Two Compelling Boxing matches added to Victor Ortiz vs Andre Berto II
By Special Report on Doghouse Boxing (Jan 26, 2012)
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TWO COMPELLING MATCHUPS ADDED TO
ORTIZ-BERTO II SHOWTIME TELECAST
ERISLANDY LARA RETURNS TO FACE RONALD HEARNS &
GARY RUSSELL JR. RISKS UNBEATEN SLATE AGAINST DAT NGUYEN
LOS ANGELES, January 26 - To round out the SHOWTIME Championship Boxing tripleheader headlined
by the highly-anticipated rematch between Victor Ortiz and Andre Berto,
Golden Boy Promotions and DiBella Entertainment have announced two more
high-impact fights from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. on
Saturday, Feb. 11..
In
a 10-round junior middleweight showdown before the main event, Cuban
star Erislandy Lara returns for the first time since his controversial
fight against Paul Williams to battle fellow contender Ronald Hearns.
Opening the SHOWTIME Championship Boxing broadcast will be a 10-round
featherweight matchup which will see unbeaten Gary Russell Jr., the
consensus 2011 "Prospect of the Year" award winner, look to continue his
meteoric rise against Dat Nguyen.
"Repeat or Revenge: Ortiz vs. Berto II" is
the highly anticipated 12-round welterweight rematch of USA Today and
Ring Magazine's 2011 Fight of the Year between former World Champions
"Vicious" Victor Ortiz and Andre Berto which will take place Saturday,
Feb. 11 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. The
co-featured fights will see top contenders Erislandy Lara and Ronald
Hearns square off and 2011 "Prospect of the Year" Gary Russell Jr. take
on Dat Nguyen. The event is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and
DiBella Entertainment and will air live on SHOWTIME at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT
(delayed on the west coast). A special three-fight undercard telecast
will air live on SHOWTIME EXTREME® beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).
Tickets, priced at $300, $150, $100 and $50, are on sale and are available at all Las
Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith's Food and Drug Centers and
Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight per person. To charge
by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase atwww.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
One
of Cuba's greatest amateur boxers and the owner of three consecutive
national championships and one world championship, Erislandy Lara
(15-1-1, 10 KO's) defected from his homeland in order to chase glory as a
professional and he is well on the way to achieving that goal. Unbeaten
in his first 16 professional fights, Lara was the victim of one of the
most controversial decisions in recent history last July when judges
awarded former World Champion Paul "The Punisher" Williams a 12 round
decision win in a fight most observers believed the Guantanamo native
won. Undeterred, the 28-year-old will be back in the ring on Feb. 11 and
is determined to be the lone judge on fight night.
The
name "Hearns" is royalty in boxing circles thanks to the exploits of
soon-to-be inducted Hall of Famer Thomas "The Hitman" Hearns. The
Hitman's son, 33-year-old Ronald "The Chosen One" Hearns (26-2, 20
KO's), is doing his best to continue the family business into the next
generation. A professional since 2004, the lanky boxer-puncher has won
five of his last six fights, with the only loss coming in a middleweight
title bout against Felix Sturm in 2011. Now back at 154 pounds, Hearns
feels stronger, faster and ready to issue Lara his second straight
defeat.
Named the 2011 "Prospect of the Year" by ESPN, Sports Illustrated and The Ring Magazine,
23-year-old Gary Russell Jr. (19-0, 11 KO's) earned those accolades the
old fashioned way - by fighting. The Maryland southpaw was 6-0 last
year, fighting as often as possible, dazzling fans and opponents alike
along the way. Now ready to make his move on the featherweight elite,
Russell can't wait to surpass his 2012 campaign with even more big wins.
Vietnam
native Dat Nguyen (17-2, 6 KO's) is an ultra-tough competitor known for
his straight-ahead style and willingness to go toe-to-toe with anyone
who dares step into the ring with him. Winner of six of his last seven
bouts, the 29-year-old, who now makes his home in Vero Beach, Florida,
is hoping that a win over the unbeaten Russell will be the catalyst for a
2012 to remember for him.
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