
6/30 come see Cornelius K9 Bundrage fight Cory Spinks for the IBF Jr Middleweight World Championship - a Showtime Boxing event - and meet Oscar De La Hoya.
Bunch, Humphrey, Scott weigh in for 60 kg U.S. Olympic Team Wrestle-off in Times Square on June 7
The three athletes participating in the U.S. Olympic Team Wrestle-off for the 60 kg/132 lbs. position on the U.S. Olympic Team in men’s freestyle wrestling have weighed in for the competition.
Making weight for the U.S. Olympic Team Wrestle-off were:
• Shawn Bunch, Columbus, Ohio (Gator WC)
• Reece Humphrey, Columbus, Ohio (New York AC)
• Coleman Scott, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
The competition will be part of “The Grapple in the Big Apple” in Duffy Square in New York’s Times Square on Thursday, June 7.
Based upon the Olympic Trials Procedures, as the athlete who qualified the USA for the Olympics at this weight class, Bunch moves directly into the best-of-three Championship Series for the Olympic berth.
On April 27, Bunch placed third in the World Olympic Games Qualifying Tournament in Taiyuan, China, which qualified the United States to compete in the London Games at 60 kg/132 lbs.
At 1:00 p.m. on Thursday in Times Square, a single preliminary match between Humphrey and Scott to determine which athlete advances to the Championship Series against Bunch.
Bunch will face the Humphrey/Scott winner in the first match of the Championship Series at 6:00 p.m. in Times Square. The second match will be held at approximately 7:20 p.m. If necessary, the third match will be held at approximately 8:20 p.m.
“Our 60 kg Wrestle-off is a big thing. We have our Olympic team set except at 60 kg,” said National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones.
“A lot of people ask me about how 60 kg has been a struggle to get qualified. How well can the 60 kg guys do at the Olympic Games when it took so long to qualify? I’ll tell you. I have as much confidence in 60 kg as any other weight class. Why? Because of the struggles they have gone through. I have seen it in their faces, their competitions, their training. It has been a challenge. It has been survival of the fittest. They are weathered through getting the weight qualified. I can’t tell you how good the attitudes are of Coleman Scott, Shawn Bunch and Reece Humphrey. We are in a great spot. We will do well at the Olympics at 60 kg,” said Jones.
Bunch was ranked No. 2 at 60 kg/132 lbs. on 2011-2012 Freestyle Team USA. He placed second in both the 2011 U.S. Open and the 2011 World Team Trials. He was a member of the 2009 U.S. World Team and has won two U.S. Open titles. He was an NCAA runner-up and two-time All-American for Edinboro and hails from Leavenworth, Kan.
Humphrey was ranked No. 1 on 2011-2012 Freestyle Team USA. He placed ninth in the 2011 World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. Humphrey won the 2011 U.S. Open and the 2011 U.S. World Team Trials. He is a two-time University World Championships medalist. He was an NCAA runner-up and two-time All-American for Ohio State and hails from Indianapolis, Ind.
Scott was ranked No. 3 on 2011-2012 Freestyle Team USA. He won the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, defeating Logan Stieber in the Championship Series. He went undefeated in five matches at the 2012 Freestyle World Cup. He was third at the World Team Trials the last three years and was a 2008 U.S. Open runner-up. Scott was a 2008 NCAA champion and four-time All-American for Oklahoma State and hails from Waynesburg, Pa.
The event will be held alongside the USA vs. Russia international freestyle dual meet set for Times Square in New York City, starting immediately following the first 60 kg bout during the 6:00 p.m. session on Thursday, June 7.
A card of high school and junior high matches featuring athletes from the Beat the Streets program will be held at 3:00 p.m.
U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS WRESTLE-OFF AT 60 KG
At Duffy Square in Times Square, New York, N.Y., June 7
Preliminary Match at 1:00 p.m.
Reece Humphrey, Columbus, Ohio (New York AC) vs. Coleman Scott, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
Best of Three Championship Series, starting at 6:00 p.m.
Shawn Bunch, Columbus, Ohio (Gator WC) vs. winner of Humphrey vs. Scott match
U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM WRESTLE-OFF AT 60 KG/132 LBS.
