Newly crowned NABA and NABF Middleweight Champion, Andy Lee (26-1, 19KOs) is confident of beating Brian Vera (19-5, 12KOs) in their rematch on October 1st at the Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey. Vera is the only boxer to have defeated the Kronk fighter in his 5 year professional career.
Vera from Austin, Texas holds an extremely controversial 7th round stoppage win over Lee that occurred over 3 years ago on March 21, 2008. Lee was ahead on all three judges’ scorecards and many boxing fans thought the fight was stopped prematurely when the referee, Tony Chiarantano intervened to stop the fight as Lee was throwing a punch. Lee was never knocked down or given a standing 8 count and was never in trouble throughout the fight.
Lou DiBella, who now promotes both fighters, has put together this intriguing match to feature live on HBO as chief supporting bout to pound for pound kingpin, Sergio Martinez’s (47-2-2, 26KOs) WBC Middleweight title defence against Englishman, Darren Barker (23-0, 14KOs).
Lee believes he has been handed a golden opportunity to set the record straight and take care of unfinished business from his first encounter with Vera.
The Irishman commented from the ring apron at the Detroit Kronk Gym “It would mean a lot to me to avenge my only loss and beat Brian Vera and show the fans who really is the better fighter between us. I am relishing the opportunity to get my revenge and redemption October 1st which cannot come soon enough.
I was a 23 year old kid back in 2008, I have matured since then and I am a stronger fighter now, both physically and mentally. There is no room for complacency in this game, I have all the tools to take care of Brian Vera and I will be well prepared for the fight. I am confident of beating him and putting on a show for the fans.
The Kronk fighter has had 11 straight wins since his only loss on his comeback trail and has positioned himself as a legitimate world title contender in the first quarter of 2012 for one of the major belts. He is presently ranked # 2 in the WBA and WBO and # 6 in the WBC ratings.
Lee is recognized as one of the strongest and effective punchers in the Middleweight Division with 19 of his opponents not seeing the final round. He can bang with either hand as formerly unbeaten world ranked Scotchman Craig McEwan found out in March this year in an epic battle dubbed the ‘Celtic War’.
Lee caught McEwan with a devastating overhand left in the 10th round sending his opponent crashing to the canvas. Referee Steve Stogger, concerned about the health and well being of McEwan, stopped the fight immediately without a count.
Newly crowned Middleweight NABF and NABA Champion, Lee’s punching power will give Vera, the smaller man, some food for thought and he will recall Lee dropping him in the 1st round of their fight in 2008 causing the referee to give Vera a standing 8 count.
World renowned boxing icon, Emanuel Steward knows a thing or two about boxing with a wealth of knowledge from over 40 years experience in the game and training more World Champions than any other trainer in the history of boxing.
Steward commented “Andy is a tall rangy fighter with superior technical skills than Vera and he carries power in both hands, where as Vera is a pressure fighter who likes to fight on the inside and slug it out with opponents.
We have a strategy and game plan to win the fight and I am very confident Andy will take Brian Vera to school come fight night.”
Lee is a hungry fighter with the heart of a true champion, who strives in competitive and high risk fights. He is one step away from a world title shot and this is a must win fight for both fighters.
His desire for the rematch shows the depth of the character of the Irishman: It was a long time coming but he is determined to set the record straight and register an exciting and action packed win over Brian Vera.
Lee’s final comment “I am elated the fight has finally been made. The stage has been set for October 1st in Atlantic City and I’m not looking beyond this fight. I am totally focussed on the job and preparation is the key to success, it is time for me to go to work and do what I do best.”
Tickets are available for the fight by visiting http://www.ticketnetwork.com/tix/sergio-martinez-vs.-darren-barker-atlanticcity-nj-1691429.aspx?ref=cj .
UNDEFEATED SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT JOEL CASTILLO TO HEADLINE AT HAVOC BOXING 4 ON SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10TH
BROOKLYN, NY (AUGUST 16, 2011)—On Saturday night, September 10th, undefeated Super Middleweight Joel Castillo will headline an big night of boxing that will be promoted by Rob Diaz’ Havoc Boxing Promotions that will take place at the Aviator Sports Complex in Brooklyn.
