READING, PA (February 15, 2017) - A showdown between exciting heavyweight contenders Travis "My Time" Kauffman (31-1, 23 KOs) and Amir "Hardcore" Mansour (22-2-1, 16 KOs) headlines action on Premier Boxing Champions: The Next Round on Bounce Friday, March 17 from Santander Arena in Reading, PA.
Televised coverage on Bounce begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and will feature former title challenger Edner Cherry (35-7-2, 19 KOs) taking on once-beaten Omar Douglas (17-1, 12 KOs) in a 10-round lightweight bout plus former two-time world champion Steve "U.S.S." Cunningham (28-8-1, 13 KOs) will enter the ring in a 10-round cruiserweight attraction. The most recent Premier Boxing Champions - The Next Round on Bounce (Fri. Feb. 10) reached 1.5 million viewers and delivered series records for viewership.
Reading's Kauffman and Philadelphia's Mansour will meet in a 12-round battle of Pennsylvania-rivals who are looking to go through the other on their way to a world title shot.
"I am very excited for this fight on March 17," said Kauffman. "I am training very hard, and I'm ready to take care of business. This win will get me to the next level. Amir is a tough fighter who has never been in a bad fight. He is a desperate fighter who knows this is his last chance to retain his spot as a heavyweight contender, so I expect to see the best Amir Mansour. I will be very sharp. I expect a better performance than I had against Chris Arreola."
"This is a fight that the heavyweight division needs," said Mansour. "This is two top quality facing off against each other. I am the toughest fighter that he has ever faced, but he is not the toughest fighter that I have faced. I will say that he is one of the best boxers in the heavyweight division. He has tremendous boxing skills, and I am looking forward to mixing it up with someone who can box and fight."
Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by King's Promotions, start at $20 and are on sale now. Tickets are available at the VF Outlet Box Office at the Santander Arena, by phone at 800-745-3000, or online at Ticketmaster.com.
A local attraction fighting out of Reading, Kauffman is the son of longtime trainer and promoter Marshall Kauffman. Kauffman won his first 18 pro fights and put together a 12-fight winning streak before dropping Chris Arreola in a split decision loss that was later ruled a no decision. Kauffman most recently stopped Josh Gormley in two rounds at the Santander Arena in September of last year and he will return to the arena looking to increase his status in the heavyweight division.
An exciting pressure fighter, the 6-foot-1 slugger Mansour is experienced and primed for an opportunity at the best in the division. He went 20-0 before losing a 10-round decision to Cunningham in a fight in April 2014 in which he dropped the former cruiserweight world champion twice. In his next start, Mansour knocked out Kassi in the seventh round. In 2015, he outpointed Joey Dawejko across 10 rounds in May and fought to a draw against unbeaten Gerald Washington in October. His last outing saw him knock down then unbeaten Dominic Breazeale before being forced to withdraw due to an injury.
Cherry, of Wauchula, Fla., enters this fight after a victory of Haskell Rhodes in June of last year and is 11-1 since 2009. His only blemishes since 2007 are losses to Timothy Bradley and Paulie Malignaggi at 140-pounds and his title challenge in 2015 against Jose Pedraza in which he dropped a split decision. Cherry, who was born in the Bahamas, owns victories over Vicente Escobedo, Monte Meza Clay and Wes Ferguson and will look to take down another contender on his way to another title shot.
Fighting out of Wilmington, Delaware, Douglas looks to bounce back after losing a narrow decision to former world champion Javier Fortuna in November. The 26-year-old impressed in his previous two outings when he defeated contender Frank De Alba in a step up fight in 2015 and followed it up with a seventh round knockout of Alexei Collado in June 2016. Douglas has had his last five fights in Pennsylvania after an amateur career that saw him become a five-time Pennsylvania Golden Glove champion.
Representing the great fight city of Philadelphia, Cunningham returns to action after an exciting challenge of cruiserweight champion Krzysztof Glowacki in April. Twice a world champion as a cruiserweight, he defeated Krzysztof Wlodarczyk in 2006 to capture his belt before defending his title against Marco Huck via a twelfth-round TKO. He became a world champion again in 2010 when he stopped Troy Ross in the fifth round. The experienced veteran also owns victories over previously unbeaten fighters Amir Mansour and Natu Visinia and scored a knockdown of Tyson Fury in a losing effort during their 2013 bout.
