NEW YORK (April 27, 2006) – International Boxing Federation (IBF) Junior Bantamweight Champion Luis Perez (23-1, 15 KOs) will square off against mandatory challenger and No. 1-ranked IBF contender Dimitri Kirillov (28-2, 10 KOs) in the new co-featured bout on Showtime Championship Boxing’s world title doubleheader on Saturday, May 6, (9 p.m. ET/PT).
The main event of the night, as previously announced, will feature hard-hitting World Boxing Association (WBA) super welterweight champion Alejandro Garcia (25-1, 23 KOs) defending his title against WBA No. 3 154-pound contender and former WBA welterweight titleholder Jose Antonio Rivera (37-4-1, 24 KOs). Don King Productions will promote the world title doubleheader from the DCU Center, in Worcester, Mass.
Perez (23-1, 15 KOs), of Managua, Nicaragua, is making the third defense of the IBF 115-pound crown he won with an upset 12-round decision over Felix Machado on Jan. 4, 2003, in Washington, D.C., on SHOWTIME. A crowd-pleasing, talented boxer-puncher who is never in a dull fight, Perez retained his title a second time in his last start with an impressive sixth-round knockout over Luis Bolano on April 30, 2005, in New York. This will be Perez’ fourth start in the United States, and his second appearance on SHOWTIME.
Kirillov (28-2, 10 KOs), of St. Petersburg, Russia, has won five straight fights, including a 12-round decision over Reinaldo Lopez in an IBF elimination bout in his last outing on Sept. 10, 2005, in Moscow, Russia. Kirillov, who is making his U.S. debut, is no stranger to fighting on the road. Besides his homeland, he has boxed in five different countries – Belgium, Spain, England, Denmark and Japan. Kirillov is getting his second shot at a world title. In his first, he dropped a close 12-round decision to World Boxing Council (WBC) 115-pound champ Masamori Tokuyama on Jan. 3, 2004, in Japan.