Castillo of Bronx, New York has a record of 9-0 with six knockouts.
Castillo turned pro in July of 2006 and won five fights in a six month period before a three year hiatus from the ring.
Since he has returned, Castillo has won four straight which includes his electric eighteen second destruction of Billy Cunningham. In his last bout he scored a fourth round stoppage over Jesse Orta on May 20th.
In a ten round female Super Featherweight bout, Amanda Serrano (10-0-1, 6 KO’s) will take on a opponent to be named for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) World championship.
In a second six round co-feature, Santander Silgado will take on upset specialist Harvey Jolly in a Cruiserweight bout
Silgado of Colombia has compiled a record of 18-0 with sixteen knockouts. The twenty-five year old has captured regional belts throughout South America.
Silgado turned pro with twelve straight knockouts before winning the WBA Fedecaribe as well as the Colombian Cruiserweight titles with a third round stoppage over Jose Chiquillo.
He defended the WBA belt once before capturing the WBA Fedebol title with a unanimous decision victory over Sergio Martin Beaz.
In his last bout, Silgado stopped Cesar Dairo Herdia in one round on January 24, 2009.
Jolly of Adrian, Michigan has a record of 12-17-1 with eight knockouts.
Silgado better be at his best as Jolly has scored some big wins over the likes of Otis Mills (2-0-1); Tyrone Smith (4-0-1); Villi Bloomfield (6-0); Evans Quinn (18-2); Nick Iannuzzi (12-0); Umberto Savigne (2-0); Silgado is coming off a eight round unanimous decision over Joshua Harris (7-4-1) on June 18th
Anthony Irons (3-0-1, 2 KO’s) of Brownsville section of Brooklyn, NY will see action in a six round Welterweight bout against Leon Green (4-1, 1 KO) of Brooklyn.
Ryan Rumaya of New York will be making his pro debut against an opponent to be named in a four round Super Bantamweight bout
Jr. Middleweight prospect Denis “Da Momma’s Boy” Douglin (13-1, 8 KO’s) of Marlboro, NJ will take on an opponent to be named later in a six round bout.
Zachary Ochoa of New York will be making his pro debut against William Ware (1-3, 1 KO) of Tennessee in a four round Jr. Welterweight bout.
Armin Mrkanovic (1-1) of Queens, NY will take on Robert Brown (0-2) of Miami in a four round Cruiserweight bout.
Alvon Acosta (0-1) and Lykan Byfield (0-1) of Yonkers, NY will do battle in a four round Middleweight bout.
Undefeated Cletis Seldin (2-0, 1 KO) of Brooklyn, NY will take on an opponent to be named in a four round Welterweight bout.
Rounding out the card will be Jr. Middleweight Frank Galarza (3-0, 1 KO) of Brooklyn, NY seeing action in a four round Jr. Middleweight bout against an opponent to be named
Jr. Welterweight Dinmukhamed Niyazov will make his pro debut in a four round bout against Matteo Acosta (0-3-1) of Puerto Rico
Neuky Santelices will make his pro debut in a Four Round Super Featherweight bout against Fernando Ramos (1-5) of Puerto Rico
All tickets are priced at $50 and can be purchased by clicking:
www.havocboxingnyc.com
The Aviator Sports Complex is located at:
3159 Flatbush Ave – Brooklyn, N.Y. 11234
WBC News
August 16, 2011 – Mexico City. From the office of WBC President Dr. José Sulaimán: The following is one of the weekly “Hook to the Body” columns by World Boxing Council President Dr. José Sulaimán that are published in El Universal every Sunday. From August 14, translated from Spanish:
HOOK TO THE BODY
By José Sulaimán
The Life and Death of Three Great Ones.
As we get older, we start realizing with deep feelings of the mystery of life and death; we have to conclude that we are fast visitors in the immensity of time of the earth in the universe. We see through the time that God let us on this world, how people are born, live and die, while also realizing that some of those are people who leave an indelible mark of their passing through life.
