North Olmsted, Ohio – April 23, 2010 –The annual Jimmy Bivins Classic is one day away! Warner Promotions in association with the VFW Men’s Auxiliary post 7647 and the Old School Boxing Club are done putting the final touches on the show and look forward to bringing professional boxing back to the Cleveland market, in nearby North Olmsted, Oh. The Jimmy Bivins classic will be headlined this year by Cleveland lightweight prodigy Yuandale “Money Shot” Evans against the power punching Rey “The Prosecutor” Hernandez in a six round lightweight attraction. The event will take place on Saturday, April 24th from the Soccer Sportsplex, 31515 Lorain Road, in North Olmsted, and has a total of six professional bouts on the card.
Evans, (6-0, 4 KO’s) will be fighting in northeast Ohio for the first time since he turned professional last August. He is coming off a second round TKO over Juan Baltierrez on the undercard of the Bernard Hopkins/Roy Jones Jr fight just thirteen days ago.
As an amateur, Evans was one of the best in the nation. He was the 2009 Cleveland Golden Glove champion, and won a bronze medal at the 2009 USA National Championships.
Hernandez, (6-7, 6 KO’s) is coming off the best win of his professional career in Februray. In his last fight he knocked out Noah Zuhdi in the first round. Zuhdi was an undefeated prospect with a perfect record of 9-0 at the time. Hernandez has won four of his last five bouts overall.
The co-featured bout will present the long anticipated professional debut of Lorain’s Wilkins Santiago, as he squares off with Torrence King (1-6) from Columbiana, OH in a four round Middleweight clash. Santiago was originally scheduled to make his debut on the “ESPN Friday Night Fights” event at the Wolstein Center in February. King’s record is a bit misleading as he has fought very tough opposition. The combined record of his opponents is 30-5
Also featured on the crowd is lightweight sensation Julius Leegrand (2-0), from East Cleveland. Leegrand was also an amateur standout in his days, as he was the 2005 Cleveland Golden Glove Champion. Leegrand will be matched up against Francisco Portillo (0-3) of Dennison, OH in a four round lightweight contest. Leegrand will look to become the first person to stop the game Portillo inside the distance.
Making his professional boxing debut will be Cleveland’s Chris Lozano, the NAAFS Middleweight champion in the world of mixed martial arts, as he will take on Albany, NY’s Reggie Scott (1-0) in a four round Light Heavyweight attraction bout. Lozano, who has some amateur boxing experience, wants to make his mark in the world of professional boxing, just as he has in the world of MMA.
Another fighter making his professional debut is Jr. Middleweight Rogelio Sanchez, from Fort Wayne, IN. He will go toe to toe with Stephen Scott (1-0), from Albany, NY over four rounds.
Opening the action will be Rock Hill, South Carolina’s James Hope (5-4, 4 KO’s) in a four round welterweight clash with Toledo’s Gabriel Morris (1-5-1).
Doors open at 6:00 PM, with the first bell set for 7:30 PM.
Tickets for the Jimmy Bivins Charity Boxing Classic are charitable donations as 100% of the proceeds are donated to the VFW Post 7647. Ticket prices start at just $20 for general admission. There are also $50 VIP Ringside tickets, and tables seating eight for $600. Tickets can be purchased at the North Olmsted Soccer Sportsplex, VFW Post 7647, or by calling 216.854.0485 or 440.258.8117.
About Jimmy Bivins
Jimmy Bivins fought out of Cleveland whose professional career ran from 1940 to 1955. Although he was never given the opportunity to fight for a world title, despite at one point being the number one contender in both the Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight divisions, Bivins fought and defeated many of the great fighters of his era. In recognition of his achievements in the ring, among other things, he defeated eight of the eleven world champions he faced. Bivins was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1999.
About Warner Promotions
Warner Promotions is a boxing promotional company, based out of Cleveland. They served as the co-promoter for the ESPN Friday Night fights event at the Wolstein Center on February 19th. A newly formed, Cleveland based company, owned by Ron Warner, and run by Antonio Castro, Warner Promotions has four boxing events planned for 2010, and will be signing the top local boxers to compete in their events. For further information, please visit www.warnerpromotionsllc.com.