Magdaleno-Perez and Ramos-Collado on 7/15; Owusu-Rios on 7/7; Billy Costello passes away

NEW YORK (June 30, 2011) – In the realm of boxing series, none sticks to its mission statement as closely as the popular ShoBox: The New Generation, which celebrates its 10th anniversary on Friday, July 15, at 11:05 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) from Texas Station Gambling Hall & Casino in Las Vegas. The Top Rank-promoted doubleheader will feature a night of junior lightweight action with undefeated Diego Magdaleno (19-0, 7 KOs) squaring off against Alejandro Perez (15-2-1, 10 KOs) and Casey Ramos (13-0, 4 KOs) taking on Joselito Collado (12-0, 3 KOs) in a battle of unbeatens.

10th Anniversary Highlights, Stats and Facts …

ShoBox: The New Generation – The Mission

Televise a boxing series to serve as a proving ground for hungry, willing prospects. Thrust young up-and-comers from the anonymity of undercards to the glare of the national spotlight. Match each fighter against his toughest opponent to date and, in the process, expose untested hopefuls – but more importantly – build future champions.

For the last decade, ShoBox has garnered critical acclaim and industry respect by adhering to its central purpose: featuring prospects in pivotal fights where padding the win column stops and their true road to contender status begins. The series is so well defined that it has been added to the boxing lexicon. As characterized by Wikipedia, a “ShoBox fighter” refers to a “quality prospect primed for tougher competition.”

SHOWTIME implemented this decidedly boutique approach with the overall picture in mind.

“Creating a platform for young fighters is something that is not only important to SHOWTIME, but to the sport of boxing generally,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Vice President & General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports®. “With ShoBox, we seek out prospects that are willing to challenge themselves with high-risk bouts in exchange for national exposure. It’s a win-win for all involved, including our subscribers who get the entertainment of competitive fights and an introduction to the new generation of future champions.”

A staggering 87 fighters who fought on ShoBox moved on to challenge for a world title, with 42 of those fighters becoming world champions. The first future champ to emerge from ShoBox dates back to the series’ initial telecast on July 21, 2001. Leonard Dorin scored a ninth-round TKO over fellow unbeaten Martin O’Malley. Two fights later, Dorin was a world champion. With 157 ShoBox telecasts and 42 eventual world titlists, ShoBox enjoys a rough average of featuring a future champion every fourth show.

ShoBox – By the Numbers

42 – Fighters who fought on ShoBox and went on to win a world title. Notables include:

Andre Ward
Diego Corrales
Nonito Donaire
Chad Dawson
Timothy Bradley
Paul Williams
Juan Manuel Lopez
Robert Guerrero
Carl Froch
Kermit Cintron
Kendall Holt
Paulie Malignaggi
Kelly Pavlik
Andre Berto
Victor Ortiz

89 – Fighters who fought on ShoBox and went on to challenge for a world title

52 – Matches between undefeated fighters

89 – Fighters who suffered the first loss of their pro careers

6 – Fighters who won a world title after losing on ShoBox:

Luis Collazo
Robert Guerrero
Eric Aiken
David Diaz
Isaac Hlatshwayo
Cornelius Bundrage

157 – Telecasts

321 – Fights

58 – Cities that hosted a ShoBox event

5 – Most appearances on ShoBox

Andre Ward
Ishe Smith
Robert Guerrero
Sechew Powell
Kendall Holt
Mike Arnaoutis
Chris Avalos

ShoBox – Behind the Numbers

For Openers: Gary Russell Jr. is the only boxer to make his pro debut on ShoBox.

Quickest Out Of The Gate:

· T.J. Wilson KO 1 Travis Walker (15 seconds) on Oct. 19, 2007

· Allan Green KO 1 Jaidon Codrington (18 seconds) on Nov. 4, 2005

· Sechew Powell KO 1 Cornelius Bundrage (22 seconds) on May 6, 2005

Rematches: There have been only two rematches in the history of ShoBox. Each time, the loser in the first fight won the second by knockout.

