On December 11th 2008 one of the fights of the decade took place in Newark, New Jersey between the then reigning International Boxing Federation cruiserweight king, Steve ‘USS’ Cunningham from Philadelphia, PA and Polish born expat, Tomasz ‘Goral’ Adamek, from Jersey City, NJ..
After 12 action packed rounds, which saw the then Champ, Steve ‘USS’ Cunningham put on the canvas three times by flash knockdowns, the crown passed onto the new Champion, Tomasz ‘Goral’ Adamek, by a close split decision. Boxing fans around the world were treated to an amazing fight, and whilst many saw the fight result differently none were unhappy as the result was that close. Calls for a rematch were instant, not just by ‘USS” Cunningham but also the media and fans alike.
www.wewantarematch.com, the website which spearheads the campaign for a rematch, announced that the website received over 28,000 visitors in the first week (18th Dec – 25th Dec 08).
Whilst not all visitors to the website had put their name to the on-line petition, the level of signatories – from the USA, UK, Poland, Philippines, Canada, Australia, France and Germany – has given the campaign a huge boost.
Many of those that signed the petition had also posted comments, a small selection follow:
Seyun Kim from Sacramento, CA, USA. wrote “great exciting fight, two classy fighters, lets do it again!!”
Vincent Baira from Reims, France. wrote “Great first fight! Great spirit! This sport ain’t dying and this particular fight is another proof. Rematch is a must!!”
Antoine Goodie from Eureka, Ca, USA. wrote “Awesome fight Steve and Tomaz; cant wait for the rematch!! We need more good guys like you in boxing.
Bartek Gdula from Gdask, Poland. wrote “It should be a good fight for both boxers and their fans. keep prayin’ for rematch ;)”
Ronald Mobbs from Melbourne, Australia wrote. “epic battle. Cunningham is clearly deserving of a rematch. might end up a great trilogy!!!”
Daxx Kahn from New York, USA. wrote “This is a fight that must be made, 2 of the best big men in boxing, the HW division is dead and fans have lost hope in the upper tier of fighters over 168lbs, We have a bout worthy of fight of the year status in the cruiserweight division, the first since Holyfield Vs Qawi in the 1980’s and possibly the first worthy trilogy since Holyfield Vs Bowe.
It would be a crime to not make this happen, Once even twice may not be enough. Sign the contract!!”
Antonio M. Bangalisan from Malabon City, Philippines put it more simply when he wrote “I like to see a REMATCH.”
It’s not just the WWAR website that has been receiving excellent figures, YouTube, the well known video sharing website, has various videos of the fight on their website which, combined, have achieved almost 1Million viewings in just two weeks.
If you feel that Cunningham vs Adamek II should happen in 2009 go to www.wewantarematch.com and put your name on the petition which will be being sent to the television networks and the promoters of Steve ‘USS’ Cunngham and Tomasz ‘Goral’ Adamek early in 2009.
Beibut Shumenov hottest prospect in boxing
LAS VEGAS (December 29, 2008) – Former Kazakhstan Olympian Beibut Shumenov (7-0, 5 KOs), fresh off of his impressive 10-round decision victory against Columbian knockout artist Epifanio “Diamente” Mendoza (28-6-1, 24 KOs), arguably is the most ambitious, fastest-rising prospect in boxing.
Fighting only 13 months as a professional unbeaten light heavyweight Shumenov has already captured three championship belts – WBC Asian Boxing Council, WBO Asia Pacific and PABA. His most defining victory to date was a one-sided victory by 12-round decision (120-107, 120-108, 120-108) against former WBC title-holder Montell “Ice” Griffin (50-8, 30 KOs) this past August in Kazakhstan.
Shumenov, 25, was recently named the WBC Asian Boxing Council Organization’s 2008 Boxer of the Year. Beibut headlined against Mendoza in his new promotional company’s (KZ Event Productions) U.S. debut December 13th in Bellevue, Washington.
