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All posts by FNU47
SHOWTIME SPORTS® CONTINUES CELEBRATION OF 30 YEARS OF SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® WITH PAULIE AYALA-JOHNNY TAPIA I & II, PLUS ISRAEL VAZQUEZ-RAFAEL MARQUEZ I, II & III
UNRIVALED “RIVALRIES”
Dinani PANO to Watch Round 12 From Ayala-Tapia I & Tune-In Tonight To Re-Live The Full Fight (SHO kwambiri® pa 10 p.m. AND/PT)
Photo Mawu a: Tom Casino / Showtime
NEW YORK (Feb. 4, 2016) – Round 2 a Showtime Sports® 12-round celebration commemorating 30 years of Showtime Championship nkhonya® continues in February with “Rivalries’’ onSHO kwambiri®.
This month will be highlighted by five of the most exhilarating and memorable fights in boxing history: the two Paulie Ayala-Johnny Tapiabattles and the first three Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez wars.
Ayala-Tapia I was 1999 Nkhondo ya Zaka; Ayala was 1999 Wankhondo pa Chaka.
The initial three Vazquez-Marquez showdowns are universally acknowledged as among the best of all-time and were consensus Fight of the Year winners in 2007 and ’08. Kuwonjezera, the third round of Vazquez-Marquez II earned Round of the Year honors in ’07 while the fourth of Vazquez-Marquez III was 2008 Kuzungulira pa Chaka.
These epic rivalries will air on “Throwback Thursdays” all month long at10 p.m. AND/PT on SHO EXTREME and are available on SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, Showtime iliyonse® and via the network’s online streaming service. Each fight will be wrapped with brief context and commentary from SHOWTIME Sports host Brian Custer.
Below is the schedule of SHOWTIME EXTREME premieres for the month of February:
- Today/Thursday, Feb. 4: Ayala vs. Tapia I
- Thursday, Feb. 11: Ayala vs. Tapia II
- Thursday, Feb. 18: Vazquez vs. Marquez Ine & II
- Thursday, Feb. 25: Vazquez vs. Marquez III
In celebration of the best rivalries on SHOWTIME, see below for a special column from SHOWTIME Sports expert analyst and boxing historian Steve Farhood.
RIVALRIES
By Steve Farhood
Boxing without rivalries would be like elections without debates.
Rivalries are natural, especially in boxing. Who is the best prospect in the neighborhood?
Who is the best bantamweight in Mexico? Who is the best fighter in the entire world?
Fans want to know, and so do the fighters, especially if a one-on-one matchup is likely to provide a definitive answer.
The best example comes from the best rivalry in history, regardless of sport: When Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier clashed in their rubber match in Manila, they were fighting for something much greater than the world heavyweight title. They were fighting for the championship of each other.
Ali-Frazier … Robinson-LaMotta … Louis-Schmeling … Barrera-Morales … Mayweather-Pacquiao … Pep-Saddler … Leonard-Duran … Holyfield-Tyson: Boxing history has been told through its juiciest rivalries.
Mu 30 years of memorable fighters and unforgettable fights, SHOWTIME boxing’s history can largely be told through its rivalries as well.
Pa Showtime kwambiri, we’ll be focusing on two rivalries in particular: Rafael Marquez-Israel Vazquez and Paulie Ayala-Johnny Tapia.
Marquez-Vazquez is the equal of any pairing in recent history. So compelling were the battles, so consuming was the rivalry that many fans can’t tell you what the final scoreboard read. It didn’t matter all that much.
(Fittingly, the fighters split four bouts.)
What made Marquez-Vazquez different from most rivalries: They were defined more by similarities than differences. Most rivalries feature stark contrast. Think Borg-McEnroe. Or Bird-Magic. Or Evert-Navratilova. But Marquez and Vazquez were both classy champions from Mexico who needed each other to raise their profiles and all-time standings.
They gave us no trash-talking, no posturing, no hatred, real or imagined. M'malo, they punched and bled and fought proudly and at the highest level. And because of the classic ring drama they created, that was more than enough.
Suffice to say that two of their bouts were chosen as Fight of the Year. And Marquez-Vazquez III was surely among the best fights I’ve covered live in my 37 years in boxing.
It was a bit different with Ayala and Tapia. When they first fought, Ayala wasn’t a familiar name. Tapia, mbali inayi, was an undefeated and long-reigning champion with a unique personality and a distinctive ring persona.
