LAS VEGAS (February 28, 2009) – The World Boxing Association Championship Committee has declared two-time WBA heavyweight champion John “The Quietman” Ruiz (43-8-1, 29 KOs), presently rated No. 3, as the mandatory challenger for the winner of this year’s Ruslan Chagaev-Nicolai Valuev WBA title fight.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Jason “Big Six” Estrada gets his chance...
2004 U.S. Olympian Jason “Big Six” Estrada
finally gets shot at Alexander Povetkin
April 4 in Dusseldorf, Germany
PROVIDENCE (February 27, 2009) – The long awaited showdown between America’s leading young heavyweight prospect, 2004 U.S. Olympian Jason “Big Six” Estrada, and Alexander Povetkin, 2004 Olympic gold medalist and the IBF’s No. 1 contender, will finally happen April 4 in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Estrada (15-1, 3 KOs) and Povetkin (16-0, 12 KOs) should have fought in the amateurs at the 2003 World Championships or a scheduled USA-Russia dual meet later that year. Estrada, however, as the No. 1 USA super heavyweight, had to fight in the Pan-American Games, where he captured gold in his Olympic qualifier. Meanwhile, at the same time, Povetkin won a gold medal at The World Championships. Team Russia pulled out of the aforementioned dual meet and a foot injury hampered Estrada’s training for the 2004 Olympics. He was eliminated prior to the medal rounds as Povetkin rolled to gold.
Povetkin has a mandated title shot this fall against IBF heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko, if he gets past the lightning quick Estrada. “The fight’s on April 4 but Povetkin’s the April Fool,” Estrada said during a break from training at his Big Six Academy in Providence. “I really see this guy as just a big-name opponent. He has his gold medal but he’s been babied his entire career. They just put guys in front of him to fight. He’s making a big mistake taking this fight. I’m not dwelling on the past. The old stuff doesn’t matter to me; I’m focusing on the present. It doesn’t upset me that people are calling this a tune-up for him. If the shoe was on the other foot, I wouldn’t take him lightly, but they’re making a huge mistake if they’re taking me lightly.
“I think it will be easier fighting him today than in the amateurs because he had to box a little more back then. You don’t see him boxing now. He’s a sitting duck. This (pro boxing) is a whole different game, something I learned in my first fight and I’ve progressed from there. He’s got the same stuff. Our fight didn’t happen in the amateurs, so I’m focused on beating him as a pro. I can’t see how he took this fight. His people must be telling him I’m just fast, like (Eddie) Chambers or (Chris) Byrd, but I’m more aggressive and they weren’t. I’m not worried about going over there because, if I smash him and lose, everybody will see that. No way I’m going to lose; I’m either going to stop him, or I’ll deserve a win by decision. He can’t prepare for what I’m bringing.”
Estrada’s promoter, Jimmy Burchfield (Classic Entertainment and Sports, Inc.), worked tirelessly for several months to get Povetkin for Estrada. “I’ve never worked so hard to make a fight happen,” Burchfield explained. “I know how badly Jason wanted it. I have to compliment Povetkin’s people for taking it. The Estrada Unit doesn’t back-off from any opponent. They’ve talked about this fight for a long, long time. In 2008, Jason went from a youngster to a man, doing everything asked of him. For everything he’s done since he signed with CES, especially in 2008, this fight is a reward for all of his hard work. I believe Jason Estrada is a future world champion.”
Providence-native Estrada was one of the most highly decorated American amateur boxers ever, compiling an amazing 261-14 record in U.S. competition. He was the first boxer to win both the U.S. Nationals and U.S. Challenge three years (2001-2003) in a row.
Estrada’s father/head trainer, Dr. Roland Estrada, believes the risk of fighting No. 1 ranked Povetkin is worth the reward for Jason. “It’s an opportunity we couldn’t turn down,” he remarked. “If we did it would take us 1 ½-2 years to fight somebody as highly ranked as Povetkin. Back in the amateurs, Povetkin was No. 1 in the East, and Jason was No. 1 in the West. It’s a fight that almost happened three times but didn’t. We’ve had this fight in the back of our minds ever since. He’s still a straight forward, combination puncher without exceptional speed or technique. As a pro, he’s probably become better because he faced adversity, down a few rounds against Eddie Chambers with his eye swelled up, but overcoming it to win. Other than that, though, he’s pretty much the same guy he was as an amateur.”
