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JOHN MURRAY CALLS OUT KHAN

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | No Comments

For immediate release

2nd July 2008

Murray’s offer to Khan

British lightweight title challenger John Murray is offering to be Amir Khan’s next opponent on 6th September 2008.

Former unbeaten English champion Murray faces fellow Manchester boxer Lee Meager for the vacant British Lightweight Title at the Robin Park Arena in Wigan on Friday 11th July 2008.

Hennessy Sports pair Murray and Meager face each other after Jon Thaxton vacated the belt on a show scheduled to be televised live on Sky Sports.

Murray, who has also won the WBC Youth Lightweight Title in an unbeaten career, believes Commonwealth champion Khan should agree to box him if he beats Meager to become British champion.

“I would love to fight Amir and it’s the logical fight to happen,” said former Young Boxer of the Year Murray.”

“We are both unbeaten and both from Lancashire. Hopefully I will be winning the British belt and then it will be a fight with two belts on the line. It could happen at the MEN Arena in Manchester on 6th September.”

“He’s talking about fighting for the world title, but he’s not even the best in Lancashire. It would be a massive fight for Greater Manchester and also for the whole country.”

“I wasn’t really impressed with him against Michael Gomez the other week. Gomez will probably tell you himself he is past his best but he still gave Amir lots of trouble. Khan should be taking care of people better than he has done.”

“This fight with Lee is an excellent opportunity for me to move my career on, especially as it could lead to a fight with Amir.”

Hennessy Sports in association with GoldenPalace.net proudly present

STRICTLY BUSINESS

Lee Meager vs John Murray

BRITISH LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE

Robin Park Arena, Wigan

Friday 11th July 2008

Doors 6pm, boxing starts 6.30pm

TICKETS AVAILABLE VIA TICKETMASTER BOX OFFICE ON

0870 060 1795 OR WWW.TICKETMASTER.CO.UK

EUROPEAN BOXING NEWS

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | No Comments

AMI Production have cancelled the July 26 show that would have featured WBA light fly champ Brahim Asloum defending the title against Giovanni Segura. Asloum dropped out of training after taking a hefty paycut from televising network Canal+. Promoter Michel Acaries tried to salvage the show with WBA female jr welter queen Ann Sophie Mathis and EBU cruiser champ Jean Marc Monrose topping the bill but decided yesterday to cancel the event as a whole. While Asloum did suffer a big cut in his purse he still walks out on a 500 000 EUR (and a 100 000 EUR in victory bonus) payday.

German heavy Timo Hoffmann is set return October 4 in Bauitzen in a ten rounder. Hoffmann tested positive for an illegal substance after losing to Aleksander Dimitrenko in November of last year and was given a one-year suspension by the Bund Deutsh Berufsboxer, the BDB. Hoffmann will for his comeback fight with a GBA, German Boxing Association, license.

IBF Youth jr welter champ Decha Bankluagym from Thailand defends the title October 11 in Chateauneuf-sur-Loire against Frenchman Jean Nicolas Weigel. Weigel lost a EBU titlefight last year to Spaniard Juan Carlos Diaz Melero.

Luca Tassi and Mouhamed Ali Ndiaye clash for the Italian supermiddle title August 1 in Rome.

Heavyweight veteran Luan Krasniqi is looking to return this fall. Krasniqi have been out since July of last year when he lost a WBO eliminator to Tony Thompson after a poor performance but was all set to fight stablemate Aleksander Dimitrenko this spring when the Ukrainian, unhappy with the payment, pulled out. Luan remains a big name in Germany but needs activity to get into the picture of bigger fights.

Interview With Papa Rampage, Quinton Jackson’s Father

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | 1 Comment

by: Jack Bratcher (http://promma.wordpress.com)

 

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I’m from Tennessee, and by sheer coincidence I got the great privilege of speaking to the Father our state’s most notable and famous Mixed Martial Arts Fighter: Quinton Jackson. Mr. Charles Jackson still lives in Memphis and probably lives a comparatively simple life compared to the UFC Champ. We’ve all heard interviews with Quinton and know what a great personality he is and add to that the accomplishments he’s had inside the cage and you get one extraordinary human being. A story always has a beginning and the story of Rampage really is one of the great American sports stories. So lets go back to the beginning and talk with the man who is responsible for bringing Quinton Jackson into this world, his father, Mr. Charles Jackson.

