November 7(Merrillville, IN)- Marcus Thompkins, the newest addition to the One In A Million stable of boxers, will make his professional debut on the annual “Pre-Thanksgiving Showdown,” Friday, November 16th at the Radisson at Star Plaza in Merrillville, IN..
“Marcus is an all-action fighter who’s going to bring new excitement to the welterweight division,” said Octavius James, CEO of One In A Million Inc. “The fans are going to love him. Area welterweights take note…Marcus Thompkins arrives November 16th.”
A Michigan City, Indiana native, the 23-year-old Thompkins is looking forward to kicking off this holiday season by realizing a dream.
“When I was about 5, my dad taught me some boxing fundamentals, just so I would know how to protect myself,” Thompkins said. “By the time I was 16, I was starting to get into some minor trouble in the street. A local fighter, Mario Ellis, took me under his wing and brought me to the gym. I’ve been in the gym, and out of trouble, ever since.”
“At first, I couldn’t tell my mom where I was going after school,” Thompkins continued. “She didn’t want me boxing, so I trained secretly, but eventually, I came clean and she came to see my second amateur bout. I won, of course, and now she’s my biggest fan.”
Thompkins graduated from Michigan City High School and went on to earn an outstanding amateur record of 44-6.
On a typical day, Thompkins, an assistant machine operator at a Michigan City factory, works the early shift, from 6 am until 2:30pm. At 3pm, he hits the pavement for a 5 mile run and then heads to the gym, Double D’s Boxing, where he trains from 4-6 pm.
“I’m ready and can’t wait for my debut,” Thompkins said. “All of my friends and family are coming to ‘The Showdown’ to see me have a big win. I’ll have a huge crowd and you can be sure that I won’t disappoint them.”
In the evening’s main event, Jimmy “The Fighting School Teacher” Holmes (15-1-2, 8 KOs) looks to return to the win column after suffering his first loss this past June to undefeated Travis “Hitman” Loveless (11-0, 10 KOs). The pride of DeMotte, Indiana, Holmes’ legion of loyal fans are certain to return with him to show their continued faith in their favorite middleweight.
Popular welterweight Ruben “The Modern Day Warrior” Galvan (27-11-2, 10 KOs) of Hammond returns for the first time since April when his ESPN2 televised bout against Zab Judah was ruled a no contest. Galvan, now recovered from the nasty laceration he suffered from an accidental head butt in that bout, is anxious to get back in the ring.
In addition, light heavyweight “Marvelous” Shay Mobley (16-9-1, 7 KOs) of Chicago, middleweight Derrick “Superman” Findley (8-2, 5 KOs) of Gary, welterweight Ed Ochoa (1-0, 1 KO) of Hobart and light heavyweight Jimmy Perez Jr. (1-0) of Hammond will all fight in separate bouts.
Tickets, priced at $100 VIP, $75 VIP ringside, $50 ringside and $25 general admission, are available from Star Plaza Theatre box office at (219-769-6600) or from any Ticket Master location at (312-559-1212) or www.TicketMaster.com.
The Radisson is located at 800 E. 81st Ave. in Merrillville, IN. Doors open at 7 p.m. First bout at 8 p.m.