News: Michael Marrone; Vinny Maddalone; Jimmy Lange; More

By Laz Izada – You’ve heard it right boxing fans and heavyweight enthusiast the kid is back. Marrone if you recall turned pro at 18 after winning the Florida Golden Gloves. His professional career was being guided by Lou Duva at the time and composed an 18-1(13KO’s) record. He decided to take some time off after his first defeat in 2008 in Germany against Francesco Pianeta 20-0(12KO’s), (now ranked #10 by the WBO), at the time of that fight Marrone was recovering from the passing away of his younger brother Chris (car accident)..

Now at 24 and training out of McGirt Boxing in Vero Beach,Fl he’s returning to the ring with a new team consisting of trainers Eddie Chambers SR. and Victor Ramos, manager Jack Luce, and Don King as his promoter. This Saturday night he will be the featured main event in his comeback taking on 31 year old Joseph Rabotte 8-13-1(8KO’s) of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

I just recently spoke to his manager Jack Luce and he informed me that Mike has been “training for the past 14-15 months”. That he trains very well like the “Klitschko brothers and that after the Klitschko brothers there’s not a lot out there”. I believe with his new team and returning after some needed time off, after such unfortunate tragedy, in his life. He’ll bounce back now older, wiser and more dedicated than ever, and will be a force to be reckoned within the heavyweight division.

Saturday’s card will take place at the Deauville Beach Resort in Miami Beach. Promoter and owner of Elite Promotions Jeff Gibson tells me that a near capacity crowd of 2,000 fans are expected. It should be an exciting night of boxing, as Elite Promotions is known to deliver excellent boxing and mma shows in South Florida.

For ticket information call 561-629-6212

MADDALONE’S BOXING CAREER EXTENDING OUTSIDE THE RING

Star Boxing’s Heavyweight fan-favorite, Vinny Maddalone (33-6, 24KO’s), known for his warrior-like performances inside the ring, has began parlaying his popularity into a career outside the ring. Though still active; Maddalone scored a 5th round TKO over Dominique Alexander in his last bout back in March at the Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City, NJ; it was announced this week that he has been elected to serve on the Board of Directors to Ring 8, the Veteran Boxers Association of New York, Inc.

In addition, while he won’t be on the card at Star Boxing’s upcoming show at the Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City, Maddalone will play a major part in night’s events, serving as the host for what is shaping up to be an exciting night, featuring pre and post parties, at the ever popular Atlantic City Casino. Lastly, Maddalone recently opened a Restaurant and Bar (Ringside Bar and Grill) in his hometown of Queens, NY.

“We are very proud of Vinny’s accomplishments both inside, and now outside of the ring,” stated Joe DeGuardia, CEO of Star Boxing and long-time promoter of Maddalone. “Wherever he goes, Vinny is just so well-respected, and being elected to serve on the board is a true testament to that.”

Following Maddalone’s recent win in Atlantic City, long-time promoter Joe DeGuardia came up with the idea to have Maddalone host the next event.

“Vinny’s such a draw and has so many fans out there, I knew that if I wasn’t going to have him on the card, I still wanted him to be part of the event,” explained DeGuardia. “We are working on something big for Vinny in the early fall, so we wanted to hold off on putting him on this show, but he will be there, greeting fans, and hosting both our pre and post fight parties, for what is expected to be a huge turn out.”

“It’s a real honor to be elected to the Board,” stated Maddalone. “I have been involved with Ring 8 for sometime now, but to officially be named one of their own, and to have a voice in the organization, really is something special to me. “

Regarding his restaurant, Maddalone is optimistic about the future. “The restaurant is coming along well, I just brought in a new chef, and his food is unbelievable. I don’t want to just be the guy behind the scenes, I enjoy being there at night and greeting the customers and sitting down and talking with them one on one. It keeps me busy when I’m not in training, and it is something I can focus on when my boxing career one day comes to an end.”