T.J. Wilson KO 1 Travis Walker (Oct. 19, 2007); Walker KO 2 Wilson (Feb. 28, 2008)
Gamaliel Diaz W 10 Robert Guerrero (Dec. 2, 2005); Guerrero KO 6 Diaz (June 23, 2006)

The Hall Recall – Executive Producer Gordon Hall’s Quintessential ShoBox Fights:

Juan Urango (13-0) vs. Mike Arnaoutis (10-0-1) – D 12 – Aug. 5, 2004
The Hall Recall: “This fight was an all-out war that ended in a draw and is a classic example of two undefeated, talented fighters facing each other early in their careers on ShoBox.”

Robert Guerrero (16-0-1) vs. Gamaliel Diaz (19-5-2) – Diaz SD 12 Guerrero – Dec. 2, 2005
The Hall Recall: “A perfect example of a ShoBox fight where the young fighter is tested by the more seasoned fighter who had experience going into the later rounds and could move. Robert lost the fight in a split decision, but more importantly, he learned from the defeat, went on to avenge the loss on ShoBox and later won a world title.’’

Tim Bradley (21-0) vs. Junior Witter (36-1-3) – Bradley SD 12 Witter – May 10, 2008
The Hall Recall: “Before challenging for the junior welterweight title in Witter’s U.K. backyard, Bradley had never fought outside of California and was coming off the longest layoff of his career. Bradley’s knockdown of Witter in the sixth round was the turning point in the fight and he went on to win a split decision. Bradley developed in his three previous ShoBox appearances, which helped put him in position for this fight – where he became the first ShoBox fighter to win his title on ShoBox.’’

Marcus Johnson (20-0) vs. Dyah Davis (18-2-1) – Davis UD 10 Johnson;
Danny O’Connor (14-0) vs. Gabriel Bracero (14-0) – Bracero UD 8 O’Connor;
Willie Nelson (16-0-1) vs. Vincent Arroyo (10-1) – Arroyo MD 8 Nelson – April 8, 2011

The Hall Recall: “Three talented and touted prospects walked into the ring undefeated and walked out with a loss. And all on the same night… now that’s what I’m talking about!”

Ringside Analyst Steve Farhood’s Memorable Moments

The face of Ebo Elder after he rallied with a 12th-round TKO over Courtney Burton
(Dec. 17, 2004)
The 12th-round drama of Lucian Bute-Librado Andrade I
(Oct. 24, 2008)
Ricky Hatton’s ring entrances to “Blue Moon”
(Oct. 27, 2001, Dec. 15, 2001, Sept. 28, 2002)

Steve Farhood’s 10 Best ShoBox Fighters

o Tim Bradley

o Lucian Bute

o Diego Corrales

o Chad Dawson

o Nonito Donaire

o Robert Guerrero

o Joan Guzman

o Ricky Hatton

o Andre Ward

o Paul Williams

Steve Farhood’s 10 Best ShoBox Fights

o Kendall Holt KO 1 Ricardo Torres

(July 5, 2008)

o Carlos Abregu KO 4 Irving Garcia

(May 1, 2009)

o Juan Urango D 12 Mike Arnaoutis

(Aug. 5, 2004)

o Ebo Elder KO 12 Courtney Burton

(Dec. 17, 2004)

o Lucian Bute W 12 Librado Andrade

(Oct. 24, 2008)

o Sechew Powell KO 1 Cornelius Bundrage

(May 6, 2005)

o Mike Oliver W 12 Gary Stark

(Feb. 16, 2007)

o Kuvanych Toygonbayev W 10 Andrey Tsurkan

(May 22, 2003)

o Stevie Murray W 10 Martin Watson

(April 1, 2004)

o Orlando Cruz KO 5 Leonilo Miranda

(Jan. 16, 2009)

Owusu vs. Rios on 7/7

On Thursday July 7th, Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing returns to the Paradise Theater in the Bronx, for the latest installment of its popular, “Punchin at the Paradise” fight night series. The card will feature a number of exciting match-ups, including two separate fights that matches Bronx vs. Bronx, in a battle for neighborhood bragging rights. In addition to the pro fights featured on the card, there are also four amateur bouts scheduled to open up the show. The entire show will be broadcast live on GFL.TV.

