New York, NY, – MSG announced today that the network will air the U.S. television premiere of undefeated “Ireland’s” John Duddy’s bout against Tunisian brawler Walid “Tempete de Sable” Smichet on Sunday, March 2nd at 8:00 p.m. The 10-round bout was the co-feature for the heavyweight unification match between Wladimir Klitschko and Sultan Ibragimov on February 23rd at Madison Square Garden, promoted by K2 Promotions and Seminole Warriors Boxing.. Also included in the two-hour telecast is the 12-round middleweight NABO/NABA Championship bout between undefeated Brooklyn native, and two-time Golden Glove Champion, “Mean” Joe Greene (17-0, 13 KOs) and veteran fighter Francisco A. Mora (52-12, 35 KOs).
After the March 2nd premiere on MSG, the bout will re-air in its full two-hour format again on Tuesday, March 11th at 7:00 p.m. A shortened one-hour format of the event including only the Duddy vs. Smichet fight will also air throughout the month of March on MSG. The Duddy vs. Smichet fight was previously telecast internationally.
Duddy (23-0, 17 KOs), who has fought 11 times in the Big Apple, including five in Madison Square Garden, is rated No. 3 by the WBO and WBC, as well as No. 6 and No. 11 by the WBA and IBF, respectively, and No. 10 in The Ring magazine. He is coming off of three consecutive fights in Ireland, highlighted by his most notable victory to date this past December, when he won a 10-round decision against Howard Eastman.
Smichet (17-3-3, 13 KOs) is a tough Tunisian fighting out of Montreal. His most notable win is a 10th round knockout of previously unbeaten Matt O’Brien for the Canadian Middleweight Interim Title. Smichet also fought an eight-round draw against Donny McCrary of The Contender III fame.
MSG continues its strong commitment to boxing with the Duddy vs. Smichet coverage. In the past year MSG picked up the stateside rights to four international fights, and the network has aired the cable television premiere of several key fights, including three of Duddy’s previous matches.