Atlantic City, N.J. September 26, 2023 – The Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame (ACBHOF) proudly announces the roster of special guests attending the 7th Annual Awards & Induction Weekend, held from Friday, September 29th to Sunday, October 1st, 2023, at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City. The guest list features notable boxing figures such as: Roberto Duran, Michael Spinks, James Toney, Vinny Paz, Gerry Cooney, Ray Mercer, Tim Witherspoon, Kelly Pavlik, Lamon Brewster, Mark “Too Sharp” Johnson, Junior Jones, Reggie Johnson, Mark Breland, Sharmba Mitchell, Eva Jones-Young, John Scully, Michael Olajide, Iran Barkley, Michael Nunn, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Jeff Chandler, Montell Griffin, Yaqui Lopez, Al Cole, Kali Reis, Hector Camacho Jr., Rodney Moore, Kendall Holt, Dave Tiberi, Nate Miller and William Joppy, to name a few.

The weekend kicks off on Friday, September 29th, with the “Opening Bell” VIP Cocktail Reception from 5:00pm – 8:00pm, followed by the Friday Night Fight Presented by Hard Hitting Promotions at Bally’s Casino Atlantic City. On Saturday, September 30th, the Fight Fan Experience & Boxing Exhibits at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City will be open from 11:00am – 1:00pm

The highlight of the weekend is the Red-Carpet Formal Awards & Induction Ceremony, taking place on Saturday night inside the Sound Waves Theater. Attendees will enjoy a unique opportunity to mix and mingle with other boxing luminaries and special VIP guests, as well as honor all who helped put Atlantic City on the boxing map. The Pre-VIP Cocktail Reception will begin at 5:00pm, and it leads into the Official Awards & Induction Program from 7:00pm – 9:00pm. After the Awards Ceremony, guests with VIP tickets will have the chance to experience the Post-VIP Reception, which includes a bonus fight watch party for Canelo Alverez vs. Jermell Charlo

The 2023 class members of the Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame include:

George Foreman, Shannon Briggs, David Tua, Pinklon Thomas, Tracy Harris Patterson, Doug Dewitt, Darroll Wilson, Shamone Alvarez, Jamillia Lawrence, Joe Hand Sr., Matt Howard, Rudy Battle, Benjy Esteves Jr., Arnold Robbins, Joseph Santoliquito, Lee Samuels They will be inducted alongside Posthumously & Pioneers such as Buster Drayton, Marty Feldman, Rocky Castellani, Frankie Polo, Joe Miller, Horace M. Leeds, “KO” Becky O’Neill and Willie O’Neill

For more information on event tickets, room reservations, and weekend schedules, visit the Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame website at: www.acbhof.com

The ACBHOF gives a special thanks to their partners and sponsors: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, Boardwalk Resorts – Flagship Hotel, Mayor Marty Small Sr., City of Atlantic City, Bare Knuckle Fighting Champions, Hard Hitting Promotions, Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, The Irish Pub-Atlantic City, Moustakas & Nelson Law, Quail Hill Realty, Gionta Management LLC, T&K Boxing Promotions, Sparbar Boxing LTD, Patrick Killian Arts, Guzman Gloves, Adams Boxing, WBC, IBF, Icons of Boxing Memorabilia, and Fight Night Apparel

FAIRFAX, VA — After earning a majority draw last November in a crowd-pleasing, back-and-forth contest, former D.C. world champion William Joppy (39-6-2, 30 KOs) and dangerous veteran Cory “Black Ice” Cummings (17-4-1, 13 KOs) of Baltimore, MD will look to settle Beltway bragging rights when they return to the Patriot Center on March 12 as the 10-round Co-Main Event on the Jimmy Lange Boxing card. The show is an Ice Promotions event presented by Valcourt Building Services.

Each fighter believed he won three months ago in their 10-round showdown where one judge scored in favor of Joppy, 96-94, while the other two saw it even at 95-95.

