Hollywood, FL, June 1 – Taking a page from Yoel Judah’s public relations guidebook, heavyweight title challenger Sultan Ibragimov’s manager Boris Grinberg, tried to impersonate his fighter on nationally syndicated radio show “Through the Ropes”, hosted by Marc Lichtenfeld. After Grinberg answered a few questions, the eagle-eared Lichtenfeld remarked, “Sultan, you sound just like your manager Boris Grinberg.” The guest replied, “Well, maybe because I was running today.” Lichtenfeld playfully put Sultan/Boris on the hot seat, trying to get him to admit his identity. After the host cut the interview short moments later, he laughed as he told his listeners about the ruse..
“I’ve known Boris for a few years and spoke to him three times this week, including twice today,” Lichtenfeld said, “I knew it was him right away.”
Ibragimov, apparently worn out from a day of meeting with the press, went to bed before the scheduled interview. Grinberg, not wanting to disappoint the show’s listeners attempted to fill in for the boxer, hoping no one would be able to distinguish their accents from one another.
Last week, on a national media conference call, Yoel Judah impersonated his son, former welterweight champion Zab Judah.
Ibragimov is fighting Shannon Briggs on Saturday, June 2 in Atlantic City for Briggs’ WBO heavyweight championship. The bout will be broadcast live on pay per view starting at 9:00.
At the conclusion of the show, host Lichtenfeld picked Ibragimov to win by knockout in the sixth round. “I’ve been excited about this fight since it was announced last year,” he stated. “Both fighters have power and it should be explosive, however long it lasts.”
Through the Ropes airs live on Thursday nights at 9:00 ET on 75 affiliates of the Sports Byline USA Broadcast Network, 500 outlets of the American Forces Network, ATA Airlines in-flight audio entertainment, Sportsbyline.com and Fightnews.com. A podcast of the show can be downloaded at www.sportsbyline.com
This match-up between two of the premier heavyweights in the world and fierce rivals, Shannon Briggs and Sultan Ibragimov, will finally take place when they square off for Briggs’ WBO Heavyweight Championship on Saturday, June 2nd at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Briggs vs. Ibragimov, a 12 round WBO Heavyweight Championship bout, that is presented by Seminole Warriors Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Caesars Atlantic City, Golden Grain, Nafta Moskva, CSI Sports, Global Advertising Strategies and Main Events.
Tickets are priced at $300, $200, $150, $100 and $50, and can be purchased at the Boardwalk Hall Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-736-1420 or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com.
This event will be televised live on Pay-Per-View through CSI Sports, Domestically on DirecTV, In Demand, Dish Network, TVN, in Canada on Viewers Choice and Bell Express Vu. In addition, Briggs vs. Ibragimov will be available commercially at bars and taverns Nationwide and Internationally in over 100 countries worldwide.