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© Gianluca (Rio) Di Caro
The ‘City of Brotherly Love’ lived up to it’s name when Philadelphia’s boxing elite and the media turned out in force to honour one of their own – Philadelphia’s brightest star and only current boxing World Champion, Steve ‘USS’ Cunningham.
Such luminaries from the local scene as Russell Peltz, Percy (Buster) Custus, Prince Badi Ajamu, ‘Fast’ Eddie Chambers, Bernard Fernandez, John DiSanto and many, many more joined Don King and Kathy Duva at a packed World Cafe Live for a press conference for his upcoming world title defense against Tomasz Adamek as well as to see Steve awarded the prestigious ‘Briscoe’ award for Fighter of the Year 2007.
Prior to the award ceremony promoters Don King and Kathy Duva spoke of the historic championship boxing event at the Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey on the 11th December, when Steve ‘USS’ Cunningham defends his coveted International Boxing Federation Cruiserweight World Champion Title against Polish contenderTomasz Adamek.
The last time a world championship boxing match took place in Newark, N.J, was in 1948 when Tony Zale and the legendary Rocky Graziano fought for the Middleweight Championship of the World.
At the end of an epic, forty minute plus speech, an exuberant Don King introduced the reigning champion to raptuous applause. Steve, who was clearly enjoying every moment of his day, took a moment to survey the sea of faces and cameras in front of him before saying “First of all I do this in Jesus’ name. That’s why I do what I do. Secondly team ‘USS’ Cunningham is not just ‘USS’ Cunningham. It’s my wife and manager, my trainers, my family, Don King Productions. If we weren’t a team I wouldn’t be able to go overseas and fight or do what we do here in America and become world champion.
