CELEBRITY GUEST LIST – Hall of Fame Induction Weekend 2009

INDUCTEES
1. Lennox Lewis -------- Undisputed Heavyweight Champion

2. Orlando Canizales -------- Bantam Weight Champion

3. Brian Mitchell -------- Jr. Lightweight Champion

4. Bobby Goodman -------- Publicist/Matchmaker/Promoter

5. Akihiko Honda -------- Promoter

6. Hugh McIlvanney -------- Journalist

7. Larry Merchant -------- Broadcaster/Journalist



HALL OF FAME ALUMNI
8. Carmen Basilio -------- Welterweight and Middleweight Champion

9. Carlos Ortiz -------- Jr. Welterweight and Lightweight Champion

10. Emile Griffith -------- Welterweight and Middleweight Champion

11. Ruben Olivares -------- Bantam and Featherweight Champion

12. Marvelous Marvin Hagler -------- Middleweight Champion

13. Aaron Pryor -------- Jr. Welterweight Champion

14. Michael Carbajal -------- Jr. Flyweight Champion

15. Lou Duva -------- Hall of Fame Trainer/Manager

16. Bert Sugar -------- Hall of Fame Writer/Historian

17. Angelo Dundee -------- Hall of Fame Trainer

18. Emanuel Steward -------- Hall of Fame Trainer



SPECIAL GUESTS
19. Christy Martin -------- Female Champion

20. George Chuvalo -------- Canadian Heavyweight Champion

21. Livingstone Bramble -------- Lightweight Champion

22. Marlon Starling -------- Welterweight Champion

23. Leon Spinks -------- Heavyweight Champion

24. Micky Ward -------- Jr. Welterweight Star

25. Greg Haugen -------- Lightweight Champion

26. Ray Mercer -------- Heavyweight Champion

27. Mark Breland -------- Welterweight Champion

28. Junior Jones -------- Bantamweight Champion

29. John H. Stracey -------- Welterweight Champion

30. Billy Backus -------- Welterweight Champion



RISING STARS

31. Paul Williams -------- Two-Time World Champion

32. Deontay Wilder -------- 2008 Heavyweight Bronze Medalists

33. Andre Berto -------- Welterweight Champion

34. Lucian Bute -------- Super Middleweight Champion



PARADE GRAND MARSHAL
35. Federico Casteluccio -------- HBO’s Sopranos (Furio)

36. Burt Young -------- Rocky Movies (Paulie)

added 5/30

FRES OQUENDO ADDED IN TITLE FIGHT ON JUNE 26TH IN CHICAGO

ADVANCE TICKETS NOW ON SALE

CHICAGO, IL (June 10, 2009) Two time heavyweight world title challenger Fres Oquendo will face Gonzalo Omar Basile in the new ten round main event at “WINDY CITY FIGHT NIGHT 3” on Friday, June 26th at the UIC Pavilion, it was announced today by Dominic Pelosi’s 8 Count Productions, HOME OF THE BEST IN CHICAGO BOXING.

Recently signed to Simmons Entertainment Marketing LLC, Oquendo is looking towards another run at a world championship bout in the near future. The bout against Basile, for the WBO Latino Heavyweight Title, is Oquendo’s first hometown bout in nine years.

Tickets for “WINDY CITY FIGHT NIGHT 3”, starting at $31, are on sale now through the 8 Count Productions office at 312-226-5800 and through Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000 or http://www.ticketmaster.com/.

Oquendo, 29-5-0 (18KO’s) is coming off a highly controversial split decision loss to former world champion James Toney on December 13th. The bout, broadcast from Cabazon, California on VERSUS, was thought to be amongst the worst decisions of 2008.

Basile, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, brings a record of 41-4-0 (19KO’s) into the battle with Oquendo, having won his last nine bouts, five by stoppage. He won the WBO Latino Heavyweight Title on February 14, 2009 by stopping Daniel Frank in the third round in Buenos Aires .

Said Pesoli, “An already excellent card just got a great deal better. Fres hasn’t fought in Chicago in a long time and I know he and the Chicago fight fans will be looking toward a great performance from him on June 26th. Fres was born in Puerto Rico and raised in Chicago so he has legions of fans all across the city.”

Already announced for “WINDY CITY FIGHT NIGHT 3” is an outstanding eight round junior welterweight showdown between undefeated Chicago fan favorite, Ivan Popoca and Tulare, California’s Hector Alatorre.

