DAVID HAYE IS THE ONE & ONLY WBA HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION
DESPITE REPORTS, NO INTERIM HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE BOUT
TO BE SANCTIONED BY THE WBA
LOS ANGELES, November 23 – Despite an issued statement from Don King Productions and various erroneous media reports, Golden Boy Promotions, the United States promoter of World Boxing Association (WBA) Heavyweight World Champion David “The Hayemaker” Haye, has received assurances directly from the WBA that there will be no sanctioning of an interim WBA Heavyweight Championship fight and that Haye will remain the only Heavyweight World Champion recognized by the sanctioning body.
“We have complete confidence that the WBA will keep their word and not sanction an interim Heavyweight World Title bout,” said President of Golden Boy Promotions Oscar de la Hoya. “They have assured us that David will remain the ONLY WBA Heavyweight World Champion, a title which he looks forward to proudly defending for the first time in the early part of 2010.”
Haye defeated Nikolai Valuev on November 7 to win the WBA Heavyweight Crown and will make his first title defense against number one ranked contender John Ruiz in early 2010.
For more information on Haye and Golden Boy Promotions, please visit www.goldenboypromotions.com.
Sauerland comments on Valuev – Haye
Team Sauerland believes there was nothing wrong with picking David Haye
as an opponent for Nikolai Valuev. The Russian Giant lost his WBA
Heavyweight Title on November 7 when the British challenger clinched a
majority decision in front of a sell-out crowd of 8,000 fans in
Nuremberg. The fight also drew a TV market share of more than 40 percent
in Germany. “After negotiations with Vitali Klitschko had fallen through
because he would not get back to us, we were looking for a new opponent
for Niko,” Team Sauerland General Manager Chris Meyer said. “After
Chagaev got beaten, Valuev had to fight Ruiz in a mandatory defence, but
Niko had already beaten him twice. This bout wasn’t marketable at all.
That is why we considered a showdown with up-and-coming David Haye the
far better option. All parties, and that includes Niko, his coach and
our partner Don King, agreed to the bout as there was no real
alternative. As the split decision indicates, it was a very close fight.
We expected Niko to dominate late in the fight, and had he won the final
two rounds, he would still be the champion. But David Haye put on a
great performance and left the ring as the winner. The contracts do
guarantee Niko a rematch and we are sure the outcome will be different
when the two meet again.”
ADAMEK CALLS OUT HAYE
During the past three weeks, two Cruiserweight Champions have made news with impressive wins in the heavyweight division. Last Saturday in Germany, David Haye of England won the WBA Heavyweight title by defeating Russian giant Nikolai Valuev. Two weeks earlier, Ring Cruiserweight Champion Tomasz Adamek dethroned Polish Legend Andrew Golota in Lodz, Poland with a crushing 5th round TKO in a heavyweight fight that was billed as the “Polish Fight of the Century.”
The juxtaposition of these two wins raises the intriguing possibility that there will be much more action in the recently moribund heavyweight division, as faster, more mobile 200 pounders move up to successfully challenge their supersized, less athletic counterparts. It also begs the question, “When will Adamek and Haye fight each other?”
That question most certainly occurred to Adamek as he watched a tape of the Haye fight earlier this week. The power punching Pole did not hesitate to call out the new champion: “David, if you want to fight against somebody who punches back at your face—not the empty air—you know where to find me,” Adamek declared. “You call yourself the best heavyweight fighter in the world after running scared for the whole fight with Nikolai Valuev? It’s not even funny.”
After criticizing Haye for an exhibition “worthy of the London Marathon trophy” vs. Valuev, Adamek went on to say, “Talking is cheap. People don’t care how big you are during the press conferences. They want to see a man in the ring. I never say too much before my fights and my opponents are not saying a lot afterwards because they are knocked down. You say you want to be a people’s champion. If so, fight me. That’s what the people want.”
