, MD (May 24, 2012) – Jake Smith of Baltimore Boxing Promotions announced that his team of rising stars will challenge Philadelphia’s brightest young boxers in an Olympic Style tournament Friday, June 8 at the Du Burns Arena in Baltimore, MD.
Tickets starting at $25 and VIP tables of 10 from $500 are available on Baltimoreboxing.com or by calling 410-375-9175.
A longtime promoter, gym owner and trainer, Smith’s created a buzz in boxing circles by matching Team Baltimore with a squad from the Annapolis Naval Academy and twice against the City of Pittsburgh. In the aforementioned match-ups, Team Baltimore is 3-0, with each fight card taking place in front of a packed house.
“Fans are fascinated with the local rivalry angle,” stated Smith, who was a popular prizefighter in the Old Line State and currently trains many of the June 8 participants at the Baltimore Boxing & Fitness Gym. “The professional sports leagues have promoted this for years and it’s been a longtime goal of mine to do city vs city in boxing. I’m fortunate to work with some great people in other cities who’ve helped make these events a reality. To be honest, it’s no different than in basketball, baseball or football, because the crowd shows great pride for their city and the attendance has been outstanding.”
Topping the card is an East Coast title bout between rising star Jerome Featherstone and Darius Vann. A former standout wrestler at the University of Oklahoma, Featherstone served in the Marines following his college graduation. Prior to his colligate days Featherstone starred on the mat at the illustrious Boys Latin High School. Inside the squared circle, the Joppa resident and Baltimore native is yet to lose.
“This kid is one of the most amazing athletes I’ve ever seen,” stated Smith, who promoted top pros from Maryland, DC and Virginia in years past. He’s got excellent skill and if he was boxing all of his life, I have no doubt that he’d be on everybody’s list of top young fighters.”
In addition to the Featherstone-Vann match-up, there will be 11 Olympic Style bouts featuring each squad’s top talent.
All bouts are sanctioned by USA Boxing.
The Du Burns Arena is located at 1301 S. Elwood Ave in Baltimore. Doors open at 6:30 and the first bout is slated for 8 pm.
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
