“Kid Chocolate” Headlines April 15 NYC Boxing Show

Unbeaten middleweight sensation Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin will headline a Jed Weinstein-promoted show April 15 at the famed Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan.

Quillin (21-0, 15 KOs), fighting out of New York City, faces an opponent soon to be announced in the 10-round main event. Last month, “Kid Chocolate” returned after an 18-month layoff to decision veteran Fernando Zuniga.

“I believe it’s important for fighters to fight regularly, especially those that are looking to establish themselves,” said Quillin’s promoter, Gotham Boxing president Ced Kushner. “I don’t think Pete’s 18-month layoff has hurt him with his fans given his popularity, particularly in the Tri-State area.

“However, I am going to make sure that he remains highly active so that he gets the opportunity in the near future to fight on one of the major networks, which will give the opportunity to display his skills to a national audience. We’re fortunate to be able to put him on the top of Jed’s show at the Roseland Ballroom, where ‘Kid Chocolate’ has fought a number of times. We plan to keep Pete busy and get him back into the ratings.”

Quillin was rated as high as No. 5 by the IBF before a series of misfortunate circumstances cost him 18-months of his career. First, he was shutdown for eight months due to a broken right hand suffered in his last fight prior to returning last month on the Tomasz Adamek-Jason Estrada show in Newark, New Jersey.

After getting back into training, Peter suffered a hairline fracture of the eye socket and, when that healed and he was ready to fight again, he suffered an emergency appendectomy.

“I gave myself a B- grade for my fight against Zuniga,” Quillin offered. “I couldn’t expect much more after a 1 ½ year layoff. I nearly swept every round on all three judges’ scorecards (100-90, 100-90, 98-92). But that’s what I do – knockout my opponent or completely dominate them. All I want to do is win big.

“I need fights like the one in New Jersey and on April 15th to get me going again. It’s always great fighting near home. Some of my fans who couldn’t make it to Newark will hopefully be at this fight. I’m looking for bigger and better things this fight and then beyond. I want to thank my promoter, Cedric, and manager, John (Seip), for keeping me busy and getting me back-to-back fights. I’m very happy that they could work a deal with promoter Jed Weinstein to feature me on the card.”

At just 26, Quillin is one of the most entertaining young boxers, before, during and after his fights. Fans can’t wait for him to toss chocolate kisses candies into the crowd as he leaves the ring, which has fast become a popular tradition for the son of a Cuban father.

“There’s nothing better than to get Pete back in action after his unfortunate layoff that was unavoidable,” Seip noted. “We’ve accepted it as part of the game. Pete is still young and he had a very limited amateur career. We want to keep him sharp and fine tuned. He went from being 18 months off, right into a 10 rounder against a crafty, dangerous veteran in Zuniga, who is tough to look good against.

“Pete had been fighting 8-10 times a year and as soon as he was ready, we put him in with a solid veteran. Pete showed some rust but he still dominated that fight. He was in excellent shape but there’s nothing like being in a 10-round fight. This is a pivotal point in his career. We want to keep him busy until a big fight comes along so he can take advantage of that opportunity.”

Team Quillin hopes that 2010 is the “Year of Kid Chocolate.”