By: William Holmes
The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of March 10th to March 17th, covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.
Floyd Mayweather’s Diet Valued at $1,000 a Plate
TMZ has reported that Floyd Mayweather Jr. has hired a private chef to cook up his meals for the Manny Pacquiao fight at a price for about $1,000 a plate. If Floyd were to eat four meals a day he’s look at a bill of around $184,000.
The woman he has hired is Chef Q who is based out of Las Vegas. More information can be found here.
Manny Pacquiao Donates P5.3M to United Nations World Food Program
Manny Pacquiao has donated P5.3 million ($120,000) to the United Nations World Food Program to fight hunger in the Philippines. The contribution will support the World Food Program’s school feeding program in Central Mindanao.
“The school feeding program ensures that school children in Central Mindanao have one less thing to worry about so they can instead focus on their studies. According to our monitoring data, school feeding programs help increase the retention rate of students in WFP-assisted schools by over 90 percent- a testament to how school feeding helps these children stay in school,” said WFP Philippines Representative and Country Director Praveen Agrawal.
More information can be found here.
Premier Boxing Champions Returns to Spike TV on Friday, April 24th in Chicago
The Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) series will return to Spike TV on April 24th at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois.
The main event will be in the super middleweight division between Anthony Dirrell (27-0-1) and Badou Jack (18-1) and the co-main event will be between Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs (28-1) and Caleb Truax (25-1-2) in the middleweight division.
The bout is co-promoted by Warriors Boxing and Mayweather Promotions and tickets will be available online at www.ticketmaster.com.
“I’m extremely excited to be fighting on Spike TV and I plan on being the guy everyone is talking about when the night is over,” said Dirrell.
“This is a great platform for me and I’m more motivated than ever to put on a show for the fans. Badou Jack is a tough opponent, but I’m going to make it a very bad night for him.”
“This is a great opportunity for me and I am not going to let it slip through my fingers,” said Jack. “I know Anthony Dirrell is a very skilled fighter but he’s about to feel a different kind of power when I hit him. I’m looking forward to becoming the super middleweight champion on April 24th.”
ESPN Friday Night Fights Returns to Mohegan Sun
ESPN Friday Night Fights returns to the Mohegan Sun on Friday, April 17th. The main event will be between highly touted prospect Sergey Derevyanchenko (4-0) and former world-title challenger Elvin Ayala (27-6-1) in the main event of the evening and the co-feature will be between Ryan Kielczweski (22-0) and Danny Aquino (16-2) in the featherweight division.
“I couldn’t be more excited to be headlining this card and appearing for the first time on the ESPN network and I want to thank my promoters DiBella Entertainment and Fight Promotions Inc. for this opportunity,” said Derevyanchenko.
“Ayala is a very tough and experienced opponent. He challenged Arthur Abraham for his title, going 12 hard rounds. He is coming off a very good win in his most recent fight and I know he will be coming to win in front of his hometown fans come April 17. I am looking to make a statement in this fight though. I am going to show the world that I am one of the best 160-pounders in all of boxing and I belong at the elite level of this division.”
“On April 17th, I will be victorious” said Ayala. “I am training like never before and I am ready to put on the performance of a lifetime. I have suffered losses in my career but never defeat. God knows this and I know this and now it is time for the world to know it, beginning with Sergey Derevyanchenko.”
Kell Brook vs. Jo Jo Dan to be Televised on Showtime
Showtime Sports has announced that they will broadcast the Sky Sports telecast of the IBF Welterweight World Championship between Kell Brook and the number one challenger Jo Jo Dan on Saturday, March 28th live on Showtime at 6:15 p.m. ET/3:15 p.m. PT. This bout will be held at the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield, England.
The same evening will feature a WBC Featherweight Championship bout between Jhonny Gonzalez (57-8) and Gary Russell Jr. (25-1) in the main event of Showtime Championship Boxing as well as a bout between Jermell Charlo (25-0) and Vanes Martirosyan (35-1-1) in a super welterweight bout.
“After everything that’s happened over the last six months, it feels incredible knowing I will be defending my World title in Sheffield,” said Brook. “I’m not looking past JoJo, I know he will bring the heat but I want to get this mandatory defence done and then target those mega-fights that are out there in the division. I know he feels he worked so hard to get into the mandatory position just like I did, but I will be working twice as hard to keep the belt that I earned. After May 2nd, there will only be two champions in the division—myself and Floyd or Manny. I want to unify this division in style. I’m coming for them all.”
Willie Monroe Jr. to get Title Shot Against Gennady Golovkin
Many people were hoping that Gennady Golovkin would be facing an elite level boxer such as Miguel Cotto or Canelo Alvarez in his next bout, but fans will have to accept the fact that the winner of the 2014 Boxcino Middleweight tournament as Golovkin’s next opponent.
Willie Monroe Jr. will face Gennady Golovkin for his WBA/IBO and WBC Interim Middleweight Championship on May 16th at the Forum in Inglewood, California. This event will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing.
“On May 16, I will shock the world,” said Monroe. “I think this is an awesome fight. We have two contrasting styles that will make for some spontaneous combustion. We will see which style comes out on top on May 16.”
Monroe went on to state, “I want to thank Banner Promotions for standing by me. I also want to thank “GGG” for accepting the fight. This is a risky fight for him because people have not given me credit for who I am,” continued Monroe. “I also want to thank Brian Kweder and John Campagna of ESPN for the platform of the Boxcino tournament. I know that it was those three fights that really springboarded me into this position.”
Adrien Broner Arrested on Drunk Driving Charge
The Sharonville, Ohio police arrested Adrien Broner in January of 2015 for a drunk driven charge after he refused a breath test when officers stopped his Merecedes.
He has pleaded not guilty and will ask for a jury trial.
More info can be found here.
Full March 20th Fight Card Set Featuring Alfonso Gomez
Golden Boy Promotions recently announced the full card for March 20th at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. Former world title challenger Alfonso Gomez (24-6-2) will take on Japan’s Yoshihiro Kamegai (25-2-1) in a super welterweight bout.
This bout will be aired live on Fox Sports 1 and future hall of famer, Bernard Hopkins, will be in attendance to meet and greet with fans at the Special Events Center from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
The undercard will feature Ronny Rios (23-1) taking on Sergio “El Frio” Frias (16-4-2) and former Irish national championship fighter Jamie Kavanagh (17-1-1) facing Miguel Zamudio (29-6-1).
More information can be found at www.goldenboypromotions.com.