There’s no doubt that Haye-Adamek would be a “pick-em” fight, Kathy Duva of Main Events, Adamek’s co-promoter, said. “It’s been a very long time since the boxing public has seen the kind of action in a heavyweight title fight that they enjoyed before the advent of the Super Heavyweights who dominate the division these days.” She continued, “When a heavyweight title fight is exciting, there is always a ‘smaller’ guy in the ring pressing the action. Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Jack Dempsey and, of course, Evander Holyfield, to name a few, all fought in their primes under 215 pounds. The next great heavyweight will come from the Cruiserweight division and we believe that he will be Tomasz Adamek.”
Adamek’s fight with Golota was viewed by more than 13 million people in Poland, in addition to the 17,000 raucous fans who packed the Atlas Arena in Lodz, to see the fight in person. Adamek crushed Golota, knocking him down twice and winning with a 5th round TKO vs. the four-time heavyweight title contender.
As a cruiserweight, Adamek won his last seven consecutive fights, five by KO. The Jersey City transplant won the IBF World Cruiserweight title last December in a blistering fight with Philadelphia’s Steve Cunningham, and successfully defended it twice in 2009 at Newark’s Prudential Center. Last year, Adamek was awarded the Ring Magazine Cruiserweight Belt, recognizing him as their Undisputed World Cruiserweight Champion.
Adamek will return to the Prudential Center on Saturday, February 6th in a 12-round heavyweight fight. Details will be announced next week.
CONGRATULATIONS TO DAVID HAYE ON WINNING THE HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD TITLE THIS PAST SATURDAY!
“HAYEMAKER” BECOMES GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS’
NEWEST HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION
FOLLOWING WIN OVER NIKOLAI VALUEV
LOS ANGELES, November 9 – It was a historic night in the Arena Nürnberger Versicherung in Nuremberg, Germany Saturday night, as London’s David “Hayemaker” Haye became the first British-born Heavyweight World Champion since Lennox Lewis and joined Evander Holyfield as the only former Cruiserweight World Champions to own a heavyweight title. Haye defeated seven-foot giant Nikolai Valuev via majority decision to claim the WBA Heavyweight World Title becoming Golden Boy Promotions’ newest Heavyweight World Champion.
“We’re very proud of David and what he accomplished Saturday night,” said Oscar de la Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions. “The odds were stacked against him, but he kept his focus, stuck to his game plan and put that title belt around his waist. This is a new era for the heavyweight division and I can’t wait to see what mountains David will climb next.”
“David looked tremendous during his 12-round battle with Valuev,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. “I’m really impressed with his skills inside of the ring and his charisma outside of the ring. We are going to do everything we can to get David the big fights so he can unify the heavyweight division and put it back on the boxing map.”
The charismatic Haye (23-1, 21 KO’s) has been one of the UK’s most popular boxing figures thanks to his exciting style, punching power, charisma and quick wit. He won the Cruiserweight World Title in just his 21st professional fight when he knocked out Jean-Marc Mormeck in seven rounds in 2007, and then quickly unified three of the cruiserweight titles in his next fight by stopping Enzo Maccarinelli in two rounds. He began his assault on the heavyweight division in 2008 and on Saturday night, the six-foot three inch, 218-pound Haye gave up nearly a foot in height and 98 pounds in weight to Russia’s Valuev, but with a disciplined and effective fight plan, the 29-year-old earned the WBA Heavyweight World Title by scores of 116-112, 116-112 and 114-114.
The Golden Boy Promotions team congratulates David Haye, it’s newest Heavyweight World Champion and will announce future plans for Haye shortly.
Haye beats Valuev to clinch WBA Heavyweight Title – 40,5 % peak market share on German TV
David Haye is the new WBA Heavyweight Champion after clinching a points
victory over Nikolai Valuev. Fighting in front of a sell-out crowd of
8,000 fans in Nuremberg, Haye was ahead 116-112 on two cards, with the
third judge ruling the contest a 114-114 draw. The clash drew a
sensational peak market share of 40,5 percent (8,4 million viewers) on
German free-to-air giant ARD. “It’s a dream come true,” Haye enthused
afterwards. “I’ve fought the biggest heavyweight champion of all time
and caught him with big shots. My speed was key tonight. He has a
granite chin and took my punches. I’m a guy who says what he thinks and
sometimes that upsets people but I’m full of respect for Valuev, he
showed he can take some big shots.”
