HBO Sports serves up a triple header of action when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: JAMES KIRKLAND VS. JOEL JULIO, VICTOR ORTIZ VS. MIKE ARNAOUTIS AND ROBERT GUERRERO VS. DAUD YORDAN is presented SATURDAY, MARCH 7 at 10:00 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT), from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Cal., exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports team will be ringside for the event, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino..
Other HBO playdate: March 8 (9:15 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: March 8 (4:00 p.m.) and 10 (11:30 p.m.)
The main event features two fighters known for their aggressive style and heavy hitting, as undefeated James Kirkland (24-0, 21 KOs) of Austin, Tex. and Joel Julio (34-2, 31 KOs) from Monteria, Columbia battle in a scheduled ten-round junior middleweight contest. Kirkland has quickly become a top prospect in the division with a knockout-to-victory ratio in the high 80% range. Julio, another top prospect with an equally impressive percentage of KO victories, has suffered only two losses. Both men see the match as an important step toward a title in the division.
The middle bout has rising prospect Victor Ortiz (23-1-1, 18 KOs) from Oxnard, Cal. going against top contender Mike Arnaoutis (21-2-2, 10 KOs) from Atlantic City in a scheduled 12-round face-off. On a fast rack to stardom, Ortiz has been steadily notching victories against top fighters. Arnaoutis, a hot prospect in the junior lightweight division who is now fighting as a junior welterweight, looks to put the brakes on Ortiz’s rise.
The evening kicks off when two-time featherweight champ Robert Guerrero (23-1-1, 16 KOs) from Gilroy, Cal. takes on undefeated Daud Yordan (23-0, 17 KOs) from Kalimantan, Indonesia in a scheduled ten-round junior lightweight contest. Guerrero won titles in the featherweight division at ages 24 and 25. Now 26, he is moving up in weight to seek a third crown. Yordan will be fighting in the U.S. for only his second time and is looking for a victory to affirm his status in the division.
The executive producer of HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is Rick Bernstein; producer, Jon Crystal; director, Mike Sheehan.
® HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.
FAMILY AFFAIR ROONEY VS. ROONEY: ROUND 1 KICKS OFF MARCH 6TH AT MOHEGAN SUN
On March 6th at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT Star Boxing’s 19-year-old welterweight phenom Raymond “Tito” Serrano (8-0, 5KO) will step into the ring against world renowned trainer, Kevin Rooney Sr.’s protégé “Smokin” Jay Krupp (12-1, 5KO). The bout is scheduled for eight rounds in the welterweight division and will be that evening’s ESPN2 “Friday Night Fights” co-main event.
Standing across the ring from Team Krupp on fight night will be a very familiar face, Rooney’s son Kevin Jr. Kevin Jr., who serves as the Director of Media Relations for Serrano’s promotional company Star Boxing, has known Krupp for the past eight years, serving as both a friend and even assistant trainer at times during Krupp’s career.
Rooney Jr. graduated from Fordham University in 2006 and has been working with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing since early 2008. Rooney Sr. is most famous for his work with former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world Mike Tyson. After the death of Cus D’Amato, Rooney Sr. guided Tyson to becoming the youngest heavyweight champion ever, winning the belt when he was just 20 years old.
“There will definitely be some weird feelings standing in the opposite corner from my father and Jay come fight night,” stated Rooney Jr. “I have known Jay for a long time now, I consider him one of my good friends, so of course I want him to do well, and be successful in his boxing career. That being said, business is business and Raymond is our guy. It makes it even harder for me because since working at Star, Raymond and I have built a very good relationship with one another. If there was a way that both guys could come out victorious that would be great, but that’s not the business we are in. Bottom line I am just hoping that it turns out to be great fight which we are all expecting it to be, and most importantly that both Raymond and Jay walk away from the fight safe and sound.”
“Not only is KC (the name Rooney Sr. uses for Kevin Jr.) my son but he is also my best friend, but come March 6th he is going to be my enemy,” jokes Rooney Sr. “I told him not to worry about any hard feeling’s, Jay and I both know this is a business and that KC will have to be on Serrano’s side for this fight. It will definitely be a first for us though. We have been in the ring together so many times before, whether it was when KC was fighting or when he was helping me out with my fighters, but never before on opposite sides. It’s an exciting moment for me as a father though seeing the success my son is experiencing with Star Boxing, and I wish nothing but the best for him and all of the fighters on the Star Boxing roster.”
