fighter. Whether it’s in a square, circle, triangle, you’re in there to fight. But the pit was a little different because you had no ropes to lay?up on. But that was a good thing for me, because sometimes I like to take a little rest on the ropes, but being that there was no rope you had to fight and figure your way around the ring or around the little pit so call it.

Q. This is obviously not the first time you’ve come off a layoff. Actually the last time you had a two?year layoff you went on probably the best run of your career. Did you learn anything about how to deal with the ring rust that we’ve been talking about that you’ve kind of implemented this time around?

CURTIS STEVENS: Staying active. Staying active because I remember before I used to just train when I had a fight coming up. But as you get older, you feel like you have to stay active. You have to stay active. So I’ve been in the gym all the time. I’ve been running. I’ve been sparring. I was with Canelo not too long ago getting ready for Cotto so I was down there with him for two months.

So I’ve been active still. I’ve been sparring a lot. Like me physically not being inside the ring without the head gear and 10?ounce gloves, yeah that’s true, but I’ve been in the ring sparring specifically since I haven’t been fighting.

Q. Do you think that the new environment with John David Jackson being down in Florida, do you think that’s helped you at all coming from where you were before to now being in the gym with John where he has other top level fighters, guys like Chris Algieri who is getting ready for a fight right now?

CURTIS STEVENS: When you’re in the gym with top fighters, the only thing that can happen is it betters you. You’re looking at what they’re doing. You’re taking a little bit from them and putting it and moving it into your own person. So when we’re in here all together, we’re working, we all watch what each other does and just take a little bit and we help each other out. When you’re a team, everybody’s got to help each other so everybody can be better.

Q. Patrick, Curtis is an experienced fighter who brings a lot to the ring, and this is a different level, something that you’ve never encountered yet in your boxing career. What can people expect in the ring on May 7th?

PATRICK TEIXEIRA: I clearly understand that it’s going to be a difficult fight, so I’m going to put all my resources together. I’m going to use the ring. I’m going to box. I’m going to throw hard punches and do whatever it takes to win this fight.

Q. Curtis, do you have any final words you want to address to the press?

CURTIS STEVENS: On May 7th, it’s on. It’s going down. This year I wasn’t going to talk too much about what I was going to do. I’m just going to get in the ring and show it. Just getting ready. I’m coming back. I’m not going by Showtime no more. Showtime is a thing of the past. So they don’t have to introduce me by Curtis “Showtime” Stevens no more, either. Okay, thank you, Curtis.

PATRICK TEIXEIRA: I want to thank everyone for the opportunity of this interview. Thank you very much.

CECILIA ZUNIGA: Thank you, we are ready to turn it over to Mauricio Herrera and Frankie Gomez.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you. Now we’ll turn it over to Mauricio Herrera and Frankie Gomez. Frankie “Pitbull” Gomez is a fighter who is fighting undefeated (Indiscernible) 13 knockouts in the first three rounds or less. He has wins over Vernon Paris. He’s fought the likes of (Indiscernible) he’s fought the likes of Jorge (Indiscernible) in 2015. He is a decorated amateur (Indiscernible) in the U.S. In 2009 he won the silver medal in the World Championships.

He’s going in against a fighter who is experienced. Who is the true champion at 140 pounds with controversial decisions with the likes of Danny Garcia, Benavidez. Going up against the fighter they call the “People’s Champion.”

So let me have the pleasure to introduce to you first off Mauricio “El Maestro” Herrera to say a few words.

MAURICIO “EL MAESTRO” HERRERA, Former WBA Interim and
current NABF Super Lightweight Champion : Hey, what’s up, guys. How’s everybody doing.

Q. Mauricio, can you let the press know any special opening remarks if you’d like to?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Just want to say thank you to Golden Boy and everybody that put this together because, man, I’m so excited and happy to be opening at the T?Mobile Arena and training harder than ever, because I can’t lose this fight. I’ve got to stay in this fight and keep proving myself. I can’t wait to put on an amazing performance.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Next, Frankie Gomez to say a few words.

FRANKIE “PITBULL” GOMEZ, Undefeated Welterweight Contender: Hey, I’m Frankie “Pitbull” Gomez, 24 years old. I’m ready for May 7th.

Q. Frankie, I know in the past you’ve had some issues with weight and just staying in the best shape that you can for a fight. What do you think is different about this camp and what have you done to make sure that weight is not going to be an issue going forward?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Well, I didn’t blow up as much as my other fights. I stayed in shape. I didn’t go up in weight, and I’m training hard and just focused 100% on the fight.

Q. Have you had to make any big changes to your diet and just your habits in general just to keep your weight under control?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Yeah, the diet and stuff, but the most important thing was just that I didn’t blow up too high. I didn’t go over like 10 or 15 pounds. Because before I would go up more than 25 pounds, 20 pounds, so that was one of the main things.

Q. One of the things that Golden Boy was having you do was actually going to their offices and weighing in. Are you still doing that or is that something you did in the past?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Yeah, I did that for the last fight and it kind of helped me out. I don’t know that they wanted me to go in this fight. But even if they do, I’m ready. I’m like 9 pounds, 8 pounds away now, so just training hard for this fight and focused.

Q. Lastly, how excited are you for this opportunity again to be fighting on a major pay?per?view card against a good veteran in Herrera?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: I feel blessed and I feel excited. I’m anxious to go in the ring. I would like to thank Golden Boy for giving me the opportunity once again.

Q. Mauricio, you’re kind of the every?man in boxing. You’re the hard?luck guy. Many of the boxing media believe you won against Garcia and Benavidez. If you lose a hard?luck decision against Frankie Gomez, is that going to be it for you or do you continue fighting?

MAURICIO HERRERA: By hard luck you mean if I get robbed again?

Q. If you were to lose a close contested decision to Frankie Gomez, would that be it for you or would you still fight?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Oh, no, definitely not. First I’m not thinking that at all. I always think positive. No, I mean, I can go back in my career where I know many fighters would have hung up the gloves or given up or been discouraged. Getting robbed would discourage a fighter and even twice in one year.

So nothing negative has entered my mind. Since I started, I took lumps, I kept going, kept training hard. I love boxing and always kept doing it and thought I would get there once again. Nothing’s going to stop me, close fights, robbery fights, I’m headed to keep on fighting until I can’t anymore.

Q. Frankie’s a young guy. He’s never seen a guy with the type of craft that you have. You’re not just a good fighter, but you’re a crafty fighter. Do you think that he’ll be able to deal with what you’re going to bring and what are you preparing for against him?

MAURICIO HERRERA: I trained to throw guys like Frankie Gomez off, and a lot of the guys with big, amateur backgrounds kind of all have that basic style. I think that was one of the reasons I gave Danny a hard time is I don’t have a big amateur background, and I said at the time that’s what gives me an edge on these fighters that have the basic, one?two left hook. And the thing with me is not that I’m an awkward fighter, I think I’m at that age where I’m not the fastest guy, so I work everything on timing.

I think timing throws a lot of these guys off, and you can’t train for that. In sparring you can’t find guys like the way I fight. So I’ve always trained on timing. That’s been working for me to this day. That’s going to be a big part of this fight.

Q. Frankie, I’m going to flip that question around and Pose it to you. Mauricio’s a crafty guy. How do you prepare for a guy like that that doesn’t have a conventional style that most fighters walk into the gym with?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Well, I just train hard and I do what I do best. I don’t think I’m a basic fighter who just wants to hook. I come from different angles, and May 7th he’s going to find out.

Q. Now you’re coming in obviously your biggest fight that you’ve had so far in your career. You’ve had problems making weight. You’ve had problems in the past. Do you feel like if you come in and you don’t perform at a high level or get a win or at least look good in a loss, do you feel it’s going to be time for Golden Boy to cut its losses with you?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: I don’t think so. My mindset is not that. My mindset is going in there and win and give everybody a great show.

Q. Mauricio, how do you prepare for a guy like Frankie Gomez? What kind of sparring do you get?

MAURICIO HERRERA: We just like to mix it up with different fighters. We don’t know how Frankie’s going to come that night. We know he’s a strong guy. We don’t take anything away from him. I watch his fights and all the fights with fighters that I’ve had were tough fights. Even when he was going through round for Provodnikov (Indiscernible) we trained hard for that fight. We got some sparring for that fight. Even the sparring wasn’t as tough as the fight. The sparring ?? we thought we sparred two amateurs that hadn’t even had any fights yet.

So we don’t have to look for the toughest sparring for Frankie, but we do got to mix it up and find different styles in there. We always have to try to be ready for anything. We know that Frankie’s hungry. He’s a tough guy. I’m not saying he’s just a jab, right?hook guy. We know what he brings. He’s a tough, hungry guy, undefeated, so it’s hard. Those guys are the toughest ones to fight, so we come well prepared and we train for everything.

Q. I heard that you were sparring with Tim Bradley? Is that true?

MAURICIO HERRERA: No, no, I’m not sparring with Tim Bradley. I haven’t sparred with him in a while.

Q. Oh, okay. I was mistaken, sorry about that?

MAURICIO HERRERA: That’s all right.

Q. Mauricio, when you were offered this fight to fight Frankie, what was your initial reaction? Obviously he’s kind of a young, up?and?coming guy. Golden Boy has high hopes for him. Did you take any offense to the match?up and maybe the idea that you’re being matched against him to kind of help him take that next step?

MAURICIO HERRERA: No, because before the Matthysse fight got offered I was hearing around that they were wanting me to fight Orozco or Frankie Gomez. At the time I was kind of disappointed and angry thinking, hey, do I not deserve a more established name on a big stage? And kind of was angered about that. But when the whole Amir Khan vs. Canelo on T?Mobile in Vegas pay?per?view card came up and then they offered me Matthysse and it didn’t happen, I was disappointed because I was like that’s my luck. That’s the way my career has been going, it’s up?and?down.

So I didn’t know what they were going to do at that time or who they were going to find. When he mentioned ?? I gave them some time and they called me back and mentioned Frankie Gomez, I knew exactly who that was. And I said I didn’t even think about that. Frankie Gomez, he’s a tough guy, and that lifted me right up. I got real excited because I knew he’s a real boxer. I know he who he is. It’s not a cherry picking fight. It’s a tough fight. So I was like back in the thing on a big stage, so I was really excited and happy.

Q. Is it motivation also for you that you can kind of spoil what’s being looked at as a big opportunity for him?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Oh, yeah. I know undefeated guys the same as Mazion and Daniel, I’ve fought a couple undefeated guys. They come to fight. They don’t want to leave that. So I know Frankie’s going to be training hard and he’s going to be on a big stage with all the lights on so I know he’s going to want to perform his best.

I love when they come in 100% in shape; that brings the best out of me. That gives me a thrill that I’m going to fight an undefeated guy, and I’m going to fight my very best.

Q. Is there a fighter out there that you want to fight again? You want the match?up with Garcia, is there a fight you’re really looking forward to having?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Yeah, definitely. I’m moving up a little in weight, so I know a lot of guys who are 140 are moving up in weight to 147. So the match with Danny would be a possibility. That would be nice to fight him again. He is a world champion, so you always want one of those.

There is Jessie Vargas, another world champion. So I think those are fights that could be made. The fight with Jessie Vargas, that would be nice too.

Q. Mauricio, all the fans have seen frankly you get robbed several fights. I think many of the boxing media on this call would agree about those fights. I’m sure you feel that way. What’s been the fan reaction to you and what do they say to you after having seen Garcia and Benavidez? You just seem like the hardest luck guy in the world. Have they embraced you? Are they supportive of you? What do they say to you?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Yeah, definitely. Going through those kind of fights can bring a fighter down. Of course you get online and read what the fans are saying. They keep your spirits up, and I think that’s what’s been going on in my career. That’s what’s keeping me level and not think about those fights in a negative way. Not what could have happened or what could have been a different dream I would have had if they would have given me those decisions.

