KRISTIANSEN READY FOR ANYBODY!

22.06.04 – Danish cruiserweight Jesper Kristiansen is, unlike many of his countrymen, eager and willing to go into anybody’s backyard to fight. To hell with hometown judges, hostile crowds and all the usual “trickerations” that goes on to hype the promoters boy. If the conditions are right,
this Viking is afraid of no man!

Kristiansen, 25-4-1 (9), challenged for the European title last year, but not much worked for him in that fight against Pietro Aurino, and he lost on points in Aversa, Italy. The fight was off and on several times, and the Dane had even arrived in Italy when he was told to fly home again due to “TV problems”. When the first bell finally rang on May 31, Kristiansen couldn’t find his rhythm, and Aurino won rather clearly on the cards. Since then, the former WBO Intercontinental and IBA Continental champion have switched management from Team Palle to Risum Boxing / Fight Production. He made his comeback to the ring this past April, after almost one year of inactivity, and scored an expected second round knockout over late substitute Sandor Forgacs from Hungary. Now the time has come where Kristiansen and his new team would like to show that the Aurino-fight was just “one of those things”.

“Jesper is kind of a throw-back kind of fighter, in the sense that he is not afraid to take on anybody, anywhere, anytime,” says co-manager Henrik Risum. “He is extremely serious in the gym, and we hope that sooner rather than later we will be able to put him in with one of the premier European cruiserweights”. Kristiansen was originally scheduled to fight German Rüdiger May for the EU title in April, but May pulled out when he secured a shot at European champion Vinzenzo Cantatore, not wanting to risk loosing that opportunity in a fight with Kristiansen. May and Cantatore fought to a draw on June 5 in Chemnitz, Germany. “Jesper is much better than what he showed against Aurino last year, and he is desperate to prove that. It was too bad that he didn’t get a chance to do that against May, but maybe some things are just meant to be. Maybe something even better is bound to happen for us” concludes Risum.

…AND SO WILL BE HERSISIA SOON AGAIN

Dutch heavyweight Richel Hersisia, who lost his unbeaten record and the WBF crown last March to Olympic gold medalist Audley Harrison, is also on the mend after recently undergoing an operation on his troublesome left elbow.

Hersisia, 21-1 (16), has had problems on-again, off-again with the elbow and finally decided to have it operated in hometown Den Haag before relaunching his career following the loss to Harrison. Manager Olaf Schroeder, who will meet with his charge to discuss his future later this week, explains: “It was planned for Richel to box this past Saturday when Harrison defended the WBF title against Tomasz Bonin, but after consultations with doctors we preferred to have this problem fixed and done with. Now Richel can fully concentrate on the sport and we are optimistic to see him back in the ring now pretty soon.”