ipswich express
08-22-2007, 04:09 AM
Hurricane to make his Madison Square Garden debut vs Tito Mendoza...
Australia's world light-heavyweight contender Paul Briggs will start a big favourite when he takes on Panama's Tito Mendoza in their WBA eliminator at Madison Square Garden, New York on October 6.
The main event pits Oleg Maskaev against Sam Peter for the WBC heavyweight title.
Briggs, one of the hardest punching light-heavyweights in the world, is expected to be too strong for Mendoza but the Panamian has solid power in both hands with 28 of his 36 wins coming by KO. He also has seven losses, three inside the distance.
Mendoza scored oneof his best wins on Thursday when he outpointed former WBC middleweight champ Keith Holmes in a WBA Fedelatin light-heavyweight title fight in Panama City.
It was Mendoza's fifth consecutive win since he suffered consecutive points loses in 2004-2005 against Syd Vanderpool, Librado Andrade and Luis Andres Pineda.
Mendoza also boats a third-round KO of heavy-fisted Samoan Maselino Masoe, the former WBA middleweight champ.
The 30-year-old stands 6ft 3in, 4in taller than Briggs and the Australian's trainer Johnny Lewis expects him to be motivated like never before.
``This is Mendoza's big chance,'' Lewis said, ``he's coming in off a win over Keith Holmes, a very good boxer, so we are taking nothing for granted.
``Paul knows the importance of this fight and he knows that he twice let victory slip in world title bouts against Tomasz Adamek. It's now or never if he's going to win a world title.''
Victory over Mendoza will give Briggs a shot at Croatia's WBA champ Stipe Drews, the southpaw stringbean Briggs decked three times and hammered to a 12-round defeat in Sydney in 2004.
Mendoza replaces Briggs' original opponent Hugo Hernan Garay of Argentina.
Lewis has again hired leading sports conditioner Corey Bocking to help prepare Briggs for his Garden debut.
And he is likely to reunite with his cornerman from the 1980s, Grantlee Kieza, for the big Garden battle.
Australia's world light-heavyweight contender Paul Briggs will start a big favourite when he takes on Panama's Tito Mendoza in their WBA eliminator at Madison Square Garden, New York on October 6.
The main event pits Oleg Maskaev against Sam Peter for the WBC heavyweight title.
Briggs, one of the hardest punching light-heavyweights in the world, is expected to be too strong for Mendoza but the Panamian has solid power in both hands with 28 of his 36 wins coming by KO. He also has seven losses, three inside the distance.
Mendoza scored oneof his best wins on Thursday when he outpointed former WBC middleweight champ Keith Holmes in a WBA Fedelatin light-heavyweight title fight in Panama City.
It was Mendoza's fifth consecutive win since he suffered consecutive points loses in 2004-2005 against Syd Vanderpool, Librado Andrade and Luis Andres Pineda.
Mendoza also boats a third-round KO of heavy-fisted Samoan Maselino Masoe, the former WBA middleweight champ.
The 30-year-old stands 6ft 3in, 4in taller than Briggs and the Australian's trainer Johnny Lewis expects him to be motivated like never before.
``This is Mendoza's big chance,'' Lewis said, ``he's coming in off a win over Keith Holmes, a very good boxer, so we are taking nothing for granted.
``Paul knows the importance of this fight and he knows that he twice let victory slip in world title bouts against Tomasz Adamek. It's now or never if he's going to win a world title.''
Victory over Mendoza will give Briggs a shot at Croatia's WBA champ Stipe Drews, the southpaw stringbean Briggs decked three times and hammered to a 12-round defeat in Sydney in 2004.
Mendoza replaces Briggs' original opponent Hugo Hernan Garay of Argentina.
Lewis has again hired leading sports conditioner Corey Bocking to help prepare Briggs for his Garden debut.
And he is likely to reunite with his cornerman from the 1980s, Grantlee Kieza, for the big Garden battle.