Baltimore, MD (November 10, 2012) – Jake Smith’s Baltimore Boxing Promotions in association with Baltimore Boxing & Fitness hits the Du Burns Arena Friday, December 7 with “Bombs Away on Pearl Harbor Day,” a special tribute card loaded with matches featuring the best local boxers.
Taking place on the 71st anniversary of Pearl Harbor, Baltimore Boxing will honor the late Mike “The American Dream” Dietrich, a beloved local star who tragically passed away in March 2010 at the age of 26. In his honor, the first ever “Mike Dietrich Award” is being presented to legendary boxing trainer Frank Gilbert and a canned food drive takes place throughout the evening for the church Dietrich attended.
“This is going to be one of my most memorable nights in boxing,” said Smith, who trained and promoted Dietrich. “Mike was not only one of my favorite fighters, he was a close friend and the kid had a heart of gold. I’ve wanted to do something like this for awhile and there’s no better place to give an award in his honor than in the same building he had some of his most memorable moments in.”
Topping the fight card is a highly-anticipated matchup between Maryland State and East Coast Middleweight titlist Jerome Featherstone of Baltimore and Salisbury’s Maynard Sterling. A local high school wrestling legend that starred at the University of Oklahoma, Featherstone’s unbeaten in the ring and continues to improve rapidly at the Baltimore Boxing & Fitness Gym. A veteran of 40 fights, Sterling competed in national tournaments and is a former Metro titlist.
The co-featured bout of the evening pits Baltimore native Jamal Dyer vies for the East Coast Welterweight belt when he challenges Jeffrey Rodriguez of Lancaster, PA.
Additional bouts featuring top local fighters will be added shortly.
For the second time in 2012, Baltimore Boxing is proudly teaming up with the American Red Cross Gala of the Chesapeake Region to help with relief efforts. A special silent auction will take place throughout the evening along with a 50/50 raffle, with all proceeds going to the Red Cross.
“The American Red Cross is deeply appreciative of the public’s interest in our work, particularly surrounding the disaster relief operations for Hurricane Sandy,” said Kristen Duncan, Regional Events & Recognition Coordinator for the American Red Cross of the Chesapeake Region. “We are so fortunate to be part of a community that is called to act when others are in need. Baltimore Boxing has been great to work with and we are looking forward to a great event. They are helping us gain exposure with new audiences and bringing our mission to the forefront of their organization. We could not be more grateful of their support.”
Tickets for “Bombs Away on Pearl Harbor Day” start at $20 and are available at Baltimoreboxing.com and at the Baltimore Boxing & Fitness Gym. VIP tables are also currently on sale, ranging from $200 to $500. All VIP ticketholders can enjoy free hors d’oeuvres and half priced drinks from 7-8 pm. Doors open at 6:30 and the first bout is scheduled for 8:15.
For more information, go to Baltimoreboxing.com.
Contact: Matt Yanofsky (Publicist) – 551-206-0578
Twitter: @kopublicity Twitter.com/kopublicity
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.
