ELEIDER ‘STORM’ ALVAREZ, WBC Silver Light Heavyweight Champion and WBO Light Heavyweight World Title Challenger
“I am well prepared for the biggest challenge of my career. I suffered in training and I am at my peak right now.”
“I think it will be a difficult fight for me, but also for Kovalev. I am excited, and I can’t wait to fight. I am ready for everything that he is bringing. It is my chance, it is my time!”
“I can’t stop smiling right now because next week, the whole world will know who is Eleider Alvarez.”
MARC RAMSAY, Trainer of Eleider Alvarez
“This training camp in high altitude in Bogota was hard, but really useful. In summer, with no other of my fighters in competition, I could concentrate at 100% on Eleider for his important world championship bout.”
“Eleider is at the top of his abilities and capacities right now.”
“We understand the extent of the challenge and we come to Atlantic City really confident. We have the recipe to beat Kovalev.”
YVON MICHEL, President of GYM
“Eleider Alvarez did two of his best performances on the road, in Monaco and Chicago, where he won by KO both times.”
“Eleider always raised his level and step his game up when the challenge was big. The bigger the challenge, the better he is.”
“We are convinced that Eleider has all the tools and everything it takes to comeback to Montreal with the WBO world title in his luggage.”
BERNARD BARRÉ, Vice President of GYM
“We decided to follow and sign Eleider in 2007 after the amateur world championship. He just had won the gold medal at the Pan-Am Games with a big KO over a Cuban champion. By seeing where he is right now, we can gladly say we did bet on the right guy!”
About Kovalev-Alvarez: In the first boxing event at the newly opened Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev will defend his WBO Light Heavyweight World Title against undefeated contender Eleider “Storm” Alvarez on Saturday, August 4, 2018. In the co-main event, WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol will defend his title against Isaac “Golden Boy’ Chilemba. Tickets range between $50 and $200 and are on sale now through HardRockHotelAtlanticCity.com and Ticketmaster.com. The event is promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Groupe Yvon Michel and World of Boxing and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Meiirim Nursultanov added to Kovalev-Alvarez card
Before fans at the Etess Arena at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City enjoy two light heavyweight championship bouts, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev vs. Eleider Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol vs. Isaac Chilemba, on Saturday, August 4, Main Events serves up a menu of top international and local prospects on the non-televised undercard.
Among them is Astana, Kazakhstan native Meiirim “The Sultan” Nursultanov (7-0, 6 KOs), who is riding a six knockout win streak while remaining undefeated. He will face Jonathan Batista (17-14, 10 KOs) of the Dominican Republic.
Nursultanov who will turn 25 years old the week prior to his fight, has two goals for his bout. “My goal is not only to win by knockout, but also to deliver a nice win to watch for everyone. For the team, and for the fans,” said Nursultanov.
Although Nursultanov scored a sixth round TKO in his last bout in Los Angeles, it wasn’t good enough for him. “The fight was not comfortable at all. The opponent was very good, very tough, and his style was hard to deal with. I won by TKO, but I plan to do this faster (on August 4),” said Nursultanov.
“I’m trying to show the best qualities of boxing, but it isn’t always possible,” said Nursultanov. “Every opponent is different. At the last second, he may change a few things. But every fight is getting better and better, so it’s harder for me.”
Nursultanov says he’s checked out his opponent on video, and says the record should not fool anyone. “He’s got losses, but right now in professional boxing, losses are nothing. I get ready 100 percent for every fight,” said Nursultanov.
Nursultanov says he’s excited about appearing in Atlantic City. “I want to add fans in Atlantic City to my collection, fans from this place,” said Nursultanov. “I want as many fans as possible, I need more fans. It’s better for everyone and it helps you grow as a professional boxer.
“So please, everyone, people who are interested in boxing, attention. Please come to see my fight. I’m going to put all of my heart into it to show the Kazakhstan school and how hard we work,” declared Nursultanov.
Nursultanov hopes his hard work will place him at the top of the middleweight division with a chance to fight the bigger names such as Canelo Alvarez, countryman Gennady Golovkin, Americans Daniel Jacobs and the Charlo Brothers, or Billy Joe Saunders. “My goal is to start collecting the championships belts. Right now, I’ll keep growing in the rankings and hope to keep this going into the future,” said Nursultanov.