And he added: “The title means everything to me. From when I was a baby
I said I would be the heavyweight champion of the world. People doubt my
skills, people know I’m a puncher, a brawler but I’ve got skills when I
have to. It wasn’t as smooth as I made out but I did enough to win and
that’s all I care about.”
The Russian Giant was disappointed after his second defeat in 53 fights.
“The fight reminded me of a marathon,” he said. “I had to run and chase
him down all the time. For me it was more like a track and field
competition. I had problems hitting him, he was very fast. I think the
12th round also made the difference.”
In the final round, Haye wobbled his opponent with a huge left uppercut.
Throughout the entire 12 rounds, he had used his speed to stay out of
trouble while launching occasional and well-timed attacks. “The plan was
to make Nikolai miss and it worked,” Adam Booth said. “David stuck to
the game plan well and fought a great fight.”
Alexander Zimin called the contest “a strange one”. He said: “There was
a lot of running. David was very fast and he seemed to get even faster
in the last six rounds. Nikolai did not what we had trained for. His
attacks were not executed well. I don´t really know what I can say about
this fight – it was strange.”
Wilfried Sauerland congratulated Haye on a strong performance. “It was a
very tactical fight and David´s tactics prevailed. He was running around
for 2:50 in every round and then landed two punches. He has obviously
watched the Holyfield fight and learned from it. He deserved to win, it
was a strong performance. But I have no doubts that Nikolai will bounce
back.”
Next up for David Haye is the mandatory defence against John Ruiz, who
scored a seventh-round TKO victory over Adnan Serin. “Ruiz is a strong
fighter, but I will knock him out,” Haye predicted.
Chris Meyer, General Manager of Team Sauerland, is looking forward to
working with Team Haye. “Congratulations to David for a great fight,”
Meyer said. “The cooperation with David and Adam has been exceptionally
good and we look forward to working with Hayemaker during the next
couple of fights.”
Also on the undercard, Scandinavian heavyweight hopeful Robert Helenius
stopped Taras Bidenko, who retired after the third round. Cruiserweight
star Alexander Frenkel stopped former champion Kelvin Davis in the first
round. Gifted Bulgarian heavyweight Kubrat Pulev also clinched a points
victory over Gbenga Oloukun.
Ruiz stops Serin, eyes Haye
NUREMBERG, Germany LAS VEGAS (November 7, 2009) – Two-time World Boxing Association (WBA) heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz did exactly what he was supposed to do tonight in Germany, stopping former IBU title-holder Adnan “Aachen Assassin” Serin, to set the stage for a 2010 world title fight against new WBA champion David “Hayemaker” Haye.
WBA No. 1 contender Ruiz (44-8-1, 29 KOs) had agreed with the promoters for defending champion Nicolai Valuev and challenger Haye to “step aside” as the WBA “Official Challenger.” Ruiz, provided he defeated Serin (19-11-1, 7 KOs), was guaranteed a title bout against the Valuev-Haye winner by the end of May, 2010. Haye defeated Valuev by a 12-round majority decision.
Ruiz, the first and only world heavyweight champion of Latino heritage, fought for the first time in 14 months and at his lightest weight (226) in six years. Fighting for the first time with head trainer/cutman Miguel Diaz in his corner, Ruiz displayed a much more aesthetically pleasing, aggressive style – no holding, clutching or grabbing.
Ruiz outclassed Serin from the opening bell until Serin’s corner threw in the towel at 1:34 of the seventh round. John came out strong, using a stiff jab to set-up punishing rights to Serin’s body, but “The Quietman” suffered a cut to his forehead, near the bridge of his nose, from an apparent head-butt in the fourth round. Ruiz picked up the pace, hurting Serin in the sixth, and unloaded six straight damaging right hands to Serin’s head, leading to an 8-count in the seventh. Four more rights resulted in the referee halting the action, after a towel was thrown into the ring from Serin’s cornerman.
Go on line to www.johnthequietmanruiz.com for more information about John Ruiz.
