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Krusher to Face Mohammedi in His First Mandatory Title Defense Saturday, July 25

From Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino

Televised Live on HBO

Krusher Kovalev Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Las Vegas, NV:      

Tickets priced at $300, $200, $100, $50 and $25, not including applicable tax and service fees, go on sale tomorrow, Wednesday, May 27 at 10 AM PT and will be available at all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith's Food and Drug Centers and Ritmo Latino). To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase atmandalaybay.com or ticketmaster.com.

The Russian Wrecking Ball - Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev - is headlining in the storied fight town for the first time. The charismatic and unbeaten knockout artist boasts three current world title belts, 2014 Fighter of the Year honors from numerous publications and an astounding 89% knockout-to-win ratio. After capping off his impressive 2014 campaign with a unanimous decision win over the legendary Bernard Hopkins to unify the WBA and IBF belts with his WBO belt, he began 2015 with a thrilling eighth round knockout of former world champion Jean Pascal in Montreal. The Krusher is on his way to becoming one of boxing's next big superstars.

Nadjib Mohammedi Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Kovalev, the 32-year old from Chelyabinsk, Russia now residing in Fort Lauderdale, FL and Los Angeles, CA, said, "I am very excited to return to ring onJuly 25 and fight for Vegas fans. I love fighting on HBO and am happy for this next opportunity."

Egis Klimas, Kovalev's manager, added, "We are so happy to be back in the ring with HBO and Main Events' help. This show will be televised live on HBO. Another good thing is Sergey will be able to fight in mega boxing city Las Vegas and start building as his home base fighting town. Thanks to people at Mandalay Bay for giving this opportunity to us."

In the opposite corner, the IBF's number one contender, Nadjib "Irondjib" Mohammedi will challenge Kovalev with his awkward and aggressive style. He earned this title shot with an exciting win over Anatoliy Dudchenko by TKO in an IBF elimination contest in June of last year. Mohammedi elected to wait as Kovalev unified the belts with Hopkins then took a voluntary defense against Pascal while he added some serious fire power to his corner - world renowned trainer Abel Sanchez. Sanchez, who trains middleweight champion Gennady "GGG" Golovkin and previously worked with Kovalev.

Nadjib, 30, is from Gardanne, Bouches-du-Rhone, France and trains in Big Bear Lake, California. He will be making his Las Vegas and HBO debuts. When asked about his mandatory fight with Kovalev, he said, "My turn has come to show the world who I am. I let this Kovalev beat some guys but now I will show you he ain't no Krusher. I am smarter. I am faster. I am the next generation of light heavyweight real champions!"

Main Events CEO Kathy Duva, who promotes both pugilists, said, "This will be a great fight. Sergey had a little trouble with Jean Pascal's awkward, aggressive style in March. Nadjib will bring a similar style to the ring on July 25th. He also has Abel Sanchez in his corner, who might have some inside knowledge about Kovalev. The Krusher will try to do what he does best - Krush him. We know for sure that this will be an all-action night at Mandalay Bay, where Main Events is very happy to return."

"Fans who appreciate underdogs, respect Sergey Kovalev," said Peter Nelson, Vice President, programming, HBO Sports. "As an amateur and professional, the unified light heavyweight champ has spent his entire life as an underdog, beating the odds as he does his ring opponents: with total domination. Now a new underdog, Nadjib Mohammedi, seeks to shock the boxing world and dethrone the light heavyweight king. July 25 in Las Vegas will be a great event."

"This light heavyweight fight at Mandalay Bay will be a sensational matchup," said Richard Sturm, President of Entertainment and Sports for MGM Resorts International. "We look forward to working with Kathy and her entire Main Eventsteam as well as Peter Nelson and his HBO staff on this championship event."

About Kovalev vs. Mohammedi

WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev (27-0-1, 24 KOs) will compete in his first mandatory title defense against Nadjib "Irondjib" Mohammedi (37-3, 23 KOs) on Saturday, July 25 at the Mandalay BayEvents Center, Las Vegas, Nevada. Tickets go on sale May 27 at 10:00 AM PT and start at $25. Tickets can be purchased through TicketMaster and all MGM Resorts Properties Ticket Offices. The fight will be telecast live on HBO World Championship Boxing® and undercard information will be released shortly.