The fans embraced me and feel that I am a true champion and that I should be the 140?pound champion. So I roll with that and almost put it in my head like I am. I think that’s what motivates me and makes me feel like I am that guy. I don’t think negative, so I’m in the gym training, thinking about all that and thinking positive. Of course all the feather reacted positive with me. So I’m in good spirits and I feel like that’s what takes me through my whole training camp. But I think that that’s even with the Frankie Gomez, they know that I’m there to fight the best, and I think I get all the credit with true boxing fans.

Q. I wanted to ask if you could talk to us a little about your decision and moving up in weight and why you chose to do it?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Really I wasn’t really thinking about it too much. I’ve always lost a lot of weight to make 140. I could have easily gone to 147 a while back in my career. But I felt work hard and keep making the weight, there were a lot of good names at 140, so I stuck around for that reason. A lot of fighters are moving up and a lot of names are moving up to 147, and it so happens the Matthysse fight was going to be at 147. So it got me thinking at that weight class. When that fight fell through my mind was still on the 147. So I said let me just go on that weight.

I was already thinking about it and training for it so when Frankie Gomez came to me, I said let’s keep it at 147. So now that’s the weight we’re going in, and we’ll see how I feel.

Q. Frankie, were you in the Philippines with Roach and Pacquiao during his training camp there?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: No, I couldn’t make it. I couldn’t get a passport.

Q. Well, I was going to ask you how was it training with Pacquiao. But were you able to get any chance to train with him at all when he was in L.A.?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Yeah, well I sparred with the guys he sparred with yesterday. It was good. It was a good experience.

Q. Has it helped you to stay disciplined in making your weight?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Well, the guys I’m sparring with are pretty fast, so you have to be in shape and you have to be ready.

Q. Frankie, you have a great amateur career and you won World Championships as an amateur. But the transition, has it been difficult to make a change from the amateurs to the pros or was it the same as usual?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: No, I think it’s the same, just smaller gloves. More head gear, weight, the weight, I’ve been at 140 since 16, 17, so it’s getting a little harder for me. But I can still make the 140s. I know this fight is going to be at 146 and I’m ready. I’m ready. The weight is good and I’m focused and anxious to go in the ring.

Q. What are some of the recommendations that Freddie has made for you? I know you trained with Abel Sanchez and different trainers. What’s the difference training with Freddie Roach and has he recommend for you?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Just to work hard, stay disciplined. Stay in the gym, stay active, yeah.

Q. I know that you have a lot of friends that are all watching you from East L.A. You seem to have those fans go to all your fights. Has that always been the way it was for you even as an amateur?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Well, actually as a pro they get a little bit more involved than in the amateurs. We have a lot more stuff at the pro events. Yeah, I think at the same time my fans, they always show up and they motivate me.

Q. Do they give you tips because I know some of them are fighters too?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: Yeah, they give me tips, but they mostly just tell me stay in the gym, stay off the streets, stay out of trouble and stuff like that.

Q. Mauricio, this is kind of a follow?up question to what Mitch had been talking about. I heard that you would like to fight Garcia again. You didn’t mention Benavidez. If that rematch came up, that possibility, would you be interested? And has there been any discussion about it before now?

MAURICIO HERRERA: No, what I heard at the site is HBO didn’t want it, so I don’t know if maybe they were disgusted of the way the outcome was (Indiscernible).

Q. Yeah, because he’s moving up in weight too. So maybe at some point that one comes back up on the horizon. And I guess if HBO or some other network is interested in it, you’d be interested in it?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Oh, yeah, definitely. I’d be interested. At the time I didn’t care about it. I was disgusted with the decision. But I’m at the point in my career now that I’m just a little more loose. I should be really an angry person with all the stuff going on. But my life is together and I’m just like whatever. I’m going to do what I do, and people are going to see. They’re the true judges, so I’m happy with that. As long as they keep giving me opportunities, I’m going to keep training.

Q. I remember after the fight you were really angry and I asked you if you would be interested in a rematch? And you made it sound like let’s do it right now. So I thought it might happen in a few months, but it seemed to fall off the table.
MAURICIO HERRERA: Yeah. After the fight too it was kind of irritating me, and I didn’t even want to hear anything, you know. (Indiscernible) so the plan went off. But if he gets some more known names on his record and people start to know him a little more, I think it would make sense more. So that’s all I’m trying to work now.

Q. Mauricio, I know you’ve gotten angry after a couple of your fights. You’ve said robbed or lost close decisions. I’m wondering, do you get just as angry that people seem to only refer to you as a hard?luck fighter or the guy on the short end of six or the guy that got robbed? I’m asking you that because you were also the guy that beat Ruslan Provodnikov. How about we remember you as a fighter that’s beaten a guy who is still a huge attraction? I mean, does that upset you that people don’t remember that?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Yeah, yeah, it kind of does because it seems like my career and my timing was off. I didn’t have the best management at the time, and at the time when I began my career I had no trainer. I was training myself. So I’ve had to fight a lot of these fights on my own. I finally got a trainer for the name of Lee Torres for when I fought Ruslan, and it helped me a lot. And I got to that fight, and I knew what Ruslan had. And the thing was at the timing of the fight, I didn’t get no credit.

When I saw Ruslan and beat him, I knew that guy was pretty special, you know, and it wasn’t until he fought Bradley when I knew that people were going to know about him, and he did what he did, as you seen. But to this day a lot of people don’t know that I fought Ruslan and beat Ruslan, an undefeated and tough and intense Ruslan. I feel at that time he was more hungry. His style has changed a little bit, but they seem to forget, and it does get frustrating that I’ve only been known for the robberies, you know.

But there are other tough fights like Michael Alvarado who I fought and thought that was a close fight as well. There are plenty of fights that I had that people just don’t even remember me from the Danny fight. I started making new fans, and the true boxing fans did the research and they’ve seen my background. But the newer fans tend to forget some things.

But, yeah, I tend not to let it bother me.

Q. At the end of the day you know you beat that guy and these other guys. So I hope that gives you some comfort.

CECILIA ZUNIGA: Frankie, do you have any final comments for the press still on the call?

FRANKIE GOMEZ: No, just make sure you tune in May 7th for an exciting fight night, and thank you everybody.

CECILIA ZUNIGA: Thank you, Frankie. Mauricio, any final thoughts?

MAURICIO HERRERA: Yeah, I just want to say one thing. There are a lot of fighters out there that are fooled by my resume and my losses and my age. I think that’s the thing that’s going to be a problem when I go in that ring, because that’s really ?? they find out quick that I’m a guy who can handle myself.

I just want to thank Frankie for taking the fight. You’re a tough fighter, and I know you’re going to be in great shape and let’s give the people a show. Thank Golden Boy for putting it together. We shut down the L.A. Sports Arena and now we’re opening a new one, T?Mobile Arena, so let’s make this special.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: We are looking forward to May 7th. Thank you for being on the call, all the press. We’ll talk to you next week leading up to May 7th, and finishing off our weekly calls with Canelo and Amir Khan. So, like I said, tickets are going extremely fast. Marketing starts kicking in in the next few days. It will not be one single soul who will not hear about the fight or know about the fight. So we expect a big turnout live in Las Vegas. So thank you very much.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports

Canelo vs. Khan, a 12-round fight for Canelo’s WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Championships, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and sponsored by “Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold,” O’Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila and DOOM® — Fight Like Hell on May 13. David Lemieux vs. Glen Tapia is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management and Patrick Teixeira vs. Curtis Stevens is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Main Events. The mega-event will take place Saturday, May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

Tickets priced at $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600, $400, $250 and $150, not including applicable service charges and taxes, with a total ticket limit of 12 per person (a limit of 10 per person at the $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600 and $400 price levels and a limit of two [2] per person at the $250 and $150 price level) are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849). Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.t-mobilearena.com or www.axs.com.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com or www.hbo.com/boxing, follow us on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing or www.Facebook.com/HBOboxing, join us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @canelo, @amirkingkhan, @OscarDeLaHoya and @HBOboxing, and follow the conversation using #CaneloKhan.

BOB ARUM: This is a very interesting promotion as far as I’m concerned. A lot of people are concentrating on the new and improved Tim Bradley. Manny Pacquiao with his right arm now totally repaired – he has had that torn rotator cuff since before the De La Hoya fight. A lot of athletes are able to perform well with a torn rotator cuff – a lot of pitchers in the major leagues are able to perform well with it. Obviously now that it’s repaired, it is at full strength. Freddie will tell you that Manny is hitting harder with the right hand – even harder than with the left hand, so he is now going to be a real two-handed fighter which is very interesting. I think Tim Bradley’s big advantage is that he is going in with a game plan. I don’t think he had much of a game plan in the first two fights but certainly Teddy has given him one. I am very excited for my “NoTrump Undercard” with the young Hispanics contenders and I think it is resonating tremendously, particularly with the Hispanic community. I’ve done dozens of radio interviews and television programs with the Hispanic media and there is a lot of excitement.

How are tickets selling?

BOB ARUM: The Ticket situation is good. It is about what it was last time that Manny fought Bradley. There are approximately 2,00 tickets left and a lot of those will go in the last week. They are selling at a very good clip so if we don’t sell out we will have at least 14,000 people in the arena on April 9. I am still optimistic that they will all be gone by fight night.

What is your aiming point for the pay-per-view?

BOB ARUM: I really think that we have a shot to go over 700,000. I really think that Manny and Bradley will do most of the numbers, but let me tell you that my Hispanic army is marching out there and we are going to do a tremendous number from people, aside from the Pacquiao-Bradley numbers, that want to see these Hispanic stars in very, very important fights. I am pretty confident that we will do over 700,000 with a little break here and there. Maybe if Trump opens his mouth a little bit more we can go over 800,000.

Do you think Bradley will be different for this fight? What has Freddie been telling you and what do you think it will it be?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Bradley has a new trainer for this fight and a new game plan and I am very excited for that because we will see more action in the ring in this fight.

In the first two fights he was avoiding your left hook. Will you use it more this fight or less?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Right now I have been working on my right hand and my right hook which is very good. My left hand is still good, but my right shoulder is healed and that is good, because I can use it with real power.

Freddie said it took you longer to get in shape for this fight. Is that because of the layoff or the shoulder?

MANNY PACQUIAO: We had a lot of time to exercise for this fight. We had a lot of time to train and all I can say is training camp was great and I am ready for the fight and everything is great.

Do you feel like the layoff has helped you?

MANNY PACQUIAO: That is one thing, it is good to have a long layoff in boxing – I feel fresh and new and I feel good now when I train every day. I really enjoyed this training camp.

You haven’t had a KO since 2009. Is that something that weighs on your mind or frustrates you? Or do you even think about it?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Yes, I am thinking about that. I have thinking about the last knockout that I had was in the Cotto fight and I believe the Margarito fight should have been stopped. It was a long time ago. I am thinking about it (the knockout) and that’s why I work hard. Right now it is a good thing that I had a layoff – I feel excited and fresh in my body and I will try hard for it in this fight.

Bob mentioned you’ve had a torn rotator cuff since the De La Hoya fight. Had you ever given consideration to having the surgery before since it has lingered for so long?

MANNY PACQUIAO: That fight was in 2008, so it was long ago. I still felt good and every time I rested the pain was gone.

Was it the worst in the Mayweather fight and psot-Mayweather?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Yes, in the fourth round. In the fourth round when I was throwing a lot of combinations. I hurt it coming off of one of the combinations.

It seems like you have been going back and forth regarding retirement. We know you have said you want to pursue your political career full time to assist your countrymen. Where do you stand on that right now?