An additional eight round bout is a super middleweight title fight between Chicago ’s Andrzej “THE POLISH PRINCE” Fonfara and Rockford, Illinois’ Skyler Thompson for the WBF All-Americas Super Middleweight Title..

In a special feature attraction, Chicago fan favorite Rita “LA GUERA” Figueroa and Lynnwood, Washington native Tammie “THE TASMANIAN DEVIL” Johnson will square off once again in a rematch of their draw on March 27th at the inaugural “WINDY CITY FIGHT NIGHT”.

The undercard features Chicago natives; highly touted junior welterweight prospect Ramiro Carrillo, featherweight Juan Bailon along with welterweights Ryan Smedick and Achour Esho in separate bouts.

Doors on the evening of the event will open at 7pm with the first bell at 8pm. The UIC Pavilion is located at 525 S. Racine , just one block south of the Eisenhower Expressway. For further information, please visit their website at http://www.uicpavilion.com/

Additional information on this card will be announced shortly.

8 Count Productions, HOME OF THE BEST IN CHICAGO BOXING, was started by Dominic Pesoli in 1998 and has consistently presented the highest quality professional boxing events in Chicagoland. In 2003, Pesoli along with former featherweight contender Mike Garcia, opened JABB Boxing Gym, a 6,000 square foot venue dedicated to the finest Chicagoland boxers of all talent levels.

For more information on 8 Count Productions and JABB Boxing Gym, please visit http://www.8countproductions.com/ and http://www.jabbboxing.com/

Clottey prepared to face Cotto—and crowd

By DAVE SKRETTA, AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP)—Joshua Clottey will walk into sold-out Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, just a few miles from where the Ghana native now makes his home in the Bronx, and almost certainly face a wall of vocal opposition.

It’ll be the eve of the annual Puerto Rican Day parade, and thousands of flag-carrying fans will have turned out to see charismatic welterweight champion Miguel Cotto defend his title.

Clottey, himself a former champion, insists he won’t hear any of it.

“Trust me, when I come to the ring I’m a very, very deaf guy,” Clottey said. “The only thing I do is I see people, but I don’t hear what they’re talking about. This is business, we’re in the ring. He’s hitting my body, he’s hitting my head—I don’t have time for that.”

Cotto certainly brings the name recognition to the WBO title fight, and he’s the big reason that even the cheap seats will be gone at the Garden. HBO is expecting a huge television audience, and even New York sports stars like Mets outfielder Carlos Beltran are trying to secure tickets.

“I keep hearing boxing is dead, boxing is dying—I’ve always been incredulous, because I don’t know what anybody is talking about,” Top Rank boss Bob Arum said. “Just look at this.”

Promotional company Top Rank has turned the Puerto Rican Day weekend into Cotto’s showcase, and the popular fighter has embraced it every bit as much as his fans.

His first fight in boxing’s so-called Mecca, when Cotto (33-1, 27 KOs) was just beginning to build his reputation, was a knockout of Mohamad Abdulaev. He’s gone on to beat Brooklyn-based fighters Paul Malignaggi and Zab Judah before delirious crowds that show up to the Garden en masse to see their hero sometimes just once a year.

He’s never before failed them, his only loss a controversial one to Antonio Margarito nearly a year ago in Las Vegas, and doesn’t plan to against another hard-punching challenger.

“Joshua Clottey? I’ve prepared myself for anything he can bring that night,” Cotto said Wednesday, at the final pre-fight news conference. “The question is, is he prepared for the kind of Miguel Cotto that’s going to climb into the ring?”

While the Puerto Rican star is well known, Clottey is very nearly an enigma.

A native of Accra, the capital and most populous city of the west African nation of Ghana, Clottey began fighting in small shows in Africa. He caught the eye of promoter Panos Eliades, who also promoted Lennox Lewis, and Clottey wound up fighting in Europe for several years.

He eventually made his way to New York, where he settled in the Bronx.

Considered large for a welterweight, it didn’t take long for Clottey (35-2, 20 KOs) to step into the ring with Margarito. He was leading that title fight in December 2006 until he broke his hand in the fourth round, and while Clottey gamely pressed on, Margarito handed him his first loss in nearly seven years.

It took several months for the hand to heal, but Clottey returned to beat former lightweight champ Diego Corrales, beginning yet another impressive string of victories: Felix Flores, previously unbeaten Shamone Alvarez, Jose Luis Cruz and Judah.

