News: The Contender On VERSUS; USA Boxing News; Manuel Quezada

New York, N.Y. (November 25, 2008)-VERSUS, the network that celebrates real competition, will debut the fourth season of THE CONTENDER on Wednesday, December 3, at 10 p.m. ET. Television icon Tony Danza will host the series, which includes 11 one-hour episodes and a live two-hour finale. The weekly episodes will air Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. ET, and the live two-hour finale on February 25 will start at 9 p.m. ET. All episodes are available on VERSUS HD..

“VERSUS, in partnership with Mark Burnett Productions and DreamWorks Television, will deliver the best season of THE CONTENDER fight fans have ever seen. Featuring 16 fighters with great stories and with Tony Danza as the new host, fans will be taken on a non-stop, hard-hitting ride to the live finale in February,” said Marc Fein, Executive Vice President of Programming, Production and Business Operations for VERSUS. “The highly anticipated fourth season of THE CONTENDER fits in perfectly with VERSUS’ lineup of real, raw and authentic original sports programming and will help to further establish the network as a go-to destination for fight action.”

Shot on location in Singapore, this installment of THE CONTENDER features 16 Cruiserweights from around the world who will face each other in the 12-episode competition. With former boxer and television star Tony Danza serving as host and mentor alongside veteran Tommy Brooks & John Bray as trainers, these fighters will go through the most intense training of their lives and battle in the most challenging fights of their careers. In the end, the two left standing will get into the ring on February 25 to fight for the coveted title of Contender Champion. The location of the fight is yet to be determined and will be announced at a later date.

The fighters, represented by Tournament of Contenders, have gone on to fight Joe Calzaghe, Arturo Gatti, Miguel Cotto, and Oscar de La Hoya. In June 2008 Sergio Mora, THE CONTENDER season 1 champion, went on to become the first Contender World Champion by winning the WBC title.

“We are really excited for our season four launch on VERSUS,” said Mark Burnett. “VERSUS has been an incredible partner so far and Dreamworks and I are confident that CONTENDER fans and the VERSUS viewers alike will love all the boxers and drama that will unfold this season.”

Tony Danza was discovered at a boxing gym in his native New York and was cast in the critically acclaimed “Taxi” which earned him a place in television history. He then went on to star in the long-running popular television series “Who’s The Boss?” cementing his status as a television icon. In addition, Tony hosted his own daytime series “The Tony Danza Show” as well as numerous other television series and specials.

For more in-depth information about the show including bios for all 16 fighters, the two trainers and Tony Danza, viewers can visit www.VERSUS.com. Additional contents available on the site include: show schedule, interviews with the fighters, episode recaps and exclusive behind-the-scenes video footage from the show. Viewers can also find information about the Vibes contest in which they can text their entry or vote online to be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a trip to the live finale. The sweepstakes starts December 3 and concludes February 11.

THE CONTENDER is produced by Mark Burnett Productions and DreamWorks Television and was produced in Singapore in cooperation with Mark Burnett Productions Asia who provided production and logistical support. The series is executive produced by Mark Burnett, Eric Van Wagenen and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Jeff Wald, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, and Page Feldman are co-executive producers.

Carrie Barry and Vanessa Jackson Record Opening Round Victories at the 2008 World Championships

(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.) – Lightweight Carrie Barry (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and welterweight Vanessa Jackson (Columbus, Ohio) both recorded first round victories in their 2008 World Championships debuts on Tuesday in Ningbo City, China.

Barry faced off with Wen-Hsien Su of Taipei in preliminary round action and won a convincing 17-6 decision to move on to quarterfinal action where she will face France’s Orain Cindy on Wednesday. Jackson took on Australia’s Naomi-Lee Fischer-Rasmussen in her first World Championships bout, winning an 11-5 decision. Jackson’s victory guarantees her at least a bronze medal and she will face home country boxer, Qian Wang of China in Friday’s semifinal action.

Three U.S. boxers dropped preliminary bouts on Tuesday as well. Light bantamweight Sacred Downing (Trenton, N.J.) lost an 18-0 decision to the Philippines Annie Albania; light welterweight Queen Underwood dropped a slim 5-4 bout to Canada’s Kathleen Dunn and middleweight Meredith Della Giustina (Versailles, Ky.) suffered a 9-2 loss to Canada’s Amber Konikow.

Three U.S. boxers will vie for a spot in the medal round in Wednesday’s quarterfinal action. Bantamweight Cynthia Moreno (Guadalupe, Ariz.) will compete in her third bout of the tournament, taking on Yadav Sushma Kumari of India, and light heavyweight Mioshia Wagoner (Lawrence, Kansas) will compete for the first time in Ningbo City, taking on Egypt’s Nadia Mohamed. Barry will complete the trio in her bout with Cindy.

The team is being led by coaches Ted Palac (Hamtramck, Mich.), Harry Thomas (Stafford, Texas), and Bonnie Canino (Dania Beach, Fla.) The most up-to-date results for the 2008 AIBA Women’s World championships can be found on AIBA’s website at www.aiba.org. The AIBA site will be showing live scoring for all of the bouts throughout the tournament as well.

U.S. Results

Tuesday, November 25
Preliminary Bouts

114 lbs: Annie Albania, PHI, dec. Sacred Downing, Trenton, N.J./USA, 18-0
132 lbs: Carrie Barry, Colorado Springs, Colo./USA dec. Wen-Hsien Su, TPE, 17-6
138 lbs: Kathleen Dunn, CAN, dec. Queen Underwood, Seattle, Wash./USA, 5-4
145 lbs: Vanessa Jackson, Columbus, Ohio/USA dec. Naomi-Lee Fischer-Rasmussen, AUS, 11-5
165 lbs: Amber Konikow, CAN, dec. Meredith Della Giustina, Versailles, Ky./USA, 9-2

USA Boxing, as the national governing body for Olympic-style boxing, is the United States’ member organization of the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) and a member of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).

WBC CABOFE Champion Manuel Quezada vs Teke Oruh November 29 2008

Manuel “El Toro” Quezada, faces his toughest challenge when he goes toe to toe with Teke “African Prince” Oruh. On the line will be Quezada’s WBC CABOFE heavyweight title as both fighters attempt to stay in title contention. Quezada is riding a 13-fight winning streak while Teke is coming off his first loss, a majority decision.

“Teke is a step up for Me.” said Quezada, “A victory will get me closer to my goal of becoming a world champion. I know one thing is certain, I’m coming to fight and I’m leaving everything in ring.”

This bout is scheduled for Saturday, November 29, at the Inland Empire’s newest state-of-the-art building, Citizens Business Bank Arena located in Ontario, California

Televised live on HBO and presented by Goossen Tutor Promotions, the main event features 2-time WBO Welterweight World Champion and “The Most Feared Fighter in Boxing” Paul “The Punisher” Williams taking on 3-time World Champion, Verno Phillips, in an interim 12 round WBO Super Welterweight World Championship bout. In addition, Riverside’s and Inland Empire’s Cristobal “The Nightmare” Arreola, the WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight Champion battles NABF Heavyweight Champion, Travis “Freight Train” Walker also in an IBF Heavyweight Elimination bout.

Tickets are priced at: $200, $100, $50 and $25 and may be purchased at Citizens Business Bank Arena box office, Monday-Friday 10:00am-6:00 pm, Saturday 10:00 am-4:00 pm or at www.ticketmaster.com. Built and owned by the City of Ontario, the Citizens Business Bank Arena opened October 18, 2008.