“I’m enjoying boxing but it’s more of a hobby than career for me,” Shumenov explained. “I see myself going another route in the future. I want to challenge myself mentally, as a promoter, like I have physically as a boxer. I plan to expand my boxing company, KZ Event Productions, Inc., and promote boxing as a businessman. I enjoy organizing fights and building my own career.”
In his previous two fights, Mendoza lost to former world champion Jeff Lacy by controversial decision, as well as to Chad Dawson for the WBC light heavyweight title. Beibut easily handled the veteran Mendoza, who was a late replacement for former world champion Kelvin Davis, by scores of 100-90, 98-92 and 97-93.
“When Davis pulled out of the fight only a few days before the show,” Shumenov said, “I was ready to cancel the show rather than fight just any opponent. I was offered a 5-0 guy
with three knockouts. No offense to him but I’d already beaten Montell Griffin, (Lavell) Finger, (Donnell) Wiggins and (Shannon) Miller. I didn’t want to go backwards. I was either going to fight somebody with a good record, well-known name or title, or I wasn’t going to fight at all. As soon as I realized that Mendoza had just fought Lacy and Dawson, I accepted the fight, and I want to thank Mendoza for taking the fight on such short notice. He’s a tough guy who came to win.
“I haven’t reached my limit in terms of mastering my skills, but I am ready now to fight any of the top light heavyweights in the world such as Joe Calzaghe, Bernard Hopkins, Chad Dawson, Zsolt Erdie, Roy Jones, Jr., Julio Cesar Gonzalez, Hugo Garay or Andrian Diaconu. I am working hard to improve my mastership and, when I reach the highest levels of my skills, I’d like to demonstrate it against all of the world’s best fighters.”
Already rated No. 15 by the WBO, Shumenov was highly-touted in the 2004 Olympics, winning his opening bout against Polish representative Aleksy Kuziemsky (presently 16-0 as a pro prospect), 37-22. But hampered by a hand injury, Beibut was defeated in the round of 16 by Turkey’s Ihsan Yildorim Tarham, 27-19, in the same light heavyweight division in which Andre Ward won a gold medal for the United States.
There’s no slowing down the confident Beibut, who is like an old-time fighter who doesn’t want easy opponents to build-up his record. His fourth pro fight was a scheduled 12-round title fight against Wiggins. In his seventh bout Beibut looked very good against a much more experienced, former world title challenger Mendoza. Shumenov just wants to fight the best and position himself for a world title shot in late 2009 or early 2010.
The KZ Event Productions website (www.kzeventproductions.com) with soon be launched with additional information about Beibut Shumenov and his new promotional company.
Zambrano, Bogar and Beale Added to 1/22 Darwish Brothers Boxing Show
East Rutherford, NJ- The Darwish Brothers Knockout Promotions card is quickly taking shape, enhanced by the additions of featherweight Carlos Zambrano of Paterson, light-welterweight Rashad Bogar of Newark and heavyweight Tyyab Beale of Jersey City.
Archak Termeliksetian, Noriko Kariya, Victor Valenzuela and Elvin Sanchez will also be in action on “Knockout Night at the Meadowlands”, which takes place January 22, 2009 at the Meadowlands Sheraton Hotel in East Rutherford, NJ.
“I’m very excited about this card,” says Wally Darwish. “These prospects have all proven their talent in the amateurs and are blossoming into future world champions. They are destined to make New Jersey proud.”
These fighters will be in attendance on Monday, December 29th at the Hackensack Police Athletic League at 7:30 PM for the taping of Knockout TV. Knockout TV airs every Wednesday night at 10 PM on NJ/NY Cablevision channel 76. The Hackensack PAL is located at 284 Hackensack Avenue in Hackensack, NJ. The taping is open to the public.
Tickets, priced $100 for Ringside and $50 for Reserved, are on sale now and moving fast. For more information on Knockout Promotions, visit http://www.darwishbrothers.com . For ticket purchase information and other inquiries, call (973) 339-9611. The Sheraton Hotel is located at 2 Meadowlands Plaza in East Rutherford, New Jersey.