Televised coverage on Bounce begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and will feature former title challenger Edner Cherry (35-7-2, 19 KOs) taking on once-beaten Omar Douglas (17-1, 12 KOs) in a 10-round lightweight bout plus former two-time world champion Steve "U.S.S." Cunningham (28-8-1, 13 KOs) will enter the ring in a 10-round cruiserweight attraction. The most recent Premier Boxing Champions - The Next Round on Bounce (Fri. Feb. 10) reached 1.5 million viewers and delivered series records for viewership.
Reading's Kauffman and Philadelphia's Mansour will meet in a 12-round battle of Pennsylvania-rivals who are looking to go through the other on their way to a world title shot.
"I am very excited for this fight on March 17," said Kauffman. "I am training very hard, and I'm ready to take care of business. This win will get me to the next level. Amir is a tough fighter who has never been in a bad fight. He is a desperate fighter who knows this is his last chance to retain his spot as a heavyweight contender, so I expect to see the best Amir Mansour. I will be very sharp. I expect a better performance than I had against Chris Arreola."
"This is a fight that the heavyweight division needs," said Mansour. "This is two top quality facing off against each other. I am the toughest fighter that he has ever faced, but he is not the toughest fighter that I have faced. I will say that he is one of the best boxers in the heavyweight division. He has tremendous boxing skills, and I am looking forward to mixing it up with someone who can box and fight."
Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by King's Promotions, start at $20 and are on sale now. Tickets are available at the VF Outlet Box Office at the Santander Arena, by phone at 800-745-3000, or online at Ticketmaster.com.
A local attraction fighting out of Reading, Kauffman is the son of longtime trainer and promoter Marshall Kauffman. Kauffman won his first 18 pro fights and put together a 12-fight winning streak before dropping Chris Arreola in a split decision loss that was later ruled a no decision. Kauffman most recently stopped Josh Gormley in two rounds at the Santander Arena in September of last year and he will return to the arena looking to increase his status in the heavyweight division.
An exciting pressure fighter, the 6-foot-1 slugger Mansour is experienced and primed for an opportunity at the best in the division. He went 20-0 before losing a 10-round decision to Cunningham in a fight in April 2014 in which he dropped the former cruiserweight world champion twice. In his next start, Mansour knocked out Kassi in the seventh round. In 2015, he outpointed Joey Dawejko across 10 rounds in May and fought to a draw against unbeaten Gerald Washington in October. His last outing saw him knock down then unbeaten Dominic Breazeale before being forced to withdraw due to an injury.
Cherry, of Wauchula, Fla., enters this fight after a victory of Haskell Rhodes in June of last year and is 11-1 since 2009. His only blemishes since 2007 are losses to Timothy Bradley and Paulie Malignaggi at 140-pounds and his title challenge in 2015 against Jose Pedraza in which he dropped a split decision. Cherry, who was born in the Bahamas, owns victories over Vicente Escobedo, Monte Meza Clay and Wes Ferguson and will look to take down another contender on his way to another title shot.
Fighting out of Wilmington, Delaware, Douglas looks to bounce back after losing a narrow decision to former world champion Javier Fortuna in November. The 26-year-old impressed in his previous two outings when he defeated contender Frank De Alba in a step up fight in 2015 and followed it up with a seventh round knockout of Alexei Collado in June 2016. Douglas has had his last five fights in Pennsylvania after an amateur career that saw him become a five-time Pennsylvania Golden Glove champion.
Representing the great fight city of Philadelphia, Cunningham returns to action after an exciting challenge of cruiserweight champion Krzysztof Glowacki in April. Twice a world champion as a cruiserweight, he defeated Krzysztof Wlodarczyk in 2006 to capture his belt before defending his title against Marco Huck via a twelfth-round TKO. He became a world champion again in 2010 when he stopped Troy Ross in the fifth round. The experienced veteran also owns victories over previously unbeaten fighters Amir Mansour and Natu Visinia and scored a knockdown of Tyson Fury in a losing effort during their 2013 bout.
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