ProMMA: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us. Could you tell us what Quinton was like growing up? What kind of kid was he?

Mr. Jackson: Quinton was a normal rebellious kid with a little more attitude added on. A little more hard-headed than usual, it took him at least five times per incident to learn his lesson. I was there every time for that discipline. When Quinton was a toddler, he cried all the time. To get his way he used this technique to get what he wanted because his siblings would obey his demands so he could stop crying. In junior high school he started to get into a lot of fights.

ProMMA: How many brothers and sisters does Quinton have?

Mr. Jackson: Quinton has 2 brothers and 2 sisters.

ProMMA: I’m sure you must be very proud of Quinton and all that he’s accomplished. When did you realize there might be something to “this fighting thing” and that it was going to be a very successful career choice for Quinton?

Mr. Jackson: Yes. I didn’t realize it until i went to one his fights in Memphis. I attended the event, but as I turned my head to talk to someone, the fight was over. I missed it. We did not think much of it at first because in Memphis you could not get paid for fighting. We thought that was law in all states. But i knew he was going to be great in whatever he does. For a split moment I thought boxing was going to be his sport of choice.

ProMMA: I know that you told me you and Quinton’s mother watched Quinton on television on “The Ultimate Fighter.” Have you and Mrs. Jackson had the opportunity to attend one of his fights live and in-person? If you have seen him fight live how was it for you; was it hard to watch and were you worried about him in the fight? How did his mother deal with it?

Mr. Jackson: Definitely, I have been to every fight since the Chuck Liddell fight. My confidence level is so high with him, that I am very comfortable to go to all the events. It’s hard to take it all in that this is my son walking down that aisle defending his title. I’m like a character in a fairy tale. His mother doesn’t like to go because she is scared that he might get hurt while she is there, but she will attend her first live fight against Forest Griffin.

ProMMA: Everyone seems to love Rampage and alot of it has to do with his personality and sense of humor. Where does he get his great sense of humor? Does he got that from you or his mother?

Mr. Jackson: From me. I call Quinton “Mini-Me” because acts just like me when I was his age and some people say we look like twins.

ProMMA: Mr. Jackson, did you ever do any wrestling or boxing? Why do you think Quinton chose to be professional fighter?

Mr. Jackson: I boxed for the golden gloves when I was young, so I thought anything that I tried in my lifetime, that one of my children might do as a career.

ProMMA: Quinton fought over in Japan and became very popular there. Have you noticed a difference in your own life now that he is becoming so popular here in the United States? Have things around Memphis been any different for you?

Mr. Jackson: Yes. sometimes I get “Red Carpet” treatment when I’m with him. Recently we went to a Lakers game(behind the bench) curtsy of Kobe Bryant. I’ve gained a lot of friends now. Just the littles things. Everything is the same in Memphis, not a lot of hoopla in here. It’s just now getting a buzz.

ProMMA: Do you think Quinton will ever move back to Memphis?

Mr. Jackson: Yes. actually, he takes Memphis everywhere he goes. If you noticed, his fight shorts always have Memphis on them. Memphis is his home. He’s just commuting.(hahaha). Seriously, Quionton loves Memphis, I know he come back after he is through with fighting.

ProMMA: How do you think the people of Memphis would feel about the UFC holding an event here with Quinton as the main event?

Mr. Jackson: That is exactly what Memphis is waiting on. Tennessee has just passed legislation legalizing MMA in Tennessee. Now we are waiting on a commission.

ProMMA: Could you tell us a story from Quinton’s childhood that his fans would find funny?

Mr. Jackson: Ok. You know Quinton is always telling bad breath jokes. Well I was the first to start it with him. We were in McDonald’s one day, Quinton was deciding on what to order. He said, “I don’t know what I want.” I replied “You know what you need to order?” he said, “What?” I said, ” You need to order a great big Tic Tac.” It was funny. Everybody was laughing. From then, we would always joke on each other’s breath.

ProMMA: Forrest Griffin was the other coach that was on The Ultimate Fighter with Rampage. He will be having a fight against Rampage on July 5 for the Light Heavyweight Title. Who is going to win that fight between Rampage and Forrest Griffin?

Mr. Jackson: You know my son is going to win. Forrest is a small 205lb, Quinton is the most solid 205lb in MMA

ProMMA: Thanks so much for taking the time to speak with us Mr. Jackson. We wish you and your family the very best. Also, we wish Rampage the best of luck in his upcoming Title Fight. Take care sir.

