LOS ANGELES, May 21 – Two of Mexico’s rising stars will be in the spotlight at The Grand Oasis Cancun in Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico on Saturday, May 26 when Tlanepantla’s Pablo Cesar Cano faces Colombia’s Fidel Monterrosa and Cancun’s Sergio Thompson squares off against Argentina’s Juan Ramon Solis in co-headlining bouts to be broadcast on Televisa’s “Sabados De Corona” in Mexico and on FOX Deportes in the United States..
Also in action for fans on site in Cancun will be some of Golden Boy Promotions’ top prospects, as Deontay Wilder, Francisco Vargas and Jamie Kavanagh put their unbeaten records on the line in Mexico.
Cano vs. Monterrosa, a 10-round lightweight fight, and Thompson vs. Solis, a 12-round fight for the vacant WBC International Silver Lightweight title, are presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Pepe Gomez Promotor Deportivo and sponsored by Corona, Periodico QueQui, The Grand Oasis Cancun, Quintana Roo Tourism and Cancun Tourism. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. CT and the first fight begins at 7:00 p.m. CT. The Televisa broadcast will air on Canal 5 and begins at 10:30 p.m. CT and the FOX Deportes broadcasts will air at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.
Tickets, priced at 100 pesos, 500 pesos, 1000 pesos, 1500 pesos, are available for purchase at Hooters Z.H., Farmacia Paris Centro de Cancun and The Grand Oasis Cancun.
Known as “El Demoledor,” Pablo Cesar Cano (23-1-1, 18 KO’s) has marched through all comers since turning professional in 2006, winning the NABF super lightweight and NABA Mexico lightweight titles along the way. In September of 2011, Cano made international headlines when he stepped in on short notice to face the legendary Erik Morales for the WBC Super Lightweight World title. While he wasn’t able to secure a victory, his courageous effort has him marked as a sure-fire future world champion. In his last bout in February, he defeated Francisco Contreras via a sixth round technical knockout and now the 22-year old is ready for what should be an all-out battle with Monterrosa.
Already 34 fights into his career despite being only 23 years old, Galapa, Colombia’s Fidel Monterrosa (29-5, 23 KO’s) has knockout power, a warrior’s heart and he’s eager to take his career to the next level. A former world title challenger who extended World Champion Humberto Soto the 12-round distance in 2010, Monterrosa has won three of his last four, all by knockout, proving beyond a doubt that he can compete with anyone in the world at lightweight.
Sergio Thompson (22-2, 20 KO’s) is a two-fisted terror in the ring, with all but two of his professional wins coming by knockout, with 15 coming in three rounds or less. The winner of the WBC Mundo Hispano and the WBC FECARBOX titles, his only losses have come via razor close decisions. Thompson is currently riding an eight fight winning streak, including a stirring second round technical knockout victory over former World Champion Jorge Linares in his last fight in March.
Buenos Aires’ Juan Ramon Solis (17-5, 6 KO’s) began his professional career with a rough start, going 5-5 in his first 10 fights, but he has since won 12 in a row, capturing the interim WBC Latino lightweight title during this hot streak. Following a second round technical knockout win over Mario Cesar Correa on May 5, Solis is ready for the quick call back to the ring against Thompson.
In featured non-televised fights on the stacked 13-fight card, 2008 United States Olympic Bronze medalist Deontay “Bronze Bomber” Wilder (21-0, 21 KO’s) looks to keep his amazing knockout streak intact in an eight round fight against Bartonsville, Pennsylvania’s Jess Oltmanns (10-2, 7 KO’s). The 26-years old Wilder has ended 12 of his fights in the first round and is undoubtedly one of the hardest punchers in the heavyweight division.
Mexico City’s Francisco Vargas (10-0-1, 8 KO’s) is another 2008 Olympian showing off his talents on the professional stage, and with seven straight knockouts, he will be bringing the heat in his eight round junior lightweight bout against Ciudad Obregon’s Edgar Ramirez (9-5, 7 KO’s).
21-year old lightweight Jamie “The Nuisance” Kavanagh (9-0-1, 4 KO’s) bounced back from the lone draw of his career last December, stopping Cesar Cisneros in five rounds in March. He will look to impress even more than that when meet an opponent to be named in a six round matchup.
