LOCKETT AVENGES LONE LOSS BY WINNING DECISION OVER TSARENKO, PRYCE IS RIGHT IN 10-ROUND DECISION OVER PREVIOUSLY UNBEATEN KIRPA

Bouts Will Be Replayed Today On SHOWTIME TOO At 11 PM ET/PT, Saturday, May 10,
On SHOWTIME At 6 PM ET/PT And Monday, May 12, On SHOWTIME TOO At 8 PM ET/PT

WIDNES, England (May 9, 2003) - Former World Boxing Organization (WBO) Intercontinental junior middleweight champion Gary "The Rocket" Lockett turned the tables on Yuri Tsarenko and avenged his lone defeat with a 10-round unanimous decision Thursday on "ShoBox: The New Generation" on SHOWTIME. In the co-feature, former WBO Intercontinental lightweight and International Boxing Federation (IBF) Intercontinental 140-pound champion Bradley "Sugar Sweet" Pryce won a unanimous 10-round decision over previously undefeated Ivan "The Terrible" Kirpa. The doubleheader from the Kingsway Sports Center was promoted by Frank Warren's Sports Network and aired on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed). The fight card was the 29th in a series of "ShoBox" telecasts that began on July 21, 2001.

Lockett (19-1, 12 KOs), of Cwmbran, Wales, was victorious by the score of 98-93 on the card of the referee, who serves as the lone scorer in non-title bouts in England. Unlike their initial encounter in which he came away battered and bruised, Lockett boxed effectively and escaped virtually unscathed except for a few marks around both eyes. The victory was the third in a row for Lockett, who had been regarded as one of the top young European boxers in the talent-packed 154-pound weight class until losing his WBO Intercontinental title on a 12-round split decision to Tsarenko April 20, 2002, on SHOWTIME. Lockett was considered a lock going into that one, but only fought in spurts and lacked consistency. In addition he also had to compete much of the bout with two badly swollen eyes, a cut cheek, a bloody nose and a broken knuckle in his left hand.

Tsarenko (17-9-2, 12 KOs), of Vitebsk, Byelorussia, came on strongly during the final three rounds, snapping Lockett's head back several times. He was not busy enough in the earlier sessions, however, and fell short. A former Russian junior middleweight champion, Tsarenko lost for the third time in as many outings in 2003. His WBO Intercontinental 154-pound crown was not at stake.
Pryce (18-2, 11 KOs) of Newport, Wales, triumphed by the score of 99-93 on the referee's scorecard. Known as a give-and-take, offensive-minded banger who makes for crowd-pleasing scraps, Pryce performed with more focus and patience than usual while dictating the pace from the outset. A former WBO Intercontinental 135-pound champion, Pryce was coming off an eighth-round TKO loss to defending British Champion Neil Sinclair in his most recent start last Feb. 1 in Belfast, Ireland..

Kirpa (18-1, 12 KOs), of St. Petersburg, Russia, had trouble dealing with Pryce's quickness and seldom got into position to do much significant damage. On the occasions he did, he was hesitant to let his fists fly. Kirpa, who turned professional on Feb. 23, 1999, captured the Russian 140-pound belt with a 10th-round TKO over Fedor Sokolov on March 10, 2000, in St. Petersburg. This was his second fight since he was seriously injured during an assault in mid-2002.
"ShoBox: The New Generation" features up-and-coming prospects determined to make a mark and eventually fight for a chance at a world title. The best of the new generation of hungry, young boxers will have an opportunity to showcase their talent and heart as they battle each other in competitive fights in front of a national television audience. "ShoBox: The New Generation" is pure, basic boxing, reminiscent of the golden days of the sport.

SHOWTIME will televise "ShoBox: The New Generation" at 11 p.m. ET/PT on Thursdays every other week. The telecast will repeat the next day, Friday, on SHOWTIME TOO at 11 p.m. ET/PT. It also will air the following Saturday on SHOWTIME at 6 p.m. ET/PT and the following Monday on SHOWTIME TWO at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

The next "ShoBox" telecast is May 22 from Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, N.Y.

Nick Charles called Thursday's action from ringside, with Steve Farhood serving as expert analyst. The executive producers of the telecast were Jay Larkin and Gordon Hall, with Richard Gaughan producing.

For information on upcoming "ShoBox: The New Generation" and SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecasts, including complete fighter bios, records and related stories, please go the SHOWTIME website at http://www.sho.com/boxing.