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FSN To Air Undercard Of Affliction Banned

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | 1 Comment

MMA Event Set To Make Broadcast History

One-Hour Special Airs Live—Pay-Per-View Event To Follow

SIGNAL HILL, California (July 1, 2008) – Fans worldwide now will have a free sneak peak at “Affliction Banned”, the greatest MMA event ever staged. George Greenberg, Fox Sports Net (FSN) Executive Vice President of Programming and Production, announced last week that FSN will air the undercard of the “Affliction Banned” event live on Saturday, July 19 at 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST. The broadcast will immediately be followed by all main event fights available on Pay-Per-View. This will be the first time that an event will air live on a basic cable network and immediately switch to Pay-Per-View.

“FSN has long been at the forefront of televised Mixed Martial Arts action,” said Greenberg. “Our viewers are loyal, informed and passionate about the sport. This is a great opportunity to deliver a major MMA event to them featuring world-class fighters.”

The one-hour live undercard will feature at least two fights. In FSN’s main event, Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3) from St. Petersburg, Russia will make his American debut as he takes on Texas native Paul Buentello (23-10) in a 3-round heavyweight bout. This battle will follow a light heavyweight showdown between Chicago’s Terry Martin (16-4) and Vitor Belfort (16-8) of Brazil.

FSN was one of the first networks to televise MMA action and has been the home to UFC, PRIDE and IFL. Most every major star in the sport has fought on the network.

FSN is the nation’s leading provider of local sports. FSN’s 16 owned-and-operated regional networks and its affiliated networks reach more than 80 million homes across the U.S. FSN serves as the TV home to nearly two-thirds of all MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States. FSN also produces close to 5,000 live local events each year, including more than 1400 in high definition. In addition to its thousands of home team games and a wide variety of locally produced sports programs, FSN televises national sports events and programs, including Pac-10 and ACC basketball and Pac-10 and Big 12 football.

“Affliction Banned,” presented by Affliction Entertainment, is so stacked with talent that it had to be separated into two live shows produced for broadcast. The night’s activities will kick off with a one-hour, free live telecast on FSN (Fox Sports Net) in the United States and on The Fight Network in Canada starting at 5 PM Pacific (8 PM/ET), dubbed “Affliction Live.” Following that is “Affliction Banned” — five incredible fights on pay-per-view starting at 6 PM/PT (9 PM/ET) via iN DEMAND, TVN, Shaw Communications, Viewers Choice Canada, DirecTV, DISH Network, Bell ExpressVue and Star Choice in the United States and Canada for a suggested retail price of $39.95.

Tickets for “Affliction Banned” range between $50.00 and $1,000.00, and are on sale at Honda Center Box Office and also online at Ticketmaster.com.

To download all video, photos and PR-related media go to: http://www.afflictionbanned.com/media.html

TAKEDOWN RADIO INTRODUCES THE HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLER OF THE MONTH

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | No Comments

Wrestling has been part of the backbone of this country since the birth of our nation. Immigrants brought wrestling traditions to America from around the world, each as varied as their national background. Ultimately, that experience created a collage that is wrestling in the U.S. today. Our youth wrestling programs, camps, high schools, colleges, Olympic teams, and military are steeped in American wrestling tradition 232 years old. TakeDown Radio sends our best wishes and gratitude to our very diverse wrestling community this Fourth of July, our nations glorious birthday.

We also feel it’s the perfect time to announce the beginning of a new tradition we hope will extend for generations into the future. The High School Wrestler of the Month program will identify, recognize, and reward one young athlete from across this great country each month. The program will be administered by TakeDown Radio, and is made possible by several companies that are corporate pillars of the wrestling community. Resilite, Brute adidas, W.I.N. magazine, Intermat, and Sunflower Wrestling Supply embraced an idea, provided unique creativity, and pledged unselfish contributions in order to place greater focus on one of the most important areas of our sport, high school wrestling.

Each month, coaches and parents will submit examples and reasons why their wrestler deserves the award. Recognition in national media, as well as significant prizes will be awarded to The High School Wrestler of the Month. Applications for the program will be provided each month in W.I.N. magazine, as well as PDF versions on the W.I.N. Magazine, TakeDown Radio, and Intermat web sites. The first application will be in the August edition of W.I.N. magazine, for our first award in September.

A full press release will follow our Fourth of July break. Complete details, including official rules and regulations will be provided on the award application.