-JE-
finally gets shot at Alexander Povetkin
April 4 in Dusseldorf, Germany
PROVIDENCE (February 27, 2009) – The long awaited showdown between America’s leading young heavyweight prospect, 2004 U.S. Olympian Jason “Big Six” Estrada, and Alexander Povetkin, 2004 Olympic gold medalist and the IBF’s No. 1 contender, will finally happen April 4 in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Estrada (15-1, 3 KOs) and Povetkin (16-0, 12 KOs) should have fought in the amateurs at the 2003 World Championships or a scheduled USA-Russia dual meet later that year. Estrada, however, as the No. 1 USA super heavyweight, had to fight in the Pan-American Games, where he captured gold in his Olympic qualifier. Meanwhile, at the same time, Povetkin won a gold medal at The World Championships. Team Russia pulled out of the aforementioned dual meet and a foot injury hampered Estrada’s training for the 2004 Olympics. He was eliminated prior to the medal rounds as Povetkin rolled to gold.
Povetkin has a mandated title shot this fall against IBF heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko, if he gets past the lightning quick Estrada. “The fight’s on April 4 but Povetkin’s the April Fool,” Estrada said during a break from training at his Big Six Academy in Providence. “I really see this guy as just a big-name opponent. He has his gold medal but he’s been babied his entire career. They just put guys in front of him to fight. He’s making a big mistake taking this fight. I’m not dwelling on the past. The old stuff doesn’t matter to me; I’m focusing on the present. It doesn’t upset me that people are calling this a tune-up for him. If the shoe was on the other foot, I wouldn’t take him lightly, but they’re making a huge mistake if they’re taking me lightly.
“I think it will be easier fighting him today than in the amateurs because he had to box a little more back then. You don’t see him boxing now. He’s a sitting duck. This (pro boxing) is a whole different game, something I learned in my first fight and I’ve progressed from there. He’s got the same stuff. Our fight didn’t happen in the amateurs, so I’m focused on beating him as a pro. I can’t see how he took this fight. His people must be telling him I’m just fast, like (Eddie) Chambers or (Chris) Byrd, but I’m more aggressive and they weren’t. I’m not worried about going over there because, if I smash him and lose, everybody will see that. No way I’m going to lose; I’m either going to stop him, or I’ll deserve a win by decision. He can’t prepare for what I’m bringing.”
Estrada’s promoter, Jimmy Burchfield (Classic Entertainment and Sports, Inc.), worked tirelessly for several months to get Povetkin for Estrada. “I’ve never worked so hard to make a fight happen,” Burchfield explained. “I know how badly Jason wanted it. I have to compliment Povetkin’s people for taking it. The Estrada Unit doesn’t back-off from any opponent. They’ve talked about this fight for a long, long time. In 2008, Jason went from a youngster to a man, doing everything asked of him. For everything he’s done since he signed with CES, especially in 2008, this fight is a reward for all of his hard work. I believe Jason Estrada is a future world champion.”
Providence-native Estrada was one of the most highly decorated American amateur boxers ever, compiling an amazing 261-14 record in U.S. competition. He was the first boxer to win both the U.S. Nationals and U.S. Challenge three years (2001-2003) in a row.
Estrada’s father/head trainer, Dr. Roland Estrada, believes the risk of fighting No. 1 ranked Povetkin is worth the reward for Jason. “It’s an opportunity we couldn’t turn down,” he remarked. “If we did it would take us 1 ½-2 years to fight somebody as highly ranked as Povetkin. Back in the amateurs, Povetkin was No. 1 in the East, and Jason was No. 1 in the West. It’s a fight that almost happened three times but didn’t. We’ve had this fight in the back of our minds ever since. He’s still a straight forward, combination puncher without exceptional speed or technique. As a pro, he’s probably become better because he faced adversity, down a few rounds against Eddie Chambers with his eye swelled up, but overcoming it to win. Other than that, though, he’s pretty much the same guy he was as an amateur.”
-JE-
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Schedule change for Rally New York 09
Forestburgh, New York (January 30, 2009) Rally New York organization has announced a change of the date for its 2009 Rally New York USA.
The 2009 Rally New York USA will take place on April 3 – 4, 2009, which is two weeks earlier than previously announced.
We are forced to make this change because of the conflict with the tail end of the spring holiday season in New York, which would have severely limited the availability of hotels for the rally. We regret any inconvenience this change may have caused to those competitors who already made arrangements to attend the rally.
The all-tarmac 2009 Rally New York USA is the first round of the 2009 United States Rally Championship. The event includes two one-day rounds of the New York Rally Championship. Rally New York USA is a unique event in the United States. It is one of the only two all-tarmac rallies in the country.
