Earlier today Michael Katsidis and his manager Brendon Smith issued a statement saying that an agreement had been reached with Graham Earl and that the long awaited rematch of their epic 2007 encounter will take place in Queensland, Australia later this year.
Their first encounter, for the WBO interim Lightweight title, took place before a packed house at Wembley Arena. The fight rightly earned the 2007 Fight of the Year honours as the fans were treated to a full on battle royale. For five action packed rounds the pair traded punches. Both tasted the canvas, Earl three and Katsidis once before Graham’s corner retired him on the stool.
Earlier today Graham responded to Michael and Brendon’s statement, “Yeah, brilliant, we’re finally there. Once we’ve got the contracts and we’ve signed them it’ll be all systems go.
We’re looking at the end of August or early September but no later than the first week of September. Location wise I’m not a hundred percent sure other than it will be in Queensland.
I know that there are a lot of doubters out there and obviously I can’t blame them.
With regards to the loss to Henry Castle that was purely down to a fighter shouldn’t have to train himself and having no sparring. To be honest with you it wasn’t very professional and that’s what that all came down to.
I know that there are a lot of doubters out there that are saying ‘no you shouldn’t fight you’ll get hurt’ and that, but most of these people have not been in the ring before.
People get hurt when they don’t do the weight and cut out the fluids and food. I’ve been there and see it happen. But I’ve always done it right and I will always do it right.
I’ve been training, I’ve been ticking over myself. I didn’t want to go jump the gun until it’s a hundred percent done deal. We’ve been here before, maybe once or twice before and it’s gone off.
Now it’s finally here and it’s really going to happen so now I’ll sit down and start putting it together and work out what we want to do.
I can’t wait to avenge my loss of 2007. It’s going to be another war, I have no choice on that as it’s the way Katsidis fights. To be honest with you it’ll be a tough, tough fight but I found it quite easy fighting that way last time.
I’ve seen that fight so many times in my head there wont be any half heartedness from me. I’ll make sure that and give the fans the fight they want and deserve.”
An announcement, giving the date and location of the highly anticipated rematch, is expected shortly.
Five Quick Questions For Hector “El Flaco” Sanchez
With a record of 19-1, 9 KOs, Team Puerto Rico’s Hector “El Flaco” Sanchez is the second most experienced member of Team Puerto Rico (Cesar Seda has challenged for a world title and turned pro the same year, 2005).
He is going to need all of that experience to overcome the challenge of hard-punching Vincent Arroyo, whom he will face on Saturday, June 11 at the Boricua Invasion II boxing event at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City and televised on the popular ShoBox: The New Generation, live at 10:35 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME.
Extremely tall for a junior welterweight (6′ 1″), Sanchez prefers to box from the outside and potshot with his long arms while maintaining an excellent work rate. However, when the opportunity to exchange punches arises, he will seldom refuse.
24-year-old Sanchez was an excellent amateur boxer, going 72-10 and winning several international tournaments. He has already scored several notable victories in his career, including a win over the great Mexican standout Albert Rodriguez and another over DeMarcus “Chop Chop” Corley.
When did you start boxing?
I started boxing when I was little, about 14 years old, and never left it since.
Tell me about your life in Puerto Rico.
My life is pretty good. Besides boxing, I also immerse myself in a lot community service. I think that it is imperative for me, as a boxer, to give back to the people that have given me so much.
Describe your boxing style.
Well, my style is basically to throw punches in bunches, have good defense and connect with punches. What I do is overwhelm my opponents with my high volume of activity.
Name a few boxers you admire and tell me why.
My favorite boxer of all time is Felix “Tito” Trinidad. He was an animal in the ring and, outside of it, the most humble human being I’ve ever met.
What do you know about your next opponent?
I’ve seen him fight and he’s a great fighter and that’s why I’m preparing myself so thoroughly to fight him. I need to be at my best to beat Arroyo.
Team Puerto Rico’s Next Appearance:
Back-to-back, on June 10 and 11 (Friday and Saturday before the 2011 National Puerto Rican Day Parade on Sunday) at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City, Gary Shaw Productions and DiBella Entertainment will present Boricua Invasion I and II, featuring members of Team Puerto Rico Boxing, the eight-man team of Puerto Rico’s future ring stars.
Friday’s Boricua Invasion I will feature the unstoppable welterweight on everybody’s “one to watch” list, Thomas Dulorme (11-0, 10 KOs) vs. former world champion DeMarcus Corley; Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico’s highlight-reel welterweight KO specialist Kenny “Battlestar” Galarza (14-1, 14 KOs) vs. Puerto Rican compatriot Irving Garcia and the future superstar already fighting in main events after just two bouts, Jose “Sniper” Pedraza (2-0, 2 KOs). The main bouts of Boricua Invasion I will be televised on ESPN Friday Night Fights.
