Lots of action to come in La Belle Province

By Vincent Morin

Boxing fans will not miss out on action, since no less than six professional galas are planned in La Belle Province between now and May. Groupe Yvon Michel (GYM) with three cards, Eye of the Tiger (EOTTM) with two and New Era Promotions with one event, have all already booked their dates in order to keep their pugilists active.

EOTTM

The first gala to come is that of EOTTM on January 25 at the Montreal Casino. The final of the evening will pit Laval resident Erik Bazinyan (31-0, 22 KO) who will defend his NABF title and compete for the WBA Continental against Argentinian Billi Facundo Godoy (41-7, 20 KO).

In the main support duel, Venezuelan light heavyweight Albert Ramirez (17-0, 15 KO) will face Ukrainian Artur Ziyatdinov (15-1, 12 KO), while Mary Spencer (7-2, 5 KO) will attempt to find the path to victory against the American Sonya Dreiling (6-3, 2 KO).

Albertan Steve Claggett (37-7-2, 25 KOs) will look for a ninth consecutive victory when he faces Mexican Marcos Gonzalez Barraza (23-3, 11 KOs), while Avery Martin-Duval (10-0 -1, 6 KO) will face Mexican Jesus Gomez Adorno (6-0, 2 KO) in a meeting of undefeated super featherweights.

Prospects Wilkens Mathieu (6-0, 3 KOs), Jhon Orobio (5-0, 5 KOs) and Moreno Fendero (3-0, 2 KOs) will look to maintain their perfect records as they respectively face Mexico's Oscar Soto Quintana (6-4, 2 KOs), Juan Carlos Ramirez Garcia (5-4, 0 KOs) and Ricardo Lara (22-11-2, 10 KOs).

EOTTM also has a second event on March 7 at the Montreal Casino. Montreal middleweight Steven Butler (33-4-1, 27 KO) will make the final fight against Torontonian Steve Rolls (22-3, 12 KO).

Thomas Chabot, Luis Santana, Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse, Wilkens Mathieu, Jhon Orobio and Moreno Fendero will also be in action during this card.

 

GYM

Despite a short suspension from the Régie des Alcools, des Courses et des Jeux (RACJ), GYM will resume its activities on March 14 at the Cabaret du Casino de Montréal. For the occasion, Mathieu Germain (23-2-1, 9 KO) will be the main attraction.

On April 4, still at the Montreal Casino, former WBC world champion Kim Clavel (17-2, 3 KO) will return to the arena for the first time since her defeat by unanimous decision against Argentina's Evelin Nazarena Bermudez. Clavel is currently training in Havana, under the influence of the famous Cuban boxing, in order to restart the machine.

The third scheduled date is May 16, at the Montreal Casino. Montrealer Mazlum Akdeniz (19-0, 8 KO) will headline the evening.

Undercard details will be revealed shortly.

 

NEW ERA

The New Era group will also present a boxing gala on March 23 at the Centrexpo Cogeco in Drummondville. The final will pit Sébastien Bouchard (20-3-1, 9 KOs) against Jan-Michael Poulin (9-1-3, 2 KOs) in a 10-fight clash for the CPBC Canadian super welterweight title (154 lbs).

In the semi-final, Jordan Balmir (10-2, 5 KO) will face Toronto's Daniel Roach (2-3-2, 0 KO) at middleweight, while Repentigny's David Canuel will make his professional debut against Montrealer Justin Grant (1-2, 1 KO).

Three Drummondville fighters from mixed martial arts (AMM), Kevin Généreux, Steven Généreux and Jean-François Mosimann, will also make their professional boxing debut for the occasion against rivals to be determined.