“Our goal, and our vision with the series, is to be able to build up boxing here in the Bronx. We have a tremendous venue with the Paradise Theater, and now by putting together exciting fights, that match Bronx Fighters vs. Bronx Fighters, we are confident we are well on our way to achieving that goal,” stated Joe DeGuardia, CEO and President of Star Boxing. “Back in the glory days of boxing, these were the type of fights and cards you saw all the time. You have one guy fighting out of one gym in the Bronx, who is going to bring all his friends and supporters, fighting another guy whose gym is just a neighborhood away who will have all his fans cheering him on as well. Not only does it make for exciting fights, but also for a great atmosphere and in my eyes that’s what boxing is all about.”

The first Bronx Battle of the night will see tough veterans, Stephon “The Mandingo Warrior” Owusu (7-6, 4KO’s) (Bronxchester Boxing Club) and Angel “White Tiger” Rios (9-4, 6KO’s) (John’s Gym) go toe-to-toe in a six round welterweight showdown. Both Owusu and Rios, have similar stories, as both began their careers in the late 1990’s (Owusu in 1998, Rios in 1999). Both ran into some legal trouble a few years later that put their respective careers on the sidelines.

Rios who has been out of the ring since 2003, has been in with some pretty good opposition, having went the distance with former WBO super featherweight Champion, Mike Achondo, as well as former IBF, WBA and WBO lightweight Champion, Nate Campell.

Owusu, who made his return to the ring back in May on the first Punchin at the Paradise card of 2011, looked very good as he won a dominate four round decision before a strong contingent of fans in his first bout since 2000. With both fighters knowing that they can’t afford to have any additional hiccups in their careers, you can expect an all out war when the two meet on July 7th.

The second Bronx Battle matches former NY Golden Gloves Champion, Danny Valle (4-0, 3KO’s) against former bitter amateur rival, and fellow NY Golden Gloves Champion, Angel Torres, in a six round super featherweight showdown. There is bad blood between Valle and Torres that stems from their amateur days. They have talked about fighting one another for years, and now they will finally get a chance to settle the score once and for all on July 7th.

Also scheduled to see action on the card in separate four round bouts is the Bronx’s super middleweight, Michael Ocasio (1-0, 1KO) and Mount Vernon welterweight, Juan Perez.

Ocasio, who trains at the Morris Park Boxing Club, was a former baseball standout, and was on scholarship at the University of Miami before injuring his shoulder and forcing him away from the sport. Now Ocasio, who comes from a boxing background, is looking to see how far his athletic ability can take him in the fight game.

Doors open at 6:30PM, with the first bout scheduled for 7:00PM. Tickets are priced at $30, $50 and $100 and can be purchased by calling the Star Boxing office at 718 823-2000, visiting www.starboxing.com or simply by CLICKING HERE: Tickets can also be purchased by visiting the Paradise Theater box office, located at 2403 Grand Concourse in the Bronx, NY.

WBC News: Billy Costello passes away

The World Boxing Council informs with profound sorrow the passing away of its former world champion Billy Costello, and requests one day of mourning in the world of boxing.

Billy was the WBC super lightweight world champion in 1985 and 1985, and was a pride and friend of the WBC and its president. He was also the main theme of the book, “Black Lights,” written by Thomas Hauser.

These are sad moments for the WBC. Within a few days, two of its great champions have passed away – Billy and Genaro “Chicanito” Hernández.

Cruz-Carrasquillo on 7/1

NEW YORK / BETHELEHEM, PA (June 30, 2011)—Tomorrow night one of the top prospects in boxing will get his sternest test as undefeated Welterweight Ronald Cruz will put his perfect record on the line when he takes on knockout artist and upset specialist Doel Carrasquillo in a ten round main event of an eight bout card at the beautiful Sands Casino in Bethlehem.

Besides the obvious fight inside the ring, the two fighters live within an hour of each other so this fight is for local bragging rights.

The card is promoted by Hall of Fame promoter Russell Peltz

The entire show can be seen live on www.gfl.tv for just $9.99 all over the world by clicking: http://www.gfl.tv/Events/Fight/Boxing/Ronald_Cruz_vs_Doel_Carrasquillo_/1086

Cruz, who has built his reputation mostly in Philadelphia and Atlantic City now gets to display his talents in his hometown as he has compiled an unblemished mark of 12-0 with nine wins coming via stoppage.

