EYE OF THE TIGER Management | A gala and bad news

Eye of the Tiger Management had invited the media to a press conference on Monday afternoon to officially present the card of his gala which will take place Thursday evening at the Casino de Montréal. However, bad news came somewhat darkened the event.

Posted at 4:41 p.m. Updated at 5:47 p.m.

We have indeed learned, shortly before the start of the conference, that Diego Pacheco had withdrawn from the call for tenders which was to be held this Tuesday for a possible fight against Christian Mbilli. The winner of this confrontation would have got hold of the worker title of the WBC super-media and would have found himself in a good position and then compete with the champion Saul “Canelo” Álvarez.

This is the second time that Pacheco has been on the Mbilli camp. Last November, when the IBF had ordered a duel between the two Pugilists, the American had rather chosen to face Steven Nelson, which he defeated by unanimous decision in January.

Add to that this fight between Mbilli and Kevin Lele Sadjo who also fell into the water in February, and you end up with a sequence as bitter as they are unlucky for Mbilli and his team.

Even if he indicated that he expected such an outcome in the Pacheco file, the president of Eye of the Tiger, Camille Estephan, did not hide his frustration following this other reversal in this soap opera which never ceases to finish, which he describes as “behind the scenes” which harm boxing.

“These are not champion moves, they are mushroom moves,” said the promoter later.

Be that as it may, the result of all these projects dead in the egg is that Mbilli still has to wait for his turn and sees his period of inactivity extending. His last fight dates back to August 17, 2024. It is starting to drag a touch, let’s say.

Estephan, however, was reassuring in this regard. His protégé will keep his place in the rankings of the various boxing federations, and will continue his training for a fight in June or in July.

“He will have a very good opponent on a very large card. I can guarantee it to you, ”he promised.

Mary Spencer’s “resurrection”

Through all this, there will still be a boxing gala Thursday evening at the Casino. The final will feature the light weight Dzmitry Asanau (9-0, 4 K.-O.), which will defend its continental WBC belt of the Americas against Belgian Francesco Patera (30-5, 11 K.-O.).

We will also monitor the duel between Mary Spencer (9-2, 6 K.-O.) and the Venezuelanian Ogleidis Suarez (31-5-1, 15 K.-O.). Ontario will put its WBA World WBA title into play against ex-champion Suarez, which we could see in action at the Videotron Center in Quebec in 2019, when she bowed to Marie-Ève ​​Dicaire.

In view of this duel, the native of Windsor also opted for a homecoming by calling on the Kara Ro coach, who led her almost two decades in the amateur ranks ago. A decision that has “resurrected it”, she said, forcing it not to bet only on its strike force, for which it is renowned.

“When I come back home, nobody makes any comments by saying that I hit hard,” she added. They don’t care that I hit hard. They want me to move my feet. They want to see me using my jab that has been worked and perfected for years. They know what I looked before. »»

Guerrero Superstar?

Christopher Guerrero (13-0, 8 K.-O.), for his part, will be measured in Mexican Oliver Quintana (22-3, 16 K.-O.). The two men will compete for the continental WBC title of the currently vacant Movies Americas.

Guerrero, who will try to continue his promising ascent in the professional ranks, also seemed somewhat bitten by his opponent during the press conference, when the latter announced that he wanted to deliver a “war” in the ring.

“It shows the ignorance of boxing,” said Guerrero. Boxing does not have to be a war. Just being clean, that’s all. I just wanted to say it: it’s my game, not yours. I wanted to sit down my domination. »»

The 23 -year -old boxer overflows with confidence, without doing arrogance. He predicts that he and his colleague Wilkens Mathieu will become the next SuperVes of Quebec boxing. For him, it is not a question of knowing if, but when he will become world champion.

“I am already in the top 13 of the IBF, and after this belt, I will be in the top 15 of WBC. I can’t wait, I’m really excited. But I am not surprised because I believed in myself, “he said.

Finally, note that the super-light Wyatt Sanford, bronze medalist at the Paris Games, will make his professional debut during this gala by facing the British-Colombian Shawn Archer (2-5, 2 K.-O.). Jhon Orobio, Moreno Fendero, Alexandre Gaumont and Erik Israyelyan will also be there.