PRESS RELEASE: World super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe, whose stranglehold on the WBO belt makes him boxing's current longest-reigning titlist, congratulates new middleweight world champion Kelly Pavlik on his victory tonight in Atlantic City.

"Good show, Kelly," said Calzaghe from his Cardiff-based training camp.  "There is no doubt who the real middleweight champion is after tonight.  The true world champion met the true No. 1 contender, and that's the way it should be.  Now that Kelly has conquered his division, I would like to invite him to Cardiff for my fight against Mikkel Kessler, which will also serve as my formal coronation as king of the super middleweights. If Kelly is a true champion in search of new territories to conquer, he need look no further than Millennium Stadium on November 3, where the crown heads can meet to discuss the terms of battle."    

Calzaghe (43-0, 32 KOs), from Wales, celebrates 10 years as the WBO champion on October 11.  He is preparing for the biggest non-heavyweight world title unification fight since the Sugar Ray Leonard-Tommy Hearns welterweight rumble of 1981, pitting him against undefeated WBC/WBA champion Mikkel Kessler (39-0, 29 KOs), of Denmark, Saturday, November 3, at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, which will be scaled for an indoor-record of 60,000-plus spectators.  Over 35,000 seats have already been sold.  HBO World Championship Boxing will televise it live to the U.S. at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. 

Boxing’s current longest-reigning world champion, Calzaghe will be making his landmark 21st  consecutive title defense -- tops among active world champions -- which would tie him with super middleweight champion Sven Ottke at fourth place on boxing’s all-time list, behind heavyweight champion Joe Louis (25), light heavyweight champion Dariusz Michalczewski (23) and strawweight champion Ricardo López (23).