North Texas Fisticuffs
North Texas Fisticuffs was on hand at the Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, TX last night to take in the action as Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions presented their inaugural Fight Night in Frisco.
Our very own Roland Gamez catches up with winners Maurice Hooker, Jose Rodriguez, James Freeman, and James Kirkland.
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North Texas Fisticuffs was on hand at the Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, TX last night to take in the action as Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions presented their inaugural Fight Night in Frisco.
Our very own Roland Gamez was on the scene and spoke with some of the fighters prior to their respective bouts.
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Fighters scheduled to box on Friday night, June 24, 2011 at the Dr Pepper Ball Park in Frisco, Texas were held today and the following were the official weights at that time.
Weigh-In Results
BRIAN VERA (18-5, 11 KO'S) - 163 lbs
Austin, TX
v.
ELOY SUAREZ (11-11) - 162 1/2 lbs.
San Antonio, TX
JAMES KIRKLAND (27-1, 24 KO'S) - 160 lbs.
Austin, TX
v.
DENNIS SHARPE (17-7-3) - 157 lbs.
Jersey City, NJ
Joseph ELEGELE - 143 1/4 lbs.
Melbourne, FL 12-0 (10 KO’s)
v.
Noel Rodriguez - tba
McKinney, TX
Jose RODRIGUEZ - 128 lbs.
Fort Worth, TX Pro Debut
v.
Martin CAMARILLO -129 lbs.
Grand Prairie, TX Pro Debut
James FREEMAN - 160 1/4 lbs.
Vernon, TX 7-4 (0 KO’s)
v.
Joshua BURNS - 159 lbs.
Dallas, TX 3-10-5 (1 KO)
Manuel ROJAS - 129 3/4 lbs.
Dallas, TX 1-0
v. (rematch)
Alex LOPEZ - 129 3/4 lbs.
Fort Worth, TX
Today's official weigh-in for the upcoming fights on Friday night was completed without incident. All fighters were all business and ready to go. Of all the fighters, Dennis Sharpe, who came all the way from Orange New Jersey, was surprised that his opponent did not make the perfect weight, but he said it didn't matter to him. He said he came to fight and he didn't care what his opponent's weight was.
He said he came all this way to "upset somebody," and that was James Kirkland. His strategy will be to box Kirkland and test his chin with his right hand, and he feels he will be the stronger fighter. To the Texas fans he said "don't be afraid to spend their money, because they will get their money's worth on Friday Night". To his fans back in New Jersey, he said he is going to bring back an upset.
(All photos © Stacey Verbeek)
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North Texas Fisticuffs visited the Maple Avenue Boxing Gym in Dallas Texas today where Brian Vera (18-5, 11KO’s) and James Kirkland (27-1, 24 KO's) worked out and met with the media. Vera is to fight on the main event and Kirkland will be fighting on the co-main event at the Dr. Pepper Ball Park in Frisco, which is schedule to be shown live on Telefutura network's Solo Boxeo and brought to the fighting fans by Golden Boy Promotions. Vera is scheduled to go 8 rounds against the tough Eloy Saurez (11-1, 5KO’s), “El Prieto” from Mexico, who fights out of San Antonio, Texas.
Vera looks in tremendous shape and when asked how he felt fighting an opponent with this type of record, he said he doesn’t take any fighter lightly, and that he has trained for this fight just like he prepared for his fight against WBC middleweight champion Sergio Mora. He also said he is ready to go to war and go the full eight rounds if necessary.
When asked about the Texas heat, Vera who is 28 years old, said that is probably going to take more effect on the older Suarez than himself. In his last fight against Mora, he said he thought that Mora would do a lot of moving and running, but Mora stood there and fought him. He said Mora tried to bang against him, and this was to his advantage, and that is why he won that fight. His plan in this fight is to go to the body and if it goes the full eight rounds, so be it. He went on to say if it did go eight rounds, Suarez "will take a beating".
James Kirkland, a former number one middleweight contender, was also in great shape. He is coming into this fight after his only loss against Nobuhiro Ishida back in April of 2011 in Vegas. His opponent will be Dennis Sharpe, Jr. (17-7-3) of New Jersey. Kirkland said he does not know anything about his opponent, but he is ready for any style of boxer and he is well prepared. In fact, he said he has been in the gym ever since his last fight. When asked if the Texas heat would have any effect on his performance, he said he likes training in the heat. He said he is ready to show the world that his loss was only a lack of preparation and that he is back on the right track.
