LAS VEGAS (June 30, 2011) – Due to injuries suffered in a car accident involving former lightweight champion Joel Casamayor, the lineup for the July 29 “Fight Night at The Cosmopolitan” event at the Chelsea Ballroom has changed.
The Casamayor vs. Jorge Teron match-up has been cancelled. In its place, will be a 12-round International Boxing Federation (IBF) Super Lightweight Elimination bout between the Dominican Republic’s once-beaten IBF #3-rated Victor “Mermelada” Cayo (20-1, 18 KOs) and Washington DC’s IBF #4-ranked Lamont Peterson (24-1-1, 14 KOs).
The 10-round light heavyweight showdown between Edison “Pantera” Miranda (34-5, 29 KOs) and Yordanis Despaigne (8-1, 4 KOs) will remain on the card.
In conjunction with Warriors Boxing Promotions and Blue Wave Group, “Fight Nights at The Cosmopolitan” combines the mystique and excitement of legendary Las Vegas boxing matches with a new and socially dynamic experience. Tickets are on sale now and priced at $250 for VIP tables, $150 for ringside seats, $100 for floor seats, $50 for grandstand seating and $20 for general admission tickets and are available for purchase by calling 877-551-7778 or at www.cosmopolitanlasvegas.com.
Cayo and Peterson will be fighting for the #1 world ranking and the right to face the winner of July 23 bout between current IBF king Zab Judah and WBA champion Amir Khan.
Victor “Mermelada” Cayo is an excellent fighter with good power, speed and incredible elusiveness.
The 26-year-old Dominican Republic native started boxing at the age of 11 after finding himself in several street fights. “One day I was walking by this boxing gym in my neighborhood and I asked the coach to teach me how to box and defend myself. I have been doing this ever since and won’t stop till I become a world champion.”
Cayo had over 300 amateur fights and won numerous tournaments including the Dominican Republic Military Games and won a Silver Medal in the Cupa Independencia De Boxeo, fighting against boxers from Canada, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Haiti, Ecuador and Italy.
He is managed by Caesar Mercedes and trained by Gabriel Sarmiento and co-promoted by Warriors Boxing and Samson Boxing. He trains at World Crown Sports Facility in Oxnard, California.
At the age of 27, Lamont Peterson is a six-year pro. He is the older brother, by 14 months, of lightweight contender Anthony Peterson – both were amateur standouts before they turned pro.
The Petersons have been regularly featured on ESPN and HBO boxing telecasts and their story has been frequently discussed on the show. They were left without parents at an early age, with their father in prison and their mother suffering personal issues. The brothers were reportedly homeless on the streets of Washington, DC for several years.
While homeless at age 10, they were noticed by Barry Hunter, a boxing coach. Over time Hunter developed their boxing skills while mentoring them and both brothers morphed into amateur boxing stars.
Lamont (28-1-1, 14 KOs) is a former World Boxing Organization (WBO) Interim Junior Welterweight World Champion. He won the title in April 2009. He is coming off a 10-round draw on December 11, 2010, with top-rated contender Victor Ortiz at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and live on HBO. He suffered a 12 round decision loss in a WBO junior welterweight world title challenge against defending champion Timothy Bradley Jr. in December 2009.
Peterson was last seen in December fighting to an HBO-televised draw with now world champion Victor Oritz. Cayo’s most recent appearance was a first-round knockout over Javier Gomez on October 29.
“Because of the unfortunate news that happened to Joel Casamayor, we were able to move this sensational Cayo vs. Peterson fight to The Cosmopolitan,” explained promoter Leon Margules of Warriors Boxing, “and that is very, very good news for the fans in attendance and those who will be watching around the world. The July 30 Fight Night at the Cosmopolitan will be one of the best Friday Night Fights broadcasts of the year with tremendous significance on the world stage for its competitors. “
Undercard bouts will be announced shortly.
DAVID MEDINA READY, WILLING, AND ABLE TO FIGHT CHAVEZ IN MEXICO
With the WBC giving it’s newly crowned middleweight champion, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., it’s blessing to take a voluntary defense of his title before squaring off against WBC Diamond Champion Sergio Martinez, there is one top ten middleweight contender who is eying the opportunity to overturn the apple cart.