MANNY PACQUIAO: After this fight I have already said that my mind is to focus on my job. If I win a Senate seat I have a big responsibility and I need to focus on that. I cannot say right now that I am going to retire. I don’t want to say that because I don’t know what the feeling is when you leave boxing. I will give it great thought when I return home.

So, you are going to have this fight, go back home and do your work and see what happens – and leave the door open?

MANNY PACQUIAO: My mind right now says to retire, but we don’t know.

Bob, have you spoken about this with Manny? What is your position?

BOB ARUM: Manny told me that he was going to retire after this fight, but I have been around this business for 50 years and a lot of fighters can’t walk away, so I am not advertising that this is going to be Manny’s last fight. It could be but then it may not be. He said he’s going back to run for Senate and if he becomes a Senator, he’ll have to decide whether to devote full time to the senate or he can work in a continuous boxing career. But again, that is going to have to be something that’s he’s going to have to decide. But one thing, for everyone on this line, I am not selling this fight as Manny’s last fight, so if he does come back after this fight – don’t say I deceived anyone.

Freddie, have you spoken about retirement with Manny following this fight? What is your position?

FREDDIE ROACH: We have talked about it a little bit. He told me he’s going to retire and I told him I think he still has some more fights left in him if he wants and he did ask me about training if he goes into the Olympics, if they let the pros in the Olympics and I said of course I will. That’s as far as we got. We didn’t talk about any fights after this. We are just concentrating on this fight right now.

Freddie, have you given any thought about not having Manny around any longer as a fighter?

FREDDIE ROACH: Of course, I will miss him. We have been together for a long time and I will go to all of his birthday parties in the Philippines and we will be friends for life.

Bob?

BOB ARUM: Well, I look back on it, working with Manny, but I have been at this for a long time. Fighters retire, but the life of boxing continues. If Manny does retire, I’ll concentrate on Terence Crawford, Jessie Vargas and Gilberto Ramirez and Oscar Valdez and Jose Ramirez, Jesse Hart and a whole host of other guys, and Nonito Donaire. So again, I will look back at it like when I promoted Muhammad Ali and George Foreman – that it has been a tremendous experience and I’m grateful for it but life goes on. One thing is for sure – I ain’t retiring. You are going to have me around for another 50 years.

Manny, do you think if you had the surgery earlier you would still be in the middle of this non-KO string?

MANNY PACQUIAO: I am not sure.

Freddie?

FREDDIE ROACH: I am not sure. He was young enough to get through the injury. We didn’t know it was a severe injury and we worked through it. The thing is when he moved to 147 and fighting against guys that when they went into the ring weighed 160, the thing is, it’s tougher against the bigger guys. He had a lot more knockouts at 140 and 135 of course but those guys were much smaller. I think that had more of an effect than the injury.

Do you expect Bradley to bang the shoulder early to see how healthy it really is?

FREDDIE ROACH: No because I think he would be wasting his time. He doesn’t have the injury right now. We were working on it and it has been 100% great for this training camp. The surgery went well and the rehab went well and Manny is 100% at this point.

Manny, you are in the political business, what do you think about the “NoTrump Undercard?”

MANNY PACQUIAO: All I know is that we have a good undercard.

Bob, have you heard from anyone in the Trump organization regarding the undercard?

BOB ARUM: I don’t take their calls.

Manny, in the two fights against Tim, which did you think you did better? The one you lost or the one you won?

MANNY PACQUIAO: I think the same. I believe the same, because I won both.

Which one were you happier with?

MANNY PACQUIAO: The one that I won.

Why that that one different or better?

MANNY PACQUIAO: The difference was throwing a lot more punches. To make sure I won every round to win the fight.

Do you believe it is important for you to win this fight to carry momentum into your election back home?

MANNY PACQUIAO: It is very important to get the win for my country and the people in the Philippines, but the most important thing is a win for my country and a win for my legacy in boxing.

Do you think a win will help you in the election?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Yes.

What do you think about professionals fighting in the Olympics?

BOB ARUM: The idea that you will allow professional boxers into the Olympics, at this short notice, is absolutely insane. The idea that Manny Pacquiao would face off with some 17 or 18 year old kid, who has no professional experience, is not only stupid, it’s dangerous. These people ought to have their heads examined. People say that professionals play basketball. That’s true, but in basketball you can dunk over somebody, but it’s not a hurt game. In boxing, if you put experienced pros in with rank amateurs there will be serious health consequences. I don’t understand why they are now raising this issue. It makes no sense to me.

On this short notice it seems extremely unlikely it will happen…

BOB ARUM: Absolutely – extremely unlikely. Andre Ward says he wants to go to the Olympics. Many Pacquiao says he wants to got to he Olympics. Are they going to fight 17 year old kids?

Manny, if this happens, would you consider fighting in the Olympics?

MANNY PACQUIAO: Yes, after this fight I am going back to the Philippines to do my job and if they allow me to fight in the Olympics – I am not going to say that I am going to fight or saying that I am not. I am not closing the door and I am not committing to it – I am thinking about it.

With the long layoff, did it make you realize that you don’t need boxing anymore in your life?

MANNY PACQUIAO: With the long layoff in boxing – I feel better right now – I feel fresh. A long layoff is a good thing because I was able to spend more time with my family and concentrate on helping the Philippine people.

Freddie, Teddy Atlas trains fighters to be more aggressive, how does that play to you?

FREDDIE ROACH: Well, if he will be more aggressive I will be happy for that. If his fighter fights a little harder we will fight back. Manny is ready for whatever he brings to the table. We see the adjustments he is trying to make but once Manny hits him, he will revert back to what he does best. I am not worried about Teddy Atlas, believe me.

In Closing…

MANNY PACQUIAO: Thank you everyone and all of the media and make sure you watch on April 9. There is going to be a lot of action in the ring and I am excited for that. Thanks you and God bless all.

BOB ARUM: I would like to make some observations. I really believe that this third fight between Manny and Timothy will be by far the best of the three fights. It will be very exciting and I believe that one way or another it is going to end in a knockout.

Also pay attention to the Arthur Abraham – Ramirez super middleweight world title fight. If Ramirez wins that fight, he will be the first Mexican to win a world title in a weight class as heavy as super middleweight and he will be one of the future stars not only in Mexico, but all over the world in boxing. Keep your eye on this kid, he’s 24, handsome, well spoken and fights well. If he wins this fight and becomes a champion, he will be a big star.

As will Oscar Valdez if he can get by Gradovich. Gradovich is a non-stop fighter and Valdez is a two-time Mexican Olympian and a real up and coming fighter.

Then there is my favorite, the farm worker. His parents came to this country to work in the fields. Jose Ramirez as a kid picked peppers in the fields at thirteen or fourteen years of age – he put himself through college, was a member of the U.S. Olympic boxing team – he fights his first ten round fight against Manny Perez, a very tough fighter from Denver. Jose is a kid to really focus on. He is a social activist. He is a spokesperson for the Latino Water Coalition, for immigration rights – he is a kid that’s going to make a difference.

I am very excited about this entire card on April 9. People are going to be tremendously entertained. I am really putting myself out on the line to say that it will be a complete night of boxing of the best that boxing has to offer.

*************************************

Promoted by Top Rank®, in association with MP Promotions and Tecate, the Manny Pacquiao – Tim Bradley high-stakes welterweight championship event will take place on Saturday, April 9, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT. The NoTrump pay-per-view undercard will feature World Boxing Organization (WBO) super middleweight world champion “King” ARTHUR ABRAHAM defending his title against undefeated No. 1 contender and mandatory challenger GILBERTO “Zurdo” RAMIREZ, undefeated No. 1 WBO featherweight contender and two-time Mexican Olympian ÓSCAR VALDEZ defending his NABO featherweight title against former International Boxing Federation (IBF) featherweight world champion EVGENY GRADOVICH and 2012 U.S. Olympian JOSE RAMÍREZ defending his World Boxing Council (WBC) Continental Americas super lightweight title against MANNY PEREZ. The Abraham vs. Ramirez world championship fight is co-promoted by Sauerland Event and Zapari Boxing Promotions.

Remaining Tickets to Pacquiao vs. Bradley are priced at $1,204, $804, $604, $404, $254 and $154, not including applicable service fees. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets are also available for purchase at mgmgrand.com or ticketmaster.com.

For fight updates go to www.toprank.com, www.hbo.com/boxing or www.mgmgrand.com on Facebook at facebook.com/trboxing, facebook.com/trboxeo or facebook.com/hboboxing, and on Twitter at twitter.com/trboxing, twitter.com/trboxeo, or twitter.com/hboboxing. Use the Hashtag #PacBradley to join the conversation on Twitter.

NEW YORK (February 24, 2016) – After a banner 2015 in boxing, Tecate, the Mexican beer with bold flavor, announced today it will enter 2016 as the exclusive beer and presenting sponsor for Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions and has signed an endorsement contract with boxing’s biggest star, current WBC, RING Magazine and Lineal Middleweight Champion and Golden Boy Promotions fighter, Canelo Alvarez.

In 2016, Tecate will continue to become more synonymous with legendary boxing matches and for the first time in the brand’s history, will endorse an individual boxer, Canelo, leveraging his popularity to promote the brand’s 2016 ‘BORN BOLD’ campaign. As part of the endorsement, Canelo will wear Tecate branded boxing trunks in the ring in his upcoming marquee fights in May and September, 2016.

“The new partnership with Tecate establishes Canelo as the biggest star in all of boxing, period,” said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “With this partnership with Tecate and his commitment to fight on Cinco de Mayo and Mexican Independence Day weekends — boxing’s two biggest annual dates — Canelo’s popularity will only continue to soar for years to come.”

“Tecate is a world recognized company and I am very happy to have a strong and serious sponsor be part of my team,” said Canelo Alvarez. “With Tecate on my side, I know that we will take our brands to new heights. Through our partnership will be able to achieve our mutual goals and lead boxing into its next great era.”

“This sponsorship is an incredibly natural fit,” said Gustavo Guerra, brand director for Tecate. “Not only is boxing one of our consumer’s biggest passion points, but Golden Boy Promotions, Canelo and Tecate share common ground for being Mexico’s best in their respective categories – boxing and beer.”

The multi-year sponsorship contract with Golden Boy Promotions will have Tecate featured prominently in the center ring, around the mat and throughout the arena.

For additional details on Tecate’s “Born Bold” campaign, the sponsorship of Golden Boy Promotions fights, or to speak with a Tecate and Tecate Light representative about the brand’s support of boxing, contact BRAYA at HUSA@BRAYAUS.com.

For more information on Golden Boy Promotions and Canelo Alvarez, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing and @Canelo.

About HEINEKEN USA
HEINEKEN USA Inc., the nation’s leading upscale beer importer, is a subsidiary of HEINEKEN International NV, the world’s most international brewer. European brands imported into the U.S. include Heineken®, the world’s most international beer brand, Strongbow Hard Apple Ciders, Amstel Light, and Newcastle Brown Ale. HEINEKEN USA also imports the Dos Equis Franchise, Tecate Franchise, Sol, Indio, Carta Blanca and Bohemia brands from Mexico. For the latest information on our company and brands, follow us on Twitter @HeinekenUSACorp, or visit HEINEKENUSA.com.

About Golden Boy Promotions
Los Angeles-based Golden Boy Promotions was established in 2002 by 10-time world champion in six divisions Oscar De La Hoya, the first Hispanic to own a national boxing promotional company. Golden Boy Promotions is one of boxing’s most active and respected promoters, presenting shows in packed venues around the world and has worked with networks such as HBO, HBO Latino, Estrella TV, ESPN, TeleFutura, FOX Sports 1, FOX Deportes, Televisa and TV Azteca. The company has also promoted some of the top boxing events in the history of the sport including De La Hoya vs. Mayweather, Mayweather vs. Canelo and other notable pay-per-view fights featuring fan-favorites Bernard “The Alien” Hopkins, Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Marco “Baby Faced Assassin” Antonio Barrera, Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Sugar Shane Mosley.

