No trash-talk between friends
and Nov. 13 foes Brewer & Bundrage
November 6, 2008
PROVIDENCE (November 6, 2008) – The
Contender, Season Two winner, “Bad Boy” Grady Brewer, and third-place
finisher, Cornelius “K9” Bundrage, developed a strong friendship when
they were teammates on the 2006 television reality series. The bond
remains but has been temporarily put aside because Brewer and Bundrage
will battle November 13 in a 10-round IBO light middleweight eliminator
on the “Tough & Tested” card at the newly renovated Dunkin’ Donuts
Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
The 12-round main event for the vacant IBO super middleweight title pits
two-time world title challenger “The Pride of Providence” Peter Manfredo,
Jr., runner-up in Season One of The Contender, against Sakio “The
Scorpion” Bika, winner of The Contender, Season Three.
“Tough & Tested,” promoted by the Tournament of Contenders in
association with Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment and Sports,
Inc. (CES), will air nationally live on Versus television. The
co-promoters have called for a ‘Pink Out’ (everybody wearing something
colored pink) to show support for the Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer
Resource Foundation. A portion of the proceeds from ticket and T-shirt
sales will benefit the Gloria Gemma Foundation for research into early
breast cancer detection.
Brewer (23-11, 13 KOs), fighting out of Lawton, Oklahoma, sports a
misleading pro record because he took numerous short-notice fights in
the backyards of his opponents prior to joining The Contender.
Never-the-less, “Bad Boy” has registered impressive victories against
former world champion Steve Forbes in The Contender II finale, as well
as Anthony Thompson and Michael Stewart.
“We became good friends on The Contender and still are today,” Brewer
spoke about his relationship with Brundage, “but we’re not talking until
after this fight. I’ll wish him luck when I see him at the weigh-in and
I’m sure that he’ll wish me good luck, too. But our friendship can’t
interact with boxing until after this fight.
“I plan to use angles against him to stay away from his big right hand.
That’s his favorite punch. I’m sure he knows we’ve watched a lot of
types and he’s going to come out trying to prove that he’s more than a
one-handed fighter. But I think he’ll resort to his big right hand after
four or five rounds. We both were on The Contender and people are
intrigued by this match-up because we didn’t fight each other on the
show. We both have something to prove and fans are going to have a lot
of fun watching us fight. This is a great opportunity for both of us and
a big stepping-stone for the winner’s career. People don’t know who is
going to win but he will go on to the next level and fight for the IBO
title.”
Detroit native Bundrage (28-3, 16 KOs), rated No. 14 by the IBF, is
coming off of a win by 10-round decision last March against former IBF
title-holder Kassim Ouma. “K9” has also defeated Chris Smith and Michael
Clark, among the more notables.
“This was a tough fight to take because we’re such good friends,”
Bundrage commented. “We talked a little before The Contender, but then
we became friends. Grady took it first (the fight against Bundrage), so
I took it, too. He’s a proven veteran and good fighter. Grady’s a much
better fighter than his record may indicate. I’m always the underdog;
I’m motivated to prove that I’m one of the best fighters out there.
“This is definitely the biggest fight of my life, especially following
my win against Ouma. This fight is business and afterwards we’ll still
be good friends. I’ve prepared very hard for him. This is an IBO title
eliminator and we’ll let the chips fall where they may. The winner is
going to go on to even bigger things. Hey, I’m hungry and he already won
$500,000 (the winner’s purse for The Contender II). Now it’s my time.”
Manfredo (31-5, 16 KOs), the reigning NABF Interim champion, is the WBC
No. 13 rated super middleweight. Fighting in front of his hometown fans,
“The Pride of Providence” sports a perfect 16-0 (10 KOs) record in Rhode
Island, including 3-0 (3 KOs) in the same Providence building as his
Nov. 13th showdown against Bika. Manfredo’s five pro career losses have
all come at the hands of world champions.
IBF Pan Pacific super middleweight title-holder Bika (26-3-2. 16 KOs), a
2000 Cameroon Olympian now fighting out of Australia, won The Contender
III with a dramatic eighth round stoppage of Bridgeport, Connecticut
native Jaidon Codrington in the finale a year ago in Boston. Bika, rated
No. 4 by the IBF and No. 8 by The Ring magazine, hasn’t been stopped in
31 pro fights.
Codrington (18-2, 14 KOs), runner-up in Season Three of The Contender,
also is fighting on the card in a super middleweight Special Attraction.
Some of New England’s most talented and popular fighters are scheduled
to fight on the undercard including WBC World Youth and USNBC
featherweight champion Matt “Sharp Shooter” Remillard (15-0, 8 KOs),
super flyweight Isander “Peachy” Beauchamp (5-0, 2 KOs), Providence
light welterweight Jesus Caro (2-0, 2 KOs), and Pawtucket light
welterweight Diego Periera (1-0, 1 KO). All fights and fighters are
subject to change.
Tickets, priced at $18.00, $23.00, $58.00, $79.00, $107.00 and $222.00,
are on sale at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center Box Office (401.331.6700) or
through CES Boxing at 401.724.2253/2254.
