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Greg Cohen of Greg Cohen Promotions is proud to announce the signing of San Francisco-based super lightweight contender Karim “Hard Hitta” Mayfield (19-2-1, 11 KOs) to an exclusive promotional contract.
A local celebrity and boxing staple in the Bay Area, the charismatic Mayfield has already beaten former world champion Mauricio Herrera, as well as then-undefeated Raymond Serrano. He won the NABO Super Lightweight Championship in 2011 and defended it successfully twice.
The 24-year-old has also served as a sparring partner for world champions Manny Pacquiao, Antonio Margarito, and Sergio Mora. Mayfield came to boxing late, at age 20, but won 54 of his 58 amateur fights before going on a tear as a professional.
“I am excited to be signing with GCP and look forward to being back in action early in 2016,” said Mayfield. “This will give me the opportunity to fight some of the top fighters in the world. I am hard at work preparing, wearing my army fatigues, ready to go duck hunting next year.”
Greg Cohen, his new promoter, says Mayfield makes a very welcome addition to the GCP stable of fighters.
“Karim has amazing natural abilities and the personality to become a crossover star,” said Cohen. “I’m very happy he’s chosen us to help guide his career. We’re going to get him back in the ring often, let him sharpen up his amazing skills and then the sky is the limit for this young man.”
Cohen says he will announce Mayfield’s first appearance under the GCP banner very soon. |
SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® Lee vs. Saunders
Airs Live At 5 p.m. ET/PT on SHO EXTEME
NEW YORK (Dec. 1, 2015) – SHOWTIME Sports® will present the WBO Middleweight World Championship between defending titlist Andy Lee and unbeaten challenger Billy Joe Saunders on Saturday, Dec. 19, live on SHO EXTREME (5 p.m. ET/PT) from Manchester, England.
The SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL offering of the Box Nation telecast will feature analysis from SHOWTIME boxing experts Brian Custer, Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi before and after the world championship showdown. An encore presentation of the bout will air on SHO EXTREME later that evening at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
“We’re excited to deliver this important matchup of top middleweights to the U.S. audience,” said Stephen Espinoza, Executive Vice President and General Manager of SHOWTIME Sports. “The 160-pound class is one of boxing’s hottest and deepest divisions right now, and the winner of this fight should position himself for a major showdown or unification in 2016.”
Ireland’s Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) won the vacant WBO title with a sixth-round TKO of then-undefeated Matt Korbov in December 2014. The 6-foot-2, 31-year old was on a six-fight win streak before boxing a split 12-round draw with undefeated former champion Peter Quillin on April 11, 2015, in Brooklyn. Both fighters went down in a highly competitive scrap that was scored 113-112 for Quillin, 113-112 for Lee and 113-113.
Before turning pro Lee was a top amateur and represented Ireland in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.
“It’s great that my fans in the U.S. will get to see the fight between me and Saunders and I guarantee it’s going to be exciting,” Lee said.
Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs), of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, is the WBO’s No. 1 middleweight contender. The 26-year-old is coming off a fourth-round TKO over Yoannan Bloyer last July 24 in London.
Two starts ago, in the most note-worth victory of his career, the 5-foot-11, Saunders took a 12-round split decision over Chris Eubank Jr. on Nov. 29, 2014, in London. All but one of Saunders’ fights have taken place in England; the other was Northern Ireland.
Saunders was also an accomplished amateur; he represented England in the 2008 Olympic Games as a welterweight at the age of 18. Saunders is the great-grandson of one of Britain’s most famous gypsy bare-knuckle champions, Absolom Beeney.
“This is a massive night for me and I’m excited that it’s going out live to America,” Saunders said. “The U.S. viewers will get to see just what I can do when I face Lee and become world champion. It’s a big boost for me and takes the fight to another level when American TV comes on board and then you know it’s a big fight on the world stage. I hope that (Gennady) Golovkin and (Miguel) Cotto will be both watching because I’m fast approaching their level and they’ll get to see what I’m all about.”