DIRECTLY IN BEST-OF-THREE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
SHAWN BUNCH, Columbus, Ohio (Gator WC)
Third at 2012 World Olympic Games Qualifier in China, which qualified the USA for the 2012 Olympics… 2008 and 2010 U.S. Open champion… 2009 U.S. World Team member… Second in 2010 and 2011 World Team Trials… Second at 2009 and 2011 U.S. Open… Third in 2012 Pan American Olympic Qualifier… Second in 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials… 2011 Alexander Medved International champion (Ukraine)… Second in 2010 Heydar Aliyev Golden Grand Prix (Azerbaijan)… Third in 2010 Cerro Pelado (Cuba)… Second in 2009 New York AC International… Fourth in 2007 World Team Trials… Third in 2007 U.S. Open… 2007 Pan American Championships champion… Third in 2007 Medved International (Belarus)… Two-time All-American for Edinboro, placing second in 2005 and third in 2006… College: Edinboro… High School: Leavenworth, Kan… Born: March 19, 1983… Age: 29
IN PRELIMINARY MATCH TO EARN SPOT IN CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
REECE HUMPHREY, Columbus, Ohio (New York AC)
Ninth in 2011 World Championships… 2011 U.S. Open champion… Third in 2011 Olympic Test Event (England)… 2011 New York AC International champion… Third in 2010 University World Championships… Second in 2008 University World Championships… Fourth in 2010 New York AC International… Fourth in 2010 U.S. Open… Fourth in 2009 World Team Trials… Fifth in 2011 Ukrainian Memorial International… 2009 University Nationals champion in both styles… Son of past World silver medalist and 1988 U.S. Olympic coach Jim Humphrey… Second in 2009 NCAA Championships… Third in 2010 NCAA Championships… Junior Nationals Greco-Roman champion, and freestyle runner-up… Three-time Indiana state high school champion… College: Ohio State… High School: Indianapolis, Ind. (Lawrenceville North)… Born: July 31, 1986… Age: 25
COLEMAN SCOTT, Stillwater, Okla. (Gator WC)
2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials champion… 2012 Freestyle World Cup champion… Second in 2008 U.S. Open… Third in 2010 and 2011 U.S. Open…. Third in 2009, 2010 and 2011 U.S. World Team Trials… 2012 Dave Schultz Memorial champion… 2009 Hargobind International Open champion… Third in 2010 Habibi and Movahed Cup (Iran)… Third in 2010 Pan American Championships… Sixth in 2010 Dave Schultz Memorial… Second in 2011 New York AC International… Second in 2009 Sunkist Kids International… Second in 2009 University Nationals… Fourth in 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials… 2006 U.S. Junior World Team member… 2006 FILA Junior Nationals champion… Three-time Junior Nationals champion… 2008 NCAA champion for Oklahoma State, and a four-time All-American… NCAA placements: 1st (2008), second (2007), fifth (2006), eighth (2005)… Three-time Pennsylvania state champion… College: Oklahoma State… High School: Waynesburg, Pa…. Born: April 19, 1986… Age: 26
♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.
Murray was a well known fight figure for three-plus decades as he managed, trained, promoted and did almost everything around Philadelphia boxing.
Murray was the original manager of future Hall of Famer Bernard Hopkins and also managed future world champion Steve Little. Murray trained Bennie Briscoe for a short period. Murray managed world title challengers Will Taylor and most recently guided the career of World Heavyweight title challenger “Fast” Eddie Chambers and his brother Steve Upsher Chambers.
For the better part of the past decade Murray was the Director of Boxing at The Legendary Blue Horizon. As many of you know, Rob or “Big Rob” was one of Philadelphia’s outstanding boxing personalities. He was known for his WURD Radio Shows- This Week in Boxing and This Week in Sports.
Rob was married to Denise Blocker Murray and the proud father of two sons, Robert, Jr. and Raheem.On Thursday night June 14th at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City, Floriano "L’Italiano" Pagliara will return to the squared circle when he takes part on the Lou DiBella’s Popular Broadway Boxing Television Series
Pagliara who has a record of 12-4-1 with seven knockouts will be continuing on his quest to live the American dream as the import from Cecine, Italy will be making his second New York City appearance over the past three months
For this bout, the popular IBF Mediterranean Super Featherweight Champion has set up training in the Aqua Villiage Water Park in his hometown of Cecine Italy near the Livornese coast.
Pagliara has become a major draw in the New York area as he quickly made an impression on the many Italian fans in the “Little Italy” sections of the city including the Williamsburgh Brooklyn neighborhood and on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx
L”Italiano as he is referred to in America could have stayed in Italy and been very successful as he is a very popular attraction in the Tuscan resort coastal town where he routinely draws 3,000 plus fans for his bouts.
