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© Tom Casino / Showtime Boxing
ShoBox: The New Generation headliners Fernando Guerrero and Ishe Smith were joined by co-main event fighters and fellow prospects Shawn Porter and Ray Robinson on Wednesday for a final press conference at The Boiling Point in Southaven, Miss., just two days before the ShoBox tripleheader on Friday, July 16, live on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast.
World-ranked middleweight prospect Guerrero (18-0, 15 KOs) will put his undefeated record on the line against tough veteran Smith (21-4, 9 KOs) in a 10-round bout in the main event of the tripleheader, which will take place at the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven, just days from the ninth anniversary of the first ShoBox telecast.
And, in emblematic fashion, this edition of ShoBox will feature highly-regarded prospects in the toughest and arguably most important fights of their careers.
Promising, unbeaten knockout artist Porter (15-0, 12 KOs), of Cleveland, Ohio, will face fellow prospect Robinson (11-1, 4 KOs), of Philadelphia, Pa., in a 10-round junior middleweight (catch weight 150 lbs) bout.
Houston’s Lanard Lane (12-0, 7 KOs), another talented, undefeated prospect, will put his perfect record up against Mike Dallas, Jr., (14-0, 5 KOs), of Bakersfield, Calif., in an eight-round welterweight bout.
The tripleheader, which is promoted by Prize Fight, will be the 143rd ShoBox telecast since the series began on July 21, 2001.
Here’s what the fighters had to say at Wednesday’s press conference:
Fernando Guerrero on whether he’ll be looking for a knockout on Friday: “The only times I’ve ever looked for a knockout, turned out to be my only three decision victories. I won’t look for it. But if it’s there, I’ll take it.”
After sparring with Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Chad Dawson in his camp for this fight, Ishe Smith spoke about facing Guerrero at this point in his career: “It’s been 10 years since I turned pro. My second act starts on Friday. I feel no pressure and I’m confident.”
Shawn Porter reacted to people referring to him as a knockout artist: “I prefer to make it quick work. That makes for excitement. That makes an exciting fight for the fans. It’s an exclamation point on the win.”
Dressed to impress in a full suit, Ray Robinson answered questions about fighting in the Memphis area, where Porter has amassed most of his victories as a pro: “I’m not here to put another win on (Porter’s) record. I came to win. There are only two fighters in the ring. They can’t bring the whole city in the ring.”
Curt Menefee will call the action from ringside with Steve Farhood and Antonio Tarver serving as expert analysts. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.
