31.05.04 – Middleweight “Macho” Miguel Hernandez, (10-1, 7KO’s) and his oldest son, 8 year old amateur standout Joshuah “Little Macho” Hernandez will appear on Dominic Pesoli’s 8 Count Productions’ Latin Explosion boxing card on Friday June 4th at the DePaul Athletic Center. Tickets starting at $25 can be purchased in advance by calling 312-226-5800.
The DePaul Athletic Center is located at 2323 N. Sheffield in Chicago. Doors open at 7pm, first bell is at 8pm.
Miguel, speaking of this rare father/son boxing event stated, “it means a great deal to me to fight on the same card as my son in front of the terrific fans who have been so supportive of me. Seems like for each fight, the crowd and their loyal support in Chicago continues to grow and its very special to share this with them. I’m very grateful to Dominic and the 8 Count family for making this happen.”
Regarding his most recent bout, a unanimous decision over hard hitting veteran Luis Lopez, Miguel said “he was my toughest opponent and it was a terrific learning experience for this point in my career. I was able to stay away from his power and use my boxing skills to score points.”
Speaking of his short career so far, Miguel continued, “I’ve been very happy so far since signing with 8 Count, Dominic has been very fair and we’ve stuck to our plan to learn and grow with each fight being a step up in competition. The opponents are getting tougher and this is the best way for my career to grow.”
Also appearing on the card is local favorite and welterweight KO artist, Luciano “El Gallo Bravo” Perez, (8-0, 7KO’s), and newcomer Trinidad Garcia, (2-0) and making his pro debut, welterweight Rudy “El Cachorro” Cisneros.
With an amateur record of 151 wins and 23 losses, the 22 year old Cisneros believes now is the perfect time for his pro debut, “I’ve accomplished and learned a great deal as an amateur and believe this will help me as a pro,” said the two-time Chicago Golden Gloves Champion. “I realize its a lot different without the head gear and longer rounds but I’m more than ready.”
Speaking of his boxing style the Chicago born and bred Cisneros stated “I’m normally a boxer-puncher but my trainer George Hernandez has me working on my defense and keeping my hands up. I can be patient and box and can also stand and slug like Fernando Vargas, it all depends on the opponent.”
Talking about making his pro debut on “Latin Explosion,” Cisneros went on “I’ve been going to the 8 Count cards for a long time and I’ve seen my friends careers grow and I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity. Dominic is a great guy to work with and I’m thrilled to be fighting on his card.”
More information on “Latin Explosion” will be announced shortly.
Middleweight Freddie Cuevas (23-6-1, 16KO’s) heads to Las Vegas on June 5th for a ten round clash with world ranked contender Kingsley Ikeke (19-1, 10KO’s). Cuevas was to have fought on the 8 Count Productions’ Latin Explosion card on June 4th in Chicago, IL and will now switch his attention to this unique opportunity. The Cuevas/Ikeke bout is part of the undecard to the Oscar De La Hoya/Bernard Hopkins undercard.
Speaking about fighting Ikeke, Cuevas said “he’s a big tall, lanky guy that I’m going to have to get inside on. I’ve faced and beaten better guys in the last couple of years and this will be another test for me. A win here puts me right back in the mix as there’s been a lot of hype about him recently.”
Cuevas holds KO wins in the last couple of years over former world champion Wilfredo Rivera and Charles “The Natural” Murray. He is coming off a decision win this past February over Verdell Smith, his first fight back since going the distance against world ranked contender Jermain Taylor in August of last year.
Ikeke is coming off a decision win over Kirino Garcia and has won his last five bouts since dropping a decision to Anthony Hanshaw. He is currently ranked # 7 by the WBA, # 13 by the IBF and # 4 by the WBO and has recently joined De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.
Chicagoan Al “Speedy” Gonzales, (14-0-1, 7KO’s) takes another step on the road to becoming a world champion as he takes on Demetrius Hopkins (14-0-1, KO’s) of Philadelphia on Friday, June 18th as Dominic Pesoli’s 8 Count Productions’ in association with Duva Boxing presents “UNDEFEATED”, a huge night of boxing broadcast on ESPN 2 live from the DePaul Athletic Center in Chicago. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance by calling 312-226-5800. The Gonzales/Hopkins ten round bout headlines the terrific card.
Gonzales is preparing for this bout with renowned trainer Jesse Reid at his Los Angeles area gym with former world champion Paul Spadafora. Speaking of training outside of Chicago for the first time, “Speedy” said “its a great experience, we’re working very hard on new things for offense and defense and I’m learning a lot of new things from Jesse. I’ve been running 4-5 miles in the morning and studying films of Hopkins while working on a game plan.”
Regarding the move to LA, Gonzales said “its perfect out here, no distractions in camp, just concentrating on Hopkins. We’ve got identical records and are at the same place in our careers, its perfect that we face each other at this time, the winner continues up the ladder, the loser takes a couple of steps down–that’s what boxing needs more of.”
Specifically speaking of Hopkins, the confident but typically modest Gonzales stated, “he’s a very sharp fighter and I’m sure he’s learned a great deal from his uncle (world middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins), I’ll need to be at my best and moving camp, working with Jesse and getting better sparring out here works towards that.”
“UNDEFEATED” will also feature undefeated junior welterweight Kendall Holt, (15-0, 10KO’s) in a scheduled eight round bout as well as local favorites super middleweight Sammy Merza (13-0, 10KO’s), middleweight David Estrada (4-1, 2KO’s), lightweight Tommy Pyle (1-0) and lightweight Jermaine White (2-0, 1KO) in separate bouts.
Construction has started on expansion at JABB Boxing Gym as Chicago’s # 1 training facility doubles in size to 6,000 sqaure feet. Since opening six months ago, JABB has become the finest boxing gym in Chicago. For more information on all types of classes for all levels or to train with the future champions call JABB at 312-733-5222. JABB is located at 410 N. Oakley on the near northwest side of Chicago.