Affliction Banned Hits New York’s Times Square

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | No Comments

SIGNAL HILL, California (July 1, 2008) – “Affliction Banned”, the greatest MMA event ever staged, hit New York City’s Times Square last week, as the faces of ten of the sports biggest stars, including Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko (27-1) and his opponent Tim “The Maine-iac” Sylvia (24-4), filled a billboard along Broadway. All will appear on the July 19th event at Honda Center in Anaheim, California, and distributed live on Pay-Per-View.

“Considering the magnitude of this fight, and the partnership between Affliction and Donald Trump, it seemed only fitting that the huge talent pool on the ‘Affliction Banned’ show should be seen by millions in New York’s Times Square,” said Tom Atencio, Vice President, Affliction. “You know it’s a big show when you have a billboard on Broadway.”

“Affliction Banned,” presented by Affliction Entertainment, is so stacked with talent that it had to be separated into two live shows produced for broadcast. The night’s activities will kick off with a one-hour, free live telecast on FSN (Fox Sports Net) in the United States and on The Fight Network in Canada starting at 5 PM Pacific (8 PM/ET), dubbed “Affliction Live.” Following that is “Affliction Banned” — five incredible fights on pay-per-view starting at 6 PM/PT (9 PM/ET) via iN DEMAND, TVN, Shaw Communications, Viewers Choice Canada, DirecTV, DISH Network, Bell ExpressVue and Star Choice in the United States and Canada for a suggested retail price of $39.95.

Tickets for “Affliction Banned” range between $50.00 and $1,000.00, and are on sale at the Honda Center Box Office and also online at Ticketmaster.com.

To download all video, photos and PR-related media go to: http://www.afflictionbanned.com/media.html

Affliction—Already a mainstay for the most elite athletes, heaviest bands, A-listers and the fashion conscious, Affliction Clothing’s ability to set the bar high in fashion is evident in its collection’s indulgence of style and design, focus on quality, and its trademark series of divinely executed, dark and powerful themes. (www.afflictionclothing.com)

The Trump Organization—The Trump Organization encompasses global real estate development and global licensing, sales and marketing, property management, golf course development, entertainment, entertainment and product licensing, brand development as well as restaurants and event planning. Donald J. Trump is the Chairman and President of the Trump Organization, a privately held company in New York. (www.Trump.com)

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY FORREST GRIFFIN

Posted on | July 2, 2008 | 1 Comment

YOU’VE COME A LONG WAY BABY!

Editor’s Note: This was supposed to run yesterday, but we didn’t get it on the site.

by: Jack Bratcher

 

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Who would’ve thought the young Opie Taylor lookalike with the trademark smirk would grow up one day to fight for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship of the World? Who would’ve thought a little reality show about guys who want to get a contract with an MMA organization would produce a winner whose Finale performance has been dubbed “the most important fight in MMA history?”

Forrest Griffin has come a long ways since 2001 when he first stepped in that ring with Dan Severn to start his professional Mixed Martial Arts career. Even way back then, the tenacious Griffin proved he was no mere stepping stone as he took the legend to a decision. Losing your pro MMA debut has to be tough for anyone; but then again not just anyone would be facing a 2001’s Dan Severn for a first fight. But then Forrest bounced right back the next month with a win and then piled seven more wins on top of that one for good measure. He fought eight times over the next two years and took down Jeff Monson and Chael Sonnen among others.

Then in 2003, two years after his pro debut loss to Severn, he meets another legend named Jeremy Horn. Griffin suffers a KO by kick loss in the second round from Horn. Two losses from two legends; nothing to be ashamed of. Once again, Griffin bounces right back three months later with a first round knockout punch win over Edson Paredao. Then Griffin takes a year hiatus from professional competition.

Forrest Griffin then resurfaces on this new little reality show called The Ultimate Fighter in 2005. He ends up in the finals of the show’s light heavyweight tournament and faces Stephan Bonnar in the Octagon for a six-figure contract with the UFC. And as they like to say, “…the rest is history.” That season’s Ultimate Fighter and the Griffin/Bonnar fight, in particular, seems to be the turning point for mixed martial arts in the United States. That show paved the way for all that was to come for mixed martial arts on television over the next few years. One might even go so far as to say, if there was no Forrest Griffin, there would be no Kimbo.

