TAMPA, FL, May 2 – With the training camp for his June 2nd SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING main event against unbeaten Lateef Kayode heating up, former light heavyweight champion and current IBO Cruiserweight champion Antonio “Magic Man” Tarver took time out from his busy schedule to check in with his thoughts on another high-profile matchup – the May 5th meeting between Floyd Mayweather and Miguel Cotto.
“I think that Mayweather’s coming in with all the natural God-given ability and talent, and Cotto comes in with the physical game,” said Tarver, who also doubles as a ringside analyst for SHOWTIME. “But we’ve seen Cotto beat, and beaten bad on two occasions. He was outclassed against (Manny) Pacquiao, and he took a beating against (Antonio) Margarito. We haven’t seen that with Floyd Mayweather yet. I think he (Mayweather) is at the top of the game right now, and he’s gonna have more options to do the things that he does in the ring.”
Yet despite the odds, Tarver doesn’t count the 154-pound world champion from Puerto Rico out against the unbeaten “Money” Mayweather, even though he believes Cotto will have to throw the boxing equivalent of a perfect game in Las Vegas.
“Cotto’s gonna have to be perfect,” said Tarver, who upset 5 to 1 odds in his most recent bout, knocking out Danny Green in the ninth round last July. “Cotto’s gonna have to be physical, have his defense intact, and he’s gonna have to match Floyd. When Floyd opens up, he’s gonna have to punch with him. That’s how you negate speed, and that’s a big risk, but his reward is so gigantic that’s he’s gonna have to be willing to lay it all on the line and if has to go out on his shield, go out trying to get that victory.”
As for Mayweather, Tarver is looking forward to seeing what his teammate on the 1996 United States Olympic boxing team has in store, not just on May 5th, but in the future.
“Floyd’s gonna have to keep doing what he’s doing, and in two or three more fights, he can ride out into the sunset,” he said. “Hopefully Pacquiao’s in the scheme of things and we can see that fight eventually. That would be great if he could pull that off. If he beats Pacquiao, he’s one of the greatest of all-time and not too many people can say that.”
The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calf., hosts a SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING quadruple header on Saturday, June 2 (9:00 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast).
Current IBO Cruiserweight Champion and former Light Heavyweight World Champion Antonio “Magic Man” Tarver (29-6, 20 KO’s) faces unbeaten Lateef Kayode (18-0, 14 KO’s) in a
12-round cruiserweight fight. In the co-feature, former undisputed junior middleweight kingpin Winky Wright (51-5-1, 25 KO’s) returns to the ring to meet undefeated Peter Quillin (26-0, 20 KO’s) in
a middleweight bout. In two world championship fights on the telecast, Austin Trout (24-0, 14 KO’s) risks his perfect record and WBA Super Welterweight belt against Delvin Rodriguez (26-5-3, 14 KO’s) and IBF number one rated bantamweight contender Vusi Malinga (20-3, 12 KO’s) faces top Golden Boy Promotions prospect and IBF number five rated contender Leo Santa Cruz (19-0-1, 11 KO’s) for the vacant IBF bantamweight title.
Tickets for the June 2 bout are on sale now and are available as low as $25, with VIP floor seats priced at $200. Other tickets in the 8,000-seat outdoor stadium at The Home Depot Center are available at $50 and $100. Fans can purchase tickets at www.axs.com or by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849, as well as The Home Depot Center Box Office (open Monday through Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available for purchase by calling 1-877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, please call 1-877-234-8425.
This night of world class professional boxing is presented by A.T. Entertainment, Golden Boy Promotions and Gary Shaw Productions and sponsored by Corona and AT&T. Trout vs. Rodriguez is presented in association with Greg Cohen Promotions and Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing and Malinga vs. Santa Cruz presented in association with Branco Sports Productions.
“Ring Kings: Mayweather vs. Cotto” Collection of PR Materials
Las Vegas (May 2)… As “Ring Kings: Mayweather vs. Cotto” fight week continues, the event’s public relations team has assembled documents to support your fight week coverage as the week unfolds.
