The word out of the Atlantic City PAL is that former heavyweight champ Bruce Seldon is in terrific shape and training at an alltime high in preparation for his Sept. 5 fight against unbeaten Kevin Johnson at Bally’s Atlantic City.
I’m told Seldon beat up former champ Ray Mercer so badly during their sparring sessions last week that Mercer not only left the gym, but flew back to North Carolina rather than get in the ring with Seldon again. Seldon’s management team is scheduled to bring in Zuri Lawrence for some work. Lawrence is tall, lanky and lacks power, just like Johnson, who has just 6 knockouts in 21 fights.
Atlantic City bantamweight prospect Qa’id Muhammad (2-0, 2 KOs) is scheduled to be on the undercard of an event that will also feature Somers Point junior-welterweight contender Mike Arnaoutis in the main event. Don’t get too excited about seeing Muhammad yet, however. Promoter Joe DeGuardia has yet to find an opponent and Muhammad’s team is notoriously picky about who they pit against the 19-year-old. Someone with a pulse would be nice, though.
I’ve been told that Bruce Seldon’s possible fight against unbeaten Kevin Johnson is pretty much a done deal. It will be finalized as soon as promoter Joe DeGuardia finds out whether it will be sanctioned by one of the sport’s major governing bodies.
The fight will be held Sept. 6th at Bally’s Atlantic City. Somers Point junior-welterweight Mike Arnaoutis will be in the main event against an opponent to be named. Maybe Atlantic City prospect Qa’id Muhammad could get on the card, assuming his handlers relax their nearly impossible demands and allow the 19-year-old to get in the ring with a decent opponent.
I should have more info in Wednesday’s edition of The Press, assuming the final details are taken care of by Tuesday night.
A deal could be finalized as soon as tomorrow (Thursday) for an intriguing fight that would pit Atlantic City heavyweight Bruce Seldon (38-6, 34 KOs) against world-ranked Kevin Johnson (19-0-1, 6 KOs) at Bally’s Atlantic City on Sept. 6.
Another local fighter, Somers Point junior-welterweight Mike Arnaoutis (19-2-2, 9 KOs) would be the main event on a card promoted by Star Boxing’s Joe DeGuardia. Seldon-Johnson would be the co-feature.
Seldon, the former WBA heavyweight champion, is coming off a fifth-round TKO over Livin Castillo at Showboat’s House of Blues in May. He was originally supposed to face former prospect Michael Grant in September, but a fight against Johnson - ranked No. 7 in the WBA - presents a chance to get back into the world ratings for the first time since 1996.
Look for an official announcement in upcoming editions of The Press.
Sorry for the delay. … My fingers were still colored orange from eating about a pound of those crab fries at Chickie & Pete’s. …
Bernard Hopkins was his usual entertaining self during his press conference Tuesday to promote his fight against Kelly Pavlik at Boardwalk Hall on Oct. 18th. He may no longer be the premier fighter/boxer who made 20 successful title defenses as middleweight champ, but he can still talk a good game.
He’s going to need a lot more than that against Pavlik, however. Everyone knows that Pavlik is perhaps the hardest hitter in boxing (34-0, 30 KOs), but he his boxing skills are vastly underrated. He has been known to average 100 punches a round during his sparring sessions. If Hopkins thinks he’s facing a plodding, knockout artist, he’s going to be in for a painful surprise.
Similarly, Pavlik will be making a mistake if he dismisses Hopkins as a washed-up 43-year-old. He may be past his prime, but Hopkins is crafty enough and still sharp enough to frustrate any opponent and capitalize on an opening. Pavlik should prevail, but Hopkins could make it tough.
As you undoubtedly read in today’s Press, middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik will be coming back to Atlantic City on Oct. 18 to face former champ Bernard Hopkins at Boardwalk Hall.
It was a major coup for A.C., thanks in no small part to Harrah’s Entertainment consultant Ken Condon. After Bob Arum failed to give him a shot at landing Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito (which will be in Las Vegas Saturday night), Condon worked tirelessly to make sure Boardwalk Hall hosted another major fight before the end of the year.