His bout against the tough Brooklyn fighter last August was a back-and-forth slugfest, which was stopped by referee Robert Byrd because of a nasty cut over Judah’s right eye. By the slimmest of margins—one point on two scorecards— Clottey was given the technical decision.

His bout against Cotto was supposed to be a unification fight, Clottey having won the IBF title, but politics and sanctioning bodies got in the way.

Rather than fight a string of undeserving challengers, Clottey simply vacated the belt to take the much larger and more lucrative fight against Cotto — on easily the biggest day of the year for Puerto Rican fight fans in New York.

“Even if I lose, I’ll make a good account of myself, and they’ll ask for me. The people that are picking me to win the fight, they’re making a very good decision,” Clottey said.

“I don’t know how tough he’s going to be, but anybody who chooses me to be the winner, they’ll win, because that’s what I’m going to do. I’ll win the fight.”

NFL star Jacobs taking swing at boxing biz

By DAVE SKRETTA, AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK (AP)—Brandon Jacobs isn’t waiting until his NFL playing days are over before deciding what he wants to do next.

The New York Giants star is breaking into professional boxing—but not as a promoter or fighter, although the 6-foot-4, 260-pounder might make a bruising heavyweight. Instead, Jacobs wants to be a manager, the behind-the-scenes guy who signs and molds young fighters, just maybe taking one or two of them to the top.

“I do have my day job, but this is something I look at and take very seriously, because it’s another guy’s livelihood in the palm of my hand,” Jacobs told The Associated Press on Wednesday at a news conference ahead of Miguel Cotto’s welterweight title fight against Joshua Clottey.

“I’ve been wanting to get into this business after I was done playing.”

The average career of an NFL player is 3 1/2 seasons, according to the NFL Players Association. Even stars like Jacobs, who ran for 1,089 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Giants last season, are usually finished by their early 30s.

Some open restaurants and sports bars, some begin working in financial services, others end up in the broadcast booth. But the 26-year-old Jacobs has always had an interest in the “sweet science,” and put together an impressive amateur career growing up in Louisiana. He lost only twice in more than 30 fights.

When Jacobs began considering colleges, he could only find a few that even had boxing clubs. He wound up at Southern Illinois, hung up the gloves and dedicated himself to football, and a few years later helped lead the Giants to the Super Bowl.

“I’ve been into boxing a long time, boxing is something that has driven me very much,” said Jacobs, who still tries to spar in the gym once in a while.

“I’ve been wanting to get into the business after I was done playing. If I didn’t fight, I wanted to get into the promotion business, but I hear from people that’s a lot of headache, so I wanted to do something that was more personable with the fighters.”

Jacobs has known former junior welterweight champion Kendall Holt for years, and when Holt had a falling out with his management team, he asked Jacobs to fill in. Next thing he knew, Jacobs was signing papers that made him a pro manager.

While admittedly a novice when it comes to the intricacies of contracts, securing venues, marketing and promotions, Jacobs has found plenty of support from the boxing community.

Top Rank, one of the biggest promotional companies in the sport, has lent some guidance, and Jacobs is teaming with longtime manager Pat Lynch, who helped guide the career of former champ and popular brawler Arturo Gatti.

“We’re looking to sign some young fighters. We’ve got one on the radar screen we’ll try to have under contract next week,” Lynch said of their newfound partnership. “Brandon is a very knowledgeable guy in the boxing business. He knows a lot.”

Jacobs plans to be ringside for the Cotto-Clottey fight Saturday night, and he’s bringing more than a dozen of his Giants teammates with him.

His constant discussion of the sport has turned many of them into boxing fans as well.

“It’s early for me, so I’m just trying to get my feet wet,” Jacobs said. “And we’re just trying to get things set in stone and just trying to get my next career going right now.”

Big Plans Interview With Robert The Ghost Guerrero

By John Pullman ~
DoghouseBoxing.com

Out of all places one can choose to get away from distractions, Los Angeles California does not exactly come to mind. But that is exactly where Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero has set up camp for preparation for his upcoming bout on June 12th in San Jose CA, set to be televised on ESPN 2. Guerrero and his trainer/father Ruben, have been splitting their time between Gio's Brooklyn Boxing Club in Burbank, where he works on technique and Glendale Fight Club, where he's been getting quality sparring.

Ruben speaks to me as Robert pounds the heavy bag with straight lefts; "Robert is Sharp. We are getting a lot of good sparring over there at Glendale Fight Club, a lot of tough guys ..."