About Canelo Alvarez
At the age of 25, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico’s Canelo Alvarez (46-1-1, 32 KOs) has conquered the boxing world, captivating fans both at home and around the globe with his action-packed fighting style, charisma and willingness to take on the toughest challenges. The current WBC, RING Magazine and Lineal Middleweight Champion, was last seen in the ring against former four-division world champion Miguel Cotto on November 21, 2015, defeating him via unanimous decision. The 2015 Fighter of the Year candidate’s road to stardom began in 2011 with a win over Matthew “Magic” Hatton for the vacant WBC Super Welterweight World title, his first title defense against Ryan Rhodes and stoppage victories over Alfonso Gomez and Kermit Cintron. Then in 2012, Canelo defended his belt against future Hall of Famer Sugar Shane Mosley and showed the veteran his first retirement, winning via unanimous decision in 12 rounds. Canelo continued on the path to superstardom in 2013 with a fifth round technical knockout of Josesito Lopez, followed by a 12-round unanimous decision victory over then world champion, Austin Trout in front of over 40,000 fans at San Antonio’s Alamodome. The victory earned, Canelo the WBA Super Welterweight World Championship and proved his dominance at 154-pounds and a clear, bonafide ticket seller. On September 14, 2013, Canelo faced the man on top of the pound-for-pound list – Floyd “Money” Mayweather – giving a stellar effort before falling short of victory for the first time via 12-round majority decision. The fight ended up being the biggest of 2013, but also the second highest grossing bout of all-time and the second most watched boxing event ever on Mexican television (only behind 2015’s Mayweather-Pacquiao). Since then, Canelo has won four straight fights, defeating top stars Alfredo “Perro” Angulo via 10th round technical knockout and Erislandy “The American Dream” Lara via split decision in 2014 and achieved 2015’s Knockout of the Year over James “Mandingo Warrior” Kirkland on May 9, at Minute Maid Park in Houston in front more than 31,000 fans.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions: Welcome, everyone, to the Luis Ortiz, Tony Thompson and Sadam Ali and Jessie Vargas media conference call. These will be two exciting matchups taking place on March 5th at the DC Armory in Washington D.C.

Fresh from a stunning knockout of Bryant Jennings and obviously eager to continue his quest to be the best heavyweight in the sport, WBA heavyweight world champion, Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz will make his first title defense of 2016 when he faces former world title challenger Tony “The Tiger” Thompson who is 40-6 with 27 knockouts. It will be the main event in the 12-round fight for the WBA interim heavyweight title on March 5th.

Ortiz versus Thompson is presented by Golden Boy Promotions, in association with King Kong Boxing and Warriors Boxing Promotions.

Opening up the live HBO telecast on March 5th is the co-main event, top contender and 2008 Olympian Sadam “World Kid” Ali with a record of 22-0, 13 knockouts, will face former WBA super lightweight world Jessie Vargas who holds a record of 26-1 with nine knockouts. It’s a highly anticipated co-main event, and that will be for the vacant WBO welterweight world championship title.

The Ali-Vargas is a co-feature. I see it as a 50-50 fight. The fans are eager to see who will be victorious. And it’s always a pleasure to be co-promoting this event, this fight, with Top Rank, in association with Top Rank.

And at this moment I would also like to thank our event sponsor, Cerveza Tecate Born Bold. They’ve been a great new partner for us in 2016. I’m pleased to announce that the tickets are reasonably priced, starting at $25 all the way up to $100 for ringside seats, and you can get those tickets at ticketmaster.com.

The doors will open at the DC Armory at 3:00 p.m. Eastern and the HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Pacific.

Obviously I’m very pleased and excited that these two incredible fights will be broadcast live on HBO, which is the best network for boxing. So now let me take this opportunity to introduce the president of Top Rank who will say a few words. We are pleased to be working with Top Rank and to put together this stacked event on March 5th.

TODD DUBOEF, President of Top Rank: Thanks, Oscar. Welcome, everybody, to the conference call. Obviously co-promoting this with Golden Boy and this fight for HBO is highly anticipated. The welterweight division is just so robust and deep with talent and seems like for the last decade it’s just been a slew of fighters young and established that have been going through there.

That’s what we will see in this semifinal, co-feature event on March 5th. As Top Rank, we’re the promoter of Jessie Vargas. Jessie is a former world champion, earned it the hard way.

He had to be encouraged to go into the ring, and fought in China against DeMarco. He won that. He then went for the chance to fight Tim Bradley, which was a very close fight. Some people thought Jessie was very disappointed in the last minutes of the round where he thought he had Bradley out, where he could have secured a victory.

He’s an action fighter. He’s always a gentleman. He’s classy. He’s managed by Cameron Dunkin. He’s the pride of Vegas, and he’s always held up in the gym late at night in Top Rank.

At this point I’d like to introduce Jessie Vargas so he can try to earn his second world title.

JESSIE VARGAS, Former World Champion and Number Four Contender for the vacant WBO Welterweight World Championship: Thank you, Todd. Good afternoon to everyone. First of all, I’m very thankful for this opportunity once again. And I want to thank Top Rank and everyone that made it possible. I’m glad to be back on HBO.

And as you said, I always come to give the fans great fights. I’m an action-packed fighter and this fight will be no different, if not more, because I’m very eager and very anxious to come back strong and reclaim that WBO world title.

I’m coming in with everything I’ve got, and I’m fully confident that I will come out victorious because of my preparation with my team. I’m also very thankful for the support that Top Rank has given me and that Top Rank will be in the house in Washington D.C. to see me win another world title.

What can I say, I’m excited. And I’m planning on making Sadam Ali quit. That’s my goal, and I plan to achieve it. I’m not going to stop pushing from beginning to end. I’ve conditioned myself. I’ve prepared myself for that fight to come in busy basically and not leave it up to the judges. Just win a clear, decisive fight. And to be honest, like I said, my goal is to win by a tail. That’s my ultimate goal. I’ve shown the power that I can do so. It’s all about going in the fight and giving it my all, and I plan on doing so.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you. We can now ask the media, we can have a few questions for Vargas.

Q. Tell me about what Cooper is doing with you in the gym that will allow you to win this fight. You said to me a couple of weeks ago that you’ve known each other since you were a kid. Now that you’re a man and you’re fighting for a second world title, what’s he emphasizing in the gym with you? What’s he doing to make you believe you can win this fight?

JESSIE VARGAS: You know, just with him I’m throwing a lot of combinations, getting down on my punches, throwing the punches correctly. Just small things that needed correction and that we are putting together, just going back to the basics.

Ultimately, it’s always just about going back to the basics. But I’m feeling very comfortable more than anything because I’m throwing more punches than I ever have.

And that’s going to be needed in this fight, because we know that Ali is the type to run around and move around, and we’re going to hunt him down.

Q. For you, you’re obviously still motivated by what happened at the StubHub Center. How do you keep that from being a negative in terms of wanting to win this title so bad that maybe you forget the things that you did well that gave you the chance to win in California that night?

JESSIE VARGAS: Well, you know, it’s close to fire. I’m coming back with rage into this fight. I have that fire that I just want to destroy any opponent that’s in front of me, not wait until the last round or not let any second, any minute of the fight just go. I’m planning on fighting the entire fight.

And I’ve prepared and I’m prepared to do so. And that’s what matters. That’s what I’ve learned from that fight. And I plan to just stay busy.

Q. Following up on what Steve just asked you about working with Dewey in the gym, you’re with a new trainer again, and I’m wondering, I’m sure that there have been things you’ve learned from your different trainers, and obviously you’ve won a world title and become one of the top welterweights around. But I’m wondering your take on this: You’ve been a pro for eight years. He’s your sixth trainer by my count. What’s the deal with six trainers in eight years? It is highly unusual.

JESSIE VARGAS: Yeah, it is. Well, you know, situations that I was put in just led me to either split, more than anything, just split. I’ve learned from each coach, and I have nothing but respect for them. But things are complicated.

What can I say? One fighter — one trainer, unfortunately didn’t have the time for my camp, another trainer had to leave to be in training camp with another team while I was in training camp. And others, Robert Alcazar wanted to do training out of California, I was out of Las Vegas. So it’s just different things. With Roger, he was very sick, very ill. I wasn’t able to train with him any longer at that time.

So it’s just the situation that was put in front of me at the moment is the things that led me to making a decision switching up, either me or them. But I’ve learned from every trainer, I can say that. And I’m learning from Dewey as well. So that’s a big benefit.

Q. Obviously even having made a number of trainer changes over the last couple of years, you’re still 26-1. You’re still top-rated welterweight. You’re still a guy that won a world title. You’ve put in heck of a effort and performance against Tim Bradley. I wonder, if you would have had stability in your training camp, you know, like Pac has with Freddie Roach for 15 years or guys who stayed — Bernard Hopkins has been with the same trainer like since 2002, just stayed and got that familiarity and the repetition in the gym and really got in sync, how much better do you think you could be if you had that sort of continuity in your training camp, fight after fight for many years?

JESSIE VARGAS: Well, those fighters are fortunate to have that team that would stick with them or that they felt comfortable with. I unfortunately — not so much unfortunately, because I have learned from everybody, but I haven’t been put in that position just yet. Like you said, I’m still young.
So I’m still looking for the trainer that I’m going to settle down with and feel comfortable with. And I’m feeling comfortable with Dewey, I will have to say that, and I look forward to showing off what we are putting together.

I’m sure Bernard Hopkins, if he’s 40 now in 2000, I don’t know exactly what year that was, I don’t know if he was 26, 28, or 30 years old —

Q. He’s 51 now.

JESSIE VARGAS: All right. So eventually we find somebody at one age, and I’m very comfortable with Dewey Cooper. He’s putting in a great effort and he also wants to bring out the best in me because he had a close relationship with me. And I’m feeling very comfortable.

Q. Can you just walk me through a little bit about what happened at the end of last year where this fight was supposed to originally — or at least it was being discussed and offered to do on the December 19th card that HBO and Golden Boy put on up in Turning Stone in Verona, New York, and ultimately Luis Ortiz, who is going to be in the main event on your card here, ended up fighting the main event because you guys could not come to an agreement about where the fight would take place. Could you walk us through that as far as your camp’s view of not fighting in New York state even though Sadam Ali is hours and hours away from there? How did that — what was the story there?

JESSIE VARGAS: My trainer — I’m sorry, my manager, Cameron Dunkin, is the one who negotiated for all of the fights and all of the deals. As we were sitting down talking about the next fight, Cameron did advise about how a fight in New York could be against a fighter from New York. And it wasn’t something that we were very interested in, just because of from the past experiences how it’s been in a hometown, a fighter from the hometown having the hometown advantage in New York.

That’s why we just wanted any different site. Just not New York. And that’s what I have Cameron there for; he’s there to advise me and make sure that there will be success. And he and I are very much looking forward to this fight in Washington.

Q. Earlier in the call you mentioned that you were going to make Sadam Ali quit. I was just wondering what you’ve seen in him that leads you to believe that you could do that.

JESSIE VARGAS: He’s not on my level. And I’m here to show this on fight day. I’m here to prove that he’s not on my level. Of course I’m saying it, but I’m going to prove it that night as well. It’s just two different breeds, and March 5th I’m going to show it.

I’m very confident coming into this fight, you know what I mean? My strength is better than ever, my speed and how comfortable I feel in the ring. And I’m just having fun in there, and I’m going to have fun March 5th.

Q. Can you elaborate why you think he’s not on your level? What have you seen from him that leads you to believe that?

JESSIE VARGAS: He doesn’t have the experience I have. I’ve been in there with world-class fighters in the beginning of my career. I’ve beaten several undefeated records already, and I’m planning to do the same March 5th.