“DAVID vs. GOLIATH” PPV WEIGHTS & FACT SHEET
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Versischerung Arena, Nuremberg, Germany
OFFICIAL WEIGHTS
WBA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (12) – MAIN EVENT – PPV
Nicolai Valuev (50-1, 34 KOs), WBA Champion, St. Petersburg, Russia 314.6 LBS.
vs.
David Haye (22-1, 21 KOs), Challenger, London, England 216.7 LBS.
HEAVYWEIGHTS (10) – CO-FEATURE – PPV
John Ruiz (43-8-1, 29 KOs), Chelsea, Massachusetts, USA 226 LBS.
vs.
Adnan Serin (19-10-1, 7 KOs), Aachen, Nordrhein, Germany 214.5 LBS.
UNDERCARD (some of these fights, or highlights, may also air on PPV)
HEAVYWEIGHTS (8)
Sergei Liakhovich (23-3, 14 KOs), Vitebsk, Belarus 232.8 LBS.
vs.
Jeremy Bates (22-16-1, 18 KOs) 231.4 LBS.
Robert Helenius (9-0, 5 KOs), Berlin, Germany 248.8 LBS.
vs.
Taras Bidenko (26-3, 12 KOs), Hamburg, Germany 215.4 LBS.
CRUISERWEIGHTS (8)
Alexander Frankel (20-0, 16 KOs), Wirzberg, Bayern, Germany 193.4 LBS.
vs.
Kelvin Davis (24-10-3, 17 KOs), Reno, Nevada, USA 196.2 LBS.
FACT SHEET
WHEN: Saturday, November 7, 2009 – 3 PM/ET 12 PM/PT
WHERE: Nuremberg, Germany
PROMOTER: Wilfried Sauerland’s Sauerland Event and its Managing Director, Christian Meyer, in association with Don King Productions
PAY-PER-VIEW INFORMATION: The broadcast is being distributed in the United States and Canada by Integrated Sports for live viewing at 3 PM/ET – 12 PM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, DIRECTV, TVN, DISH Network, Viewer’s Choice, Shaw PPV and Bell TV for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. A replay will be shown that same night at 9 PM/ET, 6 PM/PT.
PAY-PER-VIEW ANNOUNCERS: World Boxing Hall of Fame inductee Col. Bob Sheridan (blow-by-blow) and former NFL player and veteran boxing announcer Benny Ricardo (color analyst)
INFORMATION: www.integratedsportsnet.com
Integrated Sports is North America’s leading distributor of International Pay-Per-View and Closed Circuit sports events is Integrated Sports. Among the many events brought to North American viewers by Integrated Sports include World Championship and world-class boxing matches featuring Ricky Hatton, Christian Mijares, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Jr., Ivan Calderon, Rocky Martinez, Nicolai Valuev, Amir Kahn, Marco Antonio Barrera, Arthur Abraham, and Ruslan Chagaev. In addition, Integrated Sports has distributed numerous International soccer matches showcasing teams like Club America of Mexico and the National Team of Argentina, and World Championship and world-class mixed martial arts shows featuring Fedor Emelianenko, Tim Sylvia, Bobby Lashley, Bob Sapp, Jeff Monson, and Roy Nelson. For more information on upcoming Integrated Sports events visit www.integratedsportsnet.com.
Don King Productions has promoted over 500 world championship fights with nearly 100 individual boxers having been paid $1 million or more. DKP also holds the distinction of having promoted or co-promoted seven of the 10 largest pay-per-view events in history, as gauged by total buys, including three of the top five: Holyfield vs. Tyson II, 1.99 million buys, June 1997; Tyson vs. Holyfield I, 1.6 million buys, November 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, 1.58 million buys, August 1995.