"The Ghost put it on 'the ghost' yesterday!" A talkative Robert Guerrero yells out, as he dances around the heavy bag.

An excited trainer/father; Ruben fills me in on the details. Apparently Robert sent one of his sparring partners to the hospital yesterday, who happened to have a similar nickname. Continue Reading..

DANNY "SWIFT" GARCIA PREPPING FOR HIS APPEARANCE ON "FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS" JUNE 12, 2009 AT 2009 AT HP PAVILION

INTERVIEW WITH BOXING PROSPECT DANNY GARCIA
By Jake Emen ~ AssociatedContent.com

Junior welterweight prospect Danny Garcia is getting ready to step back into the ring once again. His next fight, scheduled for June 12, will be shown on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights. He'll be appearing on the undercard of a show headlined by former featherweight champion Robert Guerrero.

Your next fight is right around the corner on June 12, and you'll be appearing on ESPN2 for Friday Night Fights. How has your preparation been going?

DG: It's been going real good, I'm sparring 8 rounds, 10 rounds. I feel good, everything's going good. Now it's just time to get mentally focused for the fight.

You're fighting Pavel Miranda, he has a decent record at 16-3 and he's a young guy but he's lost 2 of his last 3 fights, both to undefeated prospects. What do you know about Miranda?

DG: What I know is what you just told me! (Laughs) He's lost two of his last three, he's 16-3, from what I'm told he held a Youth WBC title before. I know he's 5'11" and he's from Mexico and I know he'll be coming hard.

Are you expecting a tough fight from him or what do you think the fight will be like?

DG: We'll see what he brings to the table for the first couple of rounds. It depends what he brings to the table. I'm expecting a tough fight and hopefully I can make it easy and knock him out, or if it goes all 8 I'm in great shape. Whatever comes to the table I'll be ready. Continue reading...

BROTHERS IN ARMS

By Benny Henderson Jr. ~ doghouseboxing.com

Brothers Carlos Ivan Velasquez 10-0 (9) and Juan Carlos Velasquez 9-0 (5) are on a mission to seek and destroy all competition that comes their way. Along with both fighters sharing the same birthday, they also share the same hunger for stardom, and the two share undefeated records thus far in their early careers.

As amateurs, they combined 290 amateur wins, and Carlos was a 2004 Olympian for Puerto Rico. As pros they have together tallied up 19 wins, 14 knockouts, and 7 first round victories.

Although they share a lot of the same qualities out of the ring, they differ in styles inside the square circle, and in this exclusive interview conducted by Doghouse Boxing both brothers talk about their similarities as well as differences. "Twin Dream" also touch on this Friday's fights where the two will once again bang away on the same card. See what the brothers had to say on their careers, enjoy.

Benny Henderson: It's been some time now that you both have fought on the same card. June 12th you guys get back in the ring when you battle opponents TBA at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. What are your thoughts on fighting together again? Continue reading..

Tyson marries in Vegas 2 weeks after child’s death

By OSKAR GARCIA, Associated Press Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP)—Boxer Mike Tyson has married for a third time, two weeks after his 4-year-old daughter died in a tragic treadmill accident.

The owner of the La Bella Wedding Chapel at the Las Vegas Hilton hotel-casino told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the former heavyweight champion and his bride, Lakiha Spicer, exchanged vows Saturday in a short, private ceremony.

Chapel owner Shawn Absher says the couple wed about 10 p.m. after arriving at the hotel from the Clark County marriage bureau in a chapel-owned limousine.

County marriage records in Las Vegas show the 42-year-old Tyson and 32-year-old Spicer got a marriage license about 30 minutes before their ceremony.

Tyson’s daughter Exodus died in May. The girl suffocated after she either slipped or put her head in the loop of a cord hanging under a treadmill’s console in her Phoenix home. Tyson’s agent, Harlan Werner, told the AP that Spicer is not Exodus’ mother.

Tyson and Spicer, a resident of suburban Henderson, asked for a simple ceremony with nothing special, Absher said.

“They just wanted to say the vows and be married,” he said. “It was very sincere.”

Tyson was previously married to actress Robin Givens in 1988 and Monica Turner in 1997.

His first marriage ended after one year after Givens filed for divorce and said in a nationally televised interview that she was afraid of Tyson. His marriage to Turner lasted five years.

Tyson and Spicer seemed very in love, Absher said.

