Home Depot Center News

Still no welterweight takers, \"The Punisher\" battles \"The Killer\" at Super Welterweight May 8 at Home Depot Center on HBO

Los Angeles, CA (April 1, 2010) - There is very little that boxing greats Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Shane Mosley agree on these days, with one notable exception: that Paul Williams is too big, too strong, too tough, too fast, too dedicated and too damn good to step into the ring against anytime soon.

So how does the \"Most Feared Fighter in the World\" deal with proving that he is indeed the best at 147 pounds while the aforementioned trio would prefer him not to prove it in the ring against them?

He fights over his weight of 147 pounds in a scheduled 12-round battle against the ever-dangerous Kermit Cintron in a May 8, 2010 HBO \"World Championship Boxing\" headliner dubbed as the \"Weight is Over.\"

Presented by Goossen Tutor Promotions -- in association with DiBella Entertainment - the Williams-Cintron bout and an exciting undercard will emanate from the extraordinary outdoor Home Depot Center in Carson, California where Williams enjoyed his first World Welterweight Championship victory.

\"This is the third time we have tried to put this fight together with Cintron,\" Williams (38-1, 27 KOs), an Aiken, South Carolina native now living in Augusta, Georgia, revealed. \"He says he wants to fight, so let's see if he comes to fight. I know I'm ready to fight.\"

Coming off a hard-fought slugfest resulting in a majority-decision win on HBO against Super Welterweight World Champion Sergio Martinez back in December, Williams - who stopped undefeated Walter Matthysse and decisioned Antonio Margarito for the WBO Welterweight Title in his two previous efforts at the Home Depot Center -- is stepping right back in with another risky high-profile bout against knockout artist Cintron (32-2-1, 28 KOs), known in boxing circles as \"The Killer.\"

Williams' longtime manager and trainer George Peterson predicts: \"I think it's going to be a good fight. We will wind up being victorious. I'm sure Cintron's side will say the same thing. There's nothing special that we have to prepare for with this young man. They claim he has a lot of power, and the night of the fight he will have opportunities to demonstrate that power. But we'll be ready and once he finds out that his power is not the key, he is in trouble. There are no rocks in that ring for him to hide under.\"

For his part, Cintron -- who stopped hot and undefeated prospect Alfredo Angulo and most recently, Juliano Ramos in his last two times out -- denies any fear of \"The Punisher\" and says he is looking forward to doing what the World Champions in the welterweight division are avoiding: adding Paul Williams to his list of triumphs.

\"I'm extremely excited about finally being able to fight Paul Williams,\" Cintron, a native of Puerto Rico currently training in Houston, Texas, exclaimed. \"We've tried to make this fight in the past, but for one reason or another, it never came to fruition. Paul Williams is going to get the best Kermit Cintron the World has ever seen. I'm at my peak in terms of my confidence and where I am as a fighter. There is only one option for me on May 8th, and that is victory!\"

Williams avenged his only loss in 39 bouts against Carlos Quintana by knocking him out in the first round of their WBO Welterweight Title rematch back in June 2008. The only two blemishes on Cintron's 35-fight record are two knockouts at the hands of Antonio Margarito - with a draw against Martinez -- both of who were beaten by Williams.

\"This is a terrific matchup between two of the elite 154 pounders in the world,\" offered Cintron's promoter Lou DiBella. \"Kermit proved against Alfredo Angulo that he's at the top of his game. Paul Williams better be at the top of his game if he's going to avoid his second loss. This match of styles cannot result in a bad fight.\"

\"Paul Williams' size similarities against welterweight opponents mirror those of the Klitschko's and their opponents in the heavyweight division,\" his promoter, Dan Goossen, observed of the above average 6-2 size welterweight. \"Paul doesn't need to chase the Pacquiaos, Mayweathers, Mosleys or any other welterweights because he has become a star without them by taking the path of fighting in different weight classes against the best in those divisions but still anxious to prove his superiority in the welterweight division again.

\"Cintron poses a risk to any fighter based on his KO power,\" Goossen continued. \"He, like everyone who has seen him in action, knows that every Paul Williams fight is an all-out, exciting, offensive show and Paul will look to stop the hard-charging Cintron on May 8. That's why boxing fans love \"The Punisher\" and why the \"Weight is Over.\"

Tickets for the May 8 fight are available for as low as $25, with VIP floor seats priced at $200. Other tickets in the 8,000-seat outdoor stadium are available at $50 and $100 and will be on sale this Saturday, April 3 at 10:00 a.m. at all Ticketmaster outlets and online at www.Ticketmaster.com as well as The Home Depot Center Box Office (open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).

About The Home Depot Center

The Home Depot Center is southern California's home of world-class competition and training facilities for amateur, Olympic, collegiate and professional athletes. The $150 million, privately financed facility was developed and is operated by AEG Facilities on a 125-acre site on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) in Carson, California. The Home Depot Center features an 8,000-seat tennis and boxing stadium, a 27,000-seat stadium for soccer, rugby and other athletic competitions and outdoor concerts, a 10,000-seat facility for track & field and a 2,450-seat indoor Velodrome for track cycling. The Home Depot Center is home to two Major League Soccer teams, the Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA. Named an Official U.S. Olympic Training Site, The Home Depot Center is also home of the United States Tennis Association's (USTA) High Performance Training Center, the national team training headquarters for the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) and Athletes' Performance, an international training center for elite and professional athletes. For more information, please visit www.homedepotcenter.com.

For more on Goossen Tutor Promotions go to www.goossentutor.com.

For more Information:

Marylyn Aceves
Goossen Tutor Promotions
818-817-8001/213-494-4929
marylyn@goossentutor.com

Larry Rosoff
Goossen Tutor Promotions
818-817-8001/508-395-1756
larry@goossentutor.com