DKP has promoted or co-promoted 11 of the top 20 highest-grossing live gates in the history of the state of Nevada including five of the top seven: Holyfield vs. Lewis II, paid attendance: 17,078, gross: $16,860,300 (NOTE: Also second-highest live-gate gross for any event in the history of the world.), date: Nov. 13, 1999; Holyfield vs. Tyson II, paid attendance: 16,279, gross: $14,277,200, date: June 28, 1997; Holyfield vs. Tyson I, paid attendance: 16,103, gross: $14,150,700, date: Nov. 9, 1996; Tyson vs. McNeeley, paid attendance: 16,113, gross: $13,965,600, date: Aug. 19, 1995; and Trinidad vs. De La Hoya, paid attendance: 11,184, gross: $12, 949, 500. Sept. 18, 1999
Vested interest in Valuev-Haye WBA Title Fight for former champ Ruiz
“David vs. Goliath” PPV card live Saturday from Germany
NUREMBERG, Germany (Nov. 5, 2009) – The most interested spectator Saturday in Versicherung Arena for the WBA heavyweight title fight between defending Nikolai “The Russian Giant” Valuev and challenger David “The Haymaker” Haye will be former 2-time WBA title-holder John “The Quietman” Ruiz.
Ruiz (43-8-1, 29 KOs), the WBA top contender, agreed with the promoters for Valuev and Haye to “step aside” as the WBA “Official Challenger.” By defeating ex-IBU champion Adnan “Aachen Assassin” Serin (19-10-1, 7 KOs) in Saturday’s 10-round co-feature on the “David vs. Goliath” Pay-Per-View event, he is guaranteed a title bout against the Valuev-Haye winner by the end of May, 2010.
Valuev-Haye is promoted by Wilfried Sauerland’s Sauerland Event and its Managing Director, Christian Meyer, in association with Don King Productions. The “David vs. Goliath” show is being distributed in the United States and Canada by Integrated Sports for live viewing at 3 PM/ET – 12 PM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, DIRECTV, TVN, DISH Network, Viewer’s Choice, Shaw PPV and Bell TV for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. A replay will be shown that same night at 9 PM/ET, 6 PM/PT.
Ruiz doesn’t necessarily care who wins the title fight between Valuev (50-1, 34 KOs), who “The Quietman” has dropped two close decisions to in Germany, and London-based Haye (22-1, 21 KOs). He will be watching Valuev-Haye closely, though, after his scheduled PPV-opening bout against Serin.
“I’m 0-3 in Germany and 6-0 fighting in England,” Ruiz joked, “so I guess I’d rather fight Haye. “I’m really looking forward to this fight. I know no fight is easy and that I have to get past this one to get the winner of Valuev-Haye. I know there’s another world title fight in the horizon for me, but I have to win this fight to get the next one.
“I’m very happy that my fight is going to be on pay per view in North America. My fans and media there haven’t been able to watch my last few fights because they weren’t televised there. They think I still fight the same way (clutch-and-grab), but I’m much more aggressive, and now they’ll be able to see how much I’ve improved. I’ve been working hard the past three months with my new head trainer, Miguel Diaz, and assistant (former WBA bantamweight) Richie Sandoval. Somewhere along the line, I got away from the basics, and we’ve been working in that area. I had been leaning in and landing too close to my opponent, which resulted in a lot of clutching and grabbing. We’ve improved my style; I’m more aggressive now, moving more and getting hit less.”
Additional undercard bouts and highlights will also air on PPV. Two other former world champions are on the card, heavyweight Sergei Liakhovich (23-3, 14 KOs) and cruiserweight Kelvin “Concrete” Davis (24-10-3, 17 KOs) vs. Jeremy “The Best” Bates (22-16-1, 18 KOs) and unbeaten IBF No. 10 rated Alexander Frankel, respectively. Undefeated WBC & WBA No. 3 rated cruiserweight Francisco “The Wizard” Palacios (18-0, 11 KOs) is also on the undercard versus DeLeon Tingsley (9-4-1, 5 KOs).
For more information about the Valuev-Haye PPV go to www.integratedsportsnet.com.
Integrated Sports is North America’s leading distributor of International Pay-Per-View and Closed Circuit sports events is Integrated Sports. Among the many events brought to North American viewers by Integrated Sports include World Championship and world-class boxing matches featuring Ricky Hatton, Christian Mijares, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Jr., Ivan Calderon, Rocky Martinez, Nicolai Valuev, Amir Kahn, Marco Antonio Barrera, Arthur Abraham, and Ruslan Chagaev. In addition, Integrated Sports has distributed numerous International soccer matches showcasing teams like Club America of Mexico and the National Team of Argentina, and World Championship and world-class mixed martial arts shows featuring Fedor Emelianenko, Tim Sylvia, Bobby Lashley, Bob Sapp, Jeff Monson, and Roy Nelson. For more information on upcoming Integrated Sports events visit www.integratedsportsnet.com.