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Main Events Strengthens Stable with Signing of Two New England Locals: Middleweight Thomas Falowo and Heavyweight Prospect Cassius Chaney

Totowa, NJ:

Falowo, 26, is coming off an impressive win over his long-time amateur rival, Russell Lamour, on ESPN Friday Night Fights on January 30 at Foxwoods in Connecticut. The two met several times as amateurs with Lamour winning all but one match-up but, in their first fight as pros, Falowo took the victory in an exciting unanimous decision.

Thomas Falowo Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

The Souljah made his professional debut in 2010 with a second round stoppage of Odias Dumezil after which he stopped his next three opponents and won his first six professional bouts. Prior to his win over Lamour, Falowo suffered defeat at the hands of former amateur standout Ronald Gavril on Showtime. Notably, two of Falowo's three career losses have come at the hands of undefeated fighters.

Cassius Chaney Photo Courtesy of: Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment

Chaney, 27, made an impressive professional debut in his adopted home state of Connecticut on Friday, April 17 at Mohegan Sun with a second round stoppage of Perry Filkins of New Hampshire. Cassius is originally from Baltimore, Maryland but he moved to Connecticut where he earned a Sport Management degree and played basketball as a student at the University of New Haven. He has made Connecticut his home ever since.

Falowo Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Both fighters and their camps are very excited to work with Main Events. Falowo said, "I am very grateful for the opportunity to work with such a great promotional company. I am ready to do great things. This is the beginning to a long and successful career and I am looking forward to working with Main Events."

Michael Criscio, his manager, added, "I think that Thomas is a great fit for a great promoter like Main Events, Thomas has never been in this kind of a situation before. He will now have the opportunity to fight all over the world whereas, before he was stuck on the East Coast, with no chance of getting on TV."

Chaney Photo Courtesy of: Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment

The sentiment from the Chaney camp was similar. He said, "I am very excited to work with Main Events. This is a great opportunity for me and I cannot wait for the things to come."  

Chaney is co-managed by Allen Hadelman and Jake Piekarski. Hadelman said, "Cassius is special. He has all the tools to become a world champ. He is dedicated, smart, athletic and is only going to get better." Piekarski added, "We think Cassius is a very promising young fighter with a great work ethic and unlimited potential. We are very excited to have signed a promotional deal with a top tier organization like Main Events and look forward to working together for years to come!"

Both fighters are trained by Peter Manfredo. When asked about Falowo, Manfredo said, "Thomas has been totally dedicated to his craft from the first day he walked into the gym at age 14. He continues to strive for that championship status and signing with Main Events is the vehicle to take him there." When asked about Chaney, he added, "Cassius Chaney is a skilled, athletic, determined heavyweight who in just two and a half years with me won the amateur national championship twice. He is a diamond in the rough. With Kathy Duva and the expertise of Main Events this boxer can make it to world championship status."

Main Events CEO Kathy Duva said, "Thomas Falowo and Cassius Chaney are exciting additions to our roster. I look forward to seeing them in great fights in packed New England venues, while we work together to build them into the champions I know they can be."

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Film producer Verdi, boxing champ Paz team up with unbeaten New England prospect Augustin

LINCOLN, R.I. (March 19th, 2015) -- The phone call couldn't have come at a better time for Jean Pierre Augustin, even if he wasn't quite sure it was real.

"I didn't take it seriously at first," said the Lawrence, Mass., cruiserweight boxer. "I thought it was a prank."

But this was no joke. This was the opportunity of a lifetime, a chance for the 27-year-old fighter to play a role in Bleed For This, the upcoming Chad Verdi-produced film based on the career of five-time world champion Vinny Paz.

Augustin (4-0, 2 KOs) landed the role of former world champ Gilbert Dele, whom Paz beat in 1991, and made a lasting impression on the cast and crew, specifically Verdi and Paz, who are now guiding Augustin's boxing career, which resumes Friday, April 3^rd, 2015 at Twin River Casino on the undercard of "The Revival," presented by CES Boxing in association with Verdi Productions. 

