By Liridon Iberdemaj – Elvir “Kosova Kid” Muriqi (35-5-0, 22 KO’s) will next fight April 18 in his homeland, Kosovo, in the “Kosova Fight Night” event. His opponent is Oleksandr Garashchenko (15-12-0, 7 KO’s) from Ukraine. The 35-year old boxer from Kiev has won the first bout at “Madison Square Garden” in New York 4 years ago. Muriqi has waited since than for a revenge. “I know him very well and I think he also is conscious that I’m way out of his league. I’m glad that I will get my vengeance”, Muriqi said for “boxalb.com”..
The event is dedicated toward raising money for the SOS Children’s Village program, which helps orphaned and abandoned children. “All the income from the tickets is dedicated orphaned children of Kosova. I’m so happy that I can make a small change in somebodies life”, Muriqi said. The event will take place at the Palace of Youth & Sports in Pristina.
The undercard promises to be action packed.
The co-feature is a 10-rounder betwen Shpetim Shala (5-0-0, 2 KO’s) and Josip Jalusic (10-15-1, 7 KO’s) for the vacant Austrian International light heavyweight title.
Swiss-based albanian cruiserweight, Sefer Seferi (5-0-0, 4 KO’s) will fight a tough 6-rounder with his opponent Ivica Cukusic (7-62-4), from Croatia.
In a 4 round welterweight match, Erjon Zeka (6-0, 1KO) will face Zoran Cvek (3-7-2, 3 KO’s).
Remillard’s new journey started in Maryland and continues outside New England
MANCHESTER, Conn. (April 8, 2009) – WBC Youth and USNBC featherweight champion Matt “Sharp Shooter” Remillard, fighting for the first time as a pro outside of New England, enjoyed his expanded base experience and used his Maryland fight as a barometer to gauge his improvement in the past year.
The 22-yar-old Remillard (17-0, 9 KOs), fighting out of Manchester, Connecticut, stopped 52-fight veteran and former world title challenger Jesus Perez in three rounds at Michael’s Eight Avenue in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Remillard floored Perez, who was unable to answer the bell for the fourth round, in the second and twice in the third.
“It was a new experience and I was more relaxed, not feeling awkward about the crowd or anything,” Matt spoke about fighting outside of New England for the first time. “There was no pressure worrying about satisfying my hometown fans. I was excited about making new fans. During the walk to the ring with my music playing there was no real response from the crowd, but they got excited during the fight and couldn’t have been more responsive after the fight. It was an experience I was looking forward to and I was very happy with the result.”
Remillard was coming off of arguably his most impressive win, by 6-round decision against 3-time world champion (34-9-2) Maurico Pastrana, last November. Ranked No. 23 by the WBC, as well as No. 4 by the USBA and NABF, Remillard won a four-round decision to Perez August 21, 2008 at Mohegan Sun.
“I beat Perez the first fight, too, but he made me look bad on ESPN,” Remillard explained his thoughts about the rematch. “It was almost a year earlier and I looked at it, at least on paper, as a sign of how much I’ve improved in that time. I didn’t want to leave it in the judges’ hands this fight.”
Remillard hopes to return to the ring in May, most likely in Reno or Texas, and he’s embracing the opportunity to expand his base nationally. “I’ve passed the point where I’m a club or hometown fighter,” he noted. “Nobody’s going to say the judges or referee is on my side. I have to fight on the road and would love to fight someday at Madison Square Garden, where so many legends have fought, and in Las Vegas.
“I’m improving every fight, taking everything one fight at a time. By the end of this year, hopefully, I’ll be in the top 20. I want to be fighting on the networks to showcase myself and build my name to get where I want to be – world champion!”
Fight Night at Target Center’s “Unfinished Business” Card Now Available to Boxing Fans Worldwide Pay-Per-View Event to Be Broadcast Live Online
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA (April 8, 2009) — Target Center, in association with Midwest Sports Council, is proud to announce that its April 18th “Unfinished Business” card will be broadcast live online. Thanks to a partnership with The People’s Fight Channel, boxing fans across the world will have a ringside seat for all the exciting action during the next Fight Night at Target Center.
This Pay-Per-View broadcast is available at www.peoplesfightchannel.com for $14.99. The broadcast team features long-time Twin Cities middleweight Anthony Bonsante, Wally Langfellow and Jake Wegner.
“We’re delighted to deliver live coverage of this Fight Night at Target Center series to boxing fans everywhere via the web,” said Midwest Sports Council’s Justin Seurer. “This online broadcast partnership shows that everyone involved in this series is dedicated to ensuring that Minneapolis becomes the Midwest’s premier destination for pro boxing.”
The People’s Fight Channel is a product of Jamesland Studios, a Maple Grove, MN based music and production company,and part of www.netjamstv.com, is proud to present its first worldwide boxing broadcast event with with Target Center and Midwest Sports Councl. For nearly two years The Peole’s Fight Channel has been broadcasting live MMA events worldwde.
Co-Main Events:
St. Paul’s Matt “The Predator” Vanda (39-9, 22 KO‘s) is looking to get his career back on track againstthe “Bismarck Bomber” Tocker Pudwill (40-6, 14 KO’s).
Vanda has lost his last two fights in decisions that went the distance against legendary, undefeated fighters John Duddy and Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. Although being out punched by Duddy his last time in the ring at New York’s Madison Square Garden, Vanda showed a lot of guts and determination in the final round of the fight, landing a series of powerful blows in hopes for a knockout.
In the other co-main event, a ten round bout, Allen “The American Boy” Litzau (13-3, 7 KO‘s) is hoping to spoil Wilton “Pretty Warrior” Hilario’s (10-0-1, 8 KO’s) undefeated record and take home the IBA Super Featherweight America’s Belt title at the same time.
*Featured Bouts:
Fans will see the return of lightweight Jason “The American Boy” Litzau (23-2, 19 KO’s) after his devastating IBF featherweight title loss in February 2008. Jason was 125-10 as an amateur and finished second at the 2001 U.S. Championship. As a pro, he continued to rise in the rankings. He will face Daniel Mitchell(5-0-1, 2 KO’s) in an eight round bout.
Undefeated Jon Laboda (4-0, 3 KO‘s) takes on power puncher Mike Davis (3-5, 3 KO’s) in a four round, junior middleweight fight. Welterweight Donny Tierney makes his pro debut against David Duncan (0-1) and Cerresso Fort (5-0, 5 KO‘s) will defend his undefeated middleweight record against Bobby Kliewer (9-7-2, 4 KO’s).
*Fighters subject to change.
Weigh-in: April 17th @ 3:30 p.m. *Note change in location
The weigh-in for “Unfinished Business” will now take place at Seven – The Steakhouse, 700 Hennepin Avenue, located just blocks away from Target Center in downtown Minneapolis. Media is invited to attend this pre-fight event on Friday, April 17th at 3:30 p.m.
We recommend media pick up credentials for Fight Night @ Target Center at that time. Video highlights of featured fighters are available to all media outlets upon request.
Ticket Information:
Tickets for “Unfinished Business” are on sale now at the Target Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, charge by phone at 651-989-5151 or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Arena seating ticket prices are $15, $25, $50 and $75. VIP ring side tables are also available by calling 612-388-5228. Discounts for groups of 10 or more are available by calling 612-673-1311.