FIVE CHAMPIONSHIP BELTS ON THE LINE ON JANUARY 30 AS UNDERCARD DETAILS ARE UNVEILED
MONTREAL, January 7, 2016 – Main Events and InterBox are proud to offer boxing fans a quality card with a championship flair this January 30 at the Bell Centre. The event, which will feature the unified light heavyweight world championship grudge match between WBA, WBO and IBF title holder Sergey Kovalev and former world champion Jean Pascal, will also put two other titles on the line: Dmitry Mikhaylenko against Ray Robinson for the USBA welterweight belt as well as Renan St-Juste against Francis Lafrenière for the International IBF middleweight title.
“We asked our team to put together a balanced and diverse card that would showcase our up-and-coming talent,” said InterBox Vice President Pierre Duc.
To kick the evening off, Quebec-based hard puncher Steven ‘Bang Bang’ Butler (13-0-1, 11 K.O.) will meet Angola’s Antonio Hoffmann (13-0, 9 K.O.). Just like Eye of the Tiger Management’s young local rookie, Hoffman is a fierce competitor who has a devastating punch and is quite gifted technically.
“I am presently in camp in the United States for my bout against Hoffman and I am in great shape,” said Butler. “I’m pumped for this fight and I look forward to it, as well as to all the challenges 2016 will bring me. I have lofty goals and I intend to impress the crowd at Bell Centre on January 30.”
After another impressive performance in front of his fans where he beat Quebec-based boxer Frank Cotroni in spectacular fashion, Sorel’s David Théroux (8-1, 5 K.O.) will be back in the Bell Centre ring on January 30 to face Mexican boxer Juan Armando Garcia (12-2-2, 5 K.O.) in a six-round middleweight bout.
Théroux said he is thrilled to fight on the undercard of the unified world championship grudge match between Sergey Kovalev and Jean Pascal: “Their first fight was a memorable night for me and a great number of boxing fans considering the quality of the fights that were scheduled that night and the electric atmosphere there was in the building! I am confident I will put on a good show on January 30 because my opponent, Juan Armando Garcia, is a tough fighter who does not shy away from challenges.”
For his part, Sébastien Bouchard (11-1, 4 K.O.) will be back in action to fight Poland’s Damian Mielewczky (9-1, 7 K.O.) at 160 pounds.
About January 30
The grudge match for the unified light heavyweight world championship between Sergey Kovalev and Jean Pascal, a Vidéotron presentation in collaboration with Mise-O-Jeu, will be televised live in the United States on HBO beginning 9:45pm ET/PT. The HBO telecast will open with a 10-round welterweight contest between Dmitry Mikhaylenko and Ray Robinson. In Canada the event will be available on pay-per-view TV, please consult with your local cable provider. The card is promoted by Main Events and InterBox in association with German Titov Promotions. Tickets are on sale on at www.evenko.ca, at Centre Bell box office and at Club de boxe Champions in Montreal.
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.
