ESPN 11/16 Maurice Hooker vs Alex Saucedo (WBO 140 title)

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The “Red River Rivalry” is coming to Russell Westbrook’s house.

Dallas native Maurice “Mighty Mo” Hooker will make the first defense of his WBO junior welterweight world title on Friday, Nov. 16 against No. 1 contender and Oklahoma City product Alex “El Cholo” Saucedo at the Chesapeake Energy Arena, home of the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder.

Hooker-Saucedo will headline a special one-fight telecast live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at midnight ET/9 p.m. PST. The soon-to-be announced undercard will stream live at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+ — the new multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Roc Nation Sports and Matchroom Boxing USA, tickets for this world championship event will go on sale Friday, Oct. 5 at 10 a.m. CDT. Priced at $250, $150, $75, $50, and $35, tickets may be purchased at the Chesapeake Energy Arena box office, online at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster outlets, or by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

“On Nov. 16, I’m turning his dream into a nightmare,” Hooker said. “He will find out why I am world champion. I don’t care where I fight. The ring is my home. I’m gonna punch him in the mouth, Mexican style!”

“On behalf of Roc Nation Sports and Matchroom Boxing, our co-promoter with Maurice, I am over-the- top excited about this great matchup between Maurice Hooker and Alex Saucedo,” said Roc Nation Sports Promoter Dino Duva. “It has fight of the year written all over it. It’s a top-notch cross-state rivalry and is a very personal grudge match. Saucedo is a very tough kid, but I’m very confident in Maurice. He’s getting better and better with every fight, so I can’t wait to watch ‘Mighty Mo’ bring home the victory again. He will continue his journey to superstardom and prove he’s the best 140-pounder in the world.”

“I am very excited for this huge opportunity at home,” Saucedo said. “It doesn’t get better than fighting for the title in front of the home crowd. It’s a blessing. There’s a big rivalry between Texas and Oklahoma, so I know the Chesapeake Energy Arena is going to be packed. I want that title around my waist and to represent Oklahoma City with pride. Only one world champion has come from my city. I am going to be the second.”

Alex Saucedo is a tremendous, world-class fighter,” said Top Rank CEO Bob Arum. “Maurice Hooker is a worthy champion, but Alex will have the home crowd on his side in what promises to be an incredible atmosphere. Oklahoma City loves Alex, and the arena is going to be packed to the rafters to watch him make history. This fight, which will be held the night before the Oklahoma Sooners face Kansas at home, will attract thousands to the Chesapeake Energy Arena.”

Hooker (24-0-3, 16 KOs), a seven-year pro, compiled a 97-7 amateur record. Following a draw in his professional debut, he won 12 consecutive bouts before fighting to a hard-fought, eight-round draw against Abel Ramos in a nationally televised bout. Hooker has won three consecutive bouts since his third draw, a 10-rounder versus Darleys Perez on the undercard of the first bout between Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev. In his last bout, on June 9, he punched his passport for the second time as a pro and traveled to Manchester, England, to face hometown hero Terry Flanagan for the vacant WBO junior welterweight title. Hooker controlled the distance and was effective as the counter puncher, earning the split decision in hostile territory.

Saucedo (28-0, 18 KOs) moved from Mexico to Oklahoma City when he was 7 years old and grew up only a few miles from Chesapeake Energy Arena. A decorated amateur, he signed a professional contract with Top Rank at 17 years old and turned pro on Nov. 19, 2011 with a first-round TKO against Cedric Sheppard. An Oklahoma kid with Hollywood connections, Saucedo is managed by Churchill Management Group, which counts Mark Wahlberg and Peter Berg among its investors. It was on June 30 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena that Saucedo earned a shot at Hooker’s title. On that night, he fought the tough Australian Lenny Zappavigna, rebounding from nearly getting stopped in the fourth round to knock out Zappavigna in the seventh round in one of the year’s best fights. If he beats Hooker, he will become only the second Oklahoma City product to win a world title. Sean O’Grady made Oklahoma City boxing history on April 12, 1981, scoring a unanimous decision against Hilmer Kenty in Atlantic City to win the WBA lightweight crown. Nearly four decades after the “Bubblegum Kid” tasted world championship glory, Saucedo wants to make a little OKC fistic history of his own.
 

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Hooker: An Old Midget Hurt Saucedo; Being Tough Won't Be Enough

By Keith Idec

Maurice Hooker issued a warning for those impressed with how Alex Saucedo came back from serious trouble to knock out Lenny Zappavigna.

“First, he fought a midget,” Hooker told BoxingScene.com. “The midget hurt him, but couldn’t put him out. I’m a big guy. I’ve got power in both hands.”

Australia’s Zappavigna, who’s generously listed at 5-feet-7, hurt Saucedo badly during the fourth round of their June 30 fight in Oklahoma City. Those three minutes mostly amounted to target practice for Zappavigna, but the resilient Saucedo survived that onslaught and stopped a battered, bloodied Zappavigna during the seventh round.

“I thought Alex Saucedo was gonna knock him out in the first two rounds,” said Hooker, who stands 5-feet-11, one inch taller than Saucedo. “I thought it was just a stay-busy fight. I didn’t think he would have as much problems as he had. The guy was short, he was old. I thought Alex Saucedo would just go in there and beat that guy up.”

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As difficult as that fight was for Saucedo (28-0, 18 KOs), it earned the undefeated contender a shot at Hooker’s WBO junior welterweight title.

They’ll fight Friday night in a 12-round, 140-pound championship match ESPN will televise from Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Saucedo’s hometown. Hooker-Saucedo will be a one-bout broadcast, scheduled to start at midnight ET/9 p.m. PT.

“He’s tough and he keeps coming,” Hooker said. “That’s it, you know? Like in his last fight, he was tough. But being tough ain’t gonna win you the fight. He’s not gonna beat me.”

Hooker and Saucedo sparred against each other many times eight years ago. At that time, they both were managed by Arnie Verbeek and trained out of the Maple Avenue Boxing Gym in Hooker’s native Dallas.

“We were both young,” Hooker said. “We were just fighting on the inside, going toe-to-toe on the inside. I can’t take much from that sparring because we were young. He’s grown. He’s a better fighter now and I’m a better fighter now. And it’s gonna be a lot different.”

The taller, longer Hooker expects to keep the aggressive Saucedo at a distance in the first defense of his title.

“I’m gonna go in there and fight my fight,” Hooker said. “He ain’t gonna fight his fight. I’m not gonna fight him in close. It’s gonna be a good fight. Anything he gonna try and do, it’s not gonna work. I’m gonna fight my style. It’s gonna be a good fight because he’s gonna keep coming. He’s gonna leave himself available for my shots.”
 

patscorpio

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Don’t know much about these guys, will be tuning in

maurice hooker won the wbo 140 belt against terry flanagan on the undercard of tyson fury's last fight




in his last fight alex saucedo had a bloodbath with lenny z that he won on the undercard for zurdo-angulo on espn..round of the year candidate..fight of the year

 
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