World Boxing Council (WBC) #2 ranked light heavyweight Ismayl Sillakh (17-0 14KO) calls former champion Jean Pascal’s excuses to back out of a WBC-ordered showdown against him transparent.
“They can’t hide from me forever,” said Sillakh of fellow top light heavies Jean Pascal (WBC #3 ranked), Chad Dawson (WBC #1 ranked), and Bernard Hopkins (WBC champion). “Enough excuses. Just get in the ring and fight. We’re fighters.”
Sillakh says Team Pascal’s excuse that a fight between them would be hard to sell is laughable given the crowds Pascal has drawn to fight a long list of unknown foreign fighters in his adopted home of Quebec, Canada.
“I am the uncrowned champion and these guys at the top are all hoping to avoid me as long as possible before I take over the division. I understand that. But at the end of the day, someone has to step up and say I’m a fighter. I will fight. Pascal, you and I are both young and in our primes. Let’s show the world who is the better man. I will even travel to Canada to make the fight happen.”
Sillakh says he’s hoping Pascal and his team will drop the façade and either get in the ring or get out of the way.
“You’d rather sit on the shelf for two years, or fight lesser opponents than fight me, Jean? I’m talking to you, the fighter. I know your team wants to keep you safe, but are you going to man up and take this challenge? We’re fighters. We fight.”
CHICAS TECATE CELEBRATE CARÁCTER AND THE NEW YEAR WITH THE LAUNCH OF 2012 CALENDAR
Boxing-themed Digital Calendar Now Available to Adults via Facebook.com/TecateUSA
NEW YORK (December 22, 2011) – Tecate, cerveza con carácter, announces the launch of a digital 2012 calendar featuring the official Chicas Tecate as they recreate scenes from a boxing training camp at the renowned Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, N.Y. Adults 21 and older who “Like” Tecate’s Facebook page (www.Facebook.com/TecateUSA) will be able to access and share the calendar, as well as never-before-seen videos and photos of the Chicas Tecate: Monica Barco, Paulina Borrero, Denisse Gonzalez and Christina Salazar.
The January “page” of the Facebook application is now available to fans 21 and older, while the rest of it will become accessible at the beginning of every month in 2012. Each page will be populated with upcoming pugilistic events, viewing parties across the U.S., and much more to help fans feel like they’re part of the action.
“It’s been an incredible experience to celebrate the carácter of boxing and of our consumers in 2011, and we’re excited to kick off the New Year with an initiative that they will be able to enjoy year-round,” said Felix Palau, vice president of marketing for Tecate. “Each photo included in the calendar aims to exemplify the tenacity and determination that it takes to succeed in and out of the ring, while showcasing the beauty of the our brand ambassadors, the Chicas Tecate.”
This summer, adults on Tecate’s Facebook page selected Monica Barco, Paulina Borrero, Denisse Gonzalez and Christina Salazar from amongst 50 candidates to represent the brand for a year. As part of their role as brand ambassadors, they partook in the calendar photo shoot this fall at the famed Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, N.Y., where they had the opportunity to learn some insider’s tips from Super Flyweight Keisher “Fire” McLeod-Wells, who trains at the gym.
WBO AND PUERTO RICAN BOXERS GIVE TOYS AND BICYCLES TO KIDS IN CENTRO SOR ISOLINA FERRE IN PONCE, PUERTO RICO
PONCE, PUERTO RICO- World Boxing Organization (WBO) and some Puerto Rican boxers gave today toys and bicycles to over 300 kids at the Centro Sor Isolina Ferré in Ponce, Puerto Rico as part of their successfull program “Kids Drug Free”.
WBO President, Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel, former Minimumweight WBO Champion Alex “El Nene” Sanchez, Superbantamweight contender Jonathan “Polvo” Oquendo, former Olympian Victor Bisbal, and prospects David Quijano, Rafael Gonzalez and Keith Tapia, along with amateur fighters Mercedes Alicea, Felix Verdejo and Prichard Colon gifted the kids and youngsters with 100 bicycles and toys at the Centro Sor Isolina Ferre a non profit center that give aducation and sports to the kids in Puerto Rico.
“It’s important for us on the WBO to give happiness to the kids. We want these kids away of the drugs and to keep in school”, Valcarcel said.
Also in the event were trainers Dennis Pantoja, Ricardo Marquez and Margaro Cruz; referees Jose H. Rivera, Ramon Peña and Gino Rodriguez; judges Carlos Colon, Cersar Ramos, Raul Nieves and Hernando Steidel, and WBO members Luis Perez, Manuel Marrero Hueca and Adolfo Flores.