Gerald Nobles vs Charles Hatcher on Aug. 22

14.08 - Undefeated heavyweight Gerald Nobles of Philadelphia meets Charles Hatcher of Columbus, Ohio, in the 10-round main event on the nationally and internationally televised "Everlast Heavyweight Explosion" boxing card presented by Cedric Kushner Promotions Friday, Aug. 22, at the Reno (Nev.) Hilton.

Highly regarded heavyweight Anthony Thompson of Silver Spring, Md., winner of 14 straight, faces Gilbert Martinez of Sacramento, Calif., in the semi-main event.

Nobles replaces David Defigabon, who suffered an out-of-the-ring injury last week resulting in a brief hospitalization and his inability to fight Hatcher.

The hard-hitting Nobles has a record of 21-0 with 16 knockouts while Hatcher has a mark of 14-4 with 10 knockouts.

Thompson, who's earning comparisons as a larger version of current International Boxing Federation heavyweight champion Chris Byrd, has a record of 18-1 with 10 knockouts while Martinez has a mark of 15-5-1 with seven knockouts.

Also on the six-bout card are fights featuring International Female Boxing Association minimumweight champion Vaia Zaganas of Las Vegas, Nev., and former International Boxing Federation cruiserweight champ Al Cole of Spring Valley, N.Y.

The Cedric Kushner Promotions card at the Reno Hilton starts at 7 p.m. (Pacific) with doors to the Hilton Theater opening at 6.

Tickets for the Cedric Kushner Promotions card at the Reno Hilton are priced at $10, $20, $30 and $50 with all seats reserved.

Tickets are on sale at the Reno Hilton ticket office from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days and by calling 775-789-2285 or 800-648-3568 24 hours daily.

In a six-round heavyweight fight veterans Willie Chapman of Ogden, Utah, and Todd Diggs of Las Vegas meet in a rematch. One more bout will be added.

Cole goes against Joe Lenhart of Cleveland and Semakala takes on an opponent to be determined in six-round bouts while Zaganas clashes with Tracey Stevens of Thunder Bay, Ont.

The 32-year-old Nobles is coming off a unanimous decision win over Ron Guerrero June 20 in Philadelphia.

The 30-year-old Hatcher is managed by John Johnson, who also trained James "Buster" Douglas to his stunning upset win over previously undefeated Mike Tyson for the undisputed heavyweight world championship.

Johnson is better known as "Coach," because he was an assistant football coach at Ohio State under Woody Hayes prior to turning his attention to boxing.

The 31-year-old Thompson, a southpaw who's 6-foot-6-inches tall and has an 81-inch reach, is gaining recognition as a taller, longer-armed Byrd.

Thompson has fought once this year, stopping James Gaines in the eighth round March 7 in Niagara Falls, Ont., to record his fifth knockout in his past seven bouts.

The most recent win for the 37-year-old Martinez, also a southpaw, came Jan. 17 in Lemoore, Calif., when he took a 10-round unanimous decision over former World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Tony Tubbs.

The 39-year-old Cole has a record of 33-11-3 with 16 knockouts. He moved up to heavyweight during 1996 after holding the IBF cruiserweight champion from 1992 to 1996.

Cole has faced numerous top-notch heavyweights, including former World Boxing Council and WBA champion Tim Witherspoon and WBO champ Corrie Sanders plus world-ranked contenders such as Jameel McCline, Michael Grant, Kirk Johnson and Juan Carlos Gomez.

Cole is coming off a win over David Izon March 1 in Las Vegas and a draw with Jeremy Williams Jan. 30 in Portland, Ore.

The 32-year-old Lenhart has a record of 11-18-3 with four knockouts

The 35-year-old Chapman has a record of 16-18-3 with four knockouts while the 32-year-old Diggs has a mark of 4-7-3 with no knockouts. Chapman decisioned Diggs on a Cedric Kushner Promotions "Everlast Heavyweight Explosion" card June 7 in Laughlin, Nev.

Zaganas, originally from Burnaby, B.C., has a record of 10-2 with four knockouts. She won the IFBA championship with an eighth-round knockout of Sarah Jones-Goodson June 15, 2002, in Ignacio, Colo. In her most recent outing, Zaganas decisioned Jones-Goodson in a rematch July 25 in Tulsa, Okla.
Stevens, who's won three of her past four fights, has a record of 5-5 with one knockout.

Everlast, sponsor of Cedric Kushner Promotions' "Heavyweight Explosion" series, has been at the forefront of boxing equipment for almost 100 years.

The card will be televised nationally on HDNet and on tape delay to more than 100 countries on the Cedric Kushner Promotions Sports Network.