Among those wins was a (til this point) career defining six round beat down of highly touted prospect Jeremy Bryan on October 30, 2010 in a bout that was seen live all over the world on www.gfl.tv.

Cruz has stopped his last five opponents including his last bout when he became the first man to stop twenty fight veteran Manuel Guzman in round three of their scheduled eight round bout.

Carrasquillo has a record of 15-17-1 with thirteen knockouts but that doesn’t tell the story as he has fought anybody and everybody.

The litany of quality fighters that he has fought is long and Carrasquillo has pulled off many upsets that have caught more than one eye of the boxing world.

Just ask the mega-prospect, Dennis Douglin.

On February 18th, Douglin took on Carrasquillo in what looked on paper to be an easy win for Douglin. One problem, Carrasquillo didn’t get the memo as he shocked the fighter known as the “Da Mama’s Boy” and scored the third round stoppage which surprised many boxing insiders.

Like Cruz, Douglin entered the ring with a 12-0 record.

Douglin isn’t the only one to feel the power of Carrasquillo as he has scored upsets over Kenny Abril (5-2-1); Isam Khalil (13-0-2); Tony Caldwell (9-2-3); Darren Fallen (10-3-1); Aaron Torres (14-5); Wayland Willingham (13-0) and Jorge Melendez (13-1).

“When you look at the records it looks like a typical cross roads fight”, said Marc Abrams, who will be calling the action ringside on www.gfl.tv

“The only problem with calling this a cross roads fight is that Carrasquillo is still driving on the same side of the street with these major prospects. Besides all those upsets, even his losses have been to the top guys and he has given those guys hell. We did the fight with (former world title challenger) Mike Arnaoutis and he beat him to the point where Mike’s face looked he had been in a war. All I need to say is this, this is the most dangerous fight of Cruz’ career. If he gets by this test, he will be sneaking up with the likes as Mike Jones as promoter Russell Peltz next big star”

A full seven bout undercard will be shown as undefeated Middleweight Rashad Brown looks to make it 5-0 when he takes on rugged Omar Sims in Brown’s first six round bout.

The action begins at 7:30 pm

FULL CARD

10 Rounds-Welterweights-Ronald Cruz (12-0, 9 KO’s) vs. Doel Carrasquillo (15-17-1, 13 KO’s
6 Rounds-Middleweights-Rashad Brown (4-0, 2 KO’s) vs. Omar Sims (5-3-3, 3 KO’s)
6 Rounds-Jr. Lightweights-Eilud Torres (5-2-2, 2 KO’s) vs. Bryne Green (6-4, 3 KO’s)
4 Rounds-Welterweights-Chris Plebani (0-2) vs. David Navarro (0-3)
4 Rounds-Heavyweights-William Miranda (2-3-1) vs. Zeferino Albino (4-12-3, 2 KO’s)
4 Rounds-Heavyweights-Eric Newell (1-1, 1 KO) vs. John Mercurio (4-0, 3 KO’s)
4 Rounds- Welterweights-Anthony Abrams (1-6,1 KO)vs. Grayson Blake (2-0, 1KO)
4 Rounds- Jr. Lightweights—Joshua Arocho (1-4, 1 KO) vs. Cesar Gonzalez (0-0-1)

Pakistan’s boxing team will taking part in 21st President Cup international boxing tournament

Karachi: Pakistan’s boxing team will taking part in 21st President Cup international boxing tournament which would be held at Jakarta, Indonesia from July 3rd to 9th, 2011.

Pakistani team are comprised Muhib Ullah (49KG), Muhammad Wseem (52KG), Syed Muhammad Hussain (56KG), Amir Khan (64KG) and Arshad Hussain (69KG), Ali bakhsh will acompany as coach and Lal Shah as a Assistant coach. Syed Muhammad Sharif will travel as a referee jugde.

Pakistani team will reach at Jinnah int’l airport Karachi at 9:30PM (Friday) flight time is 11:30PM