“People are just drawn to Floriano, he is very approachable and a pleasure to work with said Rich Komissar, Pagliara's American sponsor and matchmaker at RKO Boxing. “He works hard and promotes himself well. We had an overflow of people outside BB Kings looking for tickets to his fight on March 7th. The place was sold out more than a week in advance. Even Floriano was surprised” added Komissar. We are getting hit every day by more and more people looking to know when his next fight is”
Another reason for Floriano's popularity is that he gets involved in community issues. He is a member of the Ring 8 NY Veteran Boxers Association which provides help to retired boxers. Floriano is hoping to become the official liaison to the retired Italian American fighters in the New York area. "Floriano cares as much as he works" said Tommy Gallagher, the veteran boxing trainer from New York who also is one of the directors on the board for Ring8 NY
Additionally Pagliara has recently become involved with the Cooley's Anemia Foundation. Cooley's Anemia is a blood disorder that mostly affects children with Mediterranean heritage. Children afflicted with Cooley's Anemia or Thalassemia are not expected to live much past their teen years. The mission of the Cooley's Anemia Foundation is to help in advancing the treatment and cure for this fatal blood disease. Floriano, with the help of local businessman and organization member Paul Tucci is hoping to become more involved with the Long Island Fund Raising Chapter. (www.thalassemia.com)
“The DiBella goup has seen the potential and the fan base that Floriano brings and as he continues to appear on Broadway Boxing, there are discussions for Floriano's fights to be syndicated back in Italy.”
Andre Ward has won an Olympic Gold medal, professional world titles, and the Showtime Super Six Super middleweight tournament. For the unbeaten Ward the accomplishments keep growing. His latest milestone will come at the Copacabana in New York City this June 6, when he receives the 2011 Sugar Ray Robinson "Fighter of the Year" award from the Boxing Writers Association of America.
For the unbeaten Ward this award ranks with the rest. And what makes it extra special is that his mentor and long time trainer Virgil Hunter, will be honored that same evening as the "Trainer of the Year."
Reflecting on his good fortune, Ward had this to say. "I want to thank God for giving me the strength to put in the work year after year to get to this point. I also want to thank my manager James Prince, my promoters Antonio Leonard and Dan Goossen, everyone who is a part of team Ward, as well as all my family, friends, and loyal fans who have been behind me all these years" Ward 28, of Oakland, Calif., said. "This award is just as much for them as it is for me.
"Even in the midst of receiving this tremendous award, Team Ward is not going to let up. In 2012 and beyond we're going to push forward and God - willing, we can be considered for these awards every year. It's easy to get comfortable at a time like this, but I can assure everybody that I'm going to continue to put in the work to be the best that I can be. I'm going to stay humble, keep God first and, with that, the best is yet to come."
Sadam Ali remained perfect as he thrilled a packed house at the Aviator Sports Complex when he took out Franklin Gonzales in the eighth round of the Welterweight contest. That result was the perfect ending for Ali as it a was successful evening for Ali’s first promotion with his new company Worldkid Promotions.
Ali thrilled his legions of fans with a diverse attack as he used both hands and continued to back Gonzalez up. Ali had Gonzalez throughout the contest and finally was able to score a knockdown in round eight.Ali closed the show in spectacular fashion as a thunderous combination that sent Gonzalez down for a second time and the bout was stopped at 2:22 of round eight.
With the victory, Ali captured the WBU America’s title.
“It was a great night and I just have to thank my fans”, said the 2008 U.S. Olympian.
“I wanted to get the knockout so bad for them and it was a fitting end to a great night”
Some of New York’s finest boxers were in attendance to support Ali such as WBA Welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi and 2012 U.S. Olympian Marcus Browne.
In the co-feature, Brooklyn’s Jennifer Santiago made a successful pro debut with a four round unanimous decision over Mikaya Nebal in a Super Bantamweight bout.
Steven Gamache of New York made it 3-0 with a four round unanimous decision over Willie Brown in a Jr. Middleweight bout.
Queens native Armin Mrkanovic stopped the game Daniel Pietch in the fourth round of their Cruiserweight bout.
In the opening bout it was a battle of pro debut’s that saw Brooklyn’s Akil Frederick stop Jamil Gadsen in a Middleweight bout.
