Tag Archives: Adonis Stevenson

boxing, CBS Boxing, Premier Boxing Champions

ADONIS STEVENSON VS. SAKIO BIKA TO TAKE PLACESATURDAY, APRIL 4 IN FIRST PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS ON CBS EVENT LIVE FROM THE PEPSI COLISEUM IN QUEBEC CITY

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Live on CBS at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT
MONTREAL (Feb. 27, 2015) – Light heavyweight world champion Adonis “Superman” Stevenson (25-1, 21 KOs) returns to the ring Saturday, April 4 at Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City to defend his title against former super middleweight world champion Sakio “The Scorpion” Bika (32-6-3, 21 KOs). The April 4 event marks the debut of Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on CBS (3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT).

 

“I am excited to be the headliner for first PBC event on CBS,” Stevenson said. “I know Bika will stop at nothing, so the fight will be spectacular and extremely offensive-minded. I predict that Bika will lose by knockout for the first time in his career.”

 

“After all these years fighting at 168 pounds, it was becoming increasingly difficult to make weight and that was a major factor in my defeats,” Bika said. “I see no problem making the jump to light heavyweight to face Stevenson and I do not feel I’ll be at a disadvantage because the champion made this transition successfully himself less than two years ago against Chad Dawson. I promise you that I will be the new champion on April 4.”
Stevenson, 37, won the world light heavyweight title in June of 2013 in Montreal, via a sensational 76-second, first-round knockout just over the then-undisputed king of the division, Dawson. The impressive victory earned Stevenson “Knockout of the Year” and “Fighter of the Year” accolades. In his first defense the following Sept. 28, former world champion Tavoris “Thunder” Cloud was meant to be a major test for the new champion, but the powerful southpaw forced Cloud to retire at the end of the seventh round.

 

Two months later, “Superman” concluded the year with an unequivocal victory over his No. 1 mandatory contender, Tony “Bomber” Bellew of Great Britain, who was unable to complete the sixth round. In May 2015 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Polish challenger Andrzei Fonfara proved to be a tough challenger and fans were treated to a memorable bout as Stevenson knocked Fonfara down twice in the early rounds only to visit the canvas himself in the ninth round. Judges scored the fight 116-109, 115-110 and 115-110 for Stevenson in his SHOWTIME® debut. In his last outing, Dec. 19, 2014 on SHOWTIME from the Pepsi Coliseum, “Superman” made short work of Russian veteran Dmitry “The Hunter” Sukhotskiy, stopping him in the fifth.
Bika, fighting out of Australia by way of his native Cameroon, which he represented at the 2000 Olympics, has earned the reputation as a tough, rough brawling warrior who has fought the best. He has been in six world title fights (1-3-2), holding one of the 168-pound division crowns in 2013-14. He has fought many world champions, never been knocked out in 41 professional bouts and he was “The Contender, Season 3” reality television series champion in 2007.

 

“The Scorpion” demonstrated his world-class toughness and determination in fights with the world’s elite super middleweights at that time, challenging world champions Markus Beyer and Joe Calzaghe in 2006, Lucian Bute in 2007 and Andre Ward in 2010. Resilience and hard work finally paid off for Bika when he won the coveted 168-pound title, defeating Marco Antonio Periban by decision in 2013 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. He successfully defended his title six months later by fighting to a 12- round draw with Anthony Dirrell on SHOWTIME in 2013. Bika eventually lost his belt in a rematch with Dirrell on SHOWTIME last August.

 

PBC on CBS, headlined by the light heavyweight world championship fight between Stevenson and Bika, is promoted by Groupe Yvon Michel (GYM) and presented by Videotron and in association with Mise-O-Jeu.
Tickets go on sale Saturday, Feb. 28 at 10 a.m. E, at the Pepsi Coliseum box office in Quebec, by calling (418) 691-7211 or (800) 900-7469, online at www.billetech.com, at GYM (514) 383-0666 and Champion Boxing Club (514) 376-0980. Ticket prices range from $25 to $250 on the floor.

 

Because the show is being held the day before Easter, GYM encourages the Quebec public to come as families and groups by offering two tickets (in the stands) for-the-price-of-1 special offer for two days only (Saturday, Feb. 28 and Sunday, March 1) for those purchasing tickets directly through www.billetech.com.