The show at the Tropicana will take place on Saturday, July 17th and will feature top-rated heavyweight contender David Tua (51-3-1, 43KO’s), (WBO #2) taking on perennial contender Monte Barrett (34-9, 20KO’s).

Tickets can be purchased by calling the Star Boxing office at (718) 823-2000 or visiting www.starboxing.com. Tickets are priced at $100 (ringside), $50 and $30. Star Boxing is currently holding exclusive $200 VIP Packages, call for more information. Tickets may also be purchased at any Ticketmaster outlet, or by going online to Ticketmaster.com. Tickets are also available for purchase at the Tropicana North Tower Box Office or by phone at (609) 340-4000. The Tropicana Casino and Resort is located at 2831 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ.

Lange to Face LeBlanc in July 10 Main Event at the Patriot Center

Jonathan Reid, Todd “White Lightning” Wilson, Zain “The Tiger” Shan Added to Card;

“The Bolivian Queen” Jennifer Salinas to Battle Nathalie Forget

FAIRFAX, VA (June 16, 2010) – On July 10 at the Patriot Center, popular junior middleweight contender, Jimmy Lange (31-4-2, 22 KOs) of Great Falls, VA looks to get back on the winning track when he goes head-to-head against ring veteran Jimmy LeBlanc (12-16-4, 4 KOs) of Weymouth, MA in the Main Event. The show will take place at the George Mason University campus facility which will be Lange’s tenth straight bout on his home turf. The 10-round headliner is part of “No Excuses,” an Ice Promotions event (www.jimmylangeboxing.com) presented by Valcourt Building Services (www.valcourt.net) featuring top professional boxing. Tickets start at only $35 and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, including the Patriot Center box office.

Lange, a former star on the first season of The Contender reality TV boxing show, has held two World Boxing Championship (WBC) regional belts (Continental Americas and USNBC). After losing a 12-round decision to Chase Shields back in March, he is seeking a victory over LeBlanc, who has consistently faced tough opponents during his 12-year career; including former World Boxing Association (WBA) super welterweight champion Yuri Foreman. In fact, the combined record of LeBlanc’s opponents over the past five years is 91-21-6. Two years ago, LeBlanc stunned the Patriot Center crowd by knocking out former local contender Luther Smith in the first round. The Boston-based boxer lost his last fight to undefeated Irish prospect Gary “Spike” O’Sullivan via a fourth-round disqualification in March 2009.

Middleweight Jonathan Reid (34-12, 19 KOs), Lange’s teammate from The Contender, and undefeated welterweight prospect Todd “White Lighting” Wilson (7-0, 1 KO) of Falls Church, VA have been added to the already action-packed lineup. Opponents for both fighters are to be determined.

Reid and Lange waged a war when they faced off last September at the Patriot Center. Both fighters earned praise and respect for the exciting fight with Lange emerging victorious by way of a nine-round TKO. Fighting out of Nashville, TN, Reid has faced world-class talents such as Pawel Wolak, Maxim Vlasov, Paul Smith and former D.C. world champion William Joppy during his career.

Fighting out of Annandale (VA) Boxing Club, Wilson has developed a strong local following since turning pro in 2007. He pulled out a tough win over Dontre King in his last bout held four months ago in Baltimore. As an amateur competing for Virginia Military Institute, the tough southpaw captured the 139-pound national championship in 2004.

Hard-punching Zain “The Tiger” Shah (2-0, 2 KOs) of Chantilly, VA will take on Washington, DC’s Antonio Walls (2-3, 1 KO) in a four-round middleweight contest. Shah cut his teeth at Finley’s Gym in DC, but now calls Annandale Boys Club home. He earned 25 wins as an amateur and was the Potomac Valley, MD, VA & DC open class and novice Golden Glove Champion. Standing in his way will be Walls, who trains out of Tony Bell’s gym in the District, looking to end a three-fight losing streak.