Pavlik-Hopkins, which will be shown on HBO pay per view, certainly qualifies. The hard-hitting Pavlik (34-0, 30 KOs) is boxing’s hottest performer and sports a huge fan base in Youngstown, Ohio. The fans there much prefer to drive to A.C. to see Pavlik than to fly to Las Vegas.
At 43, Hopkins may be past his prime when he was the undispulted middleweight king, but he is still very competitive. He gave super-middleweight champ Joe Calzaghe all he could handle before losing a split decision three months ago.
This fight could be very exciting or boring, depending on Hopkins’ strategy. Because the fight is being held at 170 pounds - Hopkins can no longer make 160 - the Philly native may think he can come right at Pavlik and use his strength to overpower him. That would be the ideal scenario.
But too often, Hopkins prefers to try to frustrate his opponents with a slick style that relies on head movement, dancing and counterpunching. It often works for him, but it usually results in a non-eventful bout. Perhaps Pavlik can just put the pressure on Hopkins from the outset and force him to brawl.
In either case, I like Pavlik to stay undefeated and maybe even score the knockout that would drive Hopkins back into retirement for good.
In other boxing news, Wildwood light-heavyweight Chuck Mussachio (12-0-1, 5 KOs) turned in the best effort of his career with a decisive victory over Richard Stewart last Friday at the New Alhambra in Philadelphia. I had my doubts that Chuck would be able to take his career to the next level after a series of lackluster outings, but his showing proved that he may be a force in the light-heavyweight division before too long.
Also, former WBA heavyweight champion Bruce Seldon, from Atlantic City, may be back in the ring in September. His handlers are working on a deal that would pit the 41-year-old Seldon against former contender Michael Grant. Â
As you probably know by now, Kelly Pavlik had no trouble keeping his middleweight titles with a third-round TKO over hapless Gary Lockett at Boardwalk Hall last night. As sharp as Pavlik looked, however, he was not the most impressive fight at the arena.
That title belongs to Juan Manuel Lopez, a 24-year-old buzzsaw from Puerto Rico who needed just one round to grab the WBO super-featherweight title away from Daniel Ponce De Leon. Harrah’s consultant Ken Condon was riveted by Lopez and would love to have him back in town soon.
Back to Pavlik. Top Rank president Bob Arum wants to set up a megafight with super-middleweight/light-heavyweight champ Joe Calzaghe for Oct. 18, but Calzaghe is expected to fight fading Roy Jones Jr. instead. If that’s the case, then look for Pavlik to fight Marco Antonio Rubio in September in A.C., then meet Randy Griffin or Ricardo Mayorga in Cleveland in December or vice-versa.
Mayorga cannot fight at Boardwalk Hall because he is promoted by Don King. King is banned from doing business in A.C. because of his refusal to submit to a background check by the DGE and therefore cannot be granted a license by the Casino Control Commission.
Thousands of Kelly Pavlik fans from his hometown of Youngstown, Ohio arrived in A.C. Friday and they filled Caesars Atlantic City’s Circus Maximus Theatre for the weigh-in. It was quite a scene, as fans screamed for Pavlik, booed Lockett and generated a lot of excitement leading up to the fight. Next time, officials may want to consider holding a Pavlik weigh-in outside on the boardwalk, something they did a few years ago for the Evander Holyfield-Hasim Rahman fight.
Here’s a taste of the preview that will be appearing in tomorrow’s Press: Prediction - Pavlik by 3rd-round knockout.
There is a good chance that the ringside judges will not have a bearing on the outcome of tonight’s Kelly Pavlik-Gary Lockett middleweight championship fight at Boardwalk Hall.
Adelaide Byrd, Tom Kaczmarek and Julie Lederman may get an opportunity to score a few rounds, but the scheduled 12-round bout is not expected to go the distance.
Pavlik (33-0, 29 KOs), the WBC/WBO champion, and Lockett (31-0, 21 KOs) are both considered power punchers who are more apt to put their opponent on the canvas than box their way to a decision.
“To be honest, the odds of this fight going 12 rounds are not very high,'’ Lockett said. “He’s going to try to knock my head off and I’m going to try to do the same thing to him.'’
It has the makings of an action-packed fight similar to some of Arturo Gatti’s epic performances in the same arena.
