SATURDAY, SEPT. 29, FROM MIAMI, FLORIDA, AT 9 PM ET/PT
Brazilian KO Artist Faces Tough Test Against Former World Champion Alfred Kotey; Saturday’s Tripleheader Will Include World Title Defenses By Joel Casamayor, Steve Forbes
NEW YORK (Sept. 26, 2001) – Undefeated World Boxing Organization (WBO) Junior Lightweight Champion Acelino Freitas seeks his 30th consecutive knockout victory when he meets former WBO titleholder Alfred Kotey in a 10-round non-title bout Saturday, Sept. 29, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING at 9 PM ET/PT