Saturday’s Boricua Invasion II will feature four more members of Team Puerto Rico: featherweight Luis “Orlandito” Del Valle (12-0, 10 KOs) vs. Dat Nguyen; junior middleweight Jonathan “Mantequilla Gonzalez (12-0, 12 KOs); and light welterweight Sanchez vs. Arroyo. Also scheduled for action are Team Puerto Rico light welterweight Jorge “Machito” Maysonet Jr. (3-0, 2 KOs); plus a special off-TV appearance by Puerto Rico-born light welterweight Gabriel “Tito” Bracero (15-0, 1 KO) of Brooklyn. The main bouts of Boricua Invasion II will be broadcast live on Showtime: The New Generation.
Tickets for Boricua Invasion I on Friday, June 10 are priced at $175, $125, $75, $45 and are available through Ticketmaster.com, charge-by-phone, or at any Ticketmaster outlet. On Friday, doors will open at 6:00 pm and the action starts at 6:30.
Tickets for Boricua Invasion II on Saturday, June 11 are priced at $200, $150, $85, and $55 and are available through Ticketmaster.com, charge-by-phone, or at any Ticketmaster outlet. On Saturday, doors will open at 7:00 pm and the action starts at 7:30.
For VIP Package tickets to both nights, please call DiBella Entertainment at 212-947-2577.
The Roseland Ballroom is located at 239 West 52nd Street in New York City.
All bouts are subject to change.
Partnership between InterBox and TVA Sports: A new sports channel is created!
Montreal, Wednesday June 1st 2011 – TVA Group’s new specialty channel, TVA Sports, will start broadcasting throughout Quebec at the beginning of the fall 2011 season and InterBox will be a big part of it. Pierre-Karl Péladeau, President and CEO of Quebecor and Quebecor Media, and Pierre Dion, President and CEO of TVA Group, officially announced the launch this morning, surrounded by sports executives, athletes and some of the prestigious channel’s future personalities. Mr. Péladeau wore an “IBF Champion” cap during the press conference that was signed for him by Lucian Bute the night Lucian won the IBF World title (October 19th 2007).
TVA Sports has signed an agreement with InterBox under which it will broadcast some live fights as well as replays of classic match-ups that thrilled boxing fans over the last 14 years of InterBox’s existence. Audiences will also get exclusive content, interviews, backstage visits and training reports on boxers such as Lucian Bute and blue chip prospect Pier-Olivier Cote.
Jean Bedard, CEO of InterBox, Eric Lucas, former WBC super middleweight champion (2001-2003), Lucian Bute, undefeated current IBF super middleweight champion and Pier-Olivier Cote, one InterBox’s brightest stars, attended this big announcement in Montreal as honored guests.
TVA has broadcast some of the biggest fights in the history of InterBox. They presented Eric Lucas vs Markus Beyer in 2003. They also aired Lucian Bute vs Alejandro Berrio in October 2007. That night, Lucian Bute became the IBF super middleweight champion. 1.2 million people tuned in to watch that fight. In February 2008, for the first title defense of Lucian Bute vs William Joppy, TVA drew an audience of 1.1 million people.
TVA Sports has also signed long-term agreements with a good number of leading sports organizations for broadcast rights to some of the most popular sporting events: Ottawa Senators Hockey (NHL), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Toronto Blue Jays (MLB), Champions League Soccer (UEFA), Champions Tour Montreal (Golf), Velirium of Quebec and Quebec Open Jeep (Beach Volleyball).
Drawing on Quebecor Media’s resources
The majority of InterBox’s events will still be PPV, but TVA Sports will help create a build-up and promotion before each major fight. TVA Sports intends to draw on the force of Quebecor Media, one of Canada’s largest media companies, wherever possible: “Our well-known convergence strategy is an effective and attractive way to offer television viewers the best content,” said Pierre Karl Péladeau during the press conference this morning. “TVA Sports will be able to count not only on the resources of TVA and LCN, but also Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, all our dailies and community newspapers across the country, and the QMI Agency.”
“Our closeness to the audience, our ability to bring people together, our unflinching opinions and our commitment to being first with the news will set TVA Sports apart,” said Pierre Dion. “I am confident that our sports news team, managed by Serge Fortin, director of TVA News and the QMI Agency will captivate sports fans on all delivery channels: television, Internet, mobiles and tablets.”
InterBox and Groupe Sportscene President Mr. Jean Bédard is extremely happy to be associated with such a prestigious group as TVA. “There is a lot of rich history between TVA and InterBox. They have always been there for us, and have always demonstrated a strong interest in our Organization. We look forward to helping them build one of the best sports channels in Quebec”.