The card is promoted by Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing in association with Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort. Tickets are priced at $75.00, $45.00 and $30.00 and are on sale now through Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster customers may log on to ticketmaster.com or purchase tickets by calling 1 (800)745-3000 or by calling any Ticketmaster Charge by Phone number; or visit any Ticketmaster outlet. Tickets may also be purchased at the Mohegan Sun Box Office subject to availability or by calling Star Boxing at (718) 823-2000. Doors open at 6:30 PM with the first fight scheduled for 7:30. ESPN2’s telecast will run live from 8:30 to 10:30 PM.
TICKET ALERT!! “HOMETOWN HEROES TO WORLD CHAMPIONS” RETURNS TO CINCY
TMAX EVENTS AND TKO BOXING PROMOTIONS PRESENT ‘3 THE HARD WAY’, SATURDAY, MARCH 21ST AT THE US BANK ARENA
RICARDO WILLIAMS, RASHAD HOLLOWAY AND RAU’SHEE WARREN FEATURED IN CINCINNATI
SPECIAL ATTRACTION: PRO DEBUT OF RON SILER STACKED UNDERCARD FEATURES JAMES COUNTRYMAN, DAVID LONG, JESSIE CARRADINE AND TERRANCE CRAWFORD
CINCINNATI, OH (March 3, 2009) TMAX Events and TKO BOXING Promotions bring “HOMETOWN HEROES TO WORLD CHAMPIONS” back to Cincinnati with “3 THE HARD WAY”, an outstanding evening of world class boxing on Saturday, March 21st at the U.S. Bank Arena.
Advance tickets, priced at $82.75, $43.75 and $26.75, for “3 THE HARD WAY” can be purchased online through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at 513-562-4949.
The U.S. Bank Arena is located at 100 Broadway St. in Cincinnati , adjacent to the Great American Ball Park . Doors will open on the evening of the event at 6:30pm with the first bell at 7:30pm. Further information on the U.S. Bank Arena can be found on their website at www.usbankarena.com.
Said Max Brunis of TMAX Events and Chet Koerner of TKO BOXING Promotions in a joint statement, “Our first “HOMETOWN HEROES TO WORLD CHAMPIONS” event was a massive success with over 5,000 fans showing their support on January 31st. We’re putting together another outstanding night of boxing on Saturday, March 21st and encourage fans to get their tickets in advance.”
Returning at “3 THE HARD WAY” is Cincinnati welterweight contender Ricardo Williams Jr.. The 2000 Olympic Silver Medalist thrilled the huge crowd at the U.S. Bank Arena on January 31st with a eight round unanimous decision over Puerto Rican banger Doel Carrasquillo, his first hometown bout in almost five years.
With the hard fought win, Williams, who has won four in a row after a three year layoff, improved his record to 14-2-0 (7KO’s).
Also featured at “3 THE HARD WAY” will be popular local favorite, junior middleweight Rashad Holloway who will square off against the returning and revenge seeking Carrasquillo, 12-10-1 (10KO’s).
Now working at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, California, with the trainer of numerous world champions, Freddie Roach, Holloway is looking towards a busy 2009 and a move up into the world rankings. In his last bout on August 30th in Cincinnati, Holloway knocked out Junior Ramos in the fourth round to raise his record to 9-1-0 (5KO’s).
Rounding out the headliners at “3 THE HARD WAY” is two time U.S. Olympian Rau’Shee Warren, who participated in both the 2008 and 2004 games, becoming the first American boxer to compete in two Olympic Games in the last thirty years.
The 22 year old Cincinnati native will continue to compete as an amateur. He was a Gold Medalist at the World Amateur Championships in Chicago in 2007 and the southpaw flyweight currently has an amateur record of 41-9-0.
In a special attraction on the “3 THE HARD WAY” undercard, 2004 Olympian Ron Siler will make his long awaited professional debut. The 28 year old Siler advanced to the second round of the Athens Games. His illustrious amateur career was highlighted by a bronze medal in the 2001 World Championships in Belfast , Ireland .
The stacked undercard will feature Detroit middleweight James Countryman taking on boxer/MMA standout K.J. Noons. Countryman has won five in a row, building his record to 13-1 with eight knockouts while Houston native Noons brings a pro record of 8-1-0 with five stoppages. Noons’ success in the Mixed Martial Arts World includes an Elite XC World Championship.
Two time national amateur champion Terrance Crawford will also be featured on the undercard. The 21 year old highly regarded junior welterweight prospect has impressively run his record to 5-0-0 (3KO’s) since turning professional one year ago.
Also on the undercard are local favorites, heavyweight David Long, 6-1-0 (3KO’s) and super featherweight Jessie Carradine, 2-0-0 (1KO) who will appear in separate bouts.
TC Howard and Max Brunis, highly successful Cincinnati businessmen, formed TMAX Events in 2008 to continuously bring world class professional boxing to area fans. Further information on TMAX Events is available at www.myspace/tmaxevents