07.01.04 – WBC Continental Americas junior welterweight champion and IBA junior welterweight champion Francisco “Panchito” Bojado will battle former world champion “Jesse” James Leija in a 10 round co-feature bout on the Arturo Gatti/Gianluca Branco “Super Brawl” fight card, it was announced today by Main Events CEO Kathy Duva and Bally’s Atlantic City President Ken Condon. This incredible night of boxing will take place on Saturday, January 24 at Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall.
Caesars Atlantic City and Bally’s Atlantic City will host this much-anticipated world championship fight card. HBO’s “World Championship Boxing” series will broadcast the Bojado/Leija bout beginning at 10:00 pm ET/7:00 pm PT, with Gatti/Branco bout to follow. Doors open at 6 p.m
Tickets are priced at $300, $200, $150, $100, and $50, and are available at the Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall Box Office, by calling TicketMaster at 1-800-736-1420, or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com. More than 3,000 seats were priced in the $50 range.
In his most recent fight on November 22, 2003, Francisco “Panchito” Bojado (14-1, 11 KOs) avenged his only loss as a pro when he dominated Juan Carlos Rubio to win the WBC Continental Americas jr. welterweight title and the IBA jr. welterweight title (W 12). Bojado outboxed Rubio from the opening bell, utilizing a stiff left jab and a solid defense to dominate the bout and break down his rugged opponent. The highly-acclaimed jr. welterweight prospect put an exclamation point on his solid performance late in round 11 when he dropped Rubio with a straight overhand right hand to the head. The judges’ scores for the bout ran as follows: 119-108 and 118-109 (twice).
At age 17, Bojado was the youngest member of the 2000 Mexican Olympic Team. After compiling an impressive amateur record (168-15, 85 KOs) he turned pro. In his professional debut, on January 13, 2001, Bojado stole the show, crushing Detrick Castor in two rounds (TKO 2). Bojado won his first nine professional bouts before suffering his first loss in February 2002.
“Jesse” James Leija (44-6-2, 1 NC, 18 KOs) is rated WBC #8, IBF #9, and is a former WBC super featherweight world champion, former two-time NABF lightweight champion, and former NABF featherweight champion. In his last fight on 5-22-03 in San Antonio, TX, he TKO’d Adan Casillas (16-4, 12 KOs). James boxed effectively in the first three rounds and scored a knockdown in the 4th; Casillas got up but was unsteady and the referee stopped the fight at 0:57.
In his January 19, 2003, challenge against undisputed jr. welterweight world champion Kostya Tszyu, James gave a very strong effort and outboxed Tszyu for several rounds, but could not continue after sustaining a broken ear drum. In other recent fights, he has beaten contenders Micky Ward and Ivan Robinson, had a controversial No Contest against Hector Camacho Jr. and held his own with the WBC’s current No. 1 ranked contender, Juan Lazcano.
In the January 24 main event Arturo Gatti, the fighter dubbed “the human highlight film”, returns to the ring to battle undefeated WBC #1 ranked contender Gianluca Branco for the vacant WBC super lightweight crown.
The evening of boxing will be presented by Main Events, Bally’s Atlantic City, Caesars Atlantic City, and Budweiser, in association with OPI 2000. It will be telecast on HBO.