So, first of all, he doesn’t have the experience. He’s never had to really dig deep. He hasn’t been in those wars. And it’s something that he has inside that he’s going to — something that he hasn’t experienced, he will experience in this fight.

Q. His win over Abregu surprised a lot of people especially him stopping Abregu, what did you think of that performance?

JESSIE VARGAS: I thought he fought well. He was a young fighter, and it was an opportunity. And he fought well in that fight. Abregu was a top fighter, but he had also been on a long layoff before then. And he was an older fighter as well. Like I said before, he’s never experienced being in the ring with someone like me — young, hungry, strong, fast, in his prime.

He hasn’t faced any fighters like me.

Q. Were you surprised that he beat Abregu?

JESSIE VARGAS: I didn’t know how Abregu was going to come back. I thought it was going to be a good match. I did tune in to watch it. But he did surprise me that he did stop Abregu. But credit to him for that. But I did know the possibilities of fighting.

Q. You’ve always been a very measured boxer over your career, but for this fight seems like you’re promising more of an aggressive style. Is that correct?

JESSIE VARGAS: That’s right. I’m coming back with a vengeance. I want to come back strong and take what’s mine and come back to Vegas and celebrate over here.

Q. You seem very confident about being able to change your style, and I guess become more aggressive. Have you found that just through training camp that that’s been a pretty easy transition to become a lot more of an aggressive fighter than you have been in the past?

JESSIE VARGAS: I’ve always been aggressive. I’ve always stayed busy. My last fight wasn’t as busy as I usually have been in the past. But one thing that you just mentioned is that I’m very comfortable with how training camp is coming along, I’m very comfortable with the team, and it’s going to show a difference March 5th.

Q. I also wonder, Jessie, you and Sadam are around the same age. Do you guys know each other from the amateurs or have any amateur experience together at all?

JESSIE VARGAS: I believe I’ve seen him before. I’ve heard of him in the past. He’s one of those amateur boxers that used to run around a lot, run around the ring and try to score points. I have heard of him. I have seen him when we were young, when we were kids.

So I do know of him.

Q. You guys never faced each other, never sparred at all or nothing like that?

JESSIE VARGAS: No.

Q. Just from your describing Sadam Ali’s style, you think maybe he still has an amateur style, is that how you look at him?

JESSIE VARGAS: That’s right. That’s right. I mean, a friend of mine dropped him in amateurs and had him nearly knocked out. So I know his weaknesses, and I plan on working on that.

Q. Do you remember who that friend of yours was who dropped him in the amateurs?

JESSIE VARGAS: Yeah, it was — it was a Toronto fight, which I don’t remember who it was, it was here in the U.S. And there was another fight as well with Francisco Vargas. Francisco dropped him and that was like, I believe it was in the Olympics.

Q. Based on that, you’ve kind of gleaned some of his weaknesses and you think maybe you can take advantage of them?

JESSIE VARGAS: Based on what I saw in his clips, in his last couple of fights, based on what I’ve known from when we were kids, based on some of the fights that he had as an amateur, so I’m just putting it all together.

MODERATOR: Todd, can you talk about the fight and final comments?

TODD DUBOEF: Obviously you mean the matchup between two very — it’s a 50/50 fight. Both guys are established, and obviously Sadam Ali is trying to win his first title.

It’s going to be a — it’s a terrific division, again. And to have both of these guys in the division creating some buzz and putting on great performances will make bigger fights for them.

I won’t forget when Jessie and I had our conversation right before the Bradley fight. I said, Go get it. Go do the best you can. He said, I’m going to win. I’m going to win. I said, Well, even in defeat, even in winning, whatever you do, I said, you chew off those big matches, you’re going to make opportunities for you.

So this one is another opportunity. Even though he didn’t win the Bradley fight, we commend fighters that take fights, and both guys will put it all on the line.

So we look forward to meeting everybody and seeing everybody on March 5th on HBO and working with Golden Boy and everybody. It’s going to be a terrific night of fights.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Now it’s my pleasure to introduce to you team Sadam Ali. First off, I would like to introduce Sadam’s trainer to say a few words, and his name is Andre Roizer. Andre, do you want to say a few words to the media.

ANDRE ROIZER, Trainer to Sadam Ali: Basically we’re getting ready for this opportunity that we’ve been waiting for for some time. Sadam is working diligently at his craft. And you’re going to see the best Sadam Ali that you’ve ever seen.
We’re preparing to be victorious. We’re preparing to look like a million dollars, and we’re preparing to show the world that Sadam Ali is an athlete that should be reckoned with in this welterweight division, which is loaded with so much talent.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Now it’s my pleasure to introduce a former member of the 2008 United States Olympic boxing team and the first Arab American to represent the U.S. at the Olympics. “Brooklyn” Sadam Ali has been climbing the welterweight ladder since a big year in 2013. Ali has had back-to-back victories over Michael “Cold Blood” Clark where he won the NBAO title. He beat Jeremy “Hollywood” Bryan winning the WBO intercontinental welterweight title. He’s coming off that great victory over the tough and rugged and experienced Luis Carlos Abregu, defending his titles and giving the experienced fighter his second loss and Francisco “Chia” Santana we’re he earned the WBA international welterweight title.

So it’s my pleasure to introduce a fighter who boasts remarkable speed, incredible power, and I know he’s ready for this world title shot against former champion Jessie Vargas. So it’s my pleasure. He has a record of 22-0 with 13 knockouts. Sadam “World Kid” Ali.

SADAM ALI, Number One Contender to the Vacant WBO Welterweight World Championshi[: Good afternoon, everybody. I’m excited. First and foremost, I would like to thank God for this opportunity and for keeping me healthy. And I’d like to thank HBO, Golden Boy and the WBO for this opportunity.
This is a world title match, and what pro fighter isn’t looking for that? Who doesn’t want that? We’re all going to want it as bad. He’s going to want it bad. I’m going to want it bad.

This is my chance. This is my shot. He had his. Well, he has another one. That’s good for him. But I’m ready. I’ve been working hard. I’m ready to show everybody why I deserve to be in this position.

You all know me, I’m the humble guy. I don’t like to talk. I do the talking in the ring. People say I run. I say I box. I move. I fight smart.

And I’m ready to go out there get that WBO title and show everybody why I deserve to be where I am, and I will do that.

Q. Here’s a question for you. I know it’s a big deal for you just talking about the opportunity to win this world title belt against Jessie Vargas, but you were sitting in the mandatory spot for a while. I wonder if there’s any part of you whatsoever that is maybe a little bit disappointed that rather than fighting Vargas for a vacant title that you would have rather had an opportunity to fight Timothy Bradley to take the title off the champion. Obviously Timmy beat Jessie, is a much more well-known fighter than Jessie. Or does it not matter to you at all?

SADAM ALI: Timothy Bradley is a world champion and a great fighter. That opportunity would have been amazing. But I look at it like this: Everything’s in God’s hands. Whatever happens is meant to happen.

I don’t blame the decision that Bradley has to make. I understand. And in his position I would have made the same decision. So I don’t knock anybody for that.

I mean, God put me in the position to do what I have to do. This is the opportunity that comes across me, and my mind is officially focused on that.

Q. You’re not one to say that Tim Bradley was maybe avoiding you or ducking you, you understand the business of why he would go for a third fight with Pacquiao?

SADAM ALI: Yes, I understand the business.

Q. The last few wins you’ve had have been very good victories, like Oscar was mentioning. Santana was a tough fight on a big stage. Abregu was a tremendous performance. But you only had the one fight last year against Santana, been off for a while. I know they tried to make this fight with Jessie at the end of the year, didn’t work out. What are your thoughts about having just the one doubt last year as you head into a world championship fight?

SADAM ALI: It was a little frustrating, a little hard to get the fight going and figure out everything that’s been going on.

But I’ve been in the gym. I’ve been ready. I never took off and stayed out because I didn’t have a fight. So I’ve been ready. For some people they might think I haven’t proved to be on the top elite. But this is why I’m here. This is why I’m here to prove that. Jessie Vargas is a great fighter, but I am a great fighter.

And if anybody wants to underestimate me, then that’s fine. I’m just ready to go out there and show why I shouldn’t be underestimated.

Q. I think many people look at this fight, look at your record, look at his record, Todd Duboef was mentioning on the Jessie Vargas part of the call, basically a 50/50 fight between the two of you guys, at least in the minds of many of the media and the public. Whose resumé do you think stacks up a little stronger? You have the two really good, outstanding victories with your past two fights with Abregu and Santana and solid victory with Jeremy Bryant. And, on the other hand, he has a tough, competitive fight against Bradley that he lost but also victories against DeMarco who was a former world title holder, Novikov who was undefeated, Khabib who was undefeated where he took the title off him. Seems awfully close. I know you’re probably biased toward yourself, but if you step back whose resumé stacks up better at the moment?

SADAM ALI: We both are great fighters, but he has 26 fights. I have 22. So he had more fights than me. He had more opportunities. As for me, my resumé is going to get better and better. That’s the way I look at it. I’m not comparing myself to him or to who he fought. I know who I am. I know what I can do. And March 5th I’m going to show it.

Q. He said he’s going to make you quit in the fight, which it’s one thing for a guy to say he’s going to win or maybe get a knockout. You don’t hear too often, I haven’t heard too often in a long career, other fighters say I’m going to make the guy quit. What do you make of that? Why would he say he’s going to make you quit? Not beat you, but make you quit?

SADAM ALI: This may piss him off, but it makes me laugh. He’s really confident. That’s good. That’s the way a fighter should be. But make me quit, that is not an option for me.

Q. Sadam was kind enough to allow me to visit his gym last week, and some of the things we talked about included Sadam wants stringent PED testing for this fight. Sadam, I’m wondering if you have an update for us about testing for this fight with Vargas?

SADAM ALI: Well, of course, this is a very dangerous sport. And I just want everything to be fair on both sides. So I did offer that. The other side didn’t really want to go half and half with it, because the fighters have to cover something like this.

And so in this situation where I’ve got to handle the whole thing on my own. So I’m in the situation where I’ve got to decide that on my own.

Q. You’re going to go it alone and you’re going to pay for all the testing?

SADAM ALI: A final decision hasn’t been made. But most likely that’s what the thoughts are.

Q. Oscar, I’d like your assessment of Sadam. Especially pertaining to Jessie saying, yeah, he’s got an amateur style. I see Sadam being able to do pro and more of an amateur style. But I’d like your assessment. Where do you think he stands? Does he still have some amateur ticks in his game? I’d like your assessment and analysis of Sadam.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Sadam Ali is the perfect combination. I mean, he has the amateur pedigree, which is very, very necessary to become a world-class athlete, and that’s exactly what he is. He’s a professional fighter who has tremendous speed and amazing footwork and great power.

He demonstrated that against Abregu, a fighter who was coming forward, a fighter who has tremendous power, and Sadam Ali took care of business.

So, look, Sadam Ali is at the perfect moment in his life where this is his year and this is the perfect time to shine. And March 5th, against the great fighter in Jessie, it’s going to be a tremendous fight. But a lot of people, like Sadam said, underestimate his abilities and especially his power. I’m really looking forward to this fight.

Q. Sadam, following off some of the comments that Jessie has made and you’ve made in response, how important is it that you not only win this fight but win making a statement, win in impressive fashion? Is that the top of your radar?

SADAM ALI: Well, for sure. It’s important for the viewers. It’s important for everybody who doubted. It’s important for my career. It’s important for what I do after this.

I’m not looking past Vargas. But this is the biggest fight of my life right now. And I feel I’m going to say that every fight after this, because I feel every fight is the biggest fight of my life.

So this fight has a lot to do with what’s going to happen in the future.

Q. Is fan friendliness an important aspect of the fight to you? Is being fan friendly entertaining, an important aspect of the fight to you?