The United States Rally Championship is taking bold steps to make national competition more affordable and accessible to a larger number of rally teams. The Championship structure minimizes or, for many teams, eliminates the need for repeated cross-country travel during the Championship season by providing competition on each side of the country. The final round of the Championship at the end of the year counts both in the Atlantic Division and the Pacific Division and together with the results from all previous rounds decides the top spots in the Championship. Pacific Division teams will be again competing for $12,000 in travel subsidies to attend the final round in New York.
Rally New York, Ltd. also presents the International Rally New York on October 23 - 24, 2009. This gravel event is the final round of the 2009 United States Rally Championship. All Rally New York events are conducted according to the international rules with reconnaissance on Thursday and two days of racing on Friday and Saturday. Most events in the United States Rally Championship allow for reconnaissance of the rally course.
More information on the United States Rally Championship can be found at www.usrallychampionship.com. Information on Rally New York events and on New York Rally Championship is at www.RallyNewYork.com.
The 2009 Rally New York USA will take place on April 3 – 4, 2009, which is two weeks earlier than previously announced.
We are forced to make this change because of the conflict with the tail end of the spring holiday season in New York, which would have severely limited the availability of hotels for the rally. We regret any inconvenience this change may have caused to those competitors who already made arrangements to attend the rally.
The all-tarmac 2009 Rally New York USA is the first round of the 2009 United States Rally Championship. The event includes two one-day rounds of the New York Rally Championship. Rally New York USA is a unique event in the United States. It is one of the only two all-tarmac rallies in the country.
The United States Rally Championship is taking bold steps to make national competition more affordable and accessible to a larger number of rally teams. The Championship structure minimizes or, for many teams, eliminates the need for repeated cross-country travel during the Championship season by providing competition on each side of the country. The final round of the Championship at the end of the year counts both in the Atlantic Division and the Pacific Division and together with the results from all previous rounds decides the top spots in the Championship. Pacific Division teams will be again competing for $12,000 in travel subsidies to attend the final round in New York.
Rally New York, Ltd. also presents the International Rally New York on October 23 - 24, 2009. This gravel event is the final round of the 2009 United States Rally Championship. All Rally New York events are conducted according to the international rules with reconnaissance on Thursday and two days of racing on Friday and Saturday. Most events in the United States Rally Championship allow for reconnaissance of the rally course.
More information on the United States Rally Championship can be found at www.usrallychampionship.com. Information on Rally New York events and on New York Rally Championship is at www.RallyNewYork.com.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Global promoter for WRC appointed.
January, 29th, Sligo, Ireland. As the cars and drivers make their way to the start line of the 2009 WRC season opener @ Rally Ireland, International Sportsworld Communicators has been announced as the global promoter of the World Rally Championship.
The 10-year deal - which officially starts in 2010 - with the sport's governing body, the FIA, was announced this morning upon completion of the final contract details. The tendering process closed last year and the parties have been in negotiation since then.
ISC was selected by a panel made up of WRC event organizers, the WRC commission and representatives from the FIA.
FIA president Max Mosley said: "We received significant interest in this tender but ISC, with its experience in rallying and its ambitious plans for the Championship, proved a worthy winner.
"We can now look forward with a great deal of optimism as ISC implements its comprehensive strategy for the Championship's future."
ISC has held the commercial rights to the WRC since 1996. Formerly owned by David Richards, North One Television took over ISC in October, 2007. Due to ISC's commercial position in the WRC, the new deal will start immediately and run until the end of 2020.
Neil Duncanson, ISC Chairman, said: "This represents the start of a new era for the sport - a genuine opportunity for everyone involved in the World Rally Championship to work together to build something special for the future.
"We are really excited about the challenge, especially reaching out to new rally fans as our media landscape morphs into the digital age."
The 10-year deal - which officially starts in 2010 - with the sport's governing body, the FIA, was announced this morning upon completion of the final contract details. The tendering process closed last year and the parties have been in negotiation since then.
ISC was selected by a panel made up of WRC event organizers, the WRC commission and representatives from the FIA.
FIA president Max Mosley said: "We received significant interest in this tender but ISC, with its experience in rallying and its ambitious plans for the Championship, proved a worthy winner.
"We can now look forward with a great deal of optimism as ISC implements its comprehensive strategy for the Championship's future."
ISC has held the commercial rights to the WRC since 1996. Formerly owned by David Richards, North One Television took over ISC in October, 2007. Due to ISC's commercial position in the WRC, the new deal will start immediately and run until the end of 2020.
Neil Duncanson, ISC Chairman, said: "This represents the start of a new era for the sport - a genuine opportunity for everyone involved in the World Rally Championship to work together to build something special for the future.
"We are really excited about the challenge, especially reaching out to new rally fans as our media landscape morphs into the digital age."
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