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Don King
Signs Television Deal with Cadena Tres; Brings Saturday's
World Championship Boxing Event To Mexico From St. Charles, Missouri
Legendary Promoter Says, 'Viva Mexico'
ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- Promoter
Don King has been tenaciously promoting his Saturday fight card in St.
Charles--that will make Missouri history with three world
championships--but he made time to make sure this fight card will be seen
in his beloved Mexico by striking a deal with Mexico’s Cadena Tres ("La
Television Mas Abierta que Nunca"), which is seen in Mexico on channel 28
or 128 on Skye Television.
The card
will feature former WBC super lightweight champion Devon Alexander "The
Great" (21-1, 13 KOs) in a significant test near his hometown of St. Louis
against dangerous Argentine knockout artist and No. 3-ranked contender
Lucas Matthysse (28-1, 26 KOs) from The Family Arena in St. Charles.
King
will support the Alexander-Matthysse main event with the WBC Silver
heavyweight championship pitting WBC No. 7-ranked Bermane "B-Ware"
Stiverne (20-1-1, 19 KOs), from Haiti, against WBC No. 4-ranked Ray "The
Rainman" Austin (28-5-4, 18 KOs), from America, and St. Charles-born
undefeated cruiserweight and WBC-USNBC champion Ryan "The Irish Outlaw"
Coyne (16-0, 6 KOs) will face undefeated "King" David McNemar (13-0, 10
KOs), from America.
Additional Americans on the telecast include undefeated IBF light
heavyweight champion Tavoris "Thunder" Cloud (21-0, 18 KOs), from
Tallahassee, Fla., will defend his title against IBF No. 1-ranked
mandatory challenger Yusaf "Mack Attack" Mack (29-3-2, 26 KOs), from
Philadelphia; and IBF junior middleweight champion Cornelius "K9" Bundrage
(30-4, 18 KOs), from Detroit, will defend his title against IBF No.
1-ranked mandatory challenger Sechew Powell, from Brooklyn, N.Y.
"Viva
Mexico, Viva Mexico, Viva Mexico," King said after completing the deal.
"I love Mexico and I love the Mexican people. I
couldn’t be more excited to know that all my Mexican brothers and sisters
will be able to tune in to see my terrific world championship fight card
on Saturday."
Cadena
Tres has been in operation for four years and previously telecast Don King
events including "History in Cancun" where Samuel "The Nigerian Nightmare"
Peter won the WBC heavyweight championship over Oleg Maskaev (2008) and
"We Are Together" from Chengdu, China. (2008)
Alexander, 24, skyrocketed to become the World Boxing Council super
lightweight champion at age 22. The talented southpaw
became a unified world champion last year after defeating
then-International Boxing Federation 140-pound champion Juan "Iron Twins"
Urango.
Alexander’s career undefeated streak was snapped on Jan. 29 by World
Boxing Organization junior welterweight champion Timothy "Desert Storm"
Bradley at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich. After
suffering numerous head butts throughout the contest, referee Frank Garza
halted the match in round 10 after consulting with the ringside physician.
The judges favored Bradley 96-95, 97-93 and 98-93.
Rather
than opting to face a lesser opponent, Alexander has chosen a dangerous
puncher in Matthysse, 28, from Trelew, Argentina.
Matthysse has a career knockout percentage over 92 percent with 26 of 28
victories coming by knockout.
In his
most notable bout, Matthysse came within a whisker of knocking out
five-time world champion Zab "Super" Judah in the 10th round on
Nov. 6 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Matthysse
tagged Judah with a brutal right hand in the 10th round that
sent Judah to the mat. Later in the round, Matthysse
landed a sweeping left hook that staggered Judah again.
Judah managed to escape the round and finish the fight--winning by
the slimmest margin possible. One judge favored
Matthysse 114-113, but the remaining two scorers favored Judah by a point,
114-113.
Matthysee and Alexander have a common opponent in former world champion
DeMarcus "Chop Chop" Corley. Matthyssee knocked Corley
down nine times en route to an eighth-round win by technical knockout on
June 21 in Argentina. Alexander won a unanimous
decision over Corley in 2008 at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
The
winner of this match will become the top contender at the 140-pound weight
limit.
Tavoris
"Thunder" Cloud vs. Yusaf "Mack Attack" Mack
IBF Light Heavyweight Championship
Tavoris
Cloud returns to the Gateway City after successfully defending his IBF
light heavyweight crown in a slugfest against former world champion Glen
Johnson on Aug. 7 at Scottrade Center. Cloud won a
unanimous decision by the identical scores of 116-112.
Cloud
possesses an 81-percent knockout ratio, even though his last three fights
were won by unanimous decisions. Possessing an
aggressive style and a plethora of power in both hands, Cloud is a
throwback fighter that likes to overwhelm his opponents with brute force.
His
tenacity and vaunted power have caused other world champions to avoid
facing him. Yusaf Mack does not have that luxury as he
has been named by the IBF as the mandatory challenger to Cloud.
Mack is
a 31-year-old veteran from Philadelphia. He remained
unbeaten in his first 24 matches, fighting between middleweight and super
middleweight. Mack settled in at the 175-pound light
heavyweight limit beginning in 2008, and he promptly reeled off five
straight victories.
He
fought well in a pivotal fight with respected former light heavyweight
world champion Glen Johnson in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., on Feb. 5, 2010,
before being stopped by technical knockout in the sixth round.
