Golden Boy Boxing: Elam, Suleymanov Added To “Fight Night Club” Card

ByBoxing Press

Highly regarded Los Angeles prospects Deon Elam and Khabir Suleymanov will defend their home turf at L.A. Live’s Club Nokia on Thursday, April 22, as they take on Andre Hemphill and Benji Garcia, respectively, in featured six round bouts on the latest edition of the boxing’s hardest-hitting monthly series, “Fight Night Club”.

In the main event, super middleweight standout Enrique Ornelas of La Habra, California will face off against Cary, North Carolina’s Julius Fogle in a bout scheduled for eight rounds.

Los Angeles cruiserweight Deon Elam (10-1, 5 KO’s) followed up a stellar amateur career (that included two National Golden Gloves appearances and a berth in the 2004 Olympic trials) with nine straight wins as a professional before he entered the world of reality television as a contestant in the season four cast of ‘The Contender.’

On the show, Elam won one of two bouts, and on April 22 he will fight for the first time since leaving the show’s set in Singapore when he takes on Philadelphia battler Andre Hemphill (8-14-2, 5 KO’s) in a six rounder.

A native of Chelyabinsk, Russia who now makes his home in Los Angeles, junior featherweight Khabir Suleymanov (9-0, 4 KO’s) has drawn rave reviews throughout his young career, and added even more fans last October when he made his “Fight Night Club” debut with a fourth round knockout of Hugo Ramos.

This week he returns to Club Nokia to take on the always-tough Benji Garcia (14-13-3, 1 KO) of San Diego in the opening television bout on Fox Sports Net.

In welterweight action scheduled for four rounds, Los Angeles will also be represented by unbeaten David Aleman (1-0, 1 KO), who will face fellow unbeaten rising star Clint Cornel (2-0-1, 1 KO) of San Jose, Calif.

Debuting Lancaster, California native Roberto Reyes will step through the ropes for the first time as a pro this week to face Long Beach’s Anthony McDavitt (1-2) in a four round welterweight bout.

Local junior lightweights will also be in action as San Bernardino’s Juan Sandoval (1-1, 1 KO) squares off against LA’s Luis Martinez (1-3-1) in a scheduled four round fight.

“Fight Night Club” is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and AEG and is sponsored by DeWalt Tools, McDonald’s, Budweiser and Vitamin Water. The series will return to L.A. Live’s Club Nokia on May 27, June 24, July 29, August 26, September 30, October 28 and November 18.

The fights will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net (FSN) and its regional sports network affiliates (check local listings) and streamed live online at www.ustream.com and www.RingTV.com at 8 p.m. PT/11 p.m. ET. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. PT and the first bell rings at 7:00 p.m. PT

Tickets, priced at $250 (VIP On-Stage Seats, which are limited to only ten per show and allow purchasers to sit ringside on Club Nokia’s stage near VIP’s attending the fight [De La Hoya, Mosley, etc.], receive an autographed boxing glove and provide buyers access to the Club Nokia VIP Room [must be 21 years of age and over]), $100 (VIP Front Row Balcony Seats which grant buyers access to the Club Nokia VIP Room [must be 21 years of age and over]), $60 (VIP Balcony Seats which grant buyers access to the Club Nokia VIP Room [must be 21 years of age and over]) and $19.75 (General Admission: Floor Standing Room & Balcony Seats) are on sale now.

Tickets may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000 online at http://www.ticketmaster.comor through any Ticketmaster outlet or the Staples Center box office. Group tickets and full series tickets at a discounted rate are also available by calling 1-877-AEG TICKETS (1-877-234-8425).