“They were very heartwarming, and I think they really do love each other. “He seemed happy—and his life’s been up and down.”

Tyson last boxed competitively in 2005.

Starks’ leg on mend after being hit by bullet

By PAT GRAHAM, AP Sports Writer
DENVER (AP)—Javontae Starks bounded around the ring, barely even favoring his left leg.

Still, the welterweight was frustrated with his footwork after his first-round win Monday night at the USA boxing national championships.

“Not moving as swift as I used to,” Starks said. “My front leg doesn’t allow me to move as fast as I used to.”

Yet the leg is better than it was, better than anyone ever imagined.

Starks took a stray bullet in the upper left thigh nearly two years ago when an argument led to gunfire at a graduation party in Minneapolis. The doctors feared he would never regain feeling in his left foot due to nerve damage, putting his boxing career in jeopardy.

Steadily, though, the 20-year-old is regaining full strength in the leg.

“I was very, very lucky,” said Starks, who was just a bystander at the party that was thrown, in part, in his honor.

He knows the incident could’ve been worse—way worse.

Starks was hanging out with friends and family when gunfire erupted. He ran away, not even realizing he’d been hit.

Once inside a friend’s car, he felt blood dripping down his leg and began to black out. The bullet had nicked a major artery.

Instead of waiting for an ambulance, his friend sped him to a nearby hospital, a decision that may have saved his life.

“The doctors said if we would’ve waited a little longer, I would’ve bled to death,” Starks said.

The bullet entered his left thigh and exited above his buttocks on the right side, leaving a hole the size of a hamburger bun.

However, he’s more thankful for what the bullet dodged.

“Something had to be guiding that bullet because it missed my hip and pelvis by inches, and my sciatic nerve and my spine,” he said.

Starks said he was one of three hit by the gunfire on Aug. 11, 2007, and that the shooter has never been caught. But he doesn’t give it a moment’s thought.

He’s motivated by recovery, not revenge.

“I have too much going on in my life to handle anybody else’s nonsense or to get myself involved in something that’s going to knock me off track,” said Starks, who trains in Minneapolis with his older brother, Jamal James, at his father’s gym. “I’ve got goals that I’m definitely looking forward to (achieving) by any means necessary.”

The bullet didn’t derail his career for long. By March 2008, Starks was back in the ring, eventually winning the U.S. future stars national championships.

“My philosophy is something’s only hard if you don’t want it,” said Starks, who’s been boxing since 11. “Right now, my lead leg isn’t fast enough, I have to keep working on it. I’m a top name in the game right now, but I have a lot of flaws in my game.”

Starks dissected his win over Manuel Marquez on Monday in detail. He didn’t like his movement, feeling he was back on his heels too much. Starks prefers to be the aggressor, taking the action right at the other fighter.

“I’d give that performance maybe a 4” on a scale of 1 to 10, he said. “He shouldn’t have even stood there with me. If that was Demetrius Andrade, he would’ve cut (Marquez) off, stepped into him.”

Andrade is a boxer Starks holds in high regard, admiring his mental game and movement around the ring.

“He’s slick and fast, hits you with combinations from everywhere,” Starks said of Andrade, a member of the 2008 Olympic squad.

So, does he pattern his style after Andrade?

“I like my own style—a boxer punching,” Starks said, grinning.

The ever-affable Starks currently has a film crew trailing him and his brother around, capturing images for an upcoming documentary.

“It’s about two Minneapolis kids getting out of some of the badder neighborhoods, doing something with their life, traveling around the world, trying to give some other fighters, some other kids, aspirations to do things,” Starks explained. “It’s going to be a good movie.”

He’s hoping to give the film crew good footage this weekend.

Now if he can only get the leg to cooperate.

That tiny little hitch in his left leg is still detectable—at least to him, especially in practice.

Starks goes through a strenuous series of stretching exercises to loosen up the leg before stepping into the ring, and has the hip adjusted by a chiropractor from time to time.

However, once the bout begins, he’s all business—never giving the leg a second thought.

“My leg is 80 percent,” Starks said. “But I’m beating a lot of these guys with 80 percent of my game right now.”

Welterweight champ Miguel Cotto returns to MSG

By ADAM GOLDMAN, Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK (AP)—In a corner of the South Bronx, WBO welterweight champion Miguel Angel Cotto stepped into an outdoor ring before hundreds of fans and a wave of adulation washed over him.

