Los Angeles, CA (May 12, 2011) – The undercard for the May 14 World Championship event at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA will feature a Southern California flavor with 2008 LA-area Olympic U.S. teammates Shawn “Manos De Oro” Estrada and Javier “El Intocable” Molina in separate bouts.
Estrada (11-0, 10 KOs), from East Los Angeles, will be seeking his 12th straight win to start his pro career when he takes on Joseph Gardner (7-2-1, 1 KO), of Woonsocket, RI in a scheduled six-round super middleweight contest.
“It’s great to be back at the Home Depot Center in front of my fans, family and friends,” said the 26-year old Estrada, who demolished Jon Schmidt in less than two minutes back in late January in Temecula prior to making an ill-fated political run at a city council position.
“I have been training extremely hard and am ready to show what I have to be a super middleweight title contender. I am done with political campaigning and am focused solely on boxing and eventually becoming a world champion.”
Molina (5-0, 4 KOs), is a 21-year old junior middleweight from Norwalk, CA, who has been battling a hand injury which kept him out of action for almost a year before he came back to stop Antonio Arauz in :39 in October, 2010 in Lemoore, CA. In his most recent appearance back in late November, Molina recorded a unanimous-decision victory over Francisco Rios Gil but in the process reinjured his hand. Saturday, Molina will take the last six months of extreme hand therapy into the ring when he battles Danny Figueroa (3-1, 2 KOs), of Hastings, MN, in a scheduled four-rounder.
“I am very excited to be back 100% healthy and fighting near my hometown,” Molina shared. “I have a new physical therapist, who has done a great job on rehabbing my hand, as well as a new trainer in Clemente Medina. I feel that my hand injury is totally behind me and I am ready to let my hands go with full confidence, so I can get my career back on track.”
Also slated to see action in a scheduled 10-round heavyweight bout will be Bakersfield, CA native Manny “El Toro” Quezada (29-6, 18 KOs). Coming off consecutive hard-fought setbacks most recently against Chris Arreola, Quezada will face a stern-tough challenge in L.A.’s Bowie Tupou (19-1, 15 KOs) who is looking to fight his way into the top 10 in the world.
“I am coming off two losses which is kind of rare for me,” Quezada acknowledged. “I had a long winning streak for awhile and everything was great. Then I lost two fights, and everything kind of changed. But it was all my fault and I’ve made some changes going back to my old trainer and I feel great and will be ready for this fight.”
“I’m ready to stop Quezada and jump into the heavyweight picture with the other champions,” Tupou stated. “I’m just happy Quezada took this challenge.”
“We have a very competitive undercard leading up to the main bouts and suggest to the fans they arrive early to see the hope-to-be stars of tomorrow fighting,” Dan Goossen of Goossen Tutor Promotions said.
The evening will be headlined by the Semi-Final Tournament bout of the Super Six World Boxing Classic between WBA Super Middleweight Champion Andre “S.O.G.” Ward and “King” Arthur Abraham, in which Ward’s world title will also be at stake. The co-feature pits Riverside’s world heavyweight contender Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola vs. Nagy “Dominican Dynamite” Aguilera.
Tickets for this May 14 action-packed, world championship boxing card are priced at $25, $50, $100 and $200 (VIP floor seats). Fans can purchase tickets now at all Ticketmaster outlets and online at www.Ticketmaster.com as well as The Home Depot Center Box Office (open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
Peter ‘Kid Chocolate’ Quillin now in sweet position
LOS ANGELES (May 11, 2011) – Newly-crowned USBO Super Middleweight champion and undefeated prospect, Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin (24-0, 18 KO’s), finds himself in a sweet position after his electrifying knockout of former world title challenger Jesse Brinkley (35-7, 22 KO’s) on April 30 in Reno, Nevada in a fight televised live on TeleFutura’s “Solo Boxeo Tecate.”
The 27-year-old Quillin rocked Brinkley in the opening round with an overhand right, showed poise during target practice in the following round, and finished-off the then International Boxing Federation (“IBF”) No. 7-rated Brinkley when referee Joe Cortez mercifully halted the action at 2:34 of the third.
“Going into that fight I had a lot more confidence to do in the ring what I had worked so hard on in training camp,” Quillin said. “I orchestrated my camp and was more in rhythm to take care of boxing in order to be an explosive winner. I hurt him in the first round but didn’t go in for the kill. I relaxed and took my shots, realizing I could hit him again at any time. I hit him with a lot of hard, accurate shots. I stayed with our game plan in the second round but my corner (trainer Eric Brown) told me after the second round that Brinkley was ready to go.
“Our game plan was to box him the first five rounds and go from there with a lot of pressure. I hurt him in the first but didn’t pressure him then because I didn’t exactly know how he’d react. I never underestimated him because he’s a serious fighter. I didn’t want to risk trying to finish him off then. I was in the biggest fight of my career and just did what was natural. I knew I had a lot of power and he was right there for me to hit. I wanted to show more boxing, go to the body, but the fight only lasted three rounds.”
Quillin is now in an enviable position, training at Wild Club Boxing Club under Freddie Roach and Brown, promoted by Golden Boy, and even being mentioned as a participant in a high-profile fight, possibly against Sergio Martinez.