SADAM ALI: Being fan friendly?

Q. Fan friendly. In other words, being entertaining in the ring, putting on a good show. Is that also important to you?

SADAM ALI: Of course. That’s one of the most important things to me in boxing. Because, at the end of the day, we’re in there. It’s a dangerous sport. We put a lot just going into the ring.
But at the end of the day I like to perform for the viewers. I like to impress. I like to look special. So that is very important to me.

Q. Do you think Jessie is a little overconfident in this fight, judging by some of the comments he’s made about you on this call?

SADAM ALI: Well, honestly, I wouldn’t say overconfident, because he’s coming off the fight with Bradley. He feels it didn’t end like he wanted it to. He has a second chance at a world title fight. I don’t blame him for being this confident at all.

I mean, I wouldn’t say overconfident. You should be confident as a fighter. But I’m confident, too. I’m just not going to go around and tell the whole world. I’m going to show it in the ring.

Q. I’m also curious, just because I’m not really used to, I guess, hearing this type of like animosity from a fighter towards you, and I’m wondering just were you kind of caught off guard by it and maybe surprised that Jessie was, I guess, that dismissive of you as a boxer, just some of the comments?

SADAM ALI: I mean, it is what it is. People are going to doubt me or people are not going to think too highly of me. There’s going to be people like that. But that’s up to me to change their minds. That’s my job to do.
I don’t blame them. There’s different kinds of fighters, different types of attitudes. This is me. Like, this is not an act. This is how I’ll always be. This is who I am. And as I’m fighting I’m going to run into a whole different type of personalities, and this is just one. It’s no big deal to me at all.

Q. How do you see this fight unfolding? Do you see yourself winning a decision? Do you see yourself trying to stop him late? How do you envision this fight ending?

SADAM ALI: Honestly, I can’t call it. First and foremost, he’s saying he’s going to come — I don’t know if that’s how he’s going to come. I’m the type of fighter that’s ready for any type of style.

So if he wants to come to me, I have something for that. If he wants to stay outside and try to counterpunch, I have something for that.
So I don’t know how this fight is going to turn out. All I know, it’s going to be a great fight.

MODERATOR: Sadam, any final words you want to say to the press on this call.

SADAM ALI: First and foremost, I want to say thank you to the press. I appreciate the write-ups they do and the talk they keep about us fighters, because it’s very important to keep it out there and for the sport.

I want to also thank the viewers and everybody who is watching. Tune in. It’s going to be a great fight. And I will be the WBO champ, and I’m excited about that.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you very much. The main event of the evening will be a heavyweight showdown. And I would like to take this opportunity to commend Tony Thompson and his team. Here you have a fighter who is experienced, a fighter who is from Washington D.C., American, who is ready to prove that he’s afraid of no one. He’s going up against “King Kong” Ortiz, and it is really a pleasure to be working with a fighter who can step up and face probably the most feared heavyweight in the division today.

So let me introduce to you to say a few words, and it is my pleasure to be working with, Leon Margules, president of Warriors Boxing. Here is Leon Margules.

LEON MARGULES, President of Warriors Boxing and Promotions: Thank you, Oscar. First of all, I’d like to thank HBO for the opportunity that Tony is getting, and I’d like to thank Golden Boy for the opportunities Tony is getting.

Tony’s been around many, many years. And he fears no one. While he’s not the youngest guy in the division, he’s been very active and he’s fought all over the world. I mean, in 2015 he knocked out Odlanier Solís, in 2013 he knocked out David Price twice, 2014 he beat Solís.

So he’s been around the world. And he’s lost a couple of close decisions like to Carlos Takam and to Pulev, but Tony is a well-traveled, well-seasoned, fought Klitschko twice, veteran who is excited, because I’m looking at Tony’s record, and I don’t think he’s fought many, many years if at all in his hometown of Washington D.C.

So this is like a dream come true and, of course, the bigger the challenge, the more motivated Tony is. So without further ado, I’d like to introduce world title contender, former world title challenger from Washington, Tony Thompson.

TONY THOMPSON, Former World Title Contender: Hello. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, everybody. How are you doing? Wonderful introduction. I’m just too tired to enjoy it. I appreciate the opportunity from HBO after, what, nine years, eight years. You should have had me back sooner, but we won’t get into that. But I appreciate the opportunity.

Like Leon said, I’m not the youngest guy in the sport but I’m probably still the hungriest guy in the sport. I don’t know how I’m going to be facing the most feared fighter, the most feared and tough fighter in the division, because that’s myself, so I can’t box myself. But I understand what you’re saying about your guy. It’s all good, baby. He won’t have no problem finding me, trust me.

Q. A lot of people would commend you for taking this kind of fight on relatively short notice. I can’t say I’m that surprised having followed your career for a long time. So let me ask you this, then: You get the fight on short notice. That’s not necessarily a good thing. But, on the other hand, you get a fight at home, where you haven’t had a chance to fight for a long time, and now all of a sudden you get an HBO main event in your backyard. Can you kind of balance the two out? Like on the one hand it’s short notice, but on the other hand you get to fight at home. Is one better than the other? I’m sure you’d rather have the fight with plenty notice in home, but how much does having it at home make up for the fact that it’s fairly short notice?

TONY THOMPSON: Absolutely makes up for it. My whole career has been a span of short-notice fights. This is nothing new to us. And before y’all ask me, no, I wasn’t in the gym. It don’t matter because I’m working my ass off, and I didn’t want to talk myself into this fight to get embarrassed in my hometown or HBO at that. I’ve only been on HBO one time. They never invited me back.

So I’m out to prove not only to my hometown that I’m a live candidate in this division but HBO or any other television network that chose to leave me off for whatever reason.

So, I mean, again, short-notice fights have made my career because everybody think they’re going to catch me off guard, catch me slipping. All they can do is make me extra motivated. So when I go in the gym and I bust my ass two or three times a day getting ready, that’s what I try to think about: They’re trying to pull the fast one on me again.
It’s up to me to show them it’s not the case. You can do what you want. Handicap, put my left hand behind my leg and make me hop on my knees — everyone know I got bad knees — make me hop on one knee, doesn’t matter. I show up for all my fights. Not only do I show up, I win. I don’t care if the decisions didn’t go my way. A lot of the decisions should have went my way. If everybody was honest about it, they would print that.

Solís beat me, yes, he beat me with a great game plan. I should have waited a little bit longer because I was a little bit under the weather, whatever. So but with this fight I’m healthy, and I’m going to train as hard as I can.

Q. He’s got a big-time amateur background out of the Cuban national system. He’s obviously looked good so far as a pro. Hasn’t faced the kind of opponents overall that you’ve faced, although has looked very impressive particularly against Bryant Jennings who’s been regarded as one of the top contenders for the past few years. Do you feel that people are maybe overhyping Ortiz a little too much and you’re there to sort of extract the truth about them, or are you impressed by his talent also and you’re looking forward to the challenge?

TONY THOMPSON: I think it’s a little bit of both. They say he’s a hype job until he did beat one of the best heavyweights in the division in Bryant Jennings who stood toe to toe with the best in that division still, in my opinion, in Wladimir Klitschko. The way he demolished Jennings shows you there’s something there. You feel me?

I’m not Bryant Jennings. As much as I love — one of my favorite heavyweights. As much as I love him, he’s not Tony Thompson. And that’s not to say anything disparaging about Bryant Jennings, it’s just that nobody can copy his style. You wouldn’t go in the gym and say look at Tony, and that’s how we’re going to fight. You feel me?

Q. I do. Do you think, though, that the biggest attribute then — he’s got — seems like he’s got tremendous power even though he hasn’t fought like the top guys. You’ve been stopped a couple of times. Is that the main thing you’ve got to watch out for, is his big shot, or is it just something besides that and you feel like he has never been tested by a guy, because you’re a pretty good puncher yourself, never been tested by somebody as big and strong as you are?

TONY THOMPSON: Who have I been stopped by?

Q. Klitschko obviously.

TONY THOMPSON: There you go.

Q. I’m not saying anything bad; I’m just making the point that —

TONY THOMPSON: I’m with you. I feel you. I made my point with you. My point being I fought the toughest, hardest punching guys in the division. Yes, I was stopped by Klitschko twice. Yes. I was put down by David Price. I continue to get up. I continue to get up. And the only fight I’ve ever been disappointed myself in ever is the second Klitschko fight.

Q. Which one? The second Klitschko fight?

TONY THOMPSON: The second Klitschko fight. It wasn’t me. It wasn’t me. And I’m not going to elaborate on it too much. I’m just going to say it wasn’t me. And my career proves, the way I fought, that fight that wasn’t me.

So am I afraid of his heavy shots? No, he’s a heavyweight (indiscernible) you want to kick my ass, you gotta bring some ass to get some ass. You feel me? And he got a lot of ass back there. So he’s got to bring it to come get it. Let’s do it, baby. If he’s Godzilla — he’s King Kong, I’m Godzilla, baby. Let’s go.

Q. I wanted to know what has changed from your last fight with Malik Scott to now. I know you said you haven’t necessarily been training for the fight, but you’re staying in shape. Like the talk after your fight, like some team members are saying you’re even thinking about retirement. I wanted to know what’s gone through your mind the past couple of months, like if you had every intention of staying in the game or even considering walking away.

TONY THOMPSON: I mean, at this age, honestly, it’s a fight-by-fight basis. I’m not 24. Hell, I’m not even 34. I’m 44. So what I say changes fight to fight, how I feel. Yes, I have been thinking about retirement. I’m 44. Who doesn’t think about retirement as a fighter or any professional athlete at 44?

Does it mean I’m not wound up for this fight? Hell no! It’s absolutely got my juices pumping. And that’s bad news. The worst thing they can think is that I’m retired. Oscar, tell your man I’m not thinking of retiring. I’m thinking about winning.

So don’t come in here thinking it’s a payday for me, because I don’t look at the payday. I look at the payday after this fight. You feel me? That’s what I’m talking about. Forget retirement talking to the fighter.

I go back in there, I look bad, my family worried about me, obviously you got to take a hard look. That’s just honest in the fight game. You get beat up as a 44-year-old, it’s not the same as you get beat as a 24. You have some comeback. 44, it might be my last beat-up, I have to quit. You feel me?

Yes, it crosses my mind when the fight’s over. But when the fight’s come up and I’m busting my ass, we’re not thinking about retirement. We’re thinking about getting ready. And we’re ready.

Q. At what point did you decide? Like was it the fact that Ortiz was available and he needed an opponent that changed your mind, or were you already thinking: You know what? I’m going to give it one last run in 2016 regardless of who I fight.

TONY THOMPSON: Of course I was going to give it one last run. Yeah, I lost to Malik, yes, but Malik absolutely has the wrong style for me and I wasn’t in the best shape I should have been.

Not to say I’m going to be in a whole lot better shape for this fight. But it’s a different fighter. He’s not running. We’re going to meet in the middle of the ring and we’re going to decide what’s going to happen. And just like he try to knock me, I’m going to try to knock him the fuck out.

Q. Just curious, you admitted you had not been in the gym when you received a call for this fight. I’m wondering, at 44, are you finding it tougher to get back in shape than you have been in the past, just given your age.

TONY THOMPSON: Well, I’m a half-glass-full guy, I’m always optimistic. To me a short period of time means you don’t have to sustain a long camp, don’t have to take as much punishment. You want to get in blasts as fast as you can. It’s like a sprint instead of a marathon there. And that could be even less taxing to the body.

Yes, this is a short time, but, again, my whole career has been a short time. So now I’m going in there, I get in shape as fast as I can, hopefully, coming out healthier because it’s a shorter time, and then we are going to let it decide the outcome in the ring. Forget the timeframe.

So we’re going to decide the outcome in the ring. That’s the beauty part of it. They can say what they want, but the outcome comes in the ring.

