JERSEY NIXES TIM SYLVA-RAY MERCER BOXING BOUT

[Shogun Locc]

A boxing “superfight” of sorts between former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia and former WBO heavyweight boxing champion Ray Mercer has been struck from Adrenaline III on May 30 at the Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.

Adrenaline promoter Monte Cox alerted MMAWeekly.com of the change late Monday evening.

The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board has refused to sanction the headlining bout, according to Commissioner Nick Lembo, though he declined to comment on the decision.

Adrenaline III will go on as an all-MMA card, and several replacements for the main event are under consideration, including Jeremy Horn.

Adrenaline promoter Monte Cox is currently searching for another venue to host the Sylvia/Mercer tilt, and indicated June as a possibility for the rescheduled event.

The bout with Mercer is to serve as Sylvia’s professional boxing debut, having served an eight-year career in mixed martial arts that lead him to the pinnacle of the sport, twice serving as UFC heavyweight champion.

Forty-seven-year-old Mercer is 36-7-1 as a professional boxer, a gold medal winner in the 1988 Olympics and a former WBO heavyweight champion. Mercer dipped his toes into MMA waters in 2007 with an exhibition bout against Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson, losing by submission early in the first round. His last fight was a boxing match last September in Sweden, where he won a decision over Richel Hersisia.

The fight was originally under consideration as an MMA bout, but in earlier comments to MMAWeekly.com, Cox decided a boxing match would be more competitive.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

damn, mercer is still fighting?? He's damn near 50. He may still actually win though (if they can get the fight to happen), I don't think Tim Sylvia is much of a boxer based on what I've seen from him but then again Mercer is damn near 50!

He was a beast in his prime though, ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITE "YOU GOT KNOCKED THE FUCK OUT" moments:

(make sure to watch the slow motion replay at 1:20)

 

[lenbiasyayo]

^^ unfair fight to beat the shit outta a full blown aids guy

 

[2-0-Sixx]

^^he didn't have aids at that point. That was in 1991 when Tommy Morrison was 28-0 and in his prime, that was his first defeat against Mercer. Morrison went on to beat George Foreman two years later, went undefeated for a few year stretch.

He didn't get HIV until 1995/1996.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Sylvia-Mercer Bout Moved to Alabama

The proposed Tim Sylvia-Ray Mercer boxing match that the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board refused to sanction has apparently found a new home.

Speaking with Sherdog.com, promoter Monte Cox announced the six-round heavyweight fight would be rescheduled for June 13 in Alabama as the main event of Adrenaline III. The hybrid boxing-mixed martial arts event will be held at the 17,000-seat BJCC arena in Birmingham.

Cox confirmed that Alabama does not have a regulatory body to oversee the fight.

Sylvia, 33, a former UFC heavyweight champion, will be making his professional boxing debut against the 1988 Olympic gold medalist.

Mercer, who piled up a 36-7-1 record over his 20-year boxing career, is a former WBO heavyweight champion who has also fought in K-1 as well as dabbling in MMA. The 47-year-old dropped his only MMA match, a bout sanctioned as an exhibition in New Jersey, to Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Adrenaline MMA III: Sylvia vs. Mercer boxing match to be held in MMA cage

The previously announced "Adrenaline III: Sylvia vs. Mercer" headline boxing match between former MMA champion Tim Sylvia and boxing champ Ray Mercer will be held in a mixed-martial-arts cage, Adrenaline MMA CEO Monte Cox confirmed in a Thursday press conference in Birmingham, Ala.

The same city hosts the June 13 Adrenaline MMA event, which features a headline six-round boxing match between Sylvia, a former longtime UFC champ, and Mercer, an Olympic gold medalist and WBO heavyweight boxing champion.

The night's undercard will consist of a full MMA fight card, so largely for logistical reasons, the headliners will box in a cage.

The event takes place at the 19,000-capacity Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Arena.

"It just makes sense on so many levels, and it adds another twist to the main event," Cox stated in reference to the cage.

Cox moved the fight to Alabama after the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board refused to approve the fight, which was initially targeted for Atlantic City. Alabama does not have a regulatory commission to sanction the fight, but as MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) recently reported, Cox insisted the NJSAC's decision was not the reason for selecting the new locale. The longtime promoter instead said a "big sponsor" was the reason for the change.

Sylvia, meanwhile, wants to prove that his stand-up is just as good as any boxer's, and he's hopeful he could launch a second career with a strong showing over his veteran opponent.

"It's time that boxers learn that the guys in MMA are pretty good with their hands, too," stated Sylvia, who's 1-3 in his past four MMA fights. "This could open up a whole new career for me. I hope that beating Mercer will open the eyes of some boxing promoters."

Mercer, a 1988 Olympic gold medalist, is 36-7 with 26 KOs and most recently defeated Richel Hersisia (30-2). The 48-year-old faces Sylvia, 33, who makes his professional boxing debut.

Although Adrenaline MMA has a broadcast deal with HDNet, the all-high-definition cable station does not currently have plans to air the event.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

"It just makes sense on so many levels" Cox stated in reference to the cage.

No, it fuckin doesn't!!

Since there is no regulatory body to oversee the fight in Alabama, and since the fight will be in a cage, does it even count as a Professional Boxing match? I don't think it would. This is an expedition match (sorry if the article mentioned that, I didn't catch it).

 

[MOREBASS]

I'd watch it if they aired it at the same time as they air MASH.