17.10 – World Boxing Association (WBA) Junior Welterweight Champion Diosbelys “El Kid Santiago” Hurtado will make his first title defense when he meets “Vicious” Vivian Harris Saturday, Oct. 19, 2002, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING. In the other televised bouts from The Pavilion at Reliant Park in Houston, Texas, top featherweight prospect and 2000 Olympic silver medallist, Rocky Juarez, and his stablemate, lightweight Juan Diaz, put their unbeaten streaks on the line against former World Boxing Council (WBC) super bantamweight titleholder Hector Acero-Sanchez and Robert Delgado, respectively. SHOWTIME will air the three bouts in their entirety, as well as highlights of Francisco “Panchito” Bojado’s return to the ring against an opponent to be determined at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Main Events Inc., in association with Sugar Ray Leonard Boxing, will promote the fight card.

Hurtado (35-2-1, 23 KOs), of Miami, Fla., by way of Santiago, Cuba, captured the WBA 140-pound title in his last start when he rallied to score a seventh-round knockout over defending champion Randall Bailey on May 11, 2002, from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Prior to blasting out Bailey, Hurtado had gone 0-2 in world title fights, including an 11th-round TKO to Pernell Whitaker and fifth-round TKO to Kostya Tszyu in January 1997 and November 1998 respectively. However, Hurtado, who is 7-0-1 in his last eight bouts, managed to floor each of the legendary fighters twice. Before defecting to the United States in 1994 from Cuba, Hurtado compiled a 221-20 amateur record and was the 1994 World Challenge Champion at 132 pounds.

Harris (21-1-1, 15 KOs), of Brooklyn, N.Y., by way of Georgetown, Guyana, has won five consecutive contests, including a 12-round decision over Michael Clark on Feb. 22, 2002, to capture the International Boxing Association (IBA) 140-pound crown. In his lone defense and most recent start, Harris registered a 12-round decision over Ubaldo Hernandez on July 16, 2002. The only blemishes on Harris’ record came in back-to-back 2000 outings when he dropped a close 10-round decision to Ray Oliveira on Feb. 25, and was held to a hotly disputed 10-round draw against Ivan Robinson on Aug. 11. A three-time Guyanan amateur champion and 1997 New York Golden Gloves champion, Harris went 45-5 in the amateurs.

Juarez (12-0, 9 KOs), of the north side of Houston, Texas, has won four straight bouts inside of the distance, and six out of the past seven. In his last outing, Juarez scored a sixth-round TKO over Ivan Alvarez on Aug. 30, 2002. The smart, technically proficient youngster made his fifth SHOWTIME appearance on July 13, 2002, and tallied an impressive second-round TKO over Isidro Tejedor. During an outstanding amateur career, Juarez compiled a 145-17 record. A controversial decision in the championship bout cost the United States Olympian a gold medal and ended his 68-fight winning streak.

Acero-Sanchez (41-8-3, 22 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y. by way of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, is by far the toughest and most experienced boxer to step into the ring against Juarez. Acero-Sanchez, who won the WBC title with a 12-round split decision over Tracy Harris Patterson in August 1994, made one successful defense. Never one to shy away from tough competition, the New York resident has fought and gone the distance with former champions Daniel Zaragoza, Erik Morales, Kennedy McKinney, and Nana Konadu. Acero-Sanchez had a four-fight winning streak end in his last effort when he dropped a 10-round decision to Juan Ramirez on Aug. 2 in Odessa, Texas.

Diaz (17-0, 7 KOs), of Houston, Tex., is coming off of a 10-round decision over Peter Nieves Aug. 24, 2002, on the SHOWTIME boxing series, “ShoBox: The Next Generation.” Diaz became the youngest boxer (17 years old) to fight on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING when he made his network debut on Jan. 13, 2001, and won a six-round decision over Brad Jensen. In his second SHOWTIME appearance on Sept. 1, 2001, Diaz survived a brutal second-round knockdown at the hands of Ubaldo Hernandez, as well as a badly cut right eye to win his initial eight-round start by the scores 78-72 twice and 74-76. The native Texan turned pro at age 16 on June 23, 2000, and scored a first-round TKO over Rafael Ortiz. Too young to box professionally in the U.S., the crowd-pleasing teenager fought his initial three bouts in Mexico.

Delgado (10-0, 8 KOs), of Arvada, Colo., will make his first ring appearance outside of his home state. After turning pro at age 22 on March 18, 2001, Delgado fought six times in 2001, and has made four ring appearances thus far in 2002. Not one to normally venture far from home, the 24-year-old has battled eight of 10 opponents in nearby Blackhawk, Colo. Prior to earning an eight-round decision over Julian Romero on June 29, 2002, Delgado had won eight consecutive fights by knockout.

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING’s Steve Albert and former world champion Bobby Czyz will call the action from ringside with Jim Gray serving as roving reporter. The executive producer of the SHOWTIME telecast is Jay Larkin, with Rich Gaughan