MARGARITO,  CASAMAYOR AND MAUSSA HIGHLIGHT EXCITING “FAST & FURIOUS!” PAY-PER-VIEW UNDERCARD!

 

 
 
 

 

 

            Boasting a combined record of 156 victories – 109 by knockout – against just 23 losses, the three-bout pay-per-view undercard for “Fast & Furious!” promises to live up to its name!  Former welterweight champion ANTONIO MARGARITO will take on GOLDEN JOHNSON in a 12-round battle for the vacant WBO Intercontinental welterweight title, two-division world champion JOEL CASAMAYOR will defend his WBC interim lightweight title against former WBC interim lightweight champion JOSE ARMANDO SANTA CRUZ and power-punching phenomenon VICTOR ORTIZ will be taking a big step up when he faces former super lightweight champion CARLOS MAUSSA in a 10-round welterweight rumble.   

             Promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, in association with Madison Square Garden, and sponsored by Rums of Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico Tourism, Paramount Pictures new film Beowulf, Tecate Beer and Southwest Airlines, “Fast & Furious!” will be headlined by the WBA welterweight championship fight between Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto and Sugar Shane Mosley of Pomona, California.  “Fast & Furious!” takes place Saturday, November 10, at the “Mecca of Boxing,” Madison Square Garden in New York City.  HBO Pay-Per-View will produce and distribute the four-bout pay-per-view card live, beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.

 

            “I am very happy that Joel Casamayor will make his first appearance under the Golden Boy Promotions banner on this fantastic undercard,” said Golden Boy Promotions President, Oscar de la Hoya.  “This is a great match-up between the skillful Casamayor and the former world champion Santa Cruz.”

 

“I am very proud of this event,” said Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank. “It's the best undercard I have ever seen on a championship fight card. Each fight has significance, particularly the one involving former champion Antonio Margarito, who is in very tough against Golden Johnson."

 

            Margarito (34-5, 25 KOs), from Tijuana, Mexico, captured the vacant WBO welterweight title in 2002, knocking out Antonio Diaz in the 10th round of their championship fight.  He successfully defended the title seven times – five by knockout – during his five-year reign.  Two of those victories were against world champions Andrew Lewis and undefeated Kermit Cintron, as well as top contender Joshua Clottey. The three challengers had a combined professional record of 86-2-1 when he fought them. Margarito lost the title in July via a close decision to undefeated Paul Williams.  Currently world-rated No. 1 by the WBO, Margarito knows the only way back to a rematch with Williams is by winning on November 10.  Johnson (25-8-3, 18 KOs), from San Antonio, Texas, is riding a five-year unbeaten streak.  Highlights of that streak include TKO victory of Oscar Diaz (25-1 12 KOs), for the NABF welterweight title, and a 12-round decision over undefeated Freddy Hernandez (17-0, 14 KOs).

           

Casamayor (34-3-1, 21 KOs), from Guantanamo, Cuba, is considered one of the top fighters of his era.  Since winning the Olympic Gold Medal in 1992, Casamayor and excitement have gone hand-in-hand with boxing fans.  Casamayor captured his first world title, knocking out undefeated WBA super featherweight champion Jong-Kwon Baek in 2000.  His two-year reign ended via a controversial decision to undefeated WBO junior lightweight champion Acelino Freitas in their title unification bout.  When Freitas refused to give Casamayor the rematch fans and the media clamored for, Casamayor moved on to bigger challenges.  He stopped two-division world champion Diego Corrales in the sixth round of their junior lightweight title fight in 2003, stuck the first loss on undefeated contenders Nate Campbell and Daniel Seda’s records and, in the rubber match of their exciting trilogy, won a split decision over Corrales last year to capture the WBC and The Ring Magazine lightweight titles.  Santa Cruz (25-2, 14 KOs), from Lincoln Heights, California, has won five of his last six bouts.  Santa Cruz captured the WBC interim lightweight title on May 20, 2006, knocking out Chikashi Inada (19-2, 14 KOs), in the sixth round.  His resume boasts victories over Michael Lozada, Justin Juuko, and Edner Cherry.

 

            Ortiz (19-1-1, 14 KOs), from Oxnard, California, has lived up to his nickname “vicious” since turning professional after capturing the National Jr. Olympic and National PAL amateur championships in 2003.  He is undefeated in his past 13 fights, with nine victories by knockout, including his last fight, a 10th-round TKO demolition of Emmanuel Clottey.  It was only the second time Clottey had ever been stopped in his 12-year career   Trained by former world champion Robert Garcia, Ortiz has developed into a welterweight with lightweight speed and heavyweight power.  Only 20 years old, Ortiz is already world-rated inside the Top-15 by both the WBO and the WBA.  Maussa (19-4, 17 KOs), from Monteria, Colombia, captured the WBA super lightweight title in 2005, knocking out defending champion Vivian Harris in the seventh round and ending his three-year reign.  Rather than lock up the title with easy defenses, Maussa went straight for IBF champion Ricky Hatton in an exciting title unification bout later that year which saw Hatton prevail in the ninth round. 

 

Remaining tickets, priced at $750, $500, $300, $200 and $100 and include a $4.50 facility charge, can be purchased at the MSG Box Office, TicketMaster outlets & TicketMaster phone (866-448-7849), and online at www.ticketmaster.com / www.thegarden.com.

 

The Cotto vs. Mosley pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 pm ET / 6 pm PT, will be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 61 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry.  For your Cotto vs. Mosley fight week updates, log on to www.hbo.com.