21.01.07 – Super bantamweight Antonio Escalante, amongst the hottest prospects in boxing, returns to Cicero Stadium this Friday night, January 26th, to battle former world champion Mauricio Pastrana in the main event of MAS MACHO, broadcast on SOLO BOXEO TECATE. MAS MACHO, another evening of world class professional boxing, is presented by Dominic Pesoli’s 8 Count Productions along with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, TCF Bank and Tecate Beer..
Cicero Stadium is located at 1909 S. Laramie, just minutes from the Eisenhower and Stevenson Expressways. Doors for this event will open at 5:30pm with the first bell at 6:30pm. Tickets, starting at $30, are on sale in advance by calling 312-226-5800.
Said De La Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions, “Antonio Escalante is one of the hottest young prospects in boxing today. He is coming up the rankings very quickly, and I believe that with two or three more good wins he will be ready for a world title. This next fight with Mauricio Pastrana is a very important step in the right direction”.
“Pastrana is a quality opponent, who faced Rafael Marquez (IBF Bantamweight World Champion) twice and gave him many problems. A win against a former world champion like Pastrana will propel Escalante into the next level, and make him a threat to any World Champion”.
Said Dominic Pesoli, President of 8 Count Productions “Escalante is very popular here in Chicago after his war with Jose Hernandez last winter at Cicero Stadium. Also, the crowd at the Aragon Ballroom was treated to a great fight when he won the WBO NABO title against Juan Ruiz. He truly is one of the most exciting young prospects in boxing and we’re thrilled to bring him back for our fans.”
“My phone has been constantly ringing since we announced he was coming back to Chicago to fight and I’d encourage our fans to call me in advance for tickets.”
The 21 year old El Paso, Texas native Escalante is ranked #3 by the WBO, and brings a record of 14-1 with 9 KO’s into this battle. In his most recent bout on October 21, 2006, from El Paso broadcast on HBO PPV, Escalante destroyed Omar Adorno with a second round knockout.
Columbian native Pastrana, now living in Miami, Florida, holds a record of 33-7-2 (21KO’s) in an outstanding career that includes his win over Hall of Famer Michael Carbajal for the IBF junior flyweight title. Pastrana defended the title for three years before losing a very close bout to Jorge Lacierva. In his last bout Pastrana knocked out Osvaldo Cedeno in the first round at the Convention Center in Palm Beach, Florida on October 28, 2006.
The full MAS MACHO card is
Antonio Escalante vs. Mauricio Pastrana, super bantamweights, 12 rounds
WBO NABO Super Bantamweight Title
Mike Gonzalez vs. Carlos Madrid, lightweight, eight rounds
Jonas Hernandez vs. Larry Olvera, bantamweights, eight rounds
Oscar De La Cruz vs. Ricardo Benevidas, super featherweights, six rounds
Gustavo Palacios vs. Joshua Rodriguez, welterweights, four rounds
Brooke Dierdorff vs. Mercedes Mercury, super bantamweights, four rounds
Thomas Kurzydlowski vs. TBA, cruiserweight, four rounds
More information on this outstanding card will be announced shortly.
The Master of Ceremonies for this event will be the internationally recognized voice of Latino boxing, Lupe Contreras.
8 Count Productions was started by Dominic Pesoli in 1997 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.
To view the seating chart and poster for this event or for more information on 8 Count Productions and JABB Boxing Gym, please visit www.8countproductions.com and www.jabbboxinggym.com