FULL RESULTS
8 Rounds—WBU Americas Welterweight title—Sadam Ali (15-0, 9 KO’s) TKO 8 over Franklin Gonzalez (15-10)
4 Rounds—Super Bantamweights—Jennifer Santiago (1-0) U DEC over Mikayla Nebal (0-2)
4 Rounds—Jr. Middleweights—Stevn Gamache (3-0) U DEC over Willie Bryant (0-4-1)
4 Rounds—Cruiserweights—Armith Mrkanovic (3-1, 2 KO’s) TKO 4 over Daniel Pietch (0-1)
As Kate Sekules says of her love affair with boxing in her memoir, The Boxer's Heart: A Woman Fighting, "I wonder myself what set this obsession in motion." Kate never stops describing it either, from her affection for the sport on through her experiences beginning with her early forays into the gym and what it felt like the first time she stepped into the ring to fight. As she says,
"Training to box is one of the toughest physical challenges you can set yourself, and it is clean. But once you step through the ropes, a dimension rears up that is not pure at all. To compete as a runner, a swimmer, a player of tennis, golf, basketball, football-any noncombat sport-what you do is an extension of what you did in training, only more intense; but to compete as a boxer, your aims are suddenly quite distinct from those of your training sessions. You hope to inflict so much pain on your opponents that they fall over and can't get up."
Kate's book is a warm, colorful homage to her years training at Gleason's Gym -- and of the women she trained along side beginning in 1992 on through the late 1990's. Originally published in 2000, Kate has reissued her memoir with a new afterward to coincide with the historical debut of Women's Boxing at the 2012 Olympics.
As for the ensuing 11 years, Kate notes the sport has "actually become less visible." Something we all feel with "more female mis-matches ... and more neglect of women's bouts by mainstream media."
What comes across, however, in Kate's highly engaging book is truly the viewpoint of a boxer's heart. She shows us her love of the sport, the camaraderie of her fellow boxers and an intimate perspective of the journey of a boxer. As Kate said recently in an interview with Girlboxing, "We confront through boxing the same issues every woman faces," only in the case of a female boxer we add a touch of "rebellion perhaps and a counter to mainstream culture."
Kate also made the point that the "book is for men and women about gender roles as much as about the sport." Still what Kate provides is a treasure trove of details about the sport at a certain time and place -- as well as an intimate portrait of Kate and her cohort of boxing friends all working hard to practice the art they love so much.
These days, Kate can be found back at Gleason's Gym once a week -- after having worked out at Chelsea Piers for a while doing their "Lunchbox" series which she swears was "amazing, he's really, really good." She's also the owner of Refashioner, a marketplace for pre-owned couture.
♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.Ceclia Braekhus, the WBO, WBA and WBC female welterweight champion came out blazing to score a unanimous decision over contender Jessica "The Hammer" Balogun (22-1) through ten hard-fought rounds of action at the Herning Kongrescenter in Herning, Denmark last night.
The judges scored the bout 99-92, 97-93, 97-93 in favor of Braekhus who exhibited much better boxing skills than her opponent. The previously undefeated Balogun, from Aachen, Germany, was a game opponent, however, who kept on coming despite Braekhus' evident dominance. This led to some rounds that have been characterized as "messy," but Braekhus' superior ring generalship kept her in control of the fight to take the win.
Braekhus, a Columbian-born fighter who resides in Bergen, Norway, is considered pound-for-pound one of the best female boxers in the world. Her record stands at a perfect 20-0 with five wins by way of knockout. In recent outings she has defeated such boxing luminaries as Jill Emery (2011) and Chevelle Hallback (2011) with similar results.On Saturday a tribute dinner will take place within Resorts honoring boxers of the past and present, with several of the sport’s most prevalent names making an appearance. Czyz will be joined by Mike Tyson and several other boxing icons, including Find A Dream members Ray Mercer, Don Steele and Hector Camacho Jr.
“When I was a kid, it was my dream to fight at the grand stage of Atlantic City, and now being able to be part of the gala this weekend means a great deal to me,” said Czyz. “Every young person has a dream, and it’s a privilege to be connected to an organization such as this one to help those kids’ dreams materialize.”
Growing up Czyz faced much adversity, and it would’ve been easy for the three time world champion to lean towards a life of crime. But rather than falling into the elements, he made the decision to pursue boxing, and through hard work, determination and discipline, he became a sensation finishing his career with an impressive record of 44-8 with three title belts.
In 2012 Find A Dream is striving to continue to expand and impact the lives of children throughout various communities. Find A Dream plans to spread their word through boxing and MMA events, car shows, cook-offs, concerts and more in hopes of reaching out to communities and bringing awareness of the necessity to work towards enriching the lives of our youths.
Tickets for the are priced at $100 and are available through Resorts’ Box Office or through Ticketmaster at. Ticket includes the cocktail hour, dinner and presentations. is located at 1133 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ 08401.
Find A Dream is a nonprofit organization unlike any other. We have partnered with professionals to deliver on our promise of positive change in young lives. Our communities become stronger when our youth is mentored through people of character with a true interest in pouring constructive, character-building activities and input into their lives