TORONTO, ON—Just one fight into his professional career and welterweight prospect Lee Reeves is already catching the eyes of the right people. In this case, the eyes of the person the world will be watching this weekend.
The Irish standout, who recently signed a promotional deal with Lee Baxter Promotions in Canada, caught the eye of lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury with his scintillating third round knockout victory over Benito Aburto on November 17 in Toronto.
“Looks like Ireland has a new boxing star,” said Fury, who has also made stops in Canada throughout his career, defeating Zack Page in 2010 in Quebec City, and holding his training camp for his breakout victory over Steve Cunningham in the nation’s capital of Ottawa.
Reeves is unquestionably one of the best Irish amateurs of his era, having collected eight Limerick championships and eight Munster championships to go along with his pair of Irish national titles. During his years as a competitive boxer, campaigning mostly as a light welterweight, he never failed to appear in the national final at year’s end.
In his first professional contest, he made a seamless transition, looking like the accurate, powerful counterpuncher the scouting report promised he would be. A laser accurate left hand eventually mounted enough punishment for the referee to stop the contest in the third frame, to the delight of the raucous Irish contingent present in Toronto.
“He’s fast, talented and super sexy. Actually He reminds me of someone–me,” he said. “I’ll definitely be following his career and tuning in to his next fight December 15th in Toronto.”
Reeves will return on the 15th on the LBP event at the Coca-Cola Coliseum, headlined by Samuel Vargas vs. Gabriel Pereiro.
ABOUT THIS EVENT:
Lee Baxter Promotions, in association with Athlete Development and Management (A.D.A.M.) will present “Risky Business,” live championship professional boxing at the newly renamed Coca-Cola Colisseum in downtown Toronto, Ontario.
The Coca Cola Coliseum is the home of the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, and a spot for some of the city’s biggest concerts and attractions, including WWE wrestling.
In the main event, Samuel Vargas will return home to face the undefeated Adrian Gabriel Pereiro, as he begins a new campaign at light welterweight. Vargas is fresh off a thrilling bout with former world champion Amir Khan. Despite coming up short on the scorecards, Vargas not only gained fans, but proved to have plenty of them already. The Colombian-Canadian banger dropped Khan early in the bout, and had him hurt later on in the contest as well. In the end, the fight was the most-watched in the history of U.K. subscription television.
Vargas is now honing his craft in training camp in Spain alongside former welterweight champion Kell Brook, as he is determined to return to Canada an improved fighter.
In the co-feature of the night, an old fashioned local rivalry comes to a boil, as Patrice Volny battles Ryan Young.
Volny scored the biggest win of his career in September, as he dominated veteran Albert Onolunose to capture both the WBA-NABA and WBO-NABO middleweight crowns. The victory situates him in a prime spot within the world rankings in two major sanctioning bodies, remarkably, just twelve fights into his professional career.
Another one of Canada’s top middleweights, Steve Rolls, will be in tough against KeAndrae Leatherwood. Both men have enjoyed significant national television exposure, having graduated from the esteemed ShoBox series on Showtime.
The card will also feature local favorite Nick Fantauzzi against Marco Parente in a light heavyweight contest, Bollywood star Neeraj Goyat, heavyweight sensation Kristian Prenga, the professional debut of Iranian amateur standout Salar Gholami, and the remarkable return Moncef “Buddy” Askri after an 11-year hiatus from the sport of boxing.
Tickets for “Risky Business” are available through Ticketmaster. VIP tables can be purchased by emailing sales@leebaxterpromotions.com. Doors open at 6:00 PM ET, with the first bout starting at 7:00 PM ET.