Don King Productions has promoted over 500 world championship fights with nearly 100 individual boxers having been paid $1 million or more. DKP also holds the distinction of having promoted or co-promoted seven of the 10 largest pay-per-view events in history, as gauged by total buys, including three of the top five: Holyfield vs. Tyson II, 1.99 million buys, June 1997; Tyson vs. Holyfield I, 1.6 million buys, November 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, 1.58 million buys, August 1995.
DKP has promoted or co-promoted 11 of the top 20 highest-grossing live gates in the history of the state of Nevada including five of the top seven: Holyfield vs. Lewis II, paid attendance: 17,078, gross: $16,860,300 (NOTE: Also second-highest live-gate gross for any event in the history of the world.), date: Nov. 13, 1999; Holyfield vs. Tyson II, paid attendance: 16,279, gross: $14,277,200, date: June 28, 1997; Holyfield vs. Tyson I, paid attendance: 16,103, gross: $14,150,700, date: Nov. 9, 1996; Tyson vs. McNeeley, paid attendance: 16,113, gross: $13,965,600, date: Aug. 19, 1995; and Trinidad vs. De La Hoya, paid attendance: 11,184, gross: $12, 949, 500. Sept. 18, 1999.
Former Heavyweight Champion, Undefeated Cruiserweight Added to Valuev vs. Haye Card in Nuremberg on Saturday
Former WBO Heavyweight Champion Sergei ‘White Wolf’ Liakhovich
Returns to Ring Against Jeremy Bates; Undefeated Cruiserweight
Francisco ‘The Wizard’ Palacios to Meet DeLeon Tinsley
NUREMBERG—Two of Don King’s top fighters have been added to Saturday’s card headlined by World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Nikolai “Russian Giant” Valuev his title opposing David “Hayemaker” Haye in Nuremberg, Germany, at Versicherung Arena.
Former World Boxing Organization heavyweight champion Sergei “White Wolf” Liakhovich (23-3, 14 KOs) will face dangerous veteran Jeremy “The Beast” Bates (22-16-1, 18 KOs), and undefeated cruiserweight Francisco “The Wizard” Palacios (18-0, 11 KOs) will meet DeLeon Tinsley (9-4-1, 5 KOs). Both matches are scheduled for eight rounds.
Liakhovich, from Vitebsk, Belarus, now fighting out of Scottsdale, Ariz., won the WBO heavyweight crown by upsetting “Relentless” Lamon Brewster in one of the best heavyweight fights of 2006.
In his next match, Liakhovich surrendered his title in the waning seconds of a fight he had all but won against Shannon “The Cannon” Briggs. Liakhovich had built a sizeable scorecard lead going into the 12th and final round, but he courageously stood in the middle of the ring and traded punches with Briggs, which resulted in Liakhovich suffering two knockdowns in the final 30 seconds, costing him the fight and title.
Liakhovich dropped a unanimous decision to Valuev on Feb. 16, 2008, also in Versicherung Nuremberg Arena, but did not fight at his normal level. Liakhovich recently revealed that he had been hampered by a nagging and persistent injury, which he says is now fully healed.
Palacios, from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, is an undefeated and fast-rising cruiserweight with knockout power. He is currently ranked No. 3 by both the World Boxing Council and WBA. His ring exploits have already earned him a continental title, and—if he keeps up his winning ways—he will soon receive his first chance at a world championship.
Valuev-Haye is promoted by Wilfried Sauerland’s Sauerland Event and its Managing Director, Christian Meyer, in association with Don King Productions. The pay-per-view telecast is being distributed in the United States and Canada by Integrated Sports for live viewing at 3 PM/ET – 12 PM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, DIRECTV, TVN, Viewer’s Choice, Shaw PPV and Bell TV for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. A replay will be shown that same night at 9 PM/ET, 6 PM/PT.