Joppy, a popular trainer at LA Boxing in Northern Virginia, continues to look for his elusive 40th career win after being stopped by World Boxing Association (WBA) / International Boxing Association (IBA) Light Heavyweight Champion Beibut Shumenov in Shymkent, Kazakhstan on January 10, 2011. Originally scheduled to fight Gayrat Ahmedov on the undercard, Joppy took the last-minute upgrade and title shot opportunity when Jürgen Brähmer pulled out days before the fight due to illness. During his illustrious career, Joppy has faced the super middleweight division’s best: Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins, Felix “Tito” Trinidad, Roberto Duran, Howard Eastman, Lucian Bute, Jermain Taylor and Julio Cesar Green

Meanwhile, Cummings looks to prevent the former three-time world titleholder from reaching his milestone victory, while defeating his second straight D.C. fighter in the process. In May 2009, he captured the Maryland State Super Middleweight crown with a ninth-round TKO win over D.C.’s Demetrious Davis. Cummings has more than held his own against top opponents including former world champions Montell Griffin and top D.C. fighter Keith Holmes.

Hometown fighter and former Contender star Jimmy Lange (34-4-2, 24 KOs) of Great Falls, VA headlines his 12th Patriot Center show with a 10-round bout against Jimmy Holmes (19-1, 10 KOs) of Demotte, IN. The undercard features undefeated Todd “White Lightning” Wilson (9-0, 3 KOs) of Fairfax, VA vs. Dean “Pitbull” White (15-10-2, 3 KOs) of Smithsburg, MD; knockout artist Tony “Mo Better” Jeter (10-2-1, 9 KOs) of Stevensville, MD vs. TBD; a heavyweight collision between Ron “Heavy Duty” Gamble (1-0, 1 KO) of Arnold, MD and Abodurin “Bo” Akinyanju (3-1, 3 KOs) of Landover, MD; and Charlottesville, VA middleweight George “Wartime” Rivera (11-6, 4 KOs) vs. Shakir Ashanti (16-9, 4 KOs) of Greensboro, NC.

Tickets, priced at $35, $50, $75, $125, $200, $300 and $500 (plus applicable service charges), can be bought through all Ticketmaster outlets including the Patriot Center box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com/ and via phonecharge at 703-573-SEAT, 202-397-SEAT and 410-547-SEAT. Accessible seating is available for patrons with disabilities by calling 703-993-3035.

Dan Rafael of espn.com is reporting that after Jurgen Brahmer dropped out of his Satirday unification fight with Beibut Shumenov that former Middleweight champion William Joppy has stepped in on two days notice to face WBA Light Heavyweight champion Shumenov in Kazakhstan.

“Coming back to his hometown of Shymkent as a world champion was a major homecoming for him,” promoter Dan Goossen said of Shumenov, who is based in Las Vegas. “With Brähmer slipping out of town, we couldn’t allow the show not to go on for his homecoming. With the prime minister and so many other dignitaries attending, it would have been two devastating losses if the show didn’t go forward with Beibut defending his world championship.”

“As Joppy said to me, he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to fight for the title,” Goossen said. “He said he was in great shape coming in and believes Beibut will be on a downer with Brähmer’s escape from Kazakhstan.

“I trained too hard for Brähmer and will not disappoint my fans and many dignitaries, including the prime minister of Kazakhstan, attending this sold-out show,” Shumenov said. “I’m putting Brähmer in the rear-view mirror and intend to get right back on track defending my title against Joppy, who I applaud for accepting this fight, and focus on collecting the other world light heavyweight titles.”

“I am super disappointed,” Brähmer said. “I’m sorry for Beibut, but I also trained hard. I was in the [best] shape of my life, but I caught something. This sucks. I hope it’s nothing bad. The last two days were hell for me. I would wish this on nobody. I’m just glad to be back here again and want to be healthy as soon as possible.”

Said Universum chief Klaus-Peter Kohl: “Rather than fly to the fight in Kazakhstan, now I have to visit Jürgen in the hospital.”