A suitable rival is exactly what Tapia needed to fully realize the potential that we sensed when he soundly defeated New Mexico rival Danny Romero two years before.
A pair of controversial decisions, the contentiousness that marked the negotiations preceding the rematch, and Tapia’s raw emotion made Ayala-Tapia a particularly bitter rivalry.
It was a memorable rivalry as well.
# # #
Showtime Intaneti Inc. (SNI), ndi mwathunthu-anali wocheperapo ya CBS Corporation, mwini ndi ukugwira ntchito pa umafunika TV Intaneti Showtime®, Mafilimu njira ™ ndipo FLIX®, ndipo lilinso Showtime zikufunidwa®, Mafilimu njira ™ ON Funani ndi FLIX zikufunidwa®, ndipo maukonde a kutsimikizika utumiki Showtime iliyonse®. Showtime Intaneti Inc., ndi mwathunthu-anali nthambi ya SNI, ukugwira maimidwe-yekha kusonkhana utumiki Showtime®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS ndi wosamalira telco, ndipo kumbali-yekha utumiki kusonkhana kudzera Apple®, Zaka®, Amazon and Google. Ogula akhoza amamvera Showtime kudzera Hulu, Sony PlayStation® Vue and Amazon Prime Video. SNI komanso amasamalira Smithsonian Intaneti™, lolumikizana ankapitabe pakati SNI ndi Smithsonian Institution, umene amapereka Smithsonian Channel™, ndipo amapereka Smithsonian Earth™ kudzera SN Intaneti LLC. SNI misika ndi kugawira masewera ndi zosangalatsa zimene zikuchitika masiku pachionetsero kwa olembetsa pa malipiro-pa-maganizo maziko kudzera Showtime PPV. Kuti mudziwe zambiri, kupita www.SHO.com.
Full Card Announced for Saturday Night’s ‘Detroit Brawl’ at Masonic Temple
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THREE NEW MATCHUPS COMPLETE WSOF29: GAETHJE motsutsana. FOSTER MAIN CARD ON SATURDAY, MARCH 12
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BELLATOR MMA INKS SERGEI KHARITONOV TO AN EXCLUSIVE, Mipikisano KADUKA mgwirizano
Santa Monica (February 3, 2015) - Sergei Kharitonov (23-5) is the newest free agent by Bellator MMA, with the news that the Russian heavyweight has been signed to an exclusive multi-year, Mipikisano nkhondo mgwirizano. A veteran of both Strikeforce and Pride Fighting Championships, Kharitonov remains on active duty with the Russian Airborne Troops.
Doubling as a kickboxer at different points throughout his combat sports career, “The Paratrooper” has decided to parlay his recent five-fight winning streak and focus purely on mixed martial arts. Kharitonov’s resume is extensive, with the 35-year-old scoring wins against some of the sport’s most notable names including UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum, Andrei Arlovski, Pedro Rizzo, Murilo “Ninja” Rua, and Alistair Overeem.
“I have had the best seat in the house for some of Kharitonov’s heavyweight outings,"Bellator MMA Pulezidenti Scott Coker anati, “and I know Sergei [Kharitonov] can come in and make an immediate impact on our heavyweight division. He is an extremely skilled and experienced fighter who can end a fight in the blink of an eye, and we look forward to having him do just that inside the Bellator cage. Zambiri, he’s already competed at one ‘Dynamite’ event before, maybe he could do so again in the future!"
Kharitonov joins a division that is currently championed by fellow Russian fighter Vitaly Minakov, other top names include Bobby Lashley, Cheick Kongo, Vinicius Queiroz, Kimbo kagawo, Tony Johnson, Justin Wren, Dan Charles, ndipo James Thompson.
