The King returns to the coast! Undefeated IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham (28-0, 23 KOs) will take on Lajuan Simon in Kiel on March 14. “I have big plans for 2009,” King Arthur said. “I will start with Simon – and at the end of the year I want to be super-champion at middleweight..”
Not just because of his fight name, the 28-year-old German is the middleweight king. Since his spectacular title defense against Edison Miranda in September 2006, he has knocked out all of his opponents, earning German boxer of the year honours for three straight times. After Felix Sturm turned down a 2.5-million-euro offer for a unification clash, King Arthur has set his sights on Kelly Pavlik´s belts. “We are still in close touch with Top Rank, Pavlik´s promoters,” Sauerland Event General Manager Chris Meyer said. “It remains our goal to stage a unification fight between him and King Arthur.” For the showdown to materialise, though, King Arthur needs to defeat Simon next month.
“First things first,” the champion said. “I will not allow Simon to destroy my plans to fight Pavlik. Just like last year, I will leave Kiel victorious. I only have the best memories of the city in which I knocked out Elvin Ayala last March.”
29-year-old Simon, a former US middleweight champion, is unbeaten in 24 fights (12 KOs). “We are full of respect for Simon,” manager Wilfried Sauerland added. “It was not easy to find a challenger for King Arthur. There were quite a few fighters in the rankings who would not dare to get in the same ring with him.”
“The Lion” stays with ARENA – Mahir Oral extends his contract for three more years
Ahmet Öner: “He’s got championship potential!”
Middleweight contender Mahir “Lion” Oral has extended his promotional contract with ARENA Box-Promotion for three more years. “I took my time to think about the offer”, states Oral. “Finally I made my decision and I am one hundred percent convinced that it is the right one. There is no better promoter in the world for me than Ahmet Öner and ARENA.
I am sure that Ahmet is the right man to push me to the top of the ratings. He knows this business very well; he is organizing excellent shows and always finds the right opponents. In addition to that I get along very well with all the other guys in the ARENA gym. My coach Hans-Jürgen Witte is great and it is fun to work with all the guys. Also Hamburg is my hometown and ARENA is based here as well.”
“I am very happy that Mahir decided to stay with ARENA”, says promoter Ahmet Öner. “He already proved that he is one of the best middleweights in the world today. And with Klitschko vs. Gomez coming up he also recognized that I am able to get world title fights for my boxers. I am sure that Mahir will make his way to the top. He is already rated very high in all major organizations. If everything goes well he might get a shot at a world title at the end of this year.
Oral’s next step on the way to a title shot will be a fight against “stable-mate” Kofi Jantuah in May. “Kofi is a very good boxer as well” adds Öner. “And he has fought for the IBF title before. I am sure that the winner of this bout will get close to a championship bout.” The exact date and place of the fight are not set yet.
Quezada and Joe Goossen Team up
WBC CABOFE heavyweight champion, Manuel “El Toro” Quezada, steps back in the ring this Friday February 6, 2009 at the Tachi Palace Casino. He faces Eric Boose, whom he beat back in April of 2006. This time around he will have a new trainer calling the shots, that being the notable Joe Goossen.
Riding a 14-fight winning steak, Quezada has set his goals for 2009 stating, “I want keep moving up the WBC rankings and crack the top ten by the end of the year. I believe with Joe Goossen in my corner, I have the final puzzle to get me to the top. Joe’s worked with multiple world champions and is considered one of the best trainers in boxing by many in the business.” Quezada and Boose will square off in an eight round bout.
In the main event, former Olympic Gold Metal winner, Andrew “SOG” Ward will be defending his NABO Super Middleweight, along with the NABF Super Middleweight Championship against Henry “Sugar Poo” Buchanan. The Live “ShoBox: The New Generation” coverage on Showtime will begin at 11 pm ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).
Tickets are priced at: $30, $40, $50, $60 and $400 and can be purchased at the box office of by visiting www.tickets.com. Doors are scheduled to open at 4:30pm. The first bout will begin at 5:00pm (PT) and the televised bouts will begin at 8:00pm (PT).
Goossen Tutor Promotions in association with the Tachi Palace Casino bring you the action. For additional ticket information call the Tachi Palace Box Office at (559) 924-7751 or the Tickets.com call center at 1(800) 225-2277.