Q. If my records are correct, looks like it’s been 10 years since you’ve fought in front of a hometown crowd. So how motivating was that for you to take the fight to be in front of your hometown.

TONY THOMPSON: I mean, it was the sole reason for having the fight. Yes, Ortiz is a good fighter. He wasn’t on my radar, to be honest, but when they started saying because they have no nobody to fight them, I am in your backyard, stop playing with me, call me. I’ll walk to the venue and kick your ass. Don’t tell me you got nobody to fight and I live here.

You feel me? It’s a motivating fight. I’m geeked. I’m bringing the (indiscernible) with me, man. Hopefully they go loud, man, and prop a brother up more. I’m already pumped up for the fight. Pump me up more.

Q. Do you expect to have a big crowd behind you.

TONY THOMPSON: Yes, I do. I do. But if you think about it, I know my family will be there. And it’s like 20 of my family members. That will be enough. I really don’t care, actually. I think they’re going to come out. If they don’t, watch it on HBO.

If they do come out, then they’re going to be one of the lucky ones because I think it’s going to be a hell of a fight.

MODERATOR: Leon and Tony, do you have any final words you want to say.

LEON MARGULES: I’ll leave it to Tony, but I’d like to thank everybody for giving Tony this great opportunity at this point in his career. Thank you.

TONY THOMPSON: The only last thing I would say is, I mean, again, like Leon said, I appreciate HBO putting me on. Whatever the motive was, I appreciate it. And I’m looking forward to showing the good faith they put into me.

I’m looking forward to rewarding that. Because I know they need good heavyweight fights, and I’m looking forward to putting on a good heavyweight fight, maybe even a great heavyweight fight, if Ortiz can stand up that long. So thank you.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you very much. It is really my pleasure to introduce to you the most feared man on the planet in the heavyweight division. Let me tell you one thing, when I tell you that nobody wants to fight him, nobody wants to step up to the plate and fight him, I’m putting everybody on notice in the heavyweight division: Luis Ortiz is coming after you.

It is my pleasure to introduce to you the manager of Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz to say a few words about the heavyweight division and his fighter. Let me introduce to you Jay Jimenez.

JAY JIMENEZ, Manager to Luis Ortiz: First of all, good afternoon to everyone on the line or good morning to the guys in California, and thank you guys for what you’ve done for us. I’m here with Luis, and we couldn’t be more excited. The days go on and we get more enthusiastic and more comfortable in the family he’s got, the support he’s got from you guys, and it’s just been incredible. It’s been the best thing that’s happened to him in his whole career.

OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Now it really is my pleasure to introduce to you a native of Camagüey, Cuba, who makes his home now in Miami. Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz was one of boxing’s breakout stars in 2015. He’s a southpaw. Scored three knockouts in his three fights, each bigger than the one before.

He has a record of 24-0 with 21 knockouts. His most notable was obviously where he defended the WBA interim heavyweight world championship in a spectacular seventh round technical knockout of top contender Bryant “By-By” Jennings December 19 at Turning Stone Resort in New York. This win over Jennings marked Ortiz as a must-see fighter for fans around the world and secured a place for him in the heavyweight pound-for-pound list.

He’s a decorated amateur fighter. He became a professional fighter in 2010, has gone on to win multiple titles, including WBC (indiscernible) heavyweight title, WBA (indiscernible) Latino heavyweight, WBO Latino heavyweight title and the WBC Latino heavyweight title.

This man is out on a mission. He’s out to prove to the world that he’s afraid of no one, and it is my pleasure to introduce to you with a record of 24-0, 21 knockouts, the Camagüey, Cuba, (indiscernible) Miami, Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz.

Q. Luis, there’s been a lot of talk here, at least in the Thompson part of the call, and a lot of the rhetoric in recent times that he is perhaps the most avoided heavyweight in the business. A lot of people saw what he did against Bryant Jennings in some of his fights prior to that. I want to know from Luis, does he feel like he’s the most avoided guy in the heavyweight division? And also, if that’s the case, even, what does he think about the fact that a guy like Tony would step up to the plate on basically like three to four weeks’ notice and agree to fight him.

LUIS ORTIZ, WBA Interim Heavyweight World Champion, (Via Interpreter): He said he’s an athlete. He does his job. He comes to box. And the ones that don’t want to fight him he doesn’t understand because this is boxing. He doesn’t understand why would they avoid him. It’s no reason to avoid another man.

He admires him for taking the fight. Nobody else wanted to take it. And he’s going to come and do his job. Come that day, come show Tony what he does.

Q. Luis’s thought is it’s short notice, I’ve got to get myself ready, so it’s tough on him perhaps to take on particularly somebody at the level of Luis on short notice, but by the same token you have Luis Ortiz getting ready for a fight, he didn’t know who his opponent was, right-handed southpaw, until a couple of weeks ahead of time. What’s his feeling on getting the opponent on short notice, similar to Tony not even knowing he’s fighting until short notice? Is he uncomfortable with not knowing who his opponent was just a few weeks before the fight, or does it not make much difference to him.

JAY JIMENEZ: No, he’s not comfortable mainly because he’s a southpaw, but he’s by no means nervous. This is what he does. Luis trains all year long even if he doesn’t have an opponent. You could call Luis on a month notice, he’s coming to fight. The only thing that got him off guard that he was a little uncomfortable with the southpaw. Not nervous, not scared. He’s ready to fight.

Q. Luis, it’s kind of I guess a lucky shot here from the standpoint there’s a lot of heavyweights out there, but just so happens they’re doing the fight in Washington. That’s where Tony is from. What are your thoughts coming into Tony’s hometown for this fight.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: He said he’s not worried. He’s going to concentrate what he has to do, which is his job.

Q. (In Spanish).

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: The last response she asked who would he like to fight, was her first question, and he said he wants to fight whoever has the belt. Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, whoever has the belt is who he would like to fight. He doesn’t have nobody in particular.

And she asked a second question, was who was his hardest rival to date, and he said to date right now I can honestly say it was Bryant Jennings. That was the only question she asked.

Q. Luis, I know you want to fight like as often as possible. If you have your way, you would probably fight every month if they would allow you to. Does it get frustrating at all that there are just not a lot of heavyweights out there that are willing to get in the ring with you.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: Yeah, he says yes he gets a little bit frustrated not being so many opponents out there that are able to take the fight because of other circumstances.

Q. I wanted to know if his thought process, like, will eventually change to where he might have to accept fighting every five or six months, just because it’s getting harder and harder to find opponents for him? Like, his thought process, like he might have to fight every five or six months if it just means finding the right opponents for him? I just wanted to ask if —

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: Opponents?

Q. If there’s a concern that he might not be able to be as busy because it’s getting harder to find opponents for him. Like there’s not always going to be a Tony Thompson popping up last minute.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: No. He said no, he knows things are going to be okay.

Q. I know the fight just came up. I know Tony just accepted the fight. But if he’s familiar with him at all, like if what’s gone on in the past couple of days, if he’s studied him, if that’s changed his training at all, ever since the fight was announced.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: He says yes. He’s seen already a couple of his fights. Also because he fought Solís, who was a Cuban, last year and stopped him. So, yes, he’s familiar with him and he’s seen his fights.

Q. Without looking past Tony Thompson, just his thoughts on the WBA heavyweight tournament coming up.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: He says he thinks they got what it takes to be (indiscernible) but he wants (indiscernible).

Q. Tony said that he had not been in the gym when he got the call and he’s kind of rushing his training. He’s 44. Luis, I’m wondering if you expect a tough fight or do you expect this fight to be more of like a showcase for you on March 5th, just based on Tony’s limited training and his age at this point.

LUIS ORTIZ VIA INTERPRETER: He says he doesn’t confide nobody, and much less in a boxer saying he hasn’t trained, and not in Tony Thompson who is an old-school boxer, a wise boxer. So he’s not comfortable at all. He’s coming in taking it real serious. He’s going to come real aggressive now.

Q. First, I was wondering if someone could tell me who the heavyweights were that turned the fight down, because I know there was a long list.

Q. Who were the fighters that turned down this fight? I know there was a number of fighters, and this is a difficult fight to get an opponent for. Who were the fighters that turned down the offer to King Kong.

JAY JIMENEZ: I couldn’t say exactly because the ones who do the promotion know, I don’t know if Oscar or Robert or anybody is on, I know there was a couple of them. There were like five boxers who said no.

Q. In 2014 there was a steroid suspension of which Team King Kong always denied. I was wondering if you could clear up what happened with that. What do you think happened with that?

JAY JIMENEZ: Personally, I had the discussion and the day I was there at the arraignment in Vegas, I don’t understand why commissions around the world are here to take care of boxers but they wait 23 days, 21 days to send a letter out and not let an athlete that this is what he lives by to defend himself, especially when it was such a margin of difference of closeness by less than .0002 percent.

We don’t know. We really — they don’t know what happened. It was something we’re trying to get over not and think about anymore. That was devastating to Luis and his career and we thank God everything came out okay, which is why we’re always happy and glad to do a lot of testing and testing to prove his name.

Q. But there’s no testing for this fight, right.

JAY JIMENEZ: Well, we’re doing testing anyway, randomly. Every two weeks. Every month we do testing in case we’re going to have a problem. We’re not going to let that happen to us again. Even though when the Vegas commission sent us a letter, we went right the next day and did a test, and the endocrinologist said he don’t have nothing and it was impossible for him to have something. It must have been a contamination. Their thoughts were we can do nothing about it.

But we’re doing testing anyway around the clock, just to always clarify our name, Luis’s name. And all our athletes are doing it, all the athletes under our state.

It’s a delicate situation for athletes especially in boxing because all they do. So the fact that if somebody — we are suggesting that somebody should start hiring doctors for the commission, because their job could be to save athlete’s careers. Not all the time when it’s so close. Any left outside, any contamination could give you a false reading.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports

Tickets priced at $25, $50, $75, and $100, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges, are on sale today and available online at www.ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster locations, by calling (800) 745-3000.The DC Armory Box Office will be open on fight night only from 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. ET.

For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, www.warriorsboxing.com, www.toprank.com, www.hbo.com/boxing and www.eventsdc.com. Follow on Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing, @WarriorsBoxProm, @TopRank, @HBOBoxing, @KingKongBoxing, @Tiger_Thompson, @RealWorldKidAli, @Jessie_vargasJV and @dcsportsent become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.facebook.com/WarriorsBoxingPromo, www.facebook.com/trboxing, www.facebook.com/HBOBoxing or www.facebook.com/OfficialEventsDC. Visit us on Instagram @GoldenBoyBoxing, @WarriorsBoxing, @trboxing, @KingKongBoxing, @EventsDC and follow the conversation by using #OrtizThompson.

Luis Ortiz vs. Tony Thompson is a 12-round heavyweight fight for the WBA Interim Heavyweight Title presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with King Kong Boxing and Warriors Boxing and Promotions. Sadam Ali vs. Jessie Vargas is a 12-round fight for the vacant WBO Welterweight World Championship presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Top Rank. The event is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, BORN BOLD. The DC Armory doors open at 3:00 p.m. ET, and the HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins live at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

By Bart Barry-

About 5 1/2 years ago, I wrote a column that treated Oscar De La Hoya and Todd DuBoef’s tactical use of candor and celebration of the free market and called it “In celebration of Oscar’s candor.” Today I rewrite it.

*

When Golden Boy Promotions’ Richard Schaefer revels in the free market’s amorality or Oscar De La Hoya discusses the defensive liabilities of any man he’s fought, put your smartphone down and immerse yourself in their wisdom. When they reverse roles, when De La Hoya gives you a stocktip or Schaefer talks combat, return to Facebook – unless you need a subject for your Monday column or a chance to opine generally about capitalism.