In his
last appearance, Mack defeated Otis Griffin on March 4 in Los Angeles.
This was an IBF elimination bout, which put Mack in line to next
face Cloud. He is also the reigning USBA light
heavyweight champion; former NABA and NABF light heavyweight champion; and
former USBA super middleweight champion.
Bermane "B-Ware" Stiverne vs. Ray "The
Rainman" Austin
WBC Silver Heavyweight Championship
Emerging
heavyweight Bermane Stiverne and title-tested veteran Ray Austin will meet
for the WBC Silver heavyweight championship, which will have ramifications
at the top of the division.
Stiverne
has a staggering 86-percent knockout ratio with an equally stunning 14
first-round knockouts. Only two of his fights have
gone the distance. Most of his victims have fallen
prey to his powerful right hand.
Austin
has hovered at the top of the heavyweight division for the last five
years, having faced Wladimir Klitschko, Andrew Golota, Sultan Ibragimov,
Odlanier Solis and DaVarryl Williamson, among others.
This
will clearly be the toughest opponent yet for Stiverne.
A win here would set up bigger fights in the future.
Austin will be trying to prove that he is still a force in the
heavyweight division.
Ryan "The Irish Outlaw" Coyne vs. "King"
David McNemar
Battle of the Undefeated for Cruiserweight Belts
WBA
cruiserweight champion Guillermo Jones was to have defended his title
against undefeated Ryan Coyne, but Jones suffered an injury in the final
week of training. Coyne will now risk his WBC-USNBC
national cruiserweight championship against undefeated David McNemar, from
Parkersburg, W.Va.
The WBA announced Coyne vs.
McNemar will also be for their FEDELATIN international title.
Coyne
graduated from St. Charles High School where he was named "St. Charles
County Football Player of the Year" in 2001. He played
collegiate football at University of Missouri from 2001 to 2002.
Injuries shortened his football career, and he returned to St.
Charles to pursue a boxing career while earning a bachelor’s degree from
Lindenwood University in 2005.
He has
made steady progress in his boxing career, maintaining an unblemished
record since turning professional in 2006. He won the
WBC-USNBC national title last summer at Scottrade Center in St. Louis by
knocking out Warren Browning in the ninth round. Coyne also is known for
having fought into the semi-finals during the fourth season of The
Contender, televised on Versus, before suffering an
accidental headbutt that forced him to leave the competition.
Coyne
trains out of the Sweat Pound 4 Pound Gym in Clayton, Mo., under the
tutelage of trainer Jose Ponce. The addition of
strength and conditioning expert Matt Brown has helped increase his power.
Cornelius "K9" Bundrage vs. Sechew Powell
IBF Junior Middleweight Championship
IBF
junior middleweight champion Cornelius "K9" Bundrage has an old score to
settle with Sechew Powell. After a stunning
fifth-round technical knockout over Cory Spinks in St. Louis on Aug. 7 to
win his first world title, the Emanuel Steward-trained Bundrage
immediately looked to avenge his first loss as a professional, which came
at the hands of Powell in 2005.
Powell
is a southpaw who won his first 20 fights before running into Kassim Ouma
at New York’s Madison Square Garden in 2006, where he lost by decision.
His only other loss came against Deandre
Latimore
in 2008, a defeat he avenged in his last appearance on March 3, 2010,
winning a majority decision over St. Louis’s Latimore in an IBF
elimination bout that earned Powell the right to face Bundrage, the newly
crowned champion.
Bundrage
was also a fast starter, having won his first 21 fights before running
into Powell. He later did what Powell was unable to
do, winning a unanimous decision over Ouma in 2008.
Bundrage
went on to face future world champion Yuri Foreman in 2009.
The bout was ruled no contest after an accidental clash of heads in
the third round left Foreman unable to continue.
Bundrage immediately went on to take the title from Spinks in his next
match.
About The Family
Arena...
Since its opening in
October of 1999, The Family Arena has been the stage for a number of
entertainment and sporting events. A state-of-the-art performance center,
the 10,467-seat facility has played host to collegiate and high school
basketball events, professional football, hockey and soccer, a wide
variety of concerts, and trade shows and conventions. Located just
fifteen miles from Lambert International Airport, The Family Arena is
owned and operated by the County of St. Charles, Mo.
About Don King
Productions...
Don King Productions has promoted over 600 world championship fights with
nearly 100 individual boxers having been paid $1 million or more.
DKP also holds the distinction of having promoted or co-promoted
seven of the 10 largest pay-per-view events in history, as gauged by total
buys, including three of the top five: Holyfield vs.
Tyson II, 1.99 million buys, June 1997; Tyson vs. Holyfield I, 1.6 million
buys, November 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, 1.58 million buys, August
1995.
DKP
has promoted or co-promoted 12 of the top 20 highest-grossing live gates
in the history of the state of Nevada including four of the top five:
Holyfield vs. Lewis II, paid attendance: 17,078, gross: $16,860,300 (NOTE:
Also second-highest live-gate gross for any event in the history of the
world.), date: Nov. 13, 1999; Holyfield vs. Tyson II, paid attendance:
16,279, gross: $14,277,200, date: June 28, 1997; Holyfield vs. Tyson I,
paid attendance: 16,103, gross: $14,150,700, date: Nov. 9, 1996; and Tyson
vs. McNeeley, paid attendance: 16,113, gross: $13,965,600, date: Aug. 19,
1995.
6 -21-2011
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