Tickets for Augustin's Twin River and CES debut are priced at $40.00, $100.00 and $125.00 and available for purchase online atwww.cesboxing.com or www.twinriver.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254 or at the Twin River Players Club. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

"This is a blessing for me," Augustin said. "There's no other way for me to describe it."

"Vinny is 100 percent committed to training JP and making him a world champion," Verdi said. "This is the main reason I agreed to become JP's manager, and working with Vinny again is an absolute joy. Both Vinny and I feel JP has what it takes to become a champion, but it's up to him to put in all the hard work and dedication needed."

That part is nothing new for Augustin, who, with few connections on the local boxing circuit, needed the help of a sponsor at the beginning of his pro career just to pay his way onto various cards in West Virginia and North Carolina, where he amassed a 4-0 record with two first-round knockouts in 2014.  

But the money from fighting wasn't enough to pay the bills, so the Haitian-born Augustin found other ways to earn a living, working as a plumber, security guard and even a part-time Uber driver.

"I really didn't know where my career was going," he said. "I was basically living out of a suitcase moving from camp to camp, hustling here and there to get a job done and get some cash.

"I was pursuing a dream, but the dream really wasn't taking me anywhere."

Raised in Boston before moving to Lawrence at the age of 10, Augustin's first love was martial arts, but it wasn't "physical enough," so, on the recommendation of his sensei, he took up boxing at a local gym.

"I instantly fell in love with it," he said.

After 55 amateur fights (49 wins among them), Augustin finally turned pro in February of 2014. The struggle to land a spot on a card in New England with other promoters - "I just couldn't get a fair shake," he said - forced Augustin to remain a boxing nomad until he linked up with Verdi and Paz on the set for Bleed For This.

The rest is history. With Verdi as his manager, Paz as his trainer, and CES president Jimmy Burchfield Sr. as his promoter, Augustin now has an opportunity to build a fan base in New England and take his career to new heights. The journey begins April 3^rd in a four-round bout against New Haven, Conn., vet Solomon Maye (1-4).

"Things have been unfolding quickly," said Augustin, who has been training and sparring at Balletto's Gym in Providence while also working with Rhode Island-based coach Vic Fagnant. "It's not overwhelming, but it's a lot to process.

"I'm just thankful for this opportunity."

"The Revival" features the 10-round main event between Universal Boxing Federation (UBF) female super bantamweight world championShelly Vincent (13-0, 1 KO) of Providence and three-time world-title challenger Christina Ruiz (7-7-3, 4 KOs) of San Antonio, Tex. Both Vincent's UBF title and the vacant International Boxing Association (IBA) world title will be on the line.

Unbeaten Providence super middleweight Angel Camacho Jr. (13-0, 4 KOs) faces the dangerous Chris Chatman (12-4-1, 5 KOs) of Jersey City, N.J., in the six-round co-feature, while undefeated welterweight Nick DeLomba (6-0) of Cranston, R.I., battles Hartford, Conn., vet Joe Wilson Jr. (3-1) in a six-round special attraction.

Bleed For This is the inspirational true story of Rhode Island's Paz, who defied the odds by winning the third of his five world titles just one year after a near-fatal car crash left him with a broken neck and an uncertain future.

Executive produced by Martin Scorsece, Michelle Verdi andJoshua Sason and produced by Verdi, Bruce Cohen, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Pam Thur and Noah Kraft, Bleed For This starsMiles Teller (The Spectacular Now, That Awkward Moment andGeneration X) as Paz; Golden Globe nominee Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight, Olympus Has Fallen, I and Frankenstein) as trainerKevin Rooney; Katey Sagal (Married ... With Children, Sons Of Anarchy) as Louise Pazienza; and Ciaran Hinds (Frozen, Munich,The Road to Perdition and Harry Potter) as Angelo Pazienza.

