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Castillo: Bombs Away!

PhilBoxing.com


"It's going to be one of those fights where we're both going to come to ring center and bombs away and when I hit him right he's going to go. I'm definitely not going to let it go to the scorecards."

Former world champion Jose Luis "EL Temible" Castillo (63-11-1, 54 KOs) is already on weight and ready for his appearance in the co-main event of 8 Count Productions and Warriors Boxing's "CROSSROADS", boxing event at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago and live on ESPN Friday Night Fights next Friday, July 13.

Castillo will face hometown fan favorite Ivan "EL Marro" Popoca (15-1-1, 10 KOs) in a 10-round welterweight battle that night before the 10-round main event between Glen "Road Warrior" Johnson (51-16-2, 35 KOs) and Chicago's "The Polish Prince" Andrzej Fonfara (21-2, 12 KOs).

"Training has been great," said Castillo, through an interpreter. "I'm already on weight. I left the gym at 148 pounds. I'm really strong. Been a long time since I've been this close to the weight this far from the fight."

38-year-old Castillo says despite his long distinguished career and all the championship victories that came with it, he still loves going to war and is optimistic Popoca will oblige him.

"He's a tough, young game guy from Chicago. He comes forward. It will be a good fight. I won't have any problem finding him and he won't have to look for me. I like guys that come forward. That's how I like to fight. The fans will get a great fight. There'll be no holding. Just two guys trying to take care of business in ring center."

Castillo says he knows Popoca's people are bringing him in to potentially serve as a note-worthy opponent, but he has other plans in mind.

"Fighting on ESPN gives me a great opportunity to show people I still have something left. At 147 pounds, I'm very strong and there are a lot of opportunities out there for me still. I'm still the only guy who ever beat Mayweather. Everybody thought Randall Bailey was done and he won a title recently. Malignaggi just won a title. Either of those guys are a good fight for me after I win this fight."

###

Several local and national prospects are scheduled to appear on the CROSSROADS undercard.

In a six-round welterweight battle, Jaime Herrera, 7-2-0 (4 KOs) of Franklin Park, Illinois, will face Tyrone Chatman (9-1-2, 6 KOs) of St Louis, Missouri; Bassett, Virginia's Elijah McCall (9-1-1, 8 KOs), son of heavyweight champion Oliver McCall, will appear in a six-round heavyweight scrap against Jason Massie (7-2, 4 KOs), Cleveland, Ohio; popular Chicago super middleweight Paul Littleton (3-0, 3 KOs) will face Ramiro Bueno Jr., (2-2-0, 1 KO) of South Bend, Indiana, in a five-round bout; cruiserweight Junior Wright (3-0, 3 KOs) of Evanston, Illinois, will face Covon Graham (1-2-1, 1 KO) of Detroit in a four-rounder; Chicago super featherweight Juan Bustamante (3-0, 2 KOs) will go against Michah Branch (0-1-0) of Cincinnati, Ohio, in a four-rounder; Miami, Florida's hard-punching Vilier Quinonez (3-0, 2 KOs) will take on Hesperia, Michigan's Rogelio Saldana (1-3, 1 KO) in a light heavyweight four-rounder; and in a heavyweight four-rounder Curtis Tate (4-3, 4 KOs) of Oakland, Tennessee will face Calbert Lewis (0-1) of Gary, Indiana.

Advance tickets for CROSSROADS/ESPN FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS, presented by 8 Count Productions, Warriors Boxing, Round 3 and Blue Wave Boxing, priced at $151, $101, $51 and $31 are now on sale through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com), the UIC Pavilion Box Office (312-413-5740) and the 8 Count Productions' Office (312-226-5800).

Doors on the evening of the event will open at 7pm with the first bell at 7:45pm. The UIC Pavilion is located at 525 S. Racine, just one block south of the Eisenhower Expressway. Doors on the night of the event will open at 7pm with the first bell at 7:45 pm.

The UIC Pavilion is now serving alcohol at all boxing events. For further information, please visit their website at www.uicpavilion.com.

ABOUT 8 COUNT PRODUCTIONS

8 Count Productions, HOME OF THE BEST IN CHICAGO BOXING, was started by Dominic Pesoli in 1998 and has consistently presented the highest quality professional boxing events in Chicagoland.

Fighters currently under the 8 Count Productions banner include; super middleweight contender Donovan George, world ranked light heavyweight Andrzej Fonfara, former world title challenger Edner Cherry, middleweight prospect Viktor Polyakov, junior welterweight prospects Ivan Popoca and Adrian Granados along withwelterweights Achour Esho and Jaime Herrera.

For more information on 8 Count Productions please visit their new website, 8countproductions.com. Follow them on Twitter at 8_Count and Facebook at "8 Count Productions".

ABOUT WARRIORS BOXING

Launched in 2003, Warriors Boxing operates under a simple philosophy-bring the best boxers in the world to fight fans, match them in competitive bouts, and in doing so help re-establish the sport of boxing for a new generation.

With a series of successful Pay-Per-View shows and packed houses to it's credit, the Warriors business model is working wonders in a sport that was sorely in need of the innovation and energy that the company brings to the table.

When it comes down to it though, a promotional company is only as good as the fighters and fights it promotes. Warriors Boxing has delivered on all fronts, with outstanding bouts such as Lara-Molina, Cayo-Peterson, Abraham-Miranda I and II, Miranda-Pavlik, Miranda-Green, Ibragimov-Briggs, Ibragimov-Klitschko, Urango-Hatton, Urango-Bailey, Cayo-Maidana and Ibraginov-Holyfield.

For more information on Warriors Boxing, visit their website at warriorsboxing.com.




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