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BERNARD HOPKINS TO FACE ENRIQUE ORNELAS Press Release: October 14, 2009
Long synonymous with
the fighting city of Philadelphia, future Hall of
Famer Bernard Hopkins' remarkable career will
continue in his hometown on Wednesday, December 2,
when "The Executioner," who will be fighting in
Philly for the first time since 2003, faces
hard-hitting Enrique Ornelas at the Liacouras Center
at Temple University. The 12-round light heavyweight
bout will be televised live on VERSUS, the fastest
growing sports cable network in the country, at 8
p.m. ET. In addition to fighting
for his fans, Hopkins will be fighting for charity
as he has committed to donating one dollar from each
ticket sold to three select charities. Make-A-Wish
Foundation® of Philadelphia & Susquehanna Valley, to
which Hopkins will donate in memory of Shaun Negler,
one of his biggest fans, whose last wish was to
attend Hopkins' fight against Joe Calzaghe before
succumbing to brain cancer in late 2008 at the age
of 18, will be one beneficiary. The second recipient
of the fight's proceeds will be The Hero Thrill
Show, an annual day of events designed to raise
money for the education of relatives of deceased
police and fire personnel killed in the line of duty
while protecting Philadelphia. Finally, one dollar
will be donated to the National Breast Cancer
Foundation, Inc. in memory of Hopkins' deceased
mother Shirley who suffered from breast cancer and
in recognition of all those who are currently
battling the disease. "I'm thrilled about the
opportunity to once again bring a fight to the city
of Philadelphia," said Hopkins, the former
middleweight champion who owns a perfect 10-0 record
in Philly. "A lot has changed in my career since I
fought here six years ago and I want to give my fans
the chance to see me fight again at home. To top it
off, a portion of the proceeds from this fight will
go to three charities that are extremely important
to me. December 2 is going to be a great night for
boxing and a great night for Philadelphia." "Fighting Bernard
Hopkins is an honor and I thank him for the
opportunity," said Ornelas. "But once the bell
rings, I'm going to do everything in my power to
beat him and show the world what I can do when the
spotlight is shining brightest." "Broad Street Brawl":
Hopkins vs. Ornelas is presented by Golden Boy
Promotions East and will be televised live on VERSUS
beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the
first bell rings at 6 p.m. ET. Tickets, priced at
$200, $100, $75, $50 and $25, will go on sale on
Thursday, October 15 at 10 a.m. ET exclusively
through ComcastTIX on line at ComcastTIX.com, by
calling 1-800-298-4200 or in person at the Liacouras
Center box office. A man who needs no
introduction to fight fans, Philadelphia native
Bernard "The Executioner" Hopkins (49-5-1, 32 KO's)
already assured himself a spot in the boxing Hall of
Fame with his more than 10-year reign as champion
atop the middleweight division with a record 20
successful title defenses. Never one to rest on his
laurels, in 2006 Hopkins moved up in weight and
recorded a huge win over Antonio Tarver to win the
light heavyweight title. With his subsequent win
over Winky Wright and his destruction of the younger
and then undefeated Kelly Pavlik in his most recent
bout in October of 2008, Hopkins is showing the
world that life begins at 40. Now 44 years young,
Hopkins is back in action and eager to continue to
show the young guns how it's done. Hard-hitting, Enrique
Ornelas (29-5, 19 KO's) has emerged from the shadow
of his older brother, super middleweight contender
Librado Andrade, and carved out his own niche in the
fight game with his aggressive style and
fight-ending power. Fresh off of a fourth round
stoppage of Roberto Baro in July, the 29-year-old
Los Angeles based native of Jesus Del Monte,
Guanajuato Mexico is eager to put his mark in the
history books by becoming one of the few fighters to
own a win over Bernard Hopkins. Despite being home to
such legendary fighters such as "Smokin" Joe
Frazier, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Meldrick "The Kid"
Taylor, Jeff Chandler and Tommy Loughran,
Philadelphia may be known to fight fans mainly for
the great middleweights it has produced over the
years, including Bernard Hopkins, Bennie Briscoe,
Willie 'The Worm' Monroe and Bobby "Boogaloo" Watts.
These 160-pound warriors made their names in such
storied venues as the Blue Horizon and the Spectrum
and with their never surrender attitude in the ring,
they let the world know just what it meant to be a
"Philly Fighter". Hopkins is modern day Philadelphia
boxing's link to that tradition and will look to
prove it on December 2 in front of his hometown fans
in what could be his last fight in the City of
Brotherly Love. A full slate of
exciting undercard bouts will be announced shortly.
The Liacouras Center at Temple University is managed by Global Spectrum, Global Spectrum (global-spectrum.com) is the fastest growing firm in the public assembly facility management field with more than 80 facilities throughout the United States and Canada. The Philadelphia-based company is part of one of the world's largest sports and entertainment companies, Comcast-Spectacor, which also owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association, Flyers Skate Zone, a series of community ice skating rinks, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, a regional sports programming network, Ovations Food Services, a food and beverage services provider, New Era Tickets, a full-service ticketing and marketing product for public assembly facilities, and Front Row Marketing Services, a commercial rights sales company and 3601 Creative Group, a full-service in-house advertising agency. In a partnership with Disson Skating, Comcast-Spectacor annually produces 10 nationally televised figure skating spectaculars on NBC.
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