The undercard of "The Revival" also features several noteworthy regional showdowns, including a four-round junior welterweight bout between unbeaten Worcester, Mass., native Freddy Sanchez (3-0, 2 KOs) and Briam Granado (1-0, 1 KO) of New Bedford, Mass., and a four-round super middleweight bout between Zachary Christy (1-0-1) of Warwick, R.I. (St. Petersburg, Fla.), and former amateur champion Bobby Flynn of Sandwich, Mass., who is making his professional boxing debut. New Bedford junior middleweight Ray Oliveira Jr. (3-0, 2 KOs) returns to face Cambridge, Mass., newcomer Yves Thevenin while unbeaten middleweight prospectKhiary Gray-Pitts (5-0, 3 KOs) of Worcester battles New Haven vetGreg McCoy (3-4-1, 1 KO).  

For more information on "The Revival" visit www.cesboxing.com, follow @CESBOXING on Twitter and Instagram and "like" the official CES Boxing Facebook fan page.

- CES -

In the much-anticipated main event of the evening, Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev (27-0-1, 24 KOs)* and Jean Pascal (29-3-1, 17 KOs) pleased fans with an action-packed battle. Both fighters started by trading some good shots, but Kovalev started to throw some nasty combinations in the third round to take the wind out of the hostile crowd at the Centre Bell in Montreal. Just before the end of the third round, Kovalev knocked Pascal through the ropes but Pascal was saved by the bell. Sergey came out swinging in the fourth to try to capitalize on the near KO, but Pascal managed to stay on his feet and land a huge right to show Kovalev he was still in the fight. As the bell rang to end the fourth round, both men were still trading big shots.

Kovalev Knocks Pascal Through the Ropes Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

The fifth round began quietly, but Pascal started to throw some intense combinations in the middle of the round. Kovalev continued to be the aggressor, however, landing some big shots of his own. The crowd at Centre Bell was deafening with cheers for Pascal and boos for Kovalev. Finally, in the eighth round, Sergey came on with a brutal attack that resulted in his own slip. While Sergey was getting up, Pascal looked noticeably rattled at the ropes. The two traded a couple more shots before referee Luis Pabon stopped the fight and declared Kovalev the winner by TKO in the eighth round.   

Kovalev and Pascal Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

After the fight, Kovalev insisted he will be ready for anything next. He said, "Thank you so much. How it started I didn't like. After fourth round I gained control. He was mine after that. He got me a couple good punches. It is boxing. [On a potential fight with Stevenson] I am ready for anything. [On the possibility of a rematch] I am ready for any fights. If my promoter says I fight Jean Pascal again, I will fight him."

Pascal felt the stoppage was premature, but said this after the fight, "Honestly, it was a good fight. It was an action fight for the fans. I tip my hat to Kovalev. He is a champion. I don't know why the referee stopped the fight. It was a great fight. I was in the fight from the first round. We should do it again. I should have a rematch. I am a crowd-pleaser. At Centre Bell I am always going to give the fans a great fight. I will be back."  

Glazkov and Cunningham Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

In the fight for the #1 position in the IBF and USBA Heavyweight Championship stablemates Vyacheslav "Czar" Glazkov (20-0-1, 12 KOs) and Steve "USS" Cunningham (28-7, 13 KOs) came out of the box trading big punches. Cunningham appeared to have a slight edge in the first few rounds, but Glazkov, who is always a slow starter, began to show signs of life in the fifth round. The unofficial scorecards from the television and the media were all over the map on this fight, but the judges officially scored the fight 116-112, 115-113 and 116-112 all in favor of Czar Glazkov for a unanimous decision victory. The Ukrainian remains undefeated and will anxiously await to face the winner of Klitschko-Jennings next month.   

Cunningham and Glazkov Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

The PunchStat had Glazkov landing a greater percentage of his shots but a smaller total number of shots (Glazkov 144/441 - 33%; Cunningham 180/649 - 28%).  Their jabs landed were almost identical (Glazkov 60/215 - 28%; Cunningham 57/309 - 18%), but Cunningham had the edge with the power punches landed. Their power punch percentages were near even (Glazkov 84/226 - 37%; Cunningham 123-340 - 36%). 

