PRESS RELEASE: From Friday, Sept. 28 through Monday, Oct. 1, Showtime will host Free Preview Weekend, affording an opportunity for many non-subscribers to experience all of the hard-hitting sports and acclaimed original programming on the network as the signal is opened up by select television service providers free of charge.

SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING

Saturday, Sept. 29, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)

Don King in association with Maloof Sports & Entertainment will present two world championship fights live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) from ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif.  In the main event WBC Light Heavyweight Champion “Bad” Chad Dawson will make his second title defense when he goes toe-to-toe with Colombian knockout artist Epifanio “Diamante” Mendoza.  Dawson (24-0, 16 KOs), a 25-year-old southpaw from New Haven, Conn., is one of the most versatile and skilled pound-for-pound fighters in the game today. He possesses the same WBC 175-pound belt Roy Jones Jr. held from 1997 to 2004.  The rugged Mendoza (28-4-1, 24 KO’s) is on a four-fight winning streak and looking to capitalize on his world title opportunity. The co-featured bout is just as fierce with two of the lighter weight divisions’ toughest sluggers squaring off.  IBF Bantamweight champion Luis “El Demoledor” Perez (25-1, 21 KO’s) will meet Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko (24-1, 21 KO’s).

 

EliteXC: Uprising

Saturday, Sept. 29, at 2 p.m. ET/PT

EliteXC is the first and only MMA organization to air on a premium television network in the U.S. The most recent installment, EliteXC: Uprising, aired live from Honolulu on Saturday, Sept. 15 and represented the biggest and most collaborative MMA event ever to take place on the Hawaiian Islands, a hotbed for the new and wildly popular sport. 

 

EliteXC: Uprising, which will replay on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET/PT, features five MMA fights including significant wins by phenom Nick Diaz, welterweight star Jake Shields and “the face of women’s MMA” Gina Carano.  The night was punctuated by a devastating KO victory when brawler “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler dropped Brazilian Jiu Jitsu specialist Murilo “Ninja” Rua for the EliteXC Middleweight title. 



 

Coming Up From SHOWTIME Sports Programming

·        SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING

Saturday, Oct. 6, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)

The Mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden will host WBC No. 1-ranked Samuel “The Nigerian Nightmare” Peter and heavyweight challenger Jameel McCline when they fight for the WBC Interim Heavyweight Championship. Opportunity knocked for McCline after WBC titlist Oleg Maskaev injured his back in training last week. McCline, who had been preparing for a bout against Vitali Klitschko (slated for Sept. 22, but scraped due to Klitschko injury), is ready, willing and able to make the most of his world title shot.

 

Saturday, Nov. 3, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)

Boxing fans were left disappointed by the announcement that the WBC super featherweight title bout between Juan Manuel Marquez and Rocky Juarez was called off due to an injury, but thanks to some quick work by Golden Boy Promotions and SHOWTIME, this event, which was originally slated for pay-per-view, was quickly rescheduled – along with the IBF featherweight title bout between Robert Guerrero and Martin Honorio – airing live at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME from a site to be announced.

 

·        ShoBox: The New Generation

This acclaimed series has been pitting young, talented fighters against one another since its inception in 2001. Fans can witness boxing stars on the rise in make or break performances on the following dates:

 

Friday, Oct. 5, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from Corona, Calif.

Friday, Oct. 19, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from Raley Field, Sacramento, Calif.

Friday, Nov. 2, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT (venue to be determined)

Friday, Nov. 16, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from the eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia.

(all live listings above delayed on the West Coast)

 

·        EliteXC

In less than seven months, EliteXC, has gained the reputation for delivering consistently competitive, thrilling and memorable live Mixed Martial Arts events that showcase the world's top MMA fighters, live on SHOWTIME.

 
 

 

·        EliteXC (continued)

Under the watchful eye of Live Events President, Gary Shaw, EliteXC has already produced many remarkable accomplishments and has made MMA history on a couple of occasions; the most noteworthy of which: EliteXC is the first and only MMA organization on premium television.

 

On Saturday, Nov. 10, EliteXC returns to SHOWTIME. Full fight card details to be announced soon.

 
***Bergeron: Special Training For "New" Valuev***

Jean-Francois Bergeron today revealed how special training methods have helped him to prepare for Saturday´s clash with Nikolai Valuev. The unbeaten Canadian will have to overcome a huge difference in weight and height when the duo comes face-to-face in Oldenburg. In order to get used to the Russian Giant´s incredible size, his coach Pierre Bouchard has been wearing special shoes in practice. "If we win on Saturday night, we´ll put them up on ebay," Bouchard promised.

Unbeaten  Bergeron (27-0, 19 KOs) is eager to hand Valuev (46-1, 34 KOs) only the second loss of his glorious career. "I am very well prepared," he said. "I can only suggest everyone to watch the fight. It will be very exciting."

After Bergeron completed his work-out, Alexander Zimin and Valuev entered the ring to give the fans a first taste of his new style. The former WBA heavyweight champion displayed his improved mobility and body movement. "On Saturday there will be a new Valuev in the ring. I will be much stronger than before," he vowed.