He stripped off his shirt and women swooned. He went through his drills— stretching, jumping rope and punching padded gloves—and onlookers shouted: “Pound for pound, baby!”

“He’s just an awesome fighter,” said 23-year-old Jose Centeno, whose dad is from Puerto Rico and who waited under a hot sun to get a photo of Cotto. “He’s our pride.”

This is Cotto Country. New York is a city where nearly 800,000 residents have Puerto Rican roots, and the hard-hitting Cotto (33-1, 27 KOs) is much beloved here.

“We all want a champ,” said Alfredo Pimentel, who lives in Spanish Harlem near La Fonda Boricua, a restaurant Cotto frequents that is well known for serving authentic Puerto Rican food.

“We love him here. It’s one way for Puerto Ricans to express we have champions. We’re a small country but we got them. Everybody has natural resources but we have champions.”

The 28-year-old Cotto, one of the world’s top boxers, has not let them down. He’s never lost in five fights at Madison Square Garden. On Saturday, he’ll tangle at the Garden with 32-year-old Joshua Clottey of New York, a tough fighter who was born in Ghana and loves to come forward like Cotto.

Clottey is Cotto’s first real test since a questionable loss last year in a bloody slugfest to Mexican Antonio Margarito, who was found to have a plaster-like substance on his hand wraps before a subsequent defeat to Shane Mosley.

Cotto dismantled Michael Jennings in February at the Garden but that was a mismatch—Jennings never had a chance.

The Clottey bout takes place on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade and will lure many Cotto fans. Three of his previous five victories at the Garden have landed on the weekend of the parade, establishing him as genuine attraction, a sure ticket seller.

“There’s a natural hook between the area and his culture,” said Top Rank President Todd duBoef, Cotto’s promoter. Another Puerto Rican fighter, WBO junior flyweight Ivan Calderon (32-0, 6 KOs) of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico is also on the undercard. Cotto is from Caguas, which is about 20 miles south of San Juan.

Cotto’s previous fights at the Garden have drawn a total of nearly 52,000 people. Cotto has sold more tickets overall at the Garden than any other fighter in the last decade. He’s already sold more than 15,000 seats for the upcoming bout against Clottey (35-2, 20 KOs).

“I am a big fan of Puerto Rican weekend there in New York and to be a part of that would mean a lot for any person,” Cotto said in a conference call with reporters. “Now in my career it is like a tradition. Every year fighting in front of thousands of Puerto Rican people at Madison Square Garden means a lot to me.”

Nuyoricans, as they are known, always embrace their best fighters and in particular welterweights—including Wilfredo Gomez, Felix Trinidad, Hector Camacho and Jose “Chegui” Torres. All of them fought at the Garden. All of them were loved.

Cotto is the latest to stake his claim here, solidifying his popularity by doing what all boxing fans relish: winning in style and becoming a champ. It doesn’t hurt that he’s a had key victories in New York—taking out Mosley, a former pound-for-pound king at the Garden in 2007—and two Brooklyn fighters, Zab Judah and Paul Malignaggi.

At the exhibition last Saturday, Cotto didn’t just come to Bronx for a few minutes.

As a disk jockey played a mix of traditional Puerto Rican songs and pop music, he put on a lengthy show that didn’t cost his supporters a dime—an important gesture in a low-income neighborhood where not everybody can afford to see a fight at the Garden or on HBO.

“First, he’s Puerto Rican and we wears it with a badge of honor,” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., who was shaking hands with potential voters, piggy backing on Cotto’s popularity. “We love the fact that Cotto is here. They get to see him for free. Because of that, we respect him and love him.”

After arriving, the humble Cotto went about securing his fan base, endearing himself to many. He autographed pictures, speed bags and head gear. His handlers threw out Cotto headbands.

The Cotto crazies clamored for him.

In between workouts, Cotto smothered his children and wife with kisses. He winked and smiled.

Why wouldn’t Cotto be happy?

He was practically home.

Foreman III stops Weaver in pro debut

KINDER, La. (AP)—George Foreman III won in his professional debut, stopping Clyde Weaver at 1:16 of the first round Saturday night at Coushatta Casino Resort.

Foreman, the 26-year-old son of two-time world heavyweight champion George Foreman, floored Weaver with a left hook to the chin. Earlier, the 6-foot-5, 236-pound Foreman knocked Weaver (0-2) down with a left hook to the body.

“It feels good to know all the torture my father put me through paid off,” Forman said.

