Tavoris Cloud Promises “Thunder And Lightning” For Gonzalez On August 8th In Chicago

TALLAHASSEE, FL. (July 15, 2008) Unbeaten light heavyweight Tavoris Cloud is training in the summer heat of Florida preparing for his light heavyweight showdown with former world champion Julio Gonzalez at HARD EIGHT on Friday, August 8th at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago..

Preparing to enter the gym for a sparring session, Cloud promised to bring “thunder and lightning” to his clash with Gonzalez for the #1 IBF Mandatory Challenger position in the ESPN2 televised battle.

Said Cloud, “I’ve got a lot of respect for Gonzalez and his accomplishments. I know what I have to do in the ring so it’s better for me to just ‘let the music do the talking’”.

In regards to his first nationally televised appearance, Cloud stated, “I’m glad it’s on basic cable, this way everyone can watch it outside of Chicago. It’s nice that my previous bouts have been up on Youtube, but this fight really gives me a chance to display my skills to the world.”

Cloud has fought four times at the Aragon Ballroom amongst his eleven previous bouts in the Chicagoland area. “I’m very comfortable there; I know the ring walk like I’m in my own living room. The fans there are great and they know from my previous bouts what to expect.”

HARD EIGHT is presented by Dominic Pesoli’s 8 Count Productions, HOME OF THE BEST IN CHICAGO BOXING, along with Chicago-based A-TEAM Management. Advance tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com or 312-559-1212. Doors for this event will open at 6:00pm with the first bell at 7:00pm.

The 26 year old Cloud of Tallahassee, Florida, brings an unbeaten record of 18-0 with seventeen knockouts into the battle with Gonzalez. Most recently he destroyed Mike Wood in the first round on March 28, 2008 in front of a packed Aragon Ballroom. In his most explosive outing which took place on August 24, 2007, Cloud, cut badly from a head butt in the fourth round, devastatingly knocked out Jose Luis Herrera in the fifth round at Chicago’s Congress Theater.

To view the Herrera knockout on Youtube.com please use this link;

A native of Guerrero Negro, Mexico, now residing in Huntington Beach, California, the 31 year old Gonzalez sports a record of 41-5 with 25 knockouts. He is coming off a very close split decision loss to former world champion Reggie Johnson on February 23, 2008 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Along with battles with Johnson and Michalczewski, he has also fought world champions Roy Jones Jr., Clinton Woods (twice), Montell Griffin, and Zsolt Erdei.