Promoter Frank Warren said, “I’m delighted that SHOWTIME will now be televising Lee vs. Saunders live in the U.S. as it confirms the importance of this fight on the world scene. My relationship with the network goes back many years with fights like Joe Calzaghe vs. Jeff Lacy, Ricky Hatton vs. Kostya Tszyu, Frank Bruno vs. Oliver McCall, plus Naseem Hamed and Nigel Benn fights. I believe that Lee vs. Saunders will be another great fight to add to that list because of what’s at stake for both fighters. What lies ahead for the winner will make them fight to their very best.”
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Lewiston, Maine (December 2, 2015) – New England Fights (NEF), America’s number-one regional fight promotion, will hold its next event, “NEF 21: THE IMMORTALS” on Saturday, February 6, 2016 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisée in Lewiston, Maine. The fight card is scheduled to feature both mixed-martial-arts (MMA) and professional boxing bouts. Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of an amateur female strawweight fight to the MMA portion of the card. Randi Beth Boyington (1-2) is scheduled to face Erin Lamonte (5-0).
The bout will be a rematch from “NEF XX” last month in Lewiston. The previous fight ended with a first-round submission victory for Lamonte. Veteran referee John English stopped the bout when it appeared as though Lamonte had an armbar locked in deep on Boyington. Per the Unified Rules of Amateur MMA, as adopted in Maine, a referee is allowed to stop a bout on a technical submission to prevent injury to a fighter.
Shortly after English stopped the fight, Boyington popped out of the armbar and began to vehemently protest the call. Her fans and supporters in the audience were incensed. They contended that Boyington was in the process of breaking free of the hold, and therefore the fight should have continued.
“Before the next fight even made it to the cage, we had at least a half-dozen messages on our Facebook page demanding a rematch,” recalled NEF co-owner and promoter Nick DiSalvo. “Our fans are passionate. If the fans want it, and the fighters want it, then we will do a rematch. It’s as simple as that.”
The February 6th rematch will not be the first time a Boyington has had the opportunity to avenge a controversial submission finish in the NEF cage. Randi’s husband and trainer, current NEF MMA Professional MMA Lightweight Champion Bruce “Pretty Boy” Boyington (12-8), defeated John “First Class” Raio (2-8) earlier this year via second-round TKO. That bout was a rematch of a February 2014 fight in which Raio submitted Bruce in a controversial stoppage by referee Jimmy Bickford.
Lamonte sees things quite differently, and is certain that she will defeat Randi for the second time at “NEF 21.”
“I’m excited to get back in there with Randi Beth for NEF 21,” said Lamonte. “I submitted her in front of her fans once before, I sure don’t mind doing it again. This time I will lose the empathy factor as I see the ref circling, and I’ll just go at the finish 100%. She should be thanking me and the ref that she wasn’t maimed that night. I could be a poor sport and say a few things about Randi, as she and her fans have about me and the finish, but my mother taught me better than that.February 6th, I will prove, again, who the better fighter is in the NEF cage.”
I’m ecstatic to be closed in the cage with Erin Lamonte on Feb 6th,” exclaimed Randi Beth Boyington when reached for comment. “I’ll be returning with a vengeance to correct a fight that was stopped too early. I’m looking to end this fight the way it should have ended on November 21st because my parents taught me: when you start something, finish it!”
New England Fights’ next event, “NEF 21: THE IMMORTALS,” takes placeSaturday, February 6, 2016 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisée in Lewiston, Maine. Tickets for “NEF 21” start at just $25 and are on sale now atwww.TheColisee.com or by calling the Colisée box office at 207.783.2009 x 525. For more information on the event and fight card updates, please visit the promotion’s website at www.NewEnglandFights.com. In addition, you can watch NEF videos at www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, follow them on Twitter @nefights and join the official Facebook group “New England Fights.”
About New England Fights
New England Fights (“NEF”) is a fight events promotions company. NEF’s mission is to create the highest quality events for Maine’s fighters and fans alike. NEF’s executive team has extensive experience in combat sports management, events production, media relations, marketing, legal and advertising.