The elder Foreman, who is his son’s manager and trainer, didn’t watch the fight, choosing to let his hand-picked corner team guide his son. After the fight was stopped, the father went into the arena to see his son.

“You never know. This guy surprised me. A guy can train in the gym and look real good. But then they get in the ring and is a flop,” the elder Foreman said. “Now I know he’s a fighter.”

When the opening bell rang, Foreman ran straight ahead to meet Weaver and began to throw jabs and hooks. Less than 30 seconds into the fight, Foreman threw a left hook that landed on Weaver’s chin, forcing him to the canvas.

Weaver got up, but landed back on the mat again when Foreman hit him with a left hook to the body.

“I’m happy to make my debut. The goal was to have my first fight,” Foreman said. “The hardest thing going into the fight was waiting for the undercard to end.”

McGee Excited To Show Off Her New WBC International Super Lightweight Title At The "Tinley Park Rumble"

June 4 (Merrillville, In) - Octavius James' One In A Million Inc.'s most recent card "Date With Destiny" was "Merciless" Mary McGee's night to prove all the doubters wrong and at the same time fulfill a lifelong dream of becoming the WBC International Super Lightweight Champion and also successfully defend her NABC Lightweight title.

The undefeated Gary, Indiana native (17-0, 10 KOs) accomplished both as she won a spectacular spine-tingling 10-round Super Fight over the WBF Super Lightweight champion Kristy "Rose" Follmar (16-2, 9 KO's)

(Pictured Above: Photos from the April 25, 2009 "Super Fight" Between "Merciless" Mary McGee and Kristy Follmar.)

"The expectations were so high and I can't even explain the feeling of being crowned the champion after that war," said McGee.

"I really wanted to show my gratitude for everyone that was on my side that night, so this gives me an opportunity to give the love back that they gave me," McGee added. "I'm also extremely excited to see Walker vs. Waite battle, because both of them are my stable mates and they are both incredible fighters."

During the loaded "Tinley Park Rumble," McGee will be available for autographs and pictures for those in attendance at the Holiday Inn/Tinley Park Convention Center.

"Mary has worked so hard and overcome so much for everything she has accomplished and she has become one of the world's top female fighters at such a young age," said Octavius James, C.E.O. of One In A Million Inc.

"I really couldn't be any more proud of her and all that she has been able to achieve in and out of the ring," added James. "The road doesn't end here for her though, she has a lot more titles to stake claim on and the "Tinley Park Rumble" will give her a chance to just sit and enjoy her success for one night before she gets right back into the ring very soon." James said..

Walker vs. Waite will make up the explosive main event for the "Tinley Park Rumble," while the undercard will feature the undefeated welterweight sensation Ed "2 Fast 2 Furious" Ochoa (8-0, 8 KO's) vs. rugged veteran Jessie Davis (11-12, 8 KO's), the electric Angel Hernandez (12-3, 10 KOs) is facing the always tough Guadalupe Diaz (5-4, 1 KO), Chicago's Bobby Jaskierny (3-1, 2 KOs) faces Mexico's Jose Guzman (5-2, 4 KO's), unbeaten Josh Crouch (4-0, 4 KOs) will fight the ring savvy Josh Rodriguez (4-8, 3 KO's), and middleweight Meegel Harper (1-0, 1 KO) returns to the ring with an opponent to be named soon.

Tickets for "Tinley Park Rumble" are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased at VIP $100, VIP ringside $75, ringside $50 and general admission $30 and they are available from any Ticket Master location at (800)745-3000, (866) 438-7372 or www.TicketMaster.com.

The Tinley Park Convention Center, which is just 20 minutes from Northwest Indiana, doors will open at 7 p.m. with the first bout at 8 p.m.

Yuri Foreman Tickets and Amateur Boxing at Gleason's

Amateur Boxing Club Show At Gleason's - June 20, 2009.

All bouts are pre-matched by New York's finest matchmaker, Angela Querol. If you wish to participate call Angela at (718) 797-2872. The show will include junior, senior and master boxers. The show is sanctioned by USABoxingMetro. The weigh in will start at 5:00PM and the first bout will begin at 7:00PM. The ticket price is: $20 per person. Amateur members with their license with them and gym members pay $10 per person.

Our Next Amateur show is scheduled for Saturday, August 1st. Sign up to participate quickly. The show will be at our new outdoor sight. The Manhattan Bridge underpass on Water St. next to the gym.

