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LAS VEGAS - Floyd "Money" Mayweather has returned to the sport of boxing and will put his undefeated record on the line when he faces the dangerous and highly touted five-time world champion Juan Manuel "Dinamita" Marquez in MAYWEATHER vs. MARQUEZ "Number One/Numero Uno" Saturday, July 18 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $600, $300 and $150, not including
applicable service charges, go on sale Friday, May 22 at 10 a.m. PT.
Ticket sales at $1,000, $750, $600 and $300 are limited to 10 per
person and ticket sales at $150 are limited to two (2) per person, with
a total ticket limit of 10 per person. To charge by phone with a major
credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800)745-3000. Tickets also are
available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
A 1996 Olympic Bronze medalist for the United States, Floyd
"Money" Mayweather (39-0, 25 KO's) has since gone on to strike Gold in
the professional ranks, winning six world titles in five weight classes
to firmly establish himself as one of the best fighters of his era. In
just his 18th pro fight, Mayweather won his first world title at the
age of 21 by stopping Genaro Hernandez for the WBC world super
featherweight crown in 1998. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native
defended that title eight times before moving up to lightweight and
taking the 135-pound belt from Jose Luis Castillo in 2002, but "Money"
Mayweather wasn't done yet, as he defeated Arturo Gatti and Zab Judah
for the junior welterweight and welterweight world titles,
respectively.
Despite these impressive achievements, it wasn't until
he defeated Oscar de la Hoya in May of 2007 for the world junior
middleweight championship in a record-setting super-fight where the
world truly got to see what Mayweather was all about. In his last
fight, on December 8, 2007, Mayweather made another statement to the
world when he knocked out Ricky "Hitman" Hatton in the tenth round,
handing the British superstar his first professional defeat. After the
bout, Mayweather - who has achieved crossover fame as a contestant on
the hit show "Dancing with the Stars" and as a participant in WWE's
"Wrestlemania XXIV" - announced his retirement from boxing. But he
left the door open for a return if the right challenge presented
itself, and on July 18th, the 32-year-old Las Vegas resident comes back
to face Juan Manuel Marquez.
In an era of great Mexican fighters such as Marco Antonio
Barrera and Erik Morales, Mexico City's Juan Manuel "Dinamita" Marquez
(50-4-1, 37 KO's) has made it clear over the last few years that he is
truly the greatest of the bunch. Long revered by boxing purists as one
of the best, Marquez won 29 of his first 30 pro bouts, before finally
getting a world title shot in 1999. Marquez would lose that
opportunity controversially to Freddie Norwood and in response, he
didn't lose for the next seven years, winning the IBF world
featherweight title against Manuel Medina in 2003. In November 2003,
Marquez unified the titles when he defeated Derrick "Smoke" Gainer and
captured the WBA world featherweight title. His second title defense
in 2004 against Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao may be his most memorable, as
he rose from three first-round knockdowns to roar back and gain a draw
in a fight that many observers believe he won. Marquez would lose his
belt via decision to Chris John in 2006, but he returned to form almost
immediately, scoring a 12-round win over Barrera in March of 2007 to
win the WBC 130-pound world title. In 2008, Marquez and Pacquiao would
meet again in another memorable bout however Marquez dropped a disputed
12-round split decision to the Filipino superstar. Undeterred,
"Dinamita" moved up to the 135-pound weight class in September of 2008
and stunned the boxing world by handing Joel Casamayor his first
knockout defeat to win the Ring Magazine world lightweight
championship. It was hard to top such a victory, but in the
35-year-old Marquez' most recent fight on February 28, 2009, he did
just that as he stopped former Three-Time World Champion Juan Diaz in
the ninth round to add the WBO and WBA World Lightweight belts to his
trophy case. On July 18th he looks to further cement his legacy with a
win over Mayweather.
Mayweather vs. Marquez: "Number One/Numero Uno," is promoted
by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with
Marquez Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate and Southwest
Airlines. The 12-round bout will take place July 18th at MGM Grand in
Las Vegas, Nevada and televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at
9pm ET / 6pm PT.
The Mayweather vs. Marquez pay-per-view telecast, beginning
at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT, has a suggested retail price of $49.95, will
be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available
to more than 71 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be
available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO
Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier of event programming to the
pay-per-view industry. For Mayweather vs. Marquez fight week updates,
log on to www.hbo.com.
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