25.01.06 – Former two-time world champion Virgil Hill of Pleasantville, N.J., and undefeated, No. 1 contender Valery Brudov of Russia meet for the vacant World Boxing Association cruiserweight championship on “Collision Course, A Night Of Champions,” an internationally televised pay-per-view card presented by Star Boxing and brought to you by Guilty Boxing, Silverhawk Boxing and Xyience Friday, Jan. 27, at the Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City, N.J..
Three other 12-round title bouts join the world championship fight.
Former world champion Stevie Johnston of Vero Beach, Fla., meets Steve Quinonez of Palm Springs, Calif., for the vacant International Boxing Organization lightweight championship; unbeaten and world-ranked Mike Arnaoutis of Vineland, N.J., defends his North American Boxing Organization junior welterweight title against undefeated Marc Thompson of Topeka, Kan.; and world-rated Prince Badi Ajamu of Camden., N.J., defends his World Boxing Council Continental Americas and WBC Caribbean Boxing Federation light heavyweight crowns against Galen Brown of St. Joseph, Mo.
Also on the eight-bout “Collision Course” card will be world-ranked Nate Campbell of Jacksonville, Fla., against Francisco Javier Olvera of Mexico City in a 10-round lightweight fight.
The pay-per-view telecast will include the Hill-Brudov world championship fight, Johnston-Quinonez, Arnaoutis-Thompson, and Campbell-Olvera.
The “Collision Course” card is televised on a pay-per-view basis in the United States, Canada and New Zealand at a suggested retail price of $24.95. The card will be shown on four other continents over broadcast television.
“We’re excited about presenting a major title bout on ‘Collision Course,’ Atlantic City’s first world championship card of 2006,” said Joe DeGuardia, chief executive officer and president of Star Boxing.
“Virgil Hill is firmly established in light heavyweight and cruiserweight history; his 27 title fights make him a virtual legend,” said Jay Hassman, chief operating officer for Guilty Boxing. “And Brudov may be the most feared slugger in Europe. Arnaoutis, Campbell and Ajamu are on the verge of stardom while Johnston is reestablishing himself as a force in the lightweight division.”
“Bringing this group together for ‘Collision Course’ was no easy task, but one that will be entertaining and rewarding for the fans at the Tropicana in Atlantic City and those watching on pay-per-view television,” said Bill Sorensen of Silverhawk Boxing.
Tickets for the world championship “Collision Course” card, priced at $35, $75, $100, $150 and $200, are on sale at the Havana Tower box office daily from 9 a.m. (Eastern) to 8:30 p.m. and at the North Tower box office Sunday and Monday from 3 to 8 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday from 1 to 8 p.m. and Thursday through Saturday from 3 to 8 p.m. Tickets priced at $50 no longer are available.
Tickets for “Collision Course” also may be purchased by calling the Tropicana box office at 800-526-2935 or 609-340-4020 or Ticketmaster at 800-736-1420.
The “Collision Course” card starts at 7 p.m. with doors to the Tropicana Showroom opening at 6:30.
This will be the first major world championship card presented in part by Guilty Boxing, which has put on weekly cards in Las Vegas, California and Mexico as well as in the eastern United States since 2004.
The 42-year-old Hill, who has a record of 49-5 with 23 knockouts and is ranked No. 2 by the WBA, is in his 28th world championship bout. Hill, who was a long-time resident of Williston, N.D., won the WBA lightweight heavyweight title during 1987 and defended successfully 21 times until 1996, the year he won the IBF light heavyweight championship as well. He also was the WBA cruiserweight champion from 2000 to 2002.
Brudov has a record of 30-0 with 23 knockouts and has won 11 straight by knockout. This will be first time he has fought outside of Russia or France.
The 33-year-old Johnston, also a southpaw, has a record of 37-3-1 with 17 knockouts and has lost only once since 2000. He won the WBC lightweight championship twice between 1997 and 2000 and has a mark of 10-2-1 in world title bouts.
The 34-year-old Quinonez, another southpaw, has a record of 31-9-1 with 11 knockouts. He has gone the distance with former WBC lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo and ex-IBF junior lightweight champ Stevie Forbes.
The 26-year-old Arnaoutis, a southpaw from Greece, has a record of 15-0-2 with seven knockouts and is ranked No. 2 by the World Boxing Organization and No. 14 by the IBF. He won the NABO junior welterweight championship Oct. 22, 2004, with a first-round knockout of Jesse Feliciano in Santa Ynez. Calif. Arnaoutis successfully defended with a 12-round decision over Roberto Santa Cruz Feb. 19 in Santa Ynez and, in his most recent outing, a first-round knockout of Jose Leo Moreno Dec. 9 in Kissimmee, Fla.
The 28-year-old Thompson has a record of 13-0 with 11 knockouts.
The 34-year-old Ajamu has a record of 24-2-1 with 13 knockouts and is ranked No. 11 by the WBC. Ajamu, who’s trained by former world champion James “Buddy” McGirt, is defending the WBC Continental Americas championship he won during December, 2004, and the CABOFE title he won in his most recent outing, a 12-round decision over Thomas Reid Dec. 3.
The 24-year-old Brown, yet another southpaw, has a record of 22-3-1 with 15 knockouts.
The 33-year-old Campbell has a record of 27-4-1 with 23 knockouts and is ranked No. 8 by the WBA and No. 9 by the IBF. He’s coming off a most impressive 10th-round knockout of previously undefeated Almazbek “Kid Diamond” Raiymkulov, the co-feature on the undercard of the Antonio Tarver-Roy Jones Jr. pay-per-view card Oct. 1 in Tampa, Fla.
The 23-year-old Olvera has a record of 14-2 with 12 knockouts.