Yuri Foreman Tickets

Yuri (27-0) will box in Atlantic City on Saturday, June 27th. He meets Cornelius Bundrage (27-4-2) for the number one IBF spot and the mandatory fight against World Champion Cory Spinks. Buy your tickets through Gleason's Gym. The prices are: $200, $100, and $50. Call (718) 797 2872 or email bruce@gleasonsgym.net .

Book your spot at our famous annual Fantasy Boxing Camp.

The Gleason's Gym 7th Annual Fantasy Boxing Camp will be at Kutsher's Country Club in Monticello, New York over the Labor Day Weekend, September 4 through September 7, 2009. The camp is open for anybody that likes boxing. Our youngest attendee was 12 and our oldest attendee was 76. There are professional and amateur boxers and businessmen and women boxers, and just plain fans of boxing that attend. There will be four days of intense training with some of boxing's greatest champions. Join Carlos Ortiz, Emile Griffith, Iran Barkley, Mark Breland, Juan LaPorte, Alicia Ashley, Melissa Hernandez, Hector Roca, Yuri Foreman, Martin Gonzalez, Terry Southerland and others training and fun at this year's camp. There is limited space for our 2009 Fantasy Boxing Camp. Please make your reservations early. The deadline is August 8, 2009. A $500 non-refundable deposit will secure a place at the camp. The balance of the payment must be made by August 15, 2009. Contact Bruce Silverglade at Gleason's Gym for further information: (718) 797 2872 or bruce@gleasonsgym.net.

$1800 per person (based on two per room) $2500 per person plus one guest (guest not attending the camp) $3100 per person plus two guests (guests not attending the camp) $2100 per person (private room)

Klitschko to face Chagaev on June 20

FRANKFURT (AP)—Ruslan Chagaev will replace David Haye as Wladimir Klitschko’s opponent in a heavyweight title bout on June 20.

Haye bowed out of the fight on Wednesday, saying he had injured his back in training, and said he wanted to push the date back to July.

But Klitschko, who holds the IBF and WBO belts, said he was in top form and wanted to keep the date—a 60,000-ticket sellout at Schalke’s soccer stadium in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

“It’s unfortunate that David Haye can’t compete. But now I’m looking ahead and I’m excited about a particularly sporting challenge with Ruslan Chagaev,” Klitschko (52-3) said in a statement released Saturday by his management company, KMG.

Chagaev has been the WBA’s “champion in recess” since withdrawing from two scheduled rematches against Nikolai Valuev. A third match between the two fighters scheduled for last Saturday in Helsinki was canceled after Finnish boxing authorities said Chagaev failed a “medical requirement.”

The WBA had said that the two must fight before the end of this month to decide ownership of the title, but has not announced what the most recent cancellation means for that deadline.

Klitschko’s manager, Bernd Boente, said Valuev was also considered as a potential challenger for the June 20 fight.

In February, Chagaev (25-0-1) won a technical decision over Carl Davis Drumond at Rostock, Germany—the Uzbekistan-born boxer’s first fight in more than a year.

Late replacement Molina beats Perez

MIAMI (AP)—Carlos Molina, a late replacement for former welterweight champ Carlos Quintana, won a lopsided unanimous decision over Danny Perez on Friday night.

Molina was the aggressor from the opening round of the 154-pound bout at Mahi Temple Auditorium. Effectively cutting distance, Molina pressured Perez and scored with combinations to the body and left hooks to the head.

Two judges scored the fight 119-109 for Molina, and the third also had the Mexican winning 118-110. There were no knockdowns.

Molina won his ninth consecutive bout and the minor NABO title.

In the third round, Molina took advantage of a shorter range and connected with a three-punch combination to the head. Later in the round, Molina (16-4-1) caught Perez with a right to the body and followed with a right uppercut.

Perez, of El Cajon, Calif., picked up the pace in the fifth and scored with a lead left jab and rights to the body. But Molina remained busier, landing short combinations to the head.

In the eighth round, Perez (34-6) scored some of his best shots of the bout as he landed rights to the head and a left uppercut. Molina quickly recovered and again pressured Perez, pinning to the ropes and landing short combinations to the head and body.

Molina never allowed Perez to turn the fight in his favor and continued pressuring Perez. Molina solidified his victory when he landed two solid straight rights to the head followed by a right uppercut in the 11th round.

The loss snapped Perez’s three-fight winning streak since resuming his career in 2008 after a three-year absence.