Busy Guzman Gains A Second Boxing Promoter

Unbeaten Joan “Sycuan Warrior’ Guzman is one of the most feared fighters in boxing. Now, with the promotional backing of Golden Boy Promotions and Sycuan Ringside Promotions, the former super bantamweight champion and current number one WBO featherweight contender will get to display his immense talent for a worldwide audience every time he steps into the ring.

‘We’re very excited to be working with Sycuan to co-promote a great fighter like Joan Guzman,’ said Oscar De La Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions. ‘He is not only very talented and able to knock his opponents out with either hand, but he has a charisma in and out of the ring that few fighters possess. If you haven’t seen him fight before, you’re in for a treat.’

‘Obviously, Oscar de la Hoya personifies, in and out of the ring, all of the good qualities of boxing. He is a classy boxer, a classy promoter and a classy person. We at Sycuan co-promoted a fight show in our hometown of San Diego with Golden Boy before so we know what we are getting into with this new relationship. We feel that Golden Boy can help us put Guzman in that golden circle of the world’s best pound-for-pound fighters. Together, I think we make for a promotional powerhouse.’ Said, Willie Tucker, Sr. Executive Vice President of Sycuan Ringside Promotions.

‘Now that Sycuan Ringside Promotions has made a significant mark in professional boxing, we felt it was time to step up to an even higher level. We think this alliance with Oscar, Richard, Eric and the entire GBP staff, combined with the immense talent of our small but select group of boxers, will get us there. It is time for Joan Guzman to shine brightly before worldwide audiences. He is an elite level boxer and the Sycuan-Golden Boy partnership will be extremely beneficial. Oscar de la Hoya has been a consistent winner, a classy champion, and it is a pleasure to be associated with both him and his “new era” promotional company.’ Said, Glenn Quiroga, President of Sycuan Ringside Promotions.

‘I go way back with Oscar to his amateur days. Even then, you could see he was a once in a generation ring talent and personality. This is a natural pairing of two Southern California-based but worldwide promotional companies. GBP has very talented fighters from around the globe and so do we. Joan Guzman is our shining star from the Dominican Republic and, with Golden Boy’s connections, the sky is the limit for him. Let the word go out that Golden Boy and Sycuan make for a tenacious, talented promotional combination.’ Said, Scott Woodworth, Vice President of Sycuan Ringside Promotions.

Guzman, 24-0 with 17 knockouts, will return to the ring on Saturday, May 6th against a to be determined opponent on the Oscar De La Hoya – Ricardo Mayorga card, which will be televised live on HBO pay-per-view from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

‘This is superb. Before we had one great promoter, Sycuan Ringside Promotions, and now we have two. We are just excited and delighted to be working with Oscar de la Hoya and his progressive promotional outfit, Golden Boy. I see this unified promotional effort, in combination with Joan’s awesome skills, as just the ticket to put him up where he belongs in boxing’s elite circle. I guess it takes a Golden Boy to know one because Guzman is a golden boy himself. We look forward to unparalleled success with this strong team. I want to especially thank the Sycuan Ringside Promotions crew and the Sycuan tribe for making this all happen.’ said Jose Nunez, manager.

An enthusiastic Joan Guzman stated: ‘I am still pinching myself and hoping this is not just a good but silly dream I am having. This is beyond my wildest expectations and I must thank everybody at Sycuan for pushing so hard. I embrace Oscar de la Hoya and his talented team and, working in sync with Sycuan, I know I can now become a real boxing star. I say thank you, thank you, thank you, a million times to both my “family” at Sycuan and my new friends at Golden Boy. It’s just an honor to be on same dais with Oscar.’

The pride of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, where he is a national sports hero on the level of a Pedro Martinez and Sammy Sosa, the 29-year-old Guzman represented his country in the 1996 Olympics before turning pro in September of 1997. In 2002, Guzman won the vacant WBO super bantamweight championship, knocking out Fabio Oliva in three rounds. In his first defense, Guzman stopped countryman Agapito Sanchez in seven rounds in a highly anticipated battle, and after a second successful defense over Fernando Beltran Jr.. He then nearly shut out previously unbeaten Tersdak Jandaeng. He will now move up to either the featherweight or superfeatherweight division to take on the world’s best pugilist.

For more information on Golden Boy Promotions, please visit our website at www.goldenboypromotions.com