Glazkov vs Cunningham to provide a new face to the heavyweight title picture

Glazkov vs Cunningham to provide a new face to the heavyweight title picture

What do you get when you combine an undefeated, but tested top ten fighter vs a former champion coming off a big win? You get a great fight. On 14th March heavyweights Steve Cunningham and Vyacheslav Glaszkov will fight and crown a legitimate top 6 fighter in the division.

Steve Cunningham was last seen in a bout with Natu Visinia who was undefeated before being stopped by Cunningham. Cunnigham was down in that fight but came back to retire Visinia at the end of the seventh. Before that he was in with another undefeated fighter in dangerous puncher Amir Mansour. Cunningham was also down two times in that fight and it had the feeling that Mansour was on his way to winning that one. However later on Steve Cunningham would drop mansour and walk away with the decision.

Daughter of two-time world champion Steve Cunningham continues to fight and is put on Heart Transplant List

Daughter of two-time world champion Steve Cunningham continues to fight and is put on Heart Transplant List

Fundraiser set up to help offset mounting medical costs and accommodations to be close to hospital in Pittsburgh

Philadelphia (July 21, 2014)– America was introduced to Kennedy Cunningham when her father first fought on NBC back in December of 2012 when he faced Tomasz Adamek in that epic battle, we learned that she suffered from a severed heart condition called HLHS. In April when Steve fought Amir Mansour on NBC Sports, the family had just received heart breaking news when they we told that Kennedy was not a candidate for heart transplant as they had hoped.

She had her first open heart surgery at 2 days old and the second six months later. She was hospitalized for the first year of her life and suffered many set backs along the way, including a stroke, many blood infections and also required a trach and vent for several years when she was younger. The doctors that cared for her back then all say that she is a miracle, they saw everything she went through and never thought she would live to be 8 years old! Now, almost 9 years later she continues to show us how tough she is!

Cunningham vs. Mansour: Will the U.S.S. Cunningham prove to be too hardcore for Amir?

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There’s a time when even the most protected fighters get the first true test of their careers. There is no comparing Steve Cunningham’s resume, which is deep and full of recognizable names, to Amir Mansour resume. Will Cunningham’s experience and reach advantage be too “hardcore” for Mansour to overcome? We will find out this Friday night from Philly on the NBC Sports Network.

Amir Mansour’s first fight was in 1997, and at age 41 his career is really just getting started after taking over 9 years off from 2001 to 2010. Mansour comes into this matchup sporting an unblemished record of 20 wins with no losses and 15 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Cunningham Fighting For More Than Just A Belt 4/4 in Philly

Cunningham Fighting For More Than Just A Belt 4/4 in Philly

Philadelphia, PA: Steve “USS” Cunningham (26-6-0, 12 KOs) has more motivation than ever to defeat Amir “Hardcore” Mansour (20-0-0, 15 KOs) on Friday, April 4th at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA and live on NBCSN Fight Night. Cunningham said, “This isn’t about a belt or about winning, this time I need this for my family. I need to make money. I have to get a new house for my daughter’s condition. I am fighting for another pay day and to keep going. ”

His opponent did not fight professionally for over nine years while he served time in Schuylkill Federal Correctional Institution in Minersville, PA for drug possession, though he spent any free time training and honing his boxing skills behind bars. Steve took a very different path to get here. He learned to box while serving in the United States Navy but he believes both men are equally as hungry, “I know Mansour speaks about how hungry he is and how his time in prison made him so, but I don’t have time to waste either. I am fighting for something much more important.”

Video: Cunningham – Mansour Press Conference

Video: Cunningham - Mansour Press Conference

Philadelphia, PA: This afternoon at the Joe Hand Boxing Gym in Philadelphia, PA members of the media gathered for the kick-off press conference for the Friday, April 4th fight at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA between Steve “USS” Cunningham (26-6-0, 12 KOs) of Philadelphia, PA and Amir “Hardcore” Mansour (20-0-0, 15 KOs) of Wilmington, DE. The fight will be for the USBA Heavyweight Title and will be broadcast live on NBCSN Fight Night at 10:00 PM ET/ 7:00 PM PT.

Photo Courtesy of Darryl Cobb Jr.

Hall of Fame Matchmaker, J Russell Peltz has a long history of putting on great fights in Philadelphia. He said, “In this fight we have the bull and the matador. Here Mansour comes forward like a bull and Steve Cunningham is the matador. Both guys are from the neighborhood. Fights like this are what make Philly the great fight town it has been. Both fighters took a long road to get here. I am really pumped for this fight.”

Steve Cunningham interview

stevecunningham_heavyweightFollowing service in the US Navy, where the moniker, ‘USS’ comes from, and a successful amateur career, in which he won the 178lb National Golden Gloves, Steve Cunningham embarked on a professional career in 2000. Cunningham headed into the Krzysztof Wlodarczyk IBF Cruiserweight title bout on a 19 fight win streak. Wkodarczyk recieved a disputed split decision. In the rematch, Cunningham settled the score, winning the IBF Cruiserweight title.

Later that year Cunningham stopped Marco Huck in Germany. Currently, Cunningham competes in the Heavyweight division. Although Cunningham lost his last outing to British Heavyweight hope Tyson Fury, a bout in which Cunningham dropped the much larger Fury in the second round, Peter Fury was impressed enough to invite Cunningham into the Fury camp, to spar Tyson in preparation for David Haye.

This week Boxingroundup caught up with Steve Cunningham, to find out how camp has gone.

Steve Cunningham backs Tyson Fury to come out victorious against David Haye

jpegFormer IBF cruiserweight king Steve “USS” Cunningham backs Tyson Fury to come out victorious in his domestic heavyweight super fight with David Haye.

Cunningham, who lost to Tyson when they met in the ring in April, is across in Belgium helping the 25-year-old prepare for his crunch clash against the former undisputed cruiserweight world champion and former WBA world heavyweight champion, Haye, on September 28th at the Phones 4 U Arena Manchester, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

“Because I fought the guy and I see his training camp, I can go a little bit further than say; ‘May the best man win’, I believe Tyson’s going to win,” Cunningham said.

“I’m impressed seeing this guy, he’s so big and the work that he’s putting in – you can see that he’s really hungry and he wants this.”

Tyson Fury to use Steve Cunningham as sparring partner to get ready for David Haye

fury11In somewhat of an odd move, heavyweight Tyson Fury (21-0, 15 KO’s) will be using 37-year-old Steve Cunningham as one of his sparring partners to help him get ready for his September 28th fight against David Haye (26-2, 24 KO’s) at the Manchester Arena.

Fury defeated Cunningham last April in New York in a 7th round stoppage. Cunningham wasn’t too happy about the loss, because he felt that Fury had partially held him in place with a left hand while landing the knockout punch. There was no rematch to clear up the controversy, and now Fury has moved on to the Haye fight.