Please see below for a list of the documents included in the folder:
– Floyd Mayweather Conference Call Transcript
– Miguel Cotto Conference Call Transcript
– Canelo Alvarez & Sugar Shane Mosley Media Day Quotes And Conference Call Transcript
– Mayweather vs. Cotto: Rulers Of The Ring And The Statistics To Prove It – Press Press Release
– Mayweather vs. Cotto: Who’s Really King? – Infographic
– Miguel Cotto Looks To Solidify His Mark Among The Long List Of Great Champions That Hail From Puerto Rico – Press Release
– Mexico’s Alvarez Heir Apparent To Mexican Holiday Boxing Weekend – Press Release
– Mexican Superstar Jaime Camil Will Sing Mexican National Anthem For the May 5 “Ring Kings: Mayweather vs. Cotto” Megafight – Press Release
– PueblaCinco De Mayo Ties Into “Ring Kings: Mayweather vs. Cotto” By Securing Sponsorship For May 5 Mega Fight – Press Release
-“Ring Kings: Mayweather vs. Cotto” Camp Notes
Video assets:
– 24/7 Mayweather/Cotto: Cotto Greatest Hits – http:/youtu.be/3f_AMAzRPb4
– 24/7 Mayweather/Cotto: Mayweather Greatest Hits – http://youtu.be/r3CYgOK7n1k
– HBO Boxing: Canelo Alvarez Greatest Hits – http://youtu.be/79dPlBzRcdI
– Mayweather vs. Cotto: Fighters Face Off – http://youtu.be/x1shZ-LoqMY
– HBO Sports: Ring Life – Miguel Cotto – http://youtu.be/4Q_oz5d8MsE
– HBO Sports: Portrait of a Fighter – Canelo Alvarez – http://youtu.be/UFqNfopQ9VU
– HBO Sports: Portrait of a Fighter – Floyd Mayweather – http://youtu.be/cCt796Nu5NA
– 24/7 Mayweather/Cotto: Episode 1 – http://youtu.be/r9CTxYaRQuc
HBO Sports – Floyd Mayweather: Speaking Out – http://youtu.be/gz5LxyUpxSA
JORGE “MACHITO” MAYSONET JR. WANTS TO SURPRISE ALL THE FANS ON MAY 11
May 2, 2012 – The solid hitter from Cataño, Puerto Rico, Jorge “Machito” Maysonet Jr. ( 6-0 5KO’s – 135lbs ) will be in charge of the co-feature bout for the event “Night of Future Champions,” taking place on May 11 at the Miriam “Betty” Segarra Coliseum in Peñuelas, PR and will be televised live starting at 8:00pm by The Puerto Rico Sports Network (6.2 and 3.1) and can also be seen as a repeat on the same day in its entirety on channel 6 (PRTV) starting at 11:00pm.
“Machito’s” rival will be experienced Gabriel Diaz ( 5-6-1, 1KO ) from Guayama,PR.
“Diaz may be more experienced than I, but my amateur experience has helped me greatly and professionally you have to make some changes. However, we will have no problem in beating our opponent.” said Maysonet Jr., who had a stellar amateur career, racking up 140 victories with only 10 defeats, with 40 wins coming by way of knockout.
In his amateur boxing timeline, Maysonet won various local tournaments like the ones named after “Isaac Barientos” and “José “Cheo” Aponte”. He also had two notable victories over Abner Cotto.
In the professional arena, the only Maysonet fight that has lasted more than one round was against former undefeated prospect Farkhaed Shainov (3-1 1ko), who was defeated by unanimous decision in a bout celebrated in Palm Bay, Florida.
“Machito’s” father/trainer Jorge Maysonet commented, “Our training is at a level where “Machito” will be in his best condition for the week of the fight. I would be pleased if the fight ended in he first round, as we would take the least damage possible, but we are ready to go the distance because that is why we train this hard.”
“I have been training very hard. We are very close to the weight and you can expect a lot of action from me on that day because I want to surprise all of the fans.” said Jorge “Machito” Maysonet, a member of “Team Puerto Rico” and is represented by “Warrior’s Boxing”, “Gary Shaw Productions” and “Universal Promotions.”
The event “Night of Future Champions” will be headlined by Superlightweight Joshua “El Macho” Santiago ( 7-0, 6KO’s ) facing off against the always complicated fighter Samuel “Sammito” Santana ( 4-6-2 ) in the 140 pound weight class.
As an amateur, Santiago won the Golden Gloves in two occasions in Massachusetts ( 2009,2010 ) and was a regional champion in the south in Puerto Rico.
Also in action will be Angel Acosta, the talented gold medalist from the last Central American and Caribbean Games held in Mayaguez. He will be making his professional debut in the 110 pound weight class.
Other fighters seeing action will be Miguel “El Gallo” Marrero, Usiel Velez, Jonathan Garcia, Angel López, Julio “Tun Tun” Irizarry, among others.
This event is promoted by Universal Promotions.
For tickets please call (787) 848 4242.