“I’ll fight anybody put in front of me as long as everybody – Golden Boy, my manager (John Seip) and corner – all agree that the opponent is the right one at this stage of my career,” Quillin noted.
Seip doesn’t believe there’s a rush for “Kid Chocolate” to be in a mega-fight, or need to fight again above middleweight. He noted that Quillin is a relatively young 27 with only 15 amateur matches and no “wars” as a professional having won 84 of 86 rounds.
“I’ve been with Petey six years and we’re going to stay the course,” Seip explained. “Why deviate? He’s on his way and totally destroyed Brinkley. He’s getting stronger working with his strength-and-conditioning coach, Brad Bose (Anatomi Gym in Santa Monica), who I call ‘The Professor’ because of his cutting edge programs. We’re sold on Golden Boy, Freddie Roach and Eric Brown, and believe with them he’ll become world champion. Petey has youth, athleticism, speed and power but people still haven’t seen his best punch, yet – left hook – because he’s been hurting guys with his right. I’d like to get him one or two more fights against a top 10, top 5 opponent before putting him in a world title fight. Physically, he’s capable right now, but this is the big time and I want to make sure he’s mentally prepared for the pressures of fighting in a major fight.
“He certainly was impressive, looking real strong against Brinkley, but Petey is going back down to 160 for good. We took this one fight against Brinkley because it was a great opportunity, but Petey is a middleweight, and I believe he’s the biggest puncher there. After the fight Brinkley told me Petey hits harder than (Lucian) Bute. We’ve been patient all along and there’s no reason to change now.”
For more information about Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin go online to www.TheKidChocolate.com or follow him on Twitter @/Kid Chocolate.
Hasim Rahman vs. Willie Herring on 6/11
MEMPHIS, TN – Prize Fight and Greg Cohen Promotions are proud to introduce TNT at the DCC on June 11th from the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven, MS. TNT is a six bout card featuring former 2-Time Heavyweight Champion of the World Hasim “The Rock” Rahman 49-7-2 (40 KO’s). Rahman will unleash his world renown power on Willie Herring of Orlando, FL in a ten round clash of goliaths. Rahman, the current #5 ranked heavyweight in the World, is aiming towards one last shot at the coveted Heavyweight Championship of the World. Rahman catapulted to boxing prominence with a stunning and brutal fifth round knockout of reigning heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis in South Africa.
After knocking out Lewis, Rahman went on to fight the best names in the boxing world such as Evander Holyfield, David Tua and many others. Consequently, Rahman was dethroned by boxing’s elite on his path to greatness but was able to recapture the heavyweight championship of the World for a second time with a dominating performance against Monte Barrett in Chicago. Rahman had his chance to become a 3-Time Champion three years ago in Germany but succumbed to a seventh round stoppage of reigning heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko. Since the Klitschko fight, Rahman has rolled off four knockout victories in order to put himself in line for the title shot again. Standing in Rahman’s way though is the formidable Willie Herring. Herring, 32, views this shot against Rahman as his opportunity to throw his name in the mix for more big fights and opportunities. Herring is an all action boxer that is sure to make for a crowd pleasing fight for the Mid-South fans in attendance at the DeSoto Civic Center.
The star studded undercard features some of the top prospects in the world as well as some of the most notable boxers in the Mid-South. Dominic Wade 11-0 (8 KO’s), one of ESPN’s “Super 25” prospects, will be showcased in an eight round bout against Juan Astorga 15-6-1 (10 KO’s) from Chihuahua, Mexico. Wade known for his flair for dramatic knockouts will being taking a big step up in class as he looks to remain undefeated against the physical Astorga who has faced many of the top middleweights in boxing today. Further, amateur sensation and recent Prize Fight signee Dusty Harrison will make his pro debut against Troy White of St. Louis, MO. Harrison will turn just 17 years old on May 21 and will become the youngest professional boxer in the United States as he takes to the ring on June 11th against White. Harrison, from Waldorf, MD, was considered one of the top amateur fighters in the world but decided to forego a shot at the 2012 United States Olympic Boxing Team and turn professional. Also on the undercard is local favorite Curtis Tate 3-1 (3 KO’s) from Olive Branch, MS. Tate is well know to Mid-South boxing fans for his tremendous power and exciting style in the ring. Tate will be fighting a 4 round heavyweight match up. Finally, Dedrick Bell from Memphis, TN looks to avenge a heartbreaking loss early in his career against Rohan Wilson of Atlanta. The first match up between Bell and Wilson was a spirited back and forth fight at the Fitz Casino in Tunica, MS. The two combatants look to pick up where they left off and give the crowd an entertaining six rounds of action.
Tickets for TNT at the DCC go on sale Friday, May 13th at 10 AM and can be purchased at the DeSoto Civic Center Box Office, by calling ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000 or by visiting ticketmaster on line at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets are priced very affordable beginning at just $25. Doors for the event open at 7:00 PM and the first bout is slated to begin at 7:30 PM. TNT at the DCC will be broadcast via tape delay on Fox’s Sportsouth network throughout the southeastern United States on Comcast and nationally on DirectTV and DISH Network reaching nearly ninety million homes.