Forrest Griffin was on his way to becoming a superstar. He’s definitely a star but I’m not going to put the “super” on the monicker just yet. He has one more fight to win before that. We’ll talk about that in just a minute. But not only did Griffin win this reality show but now he was a full-fledged member of the Big Boy’s Club, the UFC. His whole professional career had been spent in small fledgling organizations; but this was it. This was the big leagues. And little did he know, the big leagues were about to get a whole lot bigger. With the UFC’s new reality show ending each season with a live TV special, in addition to their monthly Pay-Per-View, on top of that UFC Fight Nights and promo shows, the whole nation was now seeing more MMA than ever before. After Griffin’s historic TUF Finale brawl with Bonnar he reeled off two more victories in 2005.

Fast-forward to April 2006 and once again it’s time for Forrest to meet another legend, Tito Ortiz. He loses a controversial split decision with Tito that many people thought should have actually gone to Forrest. Four months later he beats Bonnar in a rematch and then ends 2006 with another loss, this time against the “Dean of Mean,” Keith Jardine. 2006 was a hard year for Forrest Griffin with two losses. However, one of the true characteristics of a champion is how many times they can get back up, dust themselves off and give it another shot. That’s exactly what Forrest did in 2007 by defeating the “Sick Dog,” Hector Ramirez and the fighter many people had ranked as the number one Light Heavyweight in the world, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

Forrest’s fight against Shogun was such a special fight. Not only was Forrest a huge underdog in the fight but Shogun also holds a first round knockout win against the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson when they were in the PRIDE Organization in Japan. The Shogun/Forrest fight was also a special fight because the winner was pretty much gauranteed a Light Heavyweight Title shot. The tough-as-nails Forrest Griffin fought a three round war with Shogun at UFC 76 in September of last year. Shogun was considered another legend that Griffin was going up against and his track record against legends up to this point had been nil. What could this young Southern boy from Georgia do to the legend from Brazil; the legend whose mere name brought fear to his opponents in PRIDE. Forrest Griffin made the legend tap out. He fought a war of attrition. Blood, sweat, adrenaline, and guts and at the end of the match it wasn’t the legend, it was Forrest Griffin who was now considered the number one Light Heavyweight Contender in the UFC.

This Saturday, July 5th, Forrest Griffin will be in the biggest fight of his life. He will be facing, in his first ever five-round fight, the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion of the world, Quinon “Rampage” Jackson. The champ has already cleaned out Chuck Liddell and Dan Henderson. Neither Forrest nor Rampage have been in the cage since September of last year. Since then, they did film the seventh season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show; the very show that gave birth to Forrest Griffin’s UFC career three years ago. However, this time Forrest wasn’t fighting on the show, instead, he was a coach. And not only a coach, but the winning coach.

Mr. Forrest Griffin has come full circle as the young upstart MMA student winning a brand new reality show and then coming back three years later as a coach on that very same reality show and winning the show once again, this time as the dominant coach. There’s the old saying, “Those who can’t do, teach” It seems Mr. Griffin can do both; he won as fighter and he won as coach.

This Saturday night, July 5th, Mr. Griffin finds himself in the underdog position once again facing Quinton “Rampage” Jackson for the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. Quinton’s trainer, Juanito Ibarra, has stated, “If Forrest Griffin wins, I will retire.” That’s how confident he is in his fighter’s ability over Griffin’s. Many MMA fans agree with Ibarra’s assesment of the match-up. People seem to forget what happened last time Forrest was in that cage and how much he’s improved. People seem to forget Forrest has become the protoge’ of one Randy Couture and the similarities in their styles has become overwhelmingly apparant. Do not underestimate this man. If anyone is capable of beating Rampage (and they are), Forrest Griffin can do it. Not only has he just beat someone who beat Rampage but he is also at a training camp with Wanderlei Silva who bested Rampage twice.

July 1st is Forrest Griffin’s Birthday. He turns twenty-nine years old today. What a great birthday present it is to be fighting for the Light Heavyweight Title of the World this Saturday. Forrest is on the brink of Super-Stardom. A win would cement his Super-Stardom and it would also start laying the foundation for Forrest Griffin to be called a legend one day himself. Happy Birthday Forrest Griffin! You’ve come a long way!

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CHECK OUT BREN OLIVER’S PRE-VACATION PUNCH-DRUNK HANGOVER COLUMN

Posted on | June 30, 2008 | No Comments

Click on the picture below to read a great wrap up of the year to date and some breaking mixed martial arts news and reports of future match-ups:

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