WORLD BOXING COUNCIL NEWS
May 21, 2012 – Mexico City.
From the office of WBC President Dr. José Sulaimán: The World Boxing Council will posthumously honor Rocky Marciano, as one of the celebrations of its 50th anniversary, with a statue about 30 feet high which will be placed in Rocky’s birth home of Brockton, Massachusetts, in the month of September.
Prestigious Mexicans sculptors Mario Rendon and Victor Gutierrez are in the process of making a statue with impact, with Rocky connecting with a right hand against Joe Walcott during their fight for the heavyweight world championship.
The following is one of the weekly “Hook to the Liver” columns by WBC President Dr. José Sulaimán that are published in El Universal every Sunday. From May 20, translated from Spanish:
HOOK TO THE LIVER
By José Sulaimán
The WBC Diamond Belt, Only for Immortals
Our sport has had, through centuries, boxing matches between the biggest heroes, but no special award had been given except, obviously, the WBC green and gold belt. Oscar de la Hoya and Floyd Mayweather broke the all time pay-per-view TV record, still the highest. Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran. Marvin Hagler and Tommy Hearns, and so many others that are historical, but the Diamond Belt Had not been introduced yet.
All boxers in the world dream since their very beginnings to become champions of the world, and apologizing for my immodesty, to win some day the Green and Gold WBC belt. There was no established custom in the past to award champions with a belt, and they received trophies, certificates, flowers. Belts were only presented occasionally, but not from organizations. It was the BBBofC which brought a mandatory presentation of a belt – the Lonsdale belt – to champions, and so did some other national commissions of the world. I remember Muhammad Ali coming down without a belt after his first title bouts.
It was the WBC which first presented its green and gold belts in 1976, my first year as president, following the idea of my unforgettable and dear friend, Colonel Hassine Hamouda, from Tunisia, sponsored by ADIDAS. The WBC belt has had five modifications during the 37 years since its introduction with our latest, with three series showing the flags of the 165 countries affiliated to the WBC with the green belt – signaling hope and faith – and the gold signaling victory, with ceramic photos of Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali.
Here it comes to my mind when I represented the WBC for the first time in 1971 for the fight Ali- Frazier at the Garden in New York, full up to the lamps with Frank Sinatra pushing Joe Louis in his wheelchair, Jacqueline Kennedy, and so many movie and show stars. I had bought beautiful cufflinks, which I wore for the fight, one of which disappeared at my first seating in my chair. It made me be furious during the whole great fight. After the fight, which I will never forget, the other cuff link also disappeared – and I thought that Mexicans were the champions!
37 years have gone bye since the first WBC title belt was implemented, that has been won by many of the greatest champions of the history of boxing. Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, Larry Holmes, Vitali Klitschko, Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, Julio César Chávez, Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns, Oscar de la Hoya, Ruben Olivares, and so many others of the close to 300 champions in the about 1,600 of WBC title fights.
Boxing has had many extraordinary champions who are all in the history of boxing with golden letters, that they wrote with their valiant hearts and fists of steel. The WBC felt that there was something missing to present as a material award to the greatest of them all. The WBC introduced the Diamond Belt that would be fought for only by the top of the elite fighters of the time. The phenomenon of modern boxing – Manny Pacquiao – and the Puerto Rican hero Miguel Angel Cotto were the first to fight for it, with Pacquiao being the first ever to conquer the highest championship honor in the WBC. The
second was the record-breaking great champion Bernard Hopkins, to be followed by the powerful Sergio Martínez, from Argentina. Floyd Mayweather, a great among greats, became the fourth ever to become a WBC Diamond Belt champion – four fighters who are top of the top of the cream.
The WBC Diamond Belt is won and kept forever by the winning champion. It is not exposed, ever. A world title can be fought for by any approved fighter. The WBC Diamond Belt is only disputed by the elite of the elite in boxing. The winners become immortals of boxing. That is the meaning of winning the Diamond Belt: immortality.
My appreciation to all my friends for reading my weekly column. God bless you all.