New Co-Featured Fight on Dec 13 - Simonyan vs Beasley
11.12 - Pechanga Resort & Casino, Showroom II, 45000 Pala Road, Temecula, California. Televised live on ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights." Promoted by Art Pelullo/Banner Promotions and Bobby Hitz Boxing Promotions, in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions.
CO-FEATURE - 12 ROUNDS, FEATHERWEIGHTS- VACANT NABF TITLE ARTYOM SIMONYAN VS RADFORD BEASLEY: North American Boxing Federation welterweight champion Teddy Reid was injured in training and has withdrawn from his title defense against Sam Garr.
In the new co-featured bout, Artyom Simonyan, 10-0-1, with 5 knockouts, of Glendale, Ca., will challenge for the vacant NABF featherweight title against former world title challenger Radford "The Man" Beasley, 22-1, with 14 knockouts, of St. Louis, Mo. 26-year old Simonyan had been scheduled to appear on the fight card in an eight-round bout before he got the call to challenge for the NABF title.
Now 26 years old, he has been a pro for two years. A native of Armenia, Simonyan is a former Eastern European amateur star. He reportedly had 215 amateur bouts (195-20), was a three-time Armenian National amateur champion, a U.S.S.R. amateur champion, and won the European Cup. He moved to the U.S. in 2000 to pursue his professional boxing career.
Beasley, now 31 years old, is a former NABF featherweight champion and world title challenger. He has come back with three straight wins since his unsuccessful WBA jr. lightweight world title challenge in September, 2000, against Joel Casamayor.
MAIN EVENT - 12 ROUNDS, SUPER WELTERWEIGHTS - NABF TITLE Champion Challenger
ANGEL HERNANDEZ VS J.C. CANDELO: NABF super welterweight champion Angel "Toro" Hernandez, 24-2, with 15 knockouts, of Chicago, Illinois, will make his second title defense in the rematch against J.C. Candelo, 24-4-3, with 17 knockouts, of Denver, Colorado. Hernandez won the vacant NABF title in a tremendous battle against Candelo on January 12, 2002. The fight was in Las Vegas on the undercard of the Acelino Freitas vs. Joel Casamayor 130-pound world title unification bout, and was not televised.
In supporting bouts:
140-pound prospect Juliano Ramos, 8-0, with 7 knockouts, of Sao Paulo, Brazil, will make his U.S. debut. Now 23 years old, Juliano started boxing at the age of 17 and reportedly had 54 amateur fights. He was a two-time Brazilian National amateur champion in 1999 and 2000, three-time Sao Paulo State champion, and 1997 Interior Open Games champion.
28 year old featherweight prospect Valdemir Pereira, 11-0, with 10 knockouts, of Bahia, Brazil, will be also be featured in an eight-round bout. A pro since March, 2001, Valdemir had extensive amateur experience - he was a three-time Brazilian National amateur champion, three-time Sao Paulo State Champion, and a three-time Provincial champion.
Light heavyweight prospect Saak Saakyan, 3-0-1, with 2 KOs, of Los Angeles, will appear in a four-round fight.
Ticket prices: $30, $50, $70. Available at: Pechanga Resort & Casino Box Office - 909-303-2507 (tel.).