Chilemba and Lepikhin Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

The HBO World Championship Boxing telecast began with Main Eventsstablemates slugging it out for the vacant NABF Light Heavyweight Title, Isaac "Golden Boy" Chilemba (23-2-2, 10 KOs) of Malawi and Vasily "The Professor" Lepikhin (17-1, 9 KOs) of Russia. Both fighters looked good early on. In the second round, Chilemba got in some hard shots on the Russian but Lepikhin did not seem fazed. However, Chilemba continued to dominate Lepikhin for the remainder of the fight. Lepikhin managed to go the distance but Chilemba secured a decisive unanimous decision with two judges scoring the bout 99-91 and the third scoring it 100-90. This was the first career loss for Lepikhin and the first fight of the evening to go the distance.     

Lepikhin and Chilemba Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

The final PunchStat report has Chilemba landing more than double the number of total punches than Lepikhin, despite their connection percentages being similar (Chilemba 192/683 - 28%; Lepikhin 75/289 - 26%). Also, Chilemba landed nearly half of his power punches (100 of 237 - 42%) whereas Lepikhin landed 27% (36 of 131).  

Isaac Chilemba Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Chilemba had this to say after the fight, "He did exactly what we expected. We were totally prepared for what he brought. I was patient and I capitalized on it. I think he ran out of ideas and I wasn't going to fall for any of his games. I am very pleased with my performance tonight and I am grateful to now hold the NABF Light Heavyweight Championship Belt."  

In the final bout before the live HBO telecast, David Theroux (6-0, 4 KOs) of Sorel, QC, CAN stopped Lukasz Janik (12-10-1, 6 KOs) of Katowice, Poland in the third round. Janik fell victim to the three knockdown rule and the referee declared Theroux the winner by TKO at 2:31 in the third round. 

Local favorite Dierry Jean (28-1, 20 KOs) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Carlos Manuel Reyes (24-4-1, 16 KOs) of Mao, Dominican Republic were scheduled for ten rounds of light heavyweight action. However, Jean knocked down Reyes in the third. He was then knocked down again a few seconds later and the referee stopped the fight.   

Campbell and Mohammedi Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

Nadjib "Iron Jib" Mohammedi (38-3, 23 KOs) of Aix-en-Provence, France, the #1 contender in the IBF light heavyweight rankings, took on Lee Junior Campbell (8-2, 4 KOs) of Laurenburg, NC. Mohammedi dominated Campbell for every round until the referee stopped the fight in the sixth.  As the IBF mandatory contender, he is scheduled to face Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev in his next fight.   

Campbell and Mohammedi Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

According to PunchStat, Nadjib landed more total punches than Campbell threw (Mohammedi 243/672 - 36%; Campbell 40/196 - 20%). The same was also true for jabs (Mohammedi 91/321 - 28%; Campbell 11/74 - 15%) and power punches (Mohammedi 152/351 - 43%; Campbell 29/122 - 24%).   

Nadjib Mohammedi Photo Credits:  David Spagnolo/Main Events

After the fight, Mohammedi said, "I am very happy because this was a great place for a fight. This was my first fight with my new trainer, Abel Sanchez. Tonight I take my time. Campbell was tired and I worked to wear him down. This was a good win tonight. I was smart tonight. Everybody got to see me. Now Canada knows Nadjib Mohammedi."  

Light welterweight Yves Ulysse Junior (6-0, 4 KOs) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Miguel Antoine (17-2-1, 9 KOs) of Wildey, Barbados were scheduled for eight rounds but Junior knocked down Antoine three times in the fourth round. He continued his attack in the sixth round and knocked down Antoine at 2:43 and the referee stopped the fight.  

De La Paz and Mikhaylenko Photo Credits: David Spagnolo/Main Events

In the first bout of the evening welterweights Dmitry "The Mechanic" Mikhaylenko (19-0, 8 KOs) of Gelendzhik, Russia and Felipe De La Paz (14-4-2, 5 KOs) of Monterrey, Mexico faced-off. Mikhaylenko knocked down De La Paz just before the bell ended the first round. "The Mechanic" continued his fierce attack on De La Paz until De La Paz quit on the stool before the start of the sixth round. 

*Please note all records have been updated to reflect last night's results.