“We need to sign all the talent and get all the TV dates,” De La Hoya said last week to Broadcasting & Cable. “Then you can have your own agenda and have a schedule for the fans and the sport.”

While De La Hoya neglected to preclude that statement with a proper disclaimer – “as my friend Richard always tells me” – prizefighting’s most oleaginous figure was likely in the room with De La Hoya or else revising the interview’s first draft immediately afterward. In the few years since he began to conduct the orchestrations of Golden Boy Promotions, Schaefer has shown himself a shrewd strategist and singularly unlikable man. He thinks bigger than what small-potatoes promoters he occasionally mocks, seeing in their lack of national scope a want of desire, a want of ambition, a want, honestly put, of greed.

American English differs from Romance languages in its celebration of the word ambition – where a Peruvian called ambicioso would be properly insulted, inferring from the adjective he is naturally endowed with talents befitting a lower station than his aspirations’, any American called ambitious by a guidance counselor or prospective mate feels a burst of affirmation. Schaefer comes from a Swiss tradition that is neither American English nor Romance language, but he sees his success and others’ failures through a very American lens.

It is fair to imagine De La Hoya, a product of East Los Angeles and son of Mexican immigrants, enjoyed in his youth the company of exactly as many successful businessmen as young Schaefer befriended prospective prizefighters. They are anomalies to one another, then, and this benefits Schaefer more than De La Hoya.

De La Hoya’s path to success evinces an incredible combination of talent and luck. Fighters talented as De La Hoya are uncommon but do exist. None of them became the Golden Boy, though; to begin where De La Hoya began and arrive where De La Hoya arrived is probable as lightning hitting a lottery winner. To begin as a banker in Switzerland and arrive where De La Hoya found Schaefer is no rarity whatever. But De La Hoya probably doesn’t know this, and Schaefer, like all ambitious finance folks, is great with autobiographical musings of catastrophes overcome, extraordinary individual know-how, and foilings of what plotters would otherwise foil him.

It must rile Top Rank’s Todd DuBoef here and there to consider how insincere Schaefer is and how much money DuBoef’s stepdad, Bob Arum, failed to reap from De La Hoya’s 2007 match with Floyd Mayweather (another former Top Rank fighter). Not long ago, DuBoef floated an idea he called “brand of boxing” – a postmodern construct that celebrated postcompetitiveness. Unlike his stepdad, who wagers his credibility on three or four different fightcards annually and excavates rough jewels from mines in bad neighborhoods to present matchmaker Bruce Trampler for inspection, cutting and polishing, DuBoef occupies a time and land where prizefighting makes lots of money for the fortunate few who steer its enormous cash barge down an extraordinarily wide revenue river.

DuBoef prefers to maneuver round competitor islands and other nuisances, creating a television-production crew and handling pay-per-view cards in-house, where his stepdad prefers to go through them or over them or in any event at them.

“In boxing, virtually all of the publicity is keyed to a specific fight and, on a few occasions, to a specific fighter,” DuBoef said in June, lamenting boxing’s enduring competitive zealotry.

DuBoef’s model is nearer Schaefer’s model than Arum’s, and both Schaefer and DuBoef, faithful disciples of a system that coincidentally enriched them and assured them their riches evinced merit, not the luck of birthplace or parentage, likely wonder why Arum must do everything with such redness of tooth and claw, why he must be in constant and violent rivalry with some unfortunate or other to do his job effectively.

Bet De La Hoya understands.

While Arum’s success in life was perhaps more preordained than De La Hoya’s, the success of Arum as a boxing promoter was not. De La Hoya made combat with his athletic equals, men both interested in and capable of rendering him unconscious. Arum matched intellect, legal acumen and energy with his promotional equals, men both interested in and capable of his company’s ruination – including a once-a-century hustler like Don King. De La Hoya and Arum know lack and reflexivity; both men know the extraordinary effort, risktaking and luck required to attain momentum from a standing start, and they know how momentum feeds upon itself and moves money in hyperactive ways. Schaefer and DuBoef know a history of the modern free market and take as an article of faith it will reward those who respect it or love it praise it or whatever.

Schaefer’s future in boxing without De La Hoya, if ever they parted, would be but marginally less certain than DuBoef’s without Arum.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

The Canelo Alvarez -Amir Khan bout on May 7 has been cheered, booed, hyped, ridiculed, praised and trashed in the days since Oscar De La Hoya announced the stunning deal this week.

Reactions pretty much cover the proverbial waterfront. For the promoter, that qualifies as a promotional triumph. Lots of opinions generate a lively debate. The bigger the argument, the bigger the box office.

In large part, De La Hoya was able to create so much attention on the bout because he had kept it quiet. There wasn’t a peep from the twitter crowd about whether it might, should or could happen. Not a whisper. Nada.

The absence of even a single rumor already ranks as the Upset of the Year. It’s a bigger upset than a Khan victory would be.

For now, surprise is the only consensus about a bout that matches the bigger Canelo against the smaller, yet faster Khan. If boxing is the circus everybody says it is, there has to be an unpredictable twist, a wild ride, somewhere along the midway.

At its bottom line, however, Canelo-Khan is more than that. For Canelo, it’s a concession that he’s still not a true middleweight, despite his WBC version of the 160-pound title he took in a decision over an undersized Miguel Cotto in September.

In the wake of his victory over Cotto, there was some thinking that Canelo would face a legit middleweight, instead of another blow-up welterweight and/or junior-welter, in his attempt to get ready for Gennady Golovkin.

Against Khan, however, the 25-yar-old Canelo will again be at his favorite catch-weight, 155 pounds, at the formal weigh-in. Those close to him in Mexico say that weight is his comfort zone. It represents a milestone in training. It’s a sign that his conditioning is right. At 155, he knows he’s ready

It also means GGG, the consensus middleweight champ, will have to wait, perhaps until early 2017 for a showdown with Canelo, who in the meantime figures get a big payday while heightening his international celebrity against a name fighter from the UK, boxing’s liveliest market.

Is it fair to argue that Canelo blows away Khan in short order? Of course. Canelo, who opened as nearly a 4-to-1 favorite, might out-weigh Khan, a junior-welterweight just a few years ago, by twenty pounds at opening bell. By now, the fragility of Khan’s chin isn’t exactly a secret. Neither is his willingness to trade punches.

When the first big one lands, Khan’s caution has often been the first thing to go. That leaves him with only his instinct, which is to brawl. Next to go, his consciousness. The heavy-handed Canelo is at his lethal best against a fighter willing to stand in front of him.

At 29, however, the intriguing question is whether Khan has matured enough to know his weaknesses. He’s no dummy. He has the foot speed to stay out of range of Canelo’s power, especially over the first six rounds. If he can retain his wits and adhere to his fight plan, he might be able to pull off a stunner on the scorecards.

It’s hard to imagine Canelo chasing an agile Khan around the ring. Canelo has the clop-clop-clop footwork of a Clydesdale. Khan’s fast feet and faster hands could leave Canelo looking as confused as he did in a 2013 loss to Floyd Mayweather, Jr.

Can it happen? Could Khan actually win? Probably not. Then again, did anybody think a week ago that there was any chance he’d ever fight Canelo?

MEXICO CITY (Jan. 11, 2016) – Canelo Alvarez, the current WBC, RING Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Champion, was presented today with his well-earned prestigious green and gold, WBC Diamond belt by Mauricio Sulaiman, President of the World Boxing Council (WBC) in a special ceremony for the new champion in Mexico City at Museo Soumaya de la Fundación Telmex – Telcel en Plaza Carso. Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Eddy Reynoso, Head Trainer and Jose “Chepo” Reynoso, Manager and Trainer of Canelo Alvarez were also in attendance.

“I feel very honored to be here today to and receive the WBC Middleweight World Championship belt,” said Canelo Alvarez. “I am also very grateful to the WBC for granting me, my second division world title, this is a very big step in my career and I am looking forward to my upcoming fight in May.”

“We are very proud of Canelo and his accomplishments,” said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “Canelo is now one of the most recognizable faces of boxing, and we are grateful to the WBC for their support.”

“Saul Canelo Alvarez conquered the WBC Middleweight Championship and has become the greatest attraction in Boxing through his dedication to the sport,” said Mauricio Sulaiman, World Boxing Council President. “The WBC is very proud to see him join the Diamond Belt Champions with such icons like Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao, Sergio Martinez, and Bernard Hopkins. These are great and exciting times for Boxing.”

Canelo won the WBC Middleweight World Championship on November 21, 2015 by defeating Puerto Rico’s four division World Champion and future Hall of Famer Miguel Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs) via unanimous decision at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Both Cotto and Canelo went the distance with each fighter landing a fair share of thundering strikes and furious combinations along the way. Canelo’s firepower proved to be too much for the veteran Cotto as the 25-year-old Mexican superstar claimed round after round to secure a convincing unanimous decision victory, taking home the middleweight championship. The battle was one of the biggest events in the Mexico vs. Puerto Rico rivalry and one of the most successful pay-per-view events not featuring Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather since 2002, selling more than 900,000 units and crowning Canelo boxing’s next pay-per-view star.

Following this event, Canelo was awarded the honor of 2015’s Fighter of the Yearby ESPN.com, USA Today’s Boxing Junkie, The Bleacher Report, Fight News closing out a fantastic year for the middleweight champion and ushering in the “Era of Canelo.”

For more information, visit www.GoldenBoyPromotions.com, or follow on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube @GoldenBoyBoxing and @Canelo.

LOS ANGELES (December 12, 2015) – The Oscar De La Hoya Foundation held its 19th Annual Toy Giveaway today, at the Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School, donating more than 1,500 toys to children in the East Los Angeles community. Golden Boy Promotions Chairman and CEO Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions fighters Antonio “Relentless” Orozco, Julian “El Camaron” Ramirez, Frankie “Pit Bull” Gomez, Abraham “Chamaco” Lopez, Oscar “El Jaguar” Negrete, and Chinese Sensation Taishan were all on hand to help distribute toys. The 19th Annual Toy Giveaway was sponsored by Tampico and Frito-Lay and concludes the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation’s season of giving for 2015 which included events focused on giving back to the community.

On Monday, Aug. 10 De La Hoya held the 15th annual Oscar De La Hoya Golf Classic at Lakeside Golf Club. The event, which featured a silent auction along with the celebrity golf tournament, raised thousands of dollars for the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation.

On Friday, Oct. 30 De La Hoya presented new-state-of-the-art boxing equipment valued at thousands of dollars to the youth of Grampa’s Boxing Gym to encourage the youth to continue in their training and lead positive lives away from gang activity and violence. The Foundation, with the support of its corporate partner of the year California Municipal Finance Authority and Everlast, donated to five gyms in Southern California that serve youth in economically disadvantaged communities plagued by gang and drug violence. The equipment will help these local gyms to provide youth in their communities with an opportunity to engage in boxing as an after-school program alternative to gang activities. Recipients of the Foundation’s boxing equipment donations this giving season include Southern California-based boxing gyms Grampa’s Boxing Gym in Westminster, Azusa Boxing Gym in Azusa, Westside Boxing Club in Los Angeles, Azteca Boxing Club in Bell and Lugo Fitness Center in Cudahy.

On Saturday, November 14, the Foundation hosted its 19th Annual Turkey Giveaway at Oscar De La Hoya Ánimo Charter High School. De La Hoya was joined by star fighters Joseph “Jo Jo” Diaz Jr., Julian “El Camaron” Ramirez, Abrham “Chamaco” Lopez, Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez, Jason “El Animal” Quigley, Joet Gonzalez, Roy “Pit Bull” Tapia, and Nick Arce helped distribute hundreds of turkeys, fixings and other products to the East Los Angeles community. The event was made possible by the sponsorship of Guerrero and Mission Foods, Tampico, Coca-Cola, 4 Earth Farms, Bonert’s Pies and Carmelita Chorizo.

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