Two-time WBA heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz (43-8-1, 29 KOs), the current WBA No. 1 rated and “official challenger,” takes on ex-IBU champion Adnan “Aachen Assassin” Serin (19-10-1, 7 KOs) joins Valuev-Haye on the United States pay per view. Additional undercard bouts will also air on this PPV telecast.
For more information about the Valuev-Haye PPV go to www.integratedsportsnet.com.
Integrated Sports is North America’s leading distributor of International Pay-Per-View and Closed Circuit sports events is Integrated Sports. Among the many events brought to North American viewers by Integrated Sports include World Championship and world-class boxing matches featuring Ricky Hatton, Christian Mijares, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Jr., Ivan Calderon, Rocky Martinez, Nicolai Valuev, Amir Kahn, Marco Antonio Barrera, Arthur Abraham, and Ruslan Chagaev. In addition, Integrated Sports has distributed numerous International soccer matches showcasing teams like Club America of Mexico and the National Team of Argentina, and World Championship and world-class mixed martial arts shows featuring Fedor Emelianenko, Tim Sylvia, Bobby Lashley, Bob Sapp, Jeff Monson, and Roy Nelson. For more information on upcoming Integrated Sports events visit www.integratedsportsnet.com.
Don King Productions has promoted over 500 world championship fights with nearly 100 individual boxers having been paid $1 million or more. DKP also holds the distinction of having promoted or co-promoted seven of the 10 largest pay-per-view events in history, as gauged by total buys, including three of the top five: Holyfield vs. Tyson II, 1.99 million buys, June 1997; Tyson vs. Holyfield I, 1.6 million buys, November 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, 1.58 million buys, August 1995.
DKP has promoted or co-promoted 11 of the top 20 highest-grossing live gates in the history of the state of Nevada including five of the top seven: Holyfield vs. Lewis II, paid attendance: 17,078, gross: $16,860,300 (NOTE: Also second-highest live-gate gross for any event in the history of the world.), date: Nov. 13, 1999; Holyfield vs. Tyson II, paid attendance: 16,279, gross: $14,277,200, date: June 28, 1997; Holyfield vs. Tyson I, paid attendance: 16,103, gross: $14,150,700, date: Nov. 9, 1996; Tyson vs. McNeeley, paid attendance: 16,113, gross: $13,965,600, date: Aug. 19, 1995; and Trinidad vs. De La Hoya, paid attendance: 11,184, gross: $12, 949, 500. Sept. 18, 1999.
Valuev: “Haye´s comments have been very motivating
WBA Heavyweight Champion Nikolai Valuev has promised “something special”
for David Haye when they clash in the ring on Saturday night. The
Russian Giant cannot wait to let his fists do the talking after the
challenger has wasted no chance to hurl insults at the biggest and
tallest champion of all time. “His comments have been very motivating,”
Valuev said. “But let´s see what Haye has to offer inside the ring. I
don´t think he will be able to follow it up. But I will not
under-estimate him.”
Haye was brimming with confidence when he spoke in front of a packed
press conference today. “He hasn’t fought anyone of my calibre; he’s
never fought anyone in their prime or someone so fired up,” the
challenger said. “I’m not one of these guys he’s used to fighting. I’m
not over-the-hill, I’m not tainted, I’m not past my sell-by-date. I am
fresh, I am ready.”
And he added: “Training has gone great and I am going to make him look
silly on Saturday night. I am going to embarrass him, knock him out.
He’s never fought anyone as fast or who punches as hard as me, or as
accurate. I know he feels I’m a little mouthy man from England, but he’s
gonna be in for a rude awakening when that bell goes.”
Asked what he makes of Haye´s prediction to knock him out, Valuev
replied: “He can say what he wants. I have heard that from many
opponents before. It is not going to happen. I will win.” Manager
Wilfried Sauerland was also surprised about the challenger´s confidence.
“I don´t know where he takes it from,” he said. “He is untested at
heavyweight and got knocked down a lot of times in his career. Now he is
facing a proven champion with 50 victories, so I really wonder why he is
so optimistic.”