Undefeated Alex Martin ready for first national television exposure on TOE-TO-TOE TUESDAYS on FS1 and BOXEO DE CAMPEONES on FOX DEPORTES
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ABNER MARES AND FERNANDO MONTIEL TO MEET IN ALL-ACTION SHOWDOWN OF THREE-DIVISION WORLD CHAMPIONS ON SATURDAY, MARCH 12, LIVE ON CBS®
NEW ENGLAND FIGHTS TO HOLD WEIGH-INS THIS FRIDAY AT LEWISTON RAMADA
Lewiston, Maine (February 3, 2016) - New England Kumenyana (NEF), America wa nambala wani dera nkhondo Kukwezeleza, adzakangamira ake lotsatira chochitika, “NEF 21: THE IMMORTALS” izi Loweruka, February 6, 2016 pa Androscoggin Bank Colisée mu Lewiston, Maine. The event will feature both mixed-martial-arts (MMA) and professional boxing bouts with an MMA cage and a boxing ring set up side-by-side. Poyambirira lero, the promotion announced that it would hold the event weigh-in this Friday, February 5, 2016, pa 2:00 pm EST at the Ramada Hotel & Conference Center. The Ramada is located at 490 Wosangalatsa Street mu Lewiston, Maine.
Weigh-ins are open to the public and free to attend. All of the fighters competing on Saturday night will be at the weigh-in, including MMA headliners Bruce “Wokongola Boy” Boyington (12-8) and Jon Lemke (5-3), as well as boxing main event participants Brandon “The Cannon” Berry (10-1) and Tollison Lewis (2-0). Fans and press are encouraged to attend. For those unable to make it to the Ramada on Friday, weigh-ins will be streamed live on the NEF Youtube page at www.Youtube.com/nefmma.
The “NEF 21” nkhondo khadi:
Akatswiri nkhonya
149 Mapaundi: Tollison Lewis vs. Brandon Berry
147 Mapaundi: Evincii Dixon vs. Antonio Chaves Fernandez
175 Mapaundi: Crowsneck Boutin vs. Joel Bishop
Akatswiri MMA
155 POUND TITLE: Jon Lemke vs. Bruce Boyington (m'ma)
145 Mapaundi: Derek Shorey vs. Josh Lange
185 Mapaundi: Zach Elkins vs. Mike Hansen
155 Mapaundi: Zenon Herrera vs. CJ Ewer
170 Mapaundi: Andrew Tripp vs. Alex Henry
125 Mapaundi: Norman Fox vs. Brandon Warne
Ankachita masewera MMA
205 POUND TITLE: Mike Williams vs. Ryan Glover
170 POUND TITLE: Ricky Dexter vs. Caleb Farrington
135 POUND TITLE: Henry Clark vs. Johnny Timatheriyali
145 Mapaundi: Rafael Velado vs. Mike Pietersen
120 Mapaundi: Erin Lamonte vs. Randi Beth Boyington
140 Mapaundi: Erik Nelson vs. Julio Martinez
265 Mapaundi: Gravin Guillen vs. Matt Glover
155 Mapaundi: Frank Johanson vs. Taylor Costantino
265 Mapaundi: Brendan Battles vs. Dave Smith
230 Mapaundi: Zak Bergeron vs. Ras Hylton
170 Mapaundi: Adam Nielsen vs. Ruben Redman
155 Mapaundi: Dustin Shorey vs. Juan Meneses
160 Mapaundi: Caleb Swoveland vs. Tom Burgess
155 Mapaundi: Tony Agust vs. Chad Murillo
125 Mapaundi: Justin Witham vs. Jake Denham
140 Mapaundi: Clifford Redman vs. Richmond Pierce Wiegman
135 Mapaundi: David Thompson vs. Caleb Costello
New England ndewu 'chochitika lotsatira, "NEF 21: THE IMMORTALS,” takes place this Saturday, February 6, 2016 pa Androscoggin Bank Colisée mu Lewiston, Maine. Bell time is 7:00 Madzulo EST. Tickets for “NEF 21” start at just $25 ndipo pa malonda tsopano www.TheColisee.com kapena kuitana Colisée bokosi nchito 207.783.2009 × 525. Kuti mudziwe zambiri pa chochitika ndi nkhondo khadi zosintha, mufuna, pitani Kukwezeleza a webusaiti pa www.NewEnglandFights.com. Kuphatikiza apo, inu mukhoza kuona NEF a pa www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, kuzitsatira pa Twitternefights ndi kulowa mu boma Facebook gulu "New England ndewu."
Thomas “Cornflake” LaManna kuti mutu Loweruka, March 19 at The Claridge Hotel in Atlantic City
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UNBEATEN HEAVYWEIGHTS COLLIDE AS GERALD WASHINGTON TAKES ON OSCAR RIVAS ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, IN OPENER OF SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® TRIPLEHEADER FROM HONDA CENTER IN ANAHEIM, California
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