In other action, “The Bolivian Queen” Jennifer Salinas (11-1, 4 KOs) of Manassas, VA is set to face Montreal, Quebec’s Nathalie Forget (2-1) in a six-round featherweight contest. The popular Salinas, who serves as an instructor and trains out of LA Boxing, won her last two fights in 2009, both staged at the Patriot Center. She looks to continue working her way up the ranks towards title contention against Forget, a former top amateur competitor.

The eight-round co-main event features a welterweight showdown between Baltimore’s Tim “The Pitbull” Coleman (17-1-1, 4 KOs) and tough Detroit southpaw Damian Fuller (30-7-1, 14 KOs). Other bouts previously announced are Juan “The Savior” Rodriguez (4-0, 4 KOs) of Haymarket, VA vs. Dontre King (2-7-1, 1 KOs) of Cambridge, MD (six-round welterweight); Tony “Mo Better” Jeter (9-2, 8 KOs) of Columbia, MD vs. Lawrence Jones (3-2-1, 1 KO) of Reston, VA (six-round middleweight); Brandon Quarles (pro debut) of Alexandria, VA vs. Vince “The Beast” Batteast (1-2-1) of Annapolis, MD (four-round middleweight). Bouts are subject to change.

Doors open at 6:30 pm with the first fight set for 7:30 pm. Tickets cost $35, $50, $75, $125, $200, $300 and $500 (plus applicable service charge) and can be purchased through Ticketmaster by logging onto www.ticketmaster.com, calling phone charge at 703-573-SEAT, 202-397-SEAT or 410-547-SEAT or by visiting any Ticketmaster outlet, including the Patriot Center box office (703-993-3000).

“Pugilism at the Plex” postponed!

Event will be added to American Dreams Promotions event on July 31st at Nautica Pavilion in Downtown Cleveland!

Cleveland, Ohio – June 12, 2010 – Warner Promotions scheduled event, Pugislism at the Plex, which was scheduled for June 26th in North Olmsted has been postponed. The entire card will be shifting to July 31st in Cleveland, at the Nautica Pavilion in the Flats. The event will now be a co-promotion with American Dream Promotions.

There will be three bouts added to the original card, with Cleveland’s Ronald “The American Dream” Johnson (11-1, 3 KO’s) headlining the card in a ten round bout. Also added to the card will be Cleveland’s “Awesome” Aaron Williams (19-2-1, 13 KO’s) as he will participate in an eight round bout and Cleveland’s Dante Moore (6-0, 4 KO’s) in a six round bout. Opponents for all three will be announced shortly.

Other bouts during the evening will be a four round professional fight featuring “The Pride of Lorain” Wilkins Santiago (1-0), coming off a scintillating pro-debut in April. Santiago is one of the area’s best middleweights and is a promising prospect with a hard-punching style to please all fans. His opponent will be French native Hedi Bouaziz (1-2), now fighting out of Los Angeles, Calif.

Julius Leegrand, of Cleveland, will be looking to stay undefeated in a four round professional bout in the lightweight division. The motivated Leegrand was a 2005 Cleveland Golden Gloves champion and a representative of the U.S. in the 2008 Eastern Trials as an amateur. The 22-year-old slick boxer most recently knocked out Francisco Portillo on April 24th to improve his record to three wins, no losses, and one win by way of knockout. Leegrand will be testing his skill against the rugged Ricky Thompson, from Odessa, Texas and a veteran of eight professional fights.

Also being featured on the card is Cleveland junior middleweight Michael Moore (1-0, 1 KO) in a four round fight. Moore last fought in January travelling to Michigan to stop his opponent in the first round. Moore is matched against Rogelio Sanchez (0-1) of Fort Wayne, Ind. Also seeing action scheduled for four rounds is the Puerto Rican sensation Ivan “The Hurricane” Hernandez by way of Dunkirk, N.Y. Hernandez, 21, will be making his long awaited professional debut. As an amateur he was a two-time Junior Olympian and Empire State Games participant and won 49 of his 56 fights. His first professional opponent has yet to be determined.

More information will be released in the coming days. Information will include where to purchase tickets and how much, as well as more detailed information regarding the event.