 

For more information visit www.sports.sho.com and www.groupeyvonmichel.ca, follow on Twitter at @SHOSports, @yvonmichelgym, @AdonisSuperman and @Sakio_Bika, follow the conversation using #StevensonBika, become a fan on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/SHOBoxing or visit the SHOWTIME Boxing Blog athttp://theboxingblog.sho.com.
boxing, CBS Boxing, Premier Boxing Champions, Showtime Boxing

LIVE BOXING RETURNS TO CBS TELEVISION NETWORK WITH MULTI-YEAR VENTURE FROM CBS & SHOWTIME®

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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

 

CBS Sports Presentation of Premier Boxing Champions To Air In Conjunction With Marquee SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® Events
NEW YORK (Feb. 17, 2015) – CBS Sports and SHOWTIME Sports® have announced a multi-year joint venture to present live boxing on the CBS Television Network-the first of up to eight live events in 2015 will premiere on Saturday, April 4 at 3 p.m. ET on CBS.  Premier Boxing Champions on CBS will air in conjunction with marquee SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING events as part of a partnership that will cross-promote the live programs across multiple platforms. 

 

The first six weeks to begin this venture will feature two of the biggest names in the sport-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., and Adonis Stevenson-and bookend this year’s most anticipated boxing event, the SHOWTIME PPV® presentation of the undisputed pound-for-pound champion Floyd Mayweather.

 

Each live boxing event on CBS and SHOWTIME will be supported with short- and long-form shoulder programming that will air across multiple platforms including CBS, SHOWTIME and CBS Sports Network.  In addition, a significant marketing budget will be dedicated to promoting each of the live CBS broadcasts and each major SHOWTIME telecast with targeted advertising campaigns.

 

“The Premier Boxing Champions series on CBS will help usher in a new era in the storied history of boxing,” said Stephen Espinoza, Executive Vice President & General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports.  “With the support of our parent company, we are uniquely positioned for a three-tiered approach that includes live boxing broadcasts on America’s No. 1 network, the cable reach of CBS Sports Network and, of course, the premium television leader in boxing, SHOWTIME.  The benefit of elevating the sport across these platforms for all involved, including SHOWTIME, is immeasurable.”

 

The schedule of upcoming live boxing events on CBS and SHOWTIME is as follows:

 

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING

On Saturday, March 28, SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING will present a doubleheader featuring a featherweight showdown between WBC champion Jhonny Gonzalez and top contender Gary Russell Jr., and a matchup of 154-pound contenders Jermell Charlo and Vanes Martirosyan.  The live SHOWTIME telecast will preview the following week’s April 4 CBS debut of Premier Boxing Champions. 

 

PREMIERE BOXING CHAMPIONS ON CBS

The CBS premiere on Saturday, April 4 (3 p.m. ET/Noon PT) will feature light heavyweight world champion Adonis Stevenson defending his WBC title against former super middleweight champ Sakio Bika.  In the co-feature, undefeated light heavyweight contender Artur Beterbiev will face veteran former world champ Gabriel Campillo.  The CBS broadcast, with its national reach of more than 110 million households, will offer a broad platform to promote a major SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING event just two weeks later. 

 

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING

On Saturday, April 18, SHOWTIME presents the network debut of former world champion and Mexican superstar Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., as he takes on light heavyweight contender Andrzej Fonfara. 

 

PREMIERE BOXING CHAMPIONS ON CBS

On Saturday, May 9 Premier Boxing Champions returns to CBS for the second installment (4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT).  This broadcast will pit undefeated Omar Figueroa, who recently vacated his Lightweight World Championship to move up in weight to 140 pounds, against former champion Ricky Burns. 

 

The April 18 SHOWTIME telecast and the May 9 CBS broadcast will support-and be supported by-theMay 2 SHOWTIME PPV event featuring the undefeated, world’s No. 1 ranked fighter, Floyd Mayweather.

 

Additional confirmed dates for Premier Boxing Champions on CBS include live broadcasts in June, July and September, with up to three remaining events on the 2015 calendar yet to be announced. The live boxing broadcasts on CBS, other than the aforementioned premiere, will be broadcast live at4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT. 

 

The Premier Boxing Champions series was created for television by Haymon Sports. It is the first consistent series presentation of live boxing on CBS in 15 years.  The network aired a one-off live event featuring current WBC Super Bantamweight Champion Leo Santa Cruz in 2012.  Prior to that, the last live boxing on the network was in 1997 when then-middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins knocked out Glen Johnson.

 

Live boxing was a staple on the network in the 1980s, consistently featuring future Hall of Famers Sugar Ray Leonard, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini and others. Boxing’s history on CBS dates back to 1948 when the Pabst Blue Ribbon Bouts premiered featuring legendary blow-by-blow commentator Russ Hodges.