Fighting out of the Maple Avenue Gym in Dallas, Texas is a young and hungry fighter named Maurice Hooker (0-0-1). He has the fortunate advantage to be trained by Jesus Chavez, former lightweight and featherweight champion of the world. Hooker said that he had been keeping himself in shape and looking for a fight and now he has that opportunity. He also does not know anything about his opponent, Wilbert Mitchell (pro debut), but that he is ready and he is going to take care of business. His said his plan for the fight is to box his opponent and then "catch him with a straight right", period. He does not expect it to go past two rounds and in his favor.
(All photos © Stacey Verbeek)
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Top middleweight contender James Kirkland will return to the ring in his home state of Texas on Friday, June 24 and is determined to make a statement against Dennis Sharpe Jr. in their eight-round middleweight in-arena featured bout on a hard-hitting card taking place at the Dr. Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, Texas.
In the eight round televised main event, which headlines TeleFutura’s “Sólo Boxeo Tecate, Fort Worth middleweight contender Brian Vera squares off against San Antonio’s Eloy Suarez in a good ol’ fashioned Texas shootout. The televised co-main event will see unbeaten Florida power puncher Joseph Elegele risk his unbeaten record in an eight round welterweight bout against Dallas’ Noel Rodriguez.
This night of world-class professional boxing is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate and AT&T. Doors open at 6:30pm CT on fight night and the first bell rings at 7:30pm CT. The TeleFutura broadcast begins at 11:30pm ET / PT (10:30pm CT).
Regular tickets, priced at $10, $20 and $50, are available at www.ridersbaseball.com. If purchased online or by phone, ticket service fees apply. If purchased in advance or on the day of the event at the Dr Pepper Ballpark box office, there are no ticket service fees. Fans can download vouchers for free general admission or upgrade to reserved seating for half price at www.ridersbaseball.com. Free General Admission seating is limited and available on a first come basis.
Fans at home can also be part of the action by participating in Cinturón Tecate and voting for the fighter in the main event who displayed the most character in the ring by sending a text message to 55333. Voting will be open through the end of the weekend.
Exciting knockout artist James “Mandingo Warrior” Kirkland (27-1, 24 KO’s) stomped everyone in his path at 154 pounds and even after a layoff of two years, he picked up where he left off, stopping Ahsandi Gibbs and Jhon Berrio in emphatic style earlier this year. In April, the Austin native was upset by Japan’s Nobuhiro Ishida, a result which stunned the boxing world. The 27-year-old Kirkland has not let the setback deter him, and on June 24, he is back and ready to return to the win column.
Jersey City, New Jersey’s Dennis Sharpe (17-7-3, KO’s) has consistently faced the best available competition and his June 24 bout against Kirkland is no exception. In fact, in his last seven bouts (which include fights against the likes of Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin, Pawel Wolak and Deandre Latimore), Sharpe’s opponents have walked into the ring with a combined 97-3 record. This Friday, he will look to put a severe dent in Kirkland’s comeback plans.
A member of the cast of NBC’s reality series “The Contender,” Brian Vera (18-5, 11 KO’s) is on his way to earning contender’s status in his boxing life after the show, and once that goal is reached, a world title shot should be too far behind. Owner of a stirring knockout win over Andy Lee in 2008, Vera soon followed that with his most recent victory, a huge win over former World Champion Sergio “The Latin Snake” Mora in February. Vera will look to keep his hot streak going against Suarez on the 24th.
Eloy Suarez (11-11-1, 5 KO’s) is well known for his toughness, and it’s that ability that will serve him well in his June 24 fight with Vera. Celebrating his 10th year as a professional when he steps into the ring for the most important fight of his career, expect him to lay it all on the line in search of victory in this Texas grudge match.
Southpaw standout Joseph Elegele (12-0, 10 KO’s) has been on an active path in his professional career, fighting seven times in 2010 and three times thus far in 2011. He hasn’t had to work long in those bouts, as nine of his fights have ended with an Elegele knockout win three rounds or less. In his most recent bout, he knocked out Angel Hernandez in two rounds and he is looking forward to his Texas debut on Friday night.
Fellow lefthander Noel Rodriguez (14-2, 5 KO’s) turned professional in 2004 and sailed to near the top of the 140-pound weight class until a 12-round decision loss to Francisco Figueroa in a 2007 bout for the NABF title. Discouraged by the defeat, Rodriguez took nearly three years off before returning in 2010 with a decision win over Raul Tovar last November. Now, he is refocused and ready to hand Elegele his first loss and get back on the road to the top.
