Loaded Roster Fills Up Bout Sheet for Uprising Promotions Card in Long Island City
Brooklyn, N.Y. (Monday, March 21, 2016) – Ronson Frank’s Uprising Promotions will be returning to action at the Five Star Banquet Hall on Saturday, April 9th, with stablemate Samuel “Main Event” Clarkson (17-3, 11 KOs) taking on Hungarian veteran Istvan Zeller (30-10, 9 KOs) for the NABF Jr. Light Heavyweight Championship in the main event.
“This is a blessing. I’m training hard like this dude is trying to take everything away from me,” Clarkson stated. “I slipped up before in my career, and now I refuse to lose. I will be coming back home with that belt.”
A Texas native, Clarkson won five fights in 2015 to extend his current winning streak to seven bouts. Among those victories included a decision over former world title challenger Cedric Agnew and knockouts of highly touted prospects Jerry Odom and Lavarn Harvell on ShoBox: The New Generation. The 25-year-old has been continually improving and showing significant growth since signing with Uprising Promotions last year, and April 9th marks the first time that he has officially fought on a card hosted by the promotion.
“I am so happy that I am finally able to fight on an Uprising Promotions card,” Clarkson remarked. “To fight in New York on top of that is such a blessing. Some fighters never get to fight in New York or ever even see New York, so for me to be able to fight for a belt in New York is something that I cannot wait to do. The fans can expect a great fight. I plan on knocking this dude out, and I am coming as vicious as I have ever been. I’m trying to be as brutal as possible come April 9th.”
Ultra-popular New Yorker Alicia “The Empress” Napoleon (5-0, 4 KOs) will also be featured on the April 9th docket, her second consecutive bout on the Uprising Promotions platform. In her last outing, the Long Island native won in dominant fashion against gritty Hungarian veteran Szilvia Szabados to claim the WBC Women’s Silver Middleweight Championship. The hard-hitting and crafty Napoleon always brings a great crowd to each and every one of her bouts, providing non-stop action for all fans in attendance.
Supporting those two feature bouts will be an incredible undercard that will showcase some top rising contenders and young prospects.
Among those slated for action are 2012 USA and PAL national champion Patrick Day (11-2-1, 6 KOs), who also won the New York Golden Gloves at 152 pounds in 2012. The former USA Olympic alternate was undefeated in his first 10 professional bouts as a welterweight before falling to unbeaten Alantez Fox on ShoBox: The New Generation in 2015.
Returning again to the Uprising Promotions stage will be Brooklyn middleweight Akil Auguste (7-1, 6 KOs), whose lone loss came after challenging NABF junior middleweight titleholder Louis Rose in just his third professional bout. Auguste is a fighter who is not afraid to test himself, and his crowd-pleasing style has made him a must-see attraction anytime he steps into the ring.
Back for the second session of his pro campaign will be light heavyweight Stephen Frank (1-0, 1 KO), who stepped up to combat 15-fight veteran Marlon Farr in his professional debut this past January, stopping Farr in the fourth frame of an Uprising Promotions card.
Two bouts scheduled to occur on the program include a super welterweight pairing between Matthew Armstrong (1-0) and Malik Joe (0-1), as well as a women’s flyweight scrap between two-time New York Golden Gloves champion Natalie Gonzalez (1-0) and pro debuting Rachel Sazoff.
Additional combatants on the April 9th show include Brooklyn lightweight Jude Franklin (1-0, 1 KO), hard-hitting Brooklyn heavyweight Romarick Ngoula (4-0, 4 KOs), New York featherweight Jose Gonzalez (1-0) and undefeated Uprising Promotions middleweight Kemahl Russell (8-0, 6 KOs), who won the Jamaican edition of the Contender Boxing Series last July.
The first bell on April 9th is scheduled for 7:00 PM sharp, with doors opening at 6:30 PM. The Five Star Banquet Hall is located at 13-05 43rd Avenue in Long Island City, and its intimate setting ensures that there is not a bad seat in the house. Tickets are priced at $60 for general admission and $100 for ringside seating, and there is also a table option with dinner. For pricing on those tables, call (516) 451-6773.
This Uprising Promotions card will continue its initiative to KO Autism, with proceeds from the night getting donated to The School For Language and Communication Development (SLCD) in Glen Cove, New York. This show is being sponsored by Brooklyn Brothers, Sleep Inn, Alma Restaurant and Charlie’s Auto Collision in Long Island City.
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.
