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Nguyen
Makes National TV Debut on ESPN2
(JULY 17) Undefeated, Buddy McGirt trained
featherweight prospect, Dat "Dat Be Dat" Nguyen (10-0, 6 KOs) makes his
much-anticipated national television debut Wednesday night on ESPN2,
when he takes on his most formidable opponent to date in fellow
stablemate Castulo Gonzalez (9-2, 3 KOs), from The Castle at Park Plaza
in Boston, Massachusetts.
The action-packed Nguyen, who was born in Bien Hoa, Vietnam and grew up
on the island of Maui, Hawaii, will meet a near mirror-image of himself
when he squares of with the straight-ahead style of the Guatemalan-born
Gonzalez. "This is a made for TV fight," stated promoter Rich Cappiello.
"Neither of these guys take a step backwards, and that promises to make
this a tremendous fight.
Cappiello, who is the promoter of both fighters, also stated that it is
a "testament to the character of these two fighters," referencing the
fact that the two stablemates were willing to climb in the ring with
each other, a rarity in boxing.
While both fighters are products of very successful amateur backgrounds,
Nguyen maintains an unblemished professional record, though Gonzalez has
undoubtedly faced the tougher opposition.
Gonzalez enters Wednesday night's clash off back-to-back unanimous
decision wins over veteran Priest "Tiger" Smalls (11-24-06) and Barbaro
Zepeda (2-23-07), both of which were televised live on the Telefutura
network. His last defeat came in February, 2006, when he suffered a
ninth-round TKO defeat at the hands of current USBA junior featherweight
champ, Mike "Machine Gun" Oliver.
Though Nguyen has not yet faced as stiff a level of opposition as has
Gonzalez, he has consistently won in impressive fashion. His tremendous
strength, coupled with a relentless, show-no-mercy body attack has had a
devastating affect on his opponents thus far. While four of his
respective 10 foes have managed to make it to the final bell with
Nguyen, they did so at a price, enduring tremendous punishment in
unanimous decision defeats.
While Nguyen is fully aware of the fact that Gonzalez will represent him
with his biggest challenge to date, he is confident in his ability.
"This is a step up for me," stated Nguyen. "Cappiello wanted me to step
up in my first TV fight, and that's what I'm going to do. Castulo is a
very tough guy, and he'll be right there in front of me, but I'm in
shape, I'm prepared, and I'm confident I'll win."
Nguyen-Gonzalez will air live at 9 PM ET, with the 12-round IBF junior
featherweight title elimination bout between Mike Oliver (19-0, 7KOs)
and Cruz Carbajal (28-13-2, 24 KOs) to headline, shortly thereafter.
Tickets, priced at $40, $60, and $100 are available by calling
508-586-2277. For more information visit www.cappielloboxing.com |
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