ESPN ‘FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS’
CO-MAIN EVENT OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED
MORALES VS. SULEYMANOV
MARCH 7 THE PALA CASINO RESORT AND SPA
SAN DIEGO (February 20, 2014) – Gary Shaw Productions in association with Greg Cohen Promotions, Antonio Leonard Promotions and All In Entertainment is happy to officially announce the ESPN “Friday Night Fights” co-feature to the main event attraction featuring Rustam Nugaev (26-6-1, 16 KOs) vs. Marvin Quintero (25-4, 21 KOs), taking place at the Pala Casino Spa and Resort in Pala, California on March 7, 2014.
The evening’s co-main event will feature undefeated junior featherweight Roman Morales (17-0, 9 KOs) against Russian born fighter Khabir Suleymanov (16-3, 6 KOs), in a scheduled 10-round bout.
This will be Morales’ second scheduled 10-round affair, the first was back in October of last year against Roberto Castaneda. Morales went the distance in that contest, earning a unanimous decision in the process, so it stands to reason that there should be no issues with his stamina and you could make the argument that he will be more comfortable this time around, opening the door to a fight filled with fireworks.
“I learned a lot about myself last time out and I think it was more important to get the rounds in than it would’ve been to get overaggressive, maybe even reckless. I’m still growing both mentally and physically, but I know I’m getting everything out of each experience. This time out I’ll have a better understanding of what I’m capable of at different points in the fight, I may choose to push the gas at several points. My opponent won’t be comfortable in there, I won’t let him get settled. I can wait for him to make a mistake but I know I can help the issue better this time out,” Morales said.
Promoter Gary Shaw feels Morales has the ability to become a force in the Jr. Featherweight division. A good performance against Suleymanov will get Morales one step closer to a world title opportunity.
“Morales has a great chance to elevate his position in the Jr. Featherweight division,” said Gary Shaw. “I’m expecting a lot of action in this fight because I know both fighters are hungry to prove to the world that they are on the championship level. This is a tough fight for both guys and the winner will certainly move on to bigger and better things.
The rest of the undercard will showcase some of the brightest young up and coming stars in boxing.
Opening up the telecast will be Washington DC’s undefeated welterweight sensation, Dusty Harrision Hernandez (20-0, 11 KOs) as he battles Honolulu Hawaii’s Michael Balasi (10-3, 7 KOs) in an 8-round bout.
Whittier, California’s unbeaten lightweight star, Alejandro Luna (16-0, 12 KOs) will take on Mexico’s Sergio Riviera (18-14-2, 11 KOs) in a 6-round bout.
Chicago’s amateur standouts, Kenneth Sims Jr. and Eduardo Martinez will be making their pro debuts. Sims Jr. will face Arizona, CA’s Cory Muldrew (1-5) in a 4-round light welterweight bout, while Martinez goes up against Mexico’s Juan Urbina (0-1) in a4-round super bantamweight contest.
San Antonio’s super bantamweight phenom, Mario Barrios (2-0, 1 KO) will do battle against Kelly Lionell (0-2) in a 4-round bout.
Vista, California’s, Aaron Garcia (13-3-2, 4 KOs) will challenge Mexico’s Gerardo Zayas (20-22-2, 12 KOs) in a 6-round featherweight bout.
New York’s Mike Faragon (19-0, 9 KOs) will fight an opponent to be announced in a 6-round lightweight bout, as will Santa Barbara’s welterweight Francisco Santana (18-3-1, 8 KOs).
Bouts subject to change
Tickets for the Gary Shaw Productions event, priced at $150, $100, $50 and $25, are on sale now and can be purchased at Pala Resort Casino Box office, at the Pala Privileges Center, or by calling 1-877-WIN-PALA. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.startickets.com or by calling 1-800-585-3737.
The Pala Casino Resort and Spa is located at 11154 Hwy 76, Pala, CA 92059. Doors open at 5:00 p.m, first fight starts at 5:30 p.m (PST). ESPN “Friday Night Fights” telecast begins at 9:00 p.m. EST / 6:00 p.m. PST.
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.
