International Boxing Federation (IBF) intercontinental middleweight champion Dominik Britsch might face his mandatory challenger Benjamin Simon on March 9th in Turkey. Promoter Ahmet Oner confirmed today that a Turkish investor wants to bring the all-German middleweight affair to the city of Tekirdag.
“Benjamin Simon scored a first-round k.o. victory on November 26th in Trabzon (Turkey)“, says Oner. “He is a good looking kid in great physical shape and his performance impressed a lot of people in Turkey. We are currently working on our upcoming show for March 9th which will be broadcasted live on Eurosport. After people in Turkey explicitly asked me for Simon, it makes sense to bring the fight to Turkey. It seems a little strange that two German middleweight contenders might end up fighting somewhere else but in Germany. But after all the German boxing market is declining; and this fight might just be another sign for that.“
No contracts have been signed so far but Oner is optimistic that the deal will get done within the next days. “We made Sauerland an offer that they can hardly refuse“, states Oner.
In case both sides don’t reach an agreement the bout would go to purse bid next Tuesday (January 24th) at the IBF headquarter in New Jersey.
Vic Darchinyan vs. Shinsuke Yamanaka contract finalized for WBC Bantamweight Title
New Jersey (January 19, 2012) – Seeking the best possible fights on the planed, former multiple world champion, Vic “Raging Bull” Darchinyan (37-4-1, 27 KOs) has finalized his negotiations to challenge Japan’s undefeated World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight titlist, Shinsuke Yamanaka (15-0-2, 11 KOs).
Promoter Gary Shaw stated, “Contracts have been signed, sealed and delivered. The fight is finalized and will take place in Tokyo, Japan sometime in April. Nothing makes me more proud than having a throwback fighter like Darchinyan, who will take risks and step in the ring with anyone, anywhere. Yamanaka will be defending his belt in his native land so Vic’s got to go in there and put it on him. I believe Darchinyan’s power punching style will lead him to victory.”
Darchinyan, an elite fighter in the flyweight and super flyweight divisions went on to say, “I’m extremely pleased with the WBC’s decision to give me another title shot. I’ve fought and defended the WBC title with honor and pride. I love everything the WBC stands for because I believe they know I’m a true warrior and will leave everything in the ring when I go to battle. My gratitude to José Sulaimán is everlasting because he’s always been there for me throughout my career. Capturing a world championship in three divisions has been a goal of mine since I won my first belt. I know I have what it takes to be champion at bantamweight.”
Having traveled the globe from Australia to America and now Japan, Darchinyan must be recognized as one of boxing’s most respected fighters. A Hall of Fame career is fast approaching should he continue his march toward a treasured third world title in as many divisions.
Shaw went on to say, “There’s no doubt about it, Vic is a future Hall of Famer. In his era, he fought the best that was out there. He’s never been in a boring fight. His style has always been crowd pleasing and you’ll never see any quit in him, ever. He’ll get my vote for the Hall of Fame when that time comes. Vic’s got plenty of fight left in him and come April, you’ll know why he’s one of the best prize fighters of his time.”
In a quest to capture a world championship on foreign land, Darchinyan has a difficult task in front of him. Most fighters at the elite level would never take that gamble.
Shaw continued, “You have to give Darchinyan a ton of credit for taking this fight in Japan. Not many fighters will travel overseas to fight for a world title. He’s given his heart and soul to this sport and I applaud the WBC for recognizing his soldier spirit.”
HATTON PROMOTIONS MOVING INTO KAZAKHSTAN
HATTON Promotions are branching out into Kazakhstan when they stage a show there on Friday 27th January 2012.
It is a co-promotion with Yerik Jailauov, and the bill being held in Petropavlovsk will be topped by their exciting new signing Zhanat Zhakiyanov.
The 24-year-old EBU-EE bantamweight champion will box a ten rounder against Thailand’s former World Boxing Council (WBC) international silver champion Noppadol Khongchana and hopes victory will propel him towards a crack at European champion Jamie McDonnell.
Zhakiyanov who has won 16 of his 17 bouts inked a promotional agreement with Hatton Promotions after stopping Anwar Alfadli in Blackpool last August.
He is also ranked third in the EBU rankings and Hatton Promotions CEO Ricky Hatton said: “We are building good contacts all over the globe and Kazakhstan is another country where we feel there is untapped talent.
“Zhanat looked very good on our card in the summer and we are be looking at showcasing him in England. Hopefully he’ll become mandatory contender for Jamie’s crown.”
Temperatures will be -30 centigrade in the Northern Kazakhstan city and Hatton Promotions will be represented by their European agent Philippe Fondu.
He will make an exhausting journey flying from Manchester to Almaty where he will catch an internal flight Astana. From there, it’s a 10 hours journey, by train, to Petropavlovsk.
Fondu said: “It will all be worthwhile because Zhanat is an exciting talent and would be a more than credible challenger for McDonnell.
“He will be boxing in his home city for the first time as a professional thank to Ricky’s kind support.”
Zhakiyanov won his title last May when he travelled to Switzerland and shocked Benjamin Pitteloud flooring the local hero twice and stopping him in two rounds.
He has already boxed in several other countries including Thailand gain experience in some of Asia’s toughest gyms.