LOS ANGELES, July 13 – The controversy continues to swirl surrounding the Paul Williams vs. Erislandy Lara fight which took place in Atlantic City last Saturday night. In a move announced Wednesday, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board (“NJSACB”) placed all three judges who scored the fight on an indefinite suspension. In its announcement (below), the NJSACB commented that a rematch of the fight “may be warranted” in the wake of the judges awarding Williams a decision victory in a fight which the majority of media members and fans in attendance, as well as those watching the HBO telecast, had Lara winning easily. Two judges scored the fight for Williams, 115-114 and 116-114, while the third scored the fight a draw (114-114).
Having concerns regarding the final scores rendered by the judges, the NJSACB called all three judges to the Board’s offices in Trenton for a full review of each judge’s scoring of each round. Following the review, the Board determined that “there was no evidence of bias, fraud, corruption or incapacity on the part of any of the judges.” However, after hearing the judges’ explanations of their scoring, the Board remained “unsatisfied” with the scoring and suspended all three judges indefinitely. Each judge will be required to undergo additional training before being allowed to judge a professional boxing match again.
The NJSACB concluded that under these circumstances, the Board does not have the legal authority to invalidate the judges’ decision nor to mandate a rematch. The Board did, however, express its opinion that a rematch “may be warranted.”
The actions and opinion of the NJSACB seem to support the assertion of Erislandy Lara, Golden Boy Promotions and Lara’s management that Lara was the true winner of the fight against Williams and that a rematch is deserved.
Golden Boy Promotions salutes the NJSACB and its commissioner, Aaron Davis, for promptly reviewing the decision and taking decisive action to uphold the highest standards of integrity and competence among its officials.
Tyson Fury: FORGET HAYE, I’M THE FUTURE OF BRITISH BOXING
London (14th July 2011) Tyson Fury says once he knocks out British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion Dereck Chisora on July 23 at Wembley Arena he wants to do the same to David Haye before a showdown with World champion Wladimir Klitschko.
Fury was left bewildered by how David Haye flopped on the big stage against Klitschko in their World heavyweight title fight in Hamburg. “I’m the future of heavyweight boxing in Britain and the world,” says Fury.
“When you looked at how Haye boxed against Klitschko, it’s not how a true heavyweight with a true heart should fight but the British fans shouldn’t worry because I’m the coming force and I’ll show that when I knock out Chisora. Then I want to knock out David Haye to prove to Wladimir that I’m the real deal.
“If I had boxed the way Haye did I don’t think I could look at myself in the mirror ever again. But the fans can get to see a real heavyweight tear-up when I get it on with Chisora.
“We’re both going to come and have a fight, we’re not there to dance. Proper fighting men don’t dance, the fans deserve a proper fight and they’ll get it. There’s going to be fireworks.
“You have to respect what Wladimir Klitschko did but fighting me he would be fighting a true heavyweight and not a blown up cruiserweight. Wladimir has proved that he is the real deal but now it’s my time to show the world that I’m the next big thing.
“I want to bring pride and honour back to the British heavyweight scene. It got lost in all of Haye’s trash talking. But I’m the future and everyone will see that live on terrestrial tv on Channel 5.”
“After reading reports in the press this morning regarding Vladimir Klitschko Rodionovich, I would like to send my sincere condolences to the Klitschko brothers on the passing of their father.”
The “Big Brawl” is set to take place on Saturday 23rd July at Wembley Arena. The fight will be shown live in the UK on Channel 5.
For Channel 5 information, please contact Lesley Land at the Channel 5 Press Office on 0207 436 3633 or lesley.land@outside-org.co.uk
Sports fans in North America will also be able to watch the “The Big Brawl,” as the event will be distributed in the United States by Integrated Sports Media for live viewing at 3 PM/ET – 12 PM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, DIRECTV, and Avail-TVN, for a suggested retail price of only $24.95 and in Canada on the Super Channel network.
Tickets are on sale for the “Big Brawl” from the Wembley Arena 24hr box office.
