“Universum Champions Night” will land at the new Freiberger Arena in Dresden for the first time on November 24th for the big world title twinbill featuring WBO light heavyweight champion Zsolt Erdei and the long awaited cruiserweight between WBA cruiserweight champion Virgil Hill and interim champion Firat Arslan..
Erdei (27-0, 17 KOs) will face WBA #13 Tito Mendoza (36-7, 28 KOs) in his ninth title defense. Mendoza stands 6’3 and punches hard as his record confirms.
Arslan (27-3-1, 18 KOs) has waited long and patiently for his crack at the full WBA belt. He is currently undergoing the last phase of his intensive training in the Austrian ski village of Sölden, working with trainers Valentin Silaghi and Michael Timm. “Everything is running according to plan,” says Silaghi. “Firat is just working on the final odds and ends, and he is already in great shape.”
Also in camp with Arslan is longtime friend and heavyweight contender Luan Krasniqi. “Clearly, I want to be with Firat while he prepares. Plus, it’s also good for me since I remain fit, too,” said Krasniqi. “We will experience another Hill than the one who boxed against Henry Maske. It will become a hard piece of work for Firat, but Hill has never boxed against somebody who is as strong as Firat.”
Overall, Krasniqi likes Arslan’s chance in the fight. “What Firat does in and around the ring is almost inhuman. The pressure he brings against his opponent is indescribable. With his will and his incredible conditioning, Firat Arslan poses bad problems for his opponents, as proven in his recent fights against Grigory Drozd und Valery Brudov. Anyone who has never gone against Firat doesn’t know how this is. When the fists start flying there is no way out. Firat attacks over and over again without a pause. Sooner or later it will break any man.”
Meanwhile, WBA cruiserweight champion Virgil Hill (50-5, 23 KOs) is already in Germany and is training for the fight in Munich. A 43-year-old multiple-time champion with Hall of Fame credentials, Hill regained the title in January 2006. He met Maske in a March “show fight,” but has not defended the title until now.
A further title fight on the card will feature WBA/WBO #1 super middleweight Denis Inkin (31-0, 24 KOs) against Martin Abel Bruer (19-1, 12 KOs) in a bout for Inkin’s WBC International belt.
Tickets for the „Universum Champions Night“ in Dresden are bookable under:
Universum Ticket Hotline: +49 40-696 559 59
CTS-Eventim Hotline: +49 1805-5 70 000
Konzertkasse im Floretinum: +49 351-86 66 010
Touristinformation Dresden: +49 351-491 922 33
oder hier unter www.boxing.de