I have three heroes of my time whose deaths are being homaged and remembered for having died almost at the same dates of the year; one of them being “Cantinflas,” who is believed to have been the best comedian of the Spanish-speaking language, and so recognized by Charlie Chaplin himself. The other is the great song composer Roberto Cantoral, and the third one a deeply respected social and political writer, Carlos Monsivaiz, the three of them my friends and deep fans of the sport of boxing.
Carlos Monsivaiz, of careless dressing, badly combed white hair, totally indifferent to protocol, behaving always as the general people, converted in his writing due to his always standing by his truth, always touching delicate political matters, once called me to ask me for a “private meeting so that I can understand better the violence immersed in the minds of boxers, who put on the gloves without fear for anyone, of which you are an expert,” to which I answered that I was a person who couldn’t kill a fly, but that I would be very pleased to talk with him. On different occasions we talked about wrestling, of which he was a passionate follower. Time came and also death, taking away the opportunity for a deep conversation about the sport of my love. People and writers of the extreme left and the extreme right respected him in life and keep respecting him in death – I sincerely wanted to talk with him about boxing, as I was very interested in knowing what the thoughts were of this prodigious, courageous and brilliant mind.
My second hero, whose one-year Catholic mass I attended, was Roberto Cantoral, composer of the most romantic songs of my young times, when I lived at the Mexican province and used to go everyday at the “siesta” closing of business at noon to a popular bar where many friends used to get together for a beer or two before lunch. We both were from the state of Tamaulipas and became very close friends through the years. Once I asked him what inspired him to compose a song that has more than 60 years of popularity, called “El Reloj” (The Watch), which has made many people get a little too much beer, cry, enjoy, and all that young lovers do in their times. He told me that no song and no poem can be written without inspiration, and told me how deeply in love he was with a beautiful lady from Argentina, with whom he had lived a passionate time, but who told me that she was leaving him never to see him again, as she was retiring to her country. He was in Washington in a hotel with her during the eve of her departure when he started composing the song when he was asking the “reloj” to freeze,
not to advance the hours, to have more time with the love of his life. His children and mine went to the same schools since their grammar times. Mexico still sings his songs with the same passion as always. He came with me to countless boxing matches, as he loved the sport.
Mexico celebrated he day when Mario Moreno – “Cantinflas” – would have been 100 years old if he would still be living. Countless celebrities attended, speeches of the most beloved comedian of all times, respected by Chaplin himself. I met him in a small boxing arena of my home town, Ciudad Valles, where he had a ranch with the name of his first picture. He went to the boxing show with a very famous Mexican boxer who fought Ike Williams, his name was Nicolás Moran. Cantinflas divides his career as a comedian and being a professional boxer at a very young age, his manager was the famous “Cuyo” Hernández, but Cantinflas use to tell me that he had been a very famous boxer, but people knew the soles of his shoes better than his face, as he was always down. Cuyo once asked him to get up at the count of 8 – Cantinflas was down with his eyes closed, but told his manager ‘no’ by the movement of the thumb of his glove.
During a convention where my greatest idol, Muhammad Ali, was, they were sat close to each other when Cantinflas started to play seriously with the greatest and simulating that he was throwing a glass to Ali. The huge banquet room was an echo of laughter like very few times. Cantinflas was also known for his devoted service and help to the most needed, but he never used to brag about it. Once I told him that he should find an intelligent way to let others know about his benevolent actions, and he told me, “You must be out of your mind, as I have one block of people today standing in line at my home. If I would say it, there would be 10 blocks of people.” About two to three years before his death, he told me that he wanted to talk with me, as he wanted to film a boxing picture but not as a boxer, but as a trainer or second. His passing away did not allow his wishes to come through.
I have described a few anecdotes of three gentlemen who came from the common stratus of the people of the world who devoted their lives to be somebody, became very successful, beloved, and respected to reach the stars through their passing through life, and go as heroes of the world to eternity to be remembered by generations to follow. There are many people like them, perhaps not as famous, but passionately devoting their lives to leave a name to be remembered like the many heroes that we have had through the 300 years of the recorded life of the sport of boxing.
Thank you very much for reading my thoughts.