ATLANTIC CITY, NJ—Unbeaten Mike Jones, of North Philadelphia, faces what could be the toughest test of his four-year career when he defends his North American Boxing Association (NABA) welterweight title against Richard Gutierrez, of Miami, FL, in the scheduled 10-round main event Saturday evening, Nov. 7, at Bally’s Atlantic City. The seven-bout card, which begins at 7.30 pm, will be televised live by www.gofightlive.tv. The 26-year-old Jones returns to the same ring where he earned a 10-round decision Aug. 8 over Lenin Arroyo, also of Miami, FL..
A pro since December, 2005, Jones is 18-0, 15 K0s. He is ranked No. 7 by the World Boxing Association (WBA), No. 12 by the International Boxing Federation, No. 14 by the World Boxing Organization (WBO), No. 25 by the World Boxing Council.
Jones won the vacant NABA title Aug. 29, 2008, scoring a sixth-round knockout over Juliano Ramos, of Boca Raton, FL, at the New Alhambra in South Philadelphia. He twice defended the belt, stopping Dairo Esalas, of Miami, in two rounds March 6 at the Blue Horizon in Philadelphia and defeating Arroyo last month.
Gutierrez, 31, is originally from Arjona, Colombia. He has fought some of the best en route to a 24-3-1 record with 14 knockouts. He lost to ex-world (IBF) champ Joshua Clottey by majority decision and to hot prospect Antwone Smith. He has been stopped once, by world-rated junior middleweight Alfredo Angulo after five torrid rounds.
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His victims include Hicklet Lau, Teddy Reid and Jose Varela.
The only foe common to both men is Luciano Perez, who lost a decision to Gutierrez midway through 2007 and was K0d in three rounds by Jones 18 months later.
The scheduled eight-round semifinal features a pair of Philadelphia junior middleweights: Gabriel Rosado (12-4, 7 K0s) vs. Latif Mundy (8-1-1, 3 K0s).
Five preliminary fights complete the show.
“Bally’s is proud to present this action-packed night in the Grand Ballroom on Saturday, November 7,” said Joseph Domenico, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Bally’s Atlantic City. “Championship boxing has always been, and continues to be, an important entertainment option at our property. With the quality of fighters and intriguing bouts on the card, this exciting event is shaping up to be another memorable night of boxing at Bally’s.”
Tickets are priced at $50 and $75. They are on sale at the offices of Peltz Boxing Promotions, Inc. (215-765-0922) or online at www.peltzboxing.com. Tickets also can be purchased through TicketMaster (800-745-3000) or online at www.ticketmaster.com.
VIP Boxing II Undercard Announced
On September 30th Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing will present its second installment of VIP Boxing at the beautiful Russo’s On The Bay in Howard Beach, NY. Headlining the show will be Star Boxing’s heavyweight prospect, the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Captain, “Devastatin” Devin Vargas (17-1, 7KO) taking on Terrell “Baby Bull” Nelson (8-8, 5KO) in an eight round heavyweight attraction.
In the co-feature bout of the evening, Star Boxing’s red hot light heavyweight prospect, “Terrible” Yathomas “The Punisher” Riley (7-0, 5KO) takes on Otgonbayer Daivii (3- 2-1, 1KO). The bout is scheduled for six rounds.
September 30th will mark the much anticipated return of Star Boxing’s Roberto Benitez (5-0, 3KO). Benitez, who hails from Brooklyn, had a storied amateur career, including competing in the 2004 Olympics for team U.S.A. Benitez suffered an injury in 2006 and has been out of the ring ever since. He is back now though and says he is better than ever. He is scheduled to take on Angel Paneto (4-5-2, 2KO). The bout is scheduled for six rounds in the super bantamweight divison.
Exciting New Haven jr. welterweight, Dominic DeSanto (2-1-1, 2KO) returns for his second showing at Star Boxing’s VIP Boxing, when he takes on Poughkeepsie, New York’s Israel Suarez (2-2). The bout is scheduled for four rounds in the jr welterweight division.
Also seeing action is undefeated welterweight prospect Gabriel Bracero (6-0). Bracero who hails from close by Queens, NY looks to add another win to his record as he continues to move up the welterweight ranks when he takes on Long Island’s Ashanti Hendrickson (1-3-1) in a scheduled six round welterweight contest.
Rounding out the card will be Russo’s On The Bay’s own, Jonathon Cuba will look to improve to a perfect 2-0, 2KO when he takes on Paterson, New Jersey’s Melchor Guillen (1-3). Cuba, who resides in nearby Queens, currently works part time for Russo’s. He will surely be looking to put on an impressive showing in front of his hometown fans, and fellow co-workers. The bout is scheduled for four rounds in the jr. welterweight division.
The show will kick off at 7PM sharp with an hour long cocktail reception. Immediately following the reception, a four course elegant dinner will start being served, at which time the first bout will go on. There will be cocktail service throughout, with an open bar running for the remainder of the evenings fights.
All seats will include full VIP services. Tables of ten are available for purchase for $1500 (Bronze), $2500 (Silver), and $3500 (Gold) respectively. There will be a limited amount of individual seats at select tables available, with the cost for each seat at $150, $250, and $350. You may contact Star Boxing for tickets at 718-823-2000 or by visiting www.starboxing.com. Russo’s On The Bay is located at 162-45 Cross Bay Blvd, Howard Beach, NY 11414.
PATRICK LOPEZ EXPLODES ON THE JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHT SCENE
ALSO, FEATHERWEIGHT PROSPECTS GARCIA AND HERNANDEZ MEET AGAIN
Orange, California (September 24) – Venezuelan junior welterweight Patrick Lopez is boxing’s definition of a late bloomer, but at 31, the two-time Olympian is approaching his prime, and he was definitely in top form in his September 11th bout against Tyler Ziolkowski at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, California. On Friday, September 25th, fans will see “El Elegante” in action in the main event of Fox Sports En Español’s “Boxeo Thompson.”
In the co-featured bout of the evening, highly-touted featherweight prospects Aaron Garcia and Jesus Antonio Hernandez meet for the second time in three months to reignite their heated local rivalry.
This hard-hitting Thompson Boxing doubleheader will air at 6pm PST / 9pm EST. Check your local listings for FSE.
About Thompson Boxing Promotions
Launched in May of 2000 by Ken Thompson, a former President of the World Boxing Hall of Fame, Thompson Boxing Promotions was established with the purpose of elevating the sport of boxing by providing exciting sports entertainment while showcasing talented athletes on their way to the summit of the sport. In the past nine years, the company has risen from being not only one of the top promotional firms in the competitive west coast market, consistently providing shows that live up to the adage ‘never a dull moment’, but to a nationwide powerhouse that includes on its roster some of the best talent in the game today, including Timothy Ray Bradley Jr., Juan Carlos Burgos, Dominic Salcido, Mauricio Herrera, Abraham Lopez, Josesito Lopez, Sergio Espinoza, and Pavel Miranda.