To take the big step over the Atlantic was definitely worth it for ARENA Box-Promotion. Ahmet Öner’s first own show in the US together with Decubas Presents Friday night in Fort Lauderdale turned out to be a major success..
Especially Yuriorkis Gamboa impressed about 2,000 fans at “Xtreme Indoor Karting” and all spectators following the action LIVE on ESPN 2. On the race track “El Ciclon” had simply too much speed for his opponent Johnnie Edwards from North Carolina overwhelming his opponent and chopping down “The Lumberjack” twice in only 94 seconds before referee Brian Garry stopped the fight.
It was Gamboa’s 9th victory in his 9th pro-fight (including 8 stoppages) and brought the Cuban Olympic gold medallist his first professional title in the NABF junior lightweight championship.
Gamboa: “Of course, it feels very good and special to have a belt around the waist for the first time. But I won’t stop until I am recognized as the undisputed champion of the world. I know that I am still a young fighter that has a lot to proof but I feel that I am ready to do so.”
His promoter Ahmet Öner is very confident that Gamboa can make it to a title shot very fast. “This kid is just unbelievable”, stated Öner after the fight. “Every time you think you’ve seen his best fight and shots he’s pulling out something new to destroy his opponents. I don’t see anybody who can stop him on his way to the world title. And we’ll make sure that he gets his shot asap.”
Gamboa’s fellow countryman Yan Barthelemy showed a very good fight as well dominating Antonio Chochero Diaz in 6 rounds taking home a clear decision victory. Barthelemy had has opponent down in the 5th, “but I wasn’t looking for the knock-out”, as he stated later. It was Barthelemy’s fifth win in his fifth pro-fight.
In the main event “El Toro” Richard Gutierrez clearly decisioned Jose Varely from Nicaragua in a tough brawl for the WBC Latino welterweight championship. Gutierrez who recently signed with ARENA took his record to 22-1-0 with 13 kos.
Ahmet Öner: “With Gutierrez and my Turkish prospect Selcuk Aydin I got two of the most promising welterweights in the world. Along with Gamboa, Barthelemy and their countryman Solis we have enormous power to make a very good statement on the US market. The ARENA invasion started tonight! We are ready to take over.”
The next show in America is already in the making. Most probably Gamboa and Barthelemy will be back in action on April 11th in Miami. ARENA will also hold two shows in Germany on March 11th (Halle) and March 14th (Munich) and is planning an event in Turkey for April 25th.