FREE GENERAL ADMISSION TICKETS
AVAILABLE AT WWW.RIDERSBASEBALL.COM
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Golden Boy Promotions will be bringing a great night of outdoor boxing to the Dr. Pepper Ball Park in Frisco, Texas, just minutes away from Dallas and Fort Worth. The ring will be set up on the actual baseball field and boxing fans will be able to see professional boxing from quite a different perspective. The main event will be Austin Texas' Brian Vera, who has a great record of 18-5 which includes 11 knockouts. He is best known for his big fights on "the Contender". His opponent out of San Antonio is Eloy Suarez, a tough Mexican fighter with a record of 11-11. Vera is coming into the ring with an outstanding upset win over former WBC middleweight champion Sergio Mora. This fight is scheduled to go eight rounds and fans can expect to see eight full rounds of action packed slugging. Vera is not looking past his opponent, but future possible plans are for him to fight Andy Lee, a fighter ranked fifth in the world in October on HBO if all goes well. The winner of that fight will get a possible shot at the middleweight world title against Sergio Martinez.
In addition to the main event, the fans will get to see a great co-main event between James Kirkland (27-1, 24 KO's), also from Austin, against Saul Duran (37-18-2), with 30 KO's. Because of the knockout power of these two fighters, fans will have to watch it closely, because at any second, a KO might happen!
Kirkland is an outstanding middleweight fighter who has only lost once, but is expected to come in hungry to avenge his loss and move forward for future big fights.
Also scheduled on the card is the outstanding Ray Ximenez from Dallas, Texas, by way of Pleasant Grove, against Manuel Rojas. Both of these fighters had exceptional amateur records and the fight will be action packed with speed and boxing skills. This fight is scheduled for four action packed rounds. Fights start at 7:30 and two (2) additional fights are scheduled to be announced closer to fight night.
Regular ticket prices for FIGHT NIGHT are $10, $20 and $50. Tickets are available at www.ridersbaseball.com. If purchased online or by phone, ticket service fees apply. If bought in advance or day of event at the Dr Pepper Ballpark box office, there are no ticket service fees.
Fans can download vouchers for FREE GENERAL ADMISSION or UPGRADE to reserved seating for HALF-PRICE, at www.ridersbaseball.com. Free General Admission seating is limited.
Weigh-In Interviews
Pre-Fight Interviews
Post-Fight Interviews Part 1
Post-Fight Interviews Part 2
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Boxing hits the suburbs this Friday night as Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions will hold their inaugural Fight Night at Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, TX. The seven-bout fight card may be one of the most exciting cards to hit the region. Headlined by Fort Worth’s favorite son Brian Vera and Austin juggernaut James Kirkland in separate bouts, Fight Night at Dr Pepper Ballpark looks to be, on paper, a night of unabashed boxing action.
Best part about the whole event? It has to be the fact that Dr Pepper Ballpark is allowing free general admission to the fight card. Yeah, it’s a move so crazy that it just might work. Boxing fans can download vouchers for free general admission or upgrade to reserved seating for half-price, at www.ridersbaseball.com. Free general admission seating is limited and available on a first come basis.
Regular ticket prices for the event are $10, $20 and $50. Tickets are available at www.ridersbaseball.com. If purchased online or by phone, ticket service fees apply. However, if bought in advance or day of event at the Dr Pepper Ballpark box office, there are no ticket service fees.
FIGHT CARD
The announced fight card is listed below. As usual, all bouts subject to change.
MAIN EVENT - MIDDLEWEIGHTS - 8 ROUNDS
Brian VERA vs. Eloy SUAREZ
CO-MAIN EVENT - MIDDLEWEIGHTS - 8 ROUNDS
James KIRKLAND vs. Dennis SHARPE JR
MIDDLEWEIGHTS - 6 ROUNDS
James FREEMAN vs. Joshua BURNS
JR. LIGHTWEIGHTS - 4 ROUNDS
Manuel ROJAS vs. Alex LOPEZ
WELTERWEIGHTS - 6 ROUNDS
Joseph ELEGELE vs. TBA
JR. WELTERWEIGHTS - 4 ROUNDS
Maurice HOOKER vs. Wilbert MITCHELL
JR. LIGHTWEIGHTS - 4 ROUNDS
Jose RODRIGUEZ vs. Martin CAMARILLO
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