ShoBox: Gary Russell Jr

US Olympian Gary Russell, Jr.’s dream of competing in the Olympic Games last August ended without him throwing a punch, but he promises that won’t be the case this Friday night as he makes his pro debut in what is now a tripleheader on ShoBox: The New Generation on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast.

Russell will be opposed by Antonio Reyes, 3-2, of Dallas in a four round featherweight bout at the Million Dollar Elm Casino in Tulsa, Okla.

Russell, a two time National Amateur Boxing Champion, passed out in his Beijing dorm room on the eve of the weigh-in, at approximately 1 am. The 20-year-old boxer wasn’t hospitalized, but he was not permitted to participate in the weigh-in, or the Games.

“To be honest, none of it made sense to me,’’ Russell said. “I still do not know for sure what happened that night and never received the official diagnosis as to why or what happened. Olympic doctors never gave me an exact reason. They just said, ‘it could be this, it could be that.’

“I’d been in Beijing for a month and everything was fine. I was ready to achieve a life-long goal, something I had dedicated myself to for eight or nine years. When it all came down, when I couldn’t fight, I was so mad and blown away. Everything I worked for went down the drain in an instant.’’

Reports blamed dehydration for Russell’s collapse, saying he had been fighting at 125 plus pounds in recent fights and that making 119 had become an impossible chore.

But Russell insists excess poundage was not a factor. “I don’t think it had anything to do with weight,’’ he said. “I think I weighed 120.4 the day before the weigh-in, which is not bad for me.

“My dream was to become an Olympian, but that is not the same as not competing. Turning pro will definitely help. I am really looking forward to fighting on Showtime and appreciate the opportunity.

“I have a lot of family, friends and fans who’ve supported and followed my career a long time. I really want to make it up to them. I’m 100 percent now and really looking forward to making my mark on Showtime.”

Undefeated featherweights Leonilo Miranda, 24-0 (23), of Mexico , and Orlando Cruz, 15-0-1 (6), of Puerto Rico , will clash in an excellent ShoBox 10-round main event. The co-feature will match Marvin Quintero, 14-1 (11), of Mexico , against Nick Casal, 18-3-1 (14), of Chicago , in an eight-round lightweight bout. The first ShoBox event in 2009 is promoted by Gary Shaw Productions.

Nick Charles will call the action from ringside with Steve Farhood serving as expert analyst. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.

For more information on Showtime Sports, including exclusive behind-the-scenes video and photo galleries, complete telecast information and more, please go to the new Showtime Sports website at http://sports.sho.com.