Wembley Arena, 24hr Box Office, 0844 815 0815, www.wembleyarena.co.uk
Prices:
*Ringside Gold Seating £350.00
**Ringside Silver Seating £300.00
**Ringside Bronze Seating £250.00
Outer Ringside Seating £150.00
Premium Tiered Seating £50.00
Tiered Seating £40.00
**Upgrade Ticket £45.00
**Please note. All Gold, Silver and Bronze ringside seats and upgrade ticket purchased have exclusive access to the restaurant bar and includes an all inclusive drinks package. Included in the drinks package are House wine, bottled and draught beer and soft drinks. The bar will be open from 5.30pm – 11.30pm.
JOSEPH AGBEKO & ABNER MARES FACE OFF AUGUST 13 AT HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO LAS VEGAS – LIVE ON SHOWTIME
NEW YORK (JULY 14, 2011) – Joseph King Kong Agbeko has been cleared by his doctors and has resumed training to defend his International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight championship against undefeated rising star and World Boxing Council (WBC) Silver 118-pound titleholder Abner Mares, who will also defend his title,in The Bantamweight Tournament Final: Winner Takes All on Saturday, August 13, live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) from The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nev.
The world championship fight is promoted by Don King Productions and Golden Boy Promotions and is sponsored by Corona.
Tickets, priced at $200, $100, $75, $50 and $25, along with a limited number of VIP suite seats priced at $150, are on sale now and may be purchased at the Hard Rock Hotel Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations, online at www.Ticketmaster.com or by phone at (800) 745-3000.
The highly anticipated 12-round world title matchup between New York-based Agbeko (28-2, 22 KOs) of Accra, Ghana, and Mares (21-0-1, 13 KOs) of Hawaiian Gardens, Calif., by way of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, was originally scheduled for April 23, but was postponed when Agbeko was injured moments after arrival at Los Angeles International Airport during fight week. Doctors at a nearby hospital diagnosed the champion with sudden onset sciatica, a back injury.
The Aug. 13 SHOWTIME Championship Boxing telecast will be Agbeko’s fourth consecutive appearance on the network and the third in a row for Mares.
“The talented and courageous men in this division have delivered some of the most memorable fights of the last decade,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Vice President and General Manager of SHOWTIME Sports. “This tournament concept has already delivered three excellent match-ups and the best is yet to come with this Final. I am proud of Joseph and Abner for staying on course to finish what they started. May the best man win.”
Agbeko, who had never previously missed a fight, was told by a Los Angeles physician to receive treatment and wait six weeks before resuming training after the April 23 postponement. When he was cleared to fly, Agbeko returned to his native Ghana to rest and subsequently returned to New York and has resumed training.
“The physical therapy treatments in Accra worked wonders and I am happy to report that my body has responded well,” Agbeko said. “I’m back in the gym and feel healthy and stronger than ever and will be ready to fight on Aug. 13.”
“I would like to thank Abner Mares and SHOWTIME for giving me time to recover from this most unfortunate of injuries. I will forever remember their great sportsmanship during my time of trouble.”
Mares welcomed the news. “I’m excited to get the fight with Agbeko rescheduled so I can finish what I started and win the bantamweight tournament. It was unfortunate that Agbeko was injured in April, but I’m happy he has recovered and we have a date set now. I want to fight the best and I know I can beat the best. I will not rest until I become the best of the best in the bantamweight division.”
Agbeko will be making his first start since recapturing the IBF crown with an impressive 12-round unanimous decision win over then-unbeaten Yonnhy Perez in the bantamweight tournament semifinal on Dec. 11, 2010, in Tacoma, Wash. Agbeko convincingly won a thrilling give-and-take battle by the scores of 117-111, 116-112 and 115-113. Their exciting fight came in a rematch of a 2009 Halloween night slugfest that Perez won on points.
It will also be the first fight back for Mares since the semifinals in Tacoma, where he rallied dramatically to earn the most significant victory of his career, a 12-round split decision win over former two-division world champion Vic Darchinyan in a bloody, knockdown-laden affair. Mares recovered from a deep cut along his hairline in the opening round, the first knockdown of his career in the second round and a point-deduction in the fourth round to floor Darchinyan in the seventh round en route to a victory by scores of 115-111, 113-112 and 111-115.