Star Boxing: Andrade, Benitez Invade Mohegan Sun April 2

On Friday April 2nd, at the Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino in Uncasville, CT, two of Star Boxing’s brightest young stars, 2007 Amateur World Champion and 2008 U.S. Olympian, Demetrius Andrade (9-0, 7KO) and 2004 U.S. Olympian, Roberto Benitez (6-0, 3KO) will be showcased in separate featured undercard bouts.

The show, broadcast live on ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights” is headlined by former world title challenger, Delvin Rodriguez (24-4-2, 14KO) defending his USBA welterweight title against another former world title challenger, “Mighty” Mike Arnaoutis (22-4-2, 10KO).

The Providence native Andrade, who is co- promoted by Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing and Banner Promotions, is scheduled to square off against Geoffrey Spruiell (8-8, 2KO).

The bout is scheduled for six rounds in the jr. middleweight division, and will be shown live as part of the “Friday Night Fights” broadcast. This will mark the 5th time since Andrade turned professional in late 2008 that he will be featured on an ESPN telecast.

Each time out Andrade has been more impressive than the last, garnering rave reviews from boxing insiders. His impressive performances have resulted in Andrade becoming widely considered to be the most promising young prospect in all of boxing.

Andrade plans to continue on his ascent up the jr. middleweight contender ladder on April 2nd, and knows Spruiell will be no push over, as he just beat another 9-0 prospect (Brad Jackson) last year, and will certainly have upset on his mind.

The super bantamweight Benitez is scheduled to go six rounds against 2004 Cuban Olympic Gold Medalist Yan Barthelemy (9-2, 2KO).

Like Andrade, the Brooklyn native Benitez had a storied amateur career. He won the United States Junior Olympics at 14 and 15 years of age. During his amateur career he went on to win ten National championships, including two National Golden Gloves Titles, and four National Everlast Boxing Championships (more than any amateur boxer in history). He also won two Olympic trials, was an alternate to the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team as a flyweight and a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team as a bantamweight.

Benitez turned pro in 2005 and got off to a quick start, running his record to 5-0 by October of 2006, before suffering a hand injury that forced him to take some time away from the sport. Returning to the ring in September of last year, Benitez is looking to make even greater strides in 2010 and restart his climb towards super bantamweight supremacy.

“We really wanted to give the fans coming to the Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino and everyone around the world watching on ESPN, a show to get excited about. In addition to the tremendous main event, by adding these two great prospects to the card, we feel we are doing just that,” stated Joe DeGuadia, CEO of Star Boxing. “Both Demetrius and Roberto have world class talent, and we are looking forward to watching them fight and are expecting exciting and impressive performances from them on April 2nd.”

A complete list of the amazing and talent loaded undercard will be announced shortly. Doors open at 7PM with the first bout scheduled for 7:30PM. ESPN begins televising live at 9PM. Tickets are priced and available at $75, $45 and $30 and are on sale now. Tickets may be purchased by calling the Star Boxing office at (718) 823-2000.

To find out more information about exclusive tickets please call Star Boxing at (718) 823-2000 or visit www.starboxing.com. Tickets may also be purchased through Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster customers may log on to ticketmaster.com or purchase tickets by calling 1-800-745-3000.