With three consecutive wins under his belt, Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi is in top form heading into his Sunday, April 29 showdown against unbeaten WBA Welterweight World Champion Vyacheslav Senchenko and the former Junior Welterweight World Titlist has no doubt that he will be leaving the Donbass Arena in Donetsk, Ukraine with the 147-pound title belt around his waist..
“I’m ready for this fight. I’ve got my team in my corner and we could hold this fight in Senchenko’s living room and I would still come out with the win,” said Malignaggi. “This is my time and I will be returning to the United States a world champion again.”
The 12-round championship bout, which is presented by Union Boxing Promotion in association with Golden Boy Promotions, will air live on Integrated Sports Pay-Per-View in the United States beginning at 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT. The suggested retail price of the four-bout card is $29.95.
Currently ranked number two in the world by the WBA, 31-year-old Brooklyn native Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi (30-4, 6 KO’s) has been dazzling the boxing world with his flashy style and brash confidence for nearly 11 years. After squaring off with some of boxing’s best at 140 pounds, including current WBA Super Welterweight World Champion Miguel Cotto and former World Champions Ricky Hatton, Juan Diaz and Amir Khan, the former Junior Welterweight World Champion recently began a quest for a title at 147 pounds, where he has defeated Michael Lozada, Jose Miguel Cotto and Orlando Lora consecutively. He now sets his sights on Senchenko, winning a second world championship in a second division and bringing another title belt back to Brooklyn.
35-year-old Ukrainian star Vyacheslav Senchenko (32-0, 21 KO’s) is a seasoned competitor and 2000 Olympian who has compiled several titles over the course of a professional career that began in 2002. No championship was bigger than the one he earned in April of 2009, when he decisioned previously unbeaten Yuriy Nuzhnenko to take the WBA crown. He has defended the belt three consecutive times, but a win over the highly-regarded Malignaggi will elevate his status even higher.
Malignaggi takes on Senchenko on Sunday
Challenger Paulie “Magic Man” Malignaggi is shown here in the Ukraine with his trainer, Eric Brown, as they make final preparations for his PPV fight Sunday afternoon against defending champion Vyacheslav Senchenko. Malignaggi reported that he’s in great shape and fully focused on winning and bringing the title belt back to Brooklyn.
“SENCHENKO-MALIGNAGGI” PPV FACT SHEET
WBA WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP – MAIN EVENT – 12 ROUNDS
VYACHESLAV SENCHENKO PAULIE “Magic Man” MALIGNAGGI
Champion Challenger / WBA #2
The Ring Magazine #5 Former IBF Jr. Welterweight Champion
Donetsk, Ukraine Brooklyn, New York, USA
32-0 (21 KOs) 30-4 (6 KOs)
WBA INTER-CONTINENTAL CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP — 12 ROUNDS
IAGO KILADZE JULIEN PERRIAUX
Champion / WBA #9 Challenger
Former WBC Youth Intercontinental Champion WBC Mediterranean Champion
Donetsk, Ukraine by way of Georgia Saint-Dizier, Haute-Marne, France
18-0 (12 KOs) 15-8 (8 KOs)
WBA INTER-CONTINENTAL FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP — 12 ROUNDS
OLEH “Doctor” YEFIMOVYCH SERGIO CARLOS “El Tigre” SANTILLAN
Champion / WBA #12 & EBU #1 Challenger
Former European Featherweight Champion WBC FECARBOX Super Bantam.Champion
Donetsk, Ukraine Buenos Aires, Distro Federal, Argentina
21-2 (11 KOs) 29-11-3 (14 KOs)
IBC LIGHT WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP 12 ROUNDS
VOLODYMYR KRAVETS ABDOULAYE SOUKOUNA
Champion Challenger
2004 Ukrainian Olympian France Light Welterweight Champion
Donetsk, Ukraine Vitry-sur-Seine, Val-de-Marne, France
25-1 (15 KOs) 14-10-6 (1 KO)
(ALL FIGHTS & FIGHTERS SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
WHEN: Sunday, April 29, 2012 – 1:00 PM/ET 10:00 AM/PT
WHERE: Donbass Arena in Donetsk, Ukraine
PROMOTER: Union Boxing Promotion
SPECIAL GUEST: Evander Holyfield
RING ANNOUNCER: Michael Buffer
PAY-PER-VIEW INFORMATION: distributed in the United States by Integrated Sports Media for live viewing at 1:00 PM/ET – 10:00 AM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, DIRECTV, DISH Network and Avail-TVNfor a suggested retail price of only $29.95. also available via on-line PPV at www.gofightlive.tv.
PAY-PER-VIEW ANNOUNCERS: Former NFL player and veteran boxing announcer Benny Ricardo (blow-by-blow) and The Ring Magazine and The Score contributor Corey Erdman (color analyst).