In fact, many observers have compared Pavlik to Gatti, both for his exciting style and his popularity on the East Coast. Gatti, who retired last year, fought eight straight times at Boardwalk Hall and even has a dressing room named after him.
Top Rank president Bob Arum, Harrah’s Atlantic City boxing consultant Ken Condon and others envision the same type of career for Pavlik, who hails from Youngstown, Ohio.
“Kelly is definitely an East Coast fighter and Atlantic City is the perfect place for him,'’ Arum said. “As his promoter, I’d like to see him fight at least every other fight at Boardwalk Hall so that his fans would get a chance to watch him.'’
That would suit Pavlik just fine. He registered the biggest victory of his career here last Sept. 29, when he became middleweight champion with a thrilling, seventh-round knockout over Jermain Taylor.
Aside from Youngstown, where he was born and raised, this is his favorite city.
“Atlantic City is awesome,'’ Pavlik said. “Driving into town the other day and seeing the billboards with my picture on it brought back some great memories.
“The rest of my life, Atlantic City will always be a special place to me because this is where I became a champion. I’m starting to feel like it’s my second home.'’
Middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik is in A.C. for his first title defense against Wales native Gary Lockett on Saturday night. It marks the second time in 10 months that Pavlik, from Youngstown, Ohio, is fighting at Boardwalk Hall. According to promoter Bob Arum, he is hoping to bring Pavlik to town a lot.
“I’d like at least every other fight to be in Atlantic City,'’ Arum said. “Kelly is an East Coast fighter.'’
Pavlik also said Atlantic City holds a special place in his heart because it was where he became champion with his seventh-round knockout over Jermain Taylor last September. He now considers Atlantic City to be his “second-home.'’ Stay tuned to my preview in Saturday’s paper for more details.
In other news, Atlantic City heavyweight Bruce Seldon (37-6, 34 KOs) needed 20 stitches to close the cut on his forehead that he suffered during his fifth-round knockout over Livin Castillo at the House of Blues in Showboat last Saturday. Look for the former WBA champion to fight again around August.
I’ll be back tomorrow (Friday) with more stuff from the Pavlik-Lockett fight, including my prediction. (Hint: it won’t last long and the belts won’t be leaving the U.S.).
Friday’s boxing card at Bally’s Atlantic City featured an embarrassing co-feature among heavyweights Devon Vargas (16-0, 7 KOs) of Toledo and Philadelphia’s Dave Brunelli (8-4, 3 KOs). Vargas needed just 1:31 to drop Brunelli twice and earn an easy knockout.
Normally, it wouldn’t be a big deal. Promoter Joe DeGuardia was not different than any other promoter who was looking for a patsy for his fighter. But ESPN reportedly accepted Brunelli after deciding that former WBA champion Bruce Seldon (37-6, 33 KOs) of Atlantic City would not be competitive enough.Â
The matchmakers should have taken the time to visit the A.C. PAL, where Seldon has been training for the last 3 months and dropped his weight from 260 to 218. I’ve seen him working out - I will have an interesting feature on Seldon in an upcoming edition of The Press - and would not only have put forth a good effort, he probably would have beaten Vargas.
ESPN was right in thinking that Seldon is past his prime, but when he is in shape and focused, the 41-year-old is still capable of beating many of the mediocre and/or overrated heavyweights currently in the division. They should have put him on the card.Â
Speaking of mismatches, Atlantic City bantamweight Qa’id Muhammad (2-0, 2 KOs) had no business fighting Arthur Parker (1-7), of Lancaster, Pa. on the undercard. Parker entered the ring with 6 straight losses and was hopelessly outclassed by Muhammad, just as expected. Muhammad’s management team has to give him better competition if they want him to grow and improve. Barely breaking a sweat against Parker did nothing except give the guys from the A.C. PAL something to cheer about.
Just as I predicted in Saturday’s Press, Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito both scored impressive victories at Boardwalk Hall Saturday night.
Margarito beat up Kermit Cintron and stopped him with body shot for a sixth-round knockout. Cotto was even more dominant in his fifth-round TKO over Alfonso Gomez.
Look for Cotto and Margarito to meet on July 26. Atlantic City is a top contender to host the fight.