World Boxing Council (WBC)#11 ranked middleweight, and two time WBC USNBC champion David Medina (23-2, 11 ko’s) feels he is up tot he task of fighting Chavez and has no qualms about taking the fight to him in Mexico. “Jose Sulaiman allowed Chavez to take on a voluntary defense of his title, and if Chavez wants to put on a fight in Mexico we think David Medina is the natural choice,” commented Medina’s promoter Zef Ramierez of Zeferino Entertainment, “he’s an exciting fighter and he’s Mexican to boot.”
But team Medina also feel that besides being an opprtunity to step onto the world stage , that this is a golden opportunity to win the title.
“I have a lot of respect for Chavez,” added Ramirez, “but let’s face it, he was protected. And quite frankly, if a hard punching middleweight hits Chavez with the shots Sebastian Zbik hit him with he’d get knocked out. I think David’s got the power to do just that, and I know Chavez will be looking past him.”
Ramirez advised that team Chavez wants to fight David Medina in Culiacan, Mexico in September, but also recognized that a previous fight with Medina fell through in the past.
“I don’t want to disrespect anyone,” added Ramirez, “but unless you are willing to fight #1 contender Marco Antonio Rubio, then there is no natural opponents for his fans in Culiacan. They want to see a war between their champion and another Latino warrior. David Medina is just that, a Mexican American warrior who will give fans a fight to remember.”
Although the normally soft spoken Medina refused to criticize the champion, he also was not convinced that Chavez has the makings of a great champion either, and is eager to take the belt off his waist.
“He’s not his father,” Medina recently said about Chavez after his last fight, a sixth round knock out over Mexican brawler Juan Astorga.
Mansour vs. Guinn on August 19th
DOVER, Del. — Dover Downs Hotel & Casino announces the next Friday Night Fights series event on Aug. 19 in the Rollins Center arena. World Boxing Federation (WBF) Intercontinental Heavyweight champion Amir “Hard Core” Mansour returns with his pristine 14-0 record to battle for his second title belt in the IBF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship against Dominick “The Southern Disaster” Guinn, 33(22)-7-1, of Houston, TX. In May, Mansour pummeled opponent Raymond “King Kong” Ochieng of Nairobi, Kenya, with four knockdowns resulting in a TKO after 1:45 in the first round.
Former Golden Gloves superstar “Queen” Ronica Jeffrey, 7(1)-0 will challenge Ela “Bam Bam” Nunez, 9(2)-9(1)-1, for the vacant female NABF Super Featherweight Title. “Queen” Ronica of Brooklyn, NY, has become the darling of the Rollins Center arena in Dover. An amateur champion with a clean record, Jeffrey is now poised to go for a professional title in six 2-minute rounds.
Tickets will be offered for sale soon, ranging from $35 to $100. The first bout will begin at 7:30 p.m. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Will call will be open from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Haye, David’s fight against Klitschko set to bust £20m bets record
Ricky Hatton’s £20m bets record under threat:
HAYE, I’LL HAVE SIXTY GRAND ON DAVID TO CLUMP KLITSCHKO!
A WILLIAM HILL betting shop client in West London has put down £60,000 on a David Haye victory on Saturday night in what could be the biggest betting boxing event of all time – eclipsing even the current record £20million gamble when Ricky Hatton lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007.
‘Virtually all the money we are taking in our British shops and from domestic online clients is for a Haye win – but foreign clients are not so sure, and we’ve taken plenty for Klitschko from customers in over twenty different countries so far. This will be the biggest betting fight since Hatton-Mayweather when an estimated £20 million was gambled industry-wide, and we’d love to see that record broken.’ Said Hill’s spokesman Graham Sharpe.
WILLIAM HILL believe that Haye will have his work cut out to beat Klitschko – and have been offering the biggest price available for the Brit to batter his giant opponent. ‘Although we are as patriotic as anyone in terms of our support for British sporting stars we are also realistic enough to know when is the right time to take them on – and we believe that although David Haye will have tremendous support he, is more vulnerable in this fight than he has ever been before, since moving up to heavyweight, as he is going up to a level he has yet to experience – and we fear he may come up a little short’ said Hill’s spokesman Graham Sharpe.
With David Haye insisting that he will retire as soon as he reaches the age of 31 – which will be on October 13, 2011 – William Hill are betting on whether he will fight again with two years of that date – and offer 4/6 that he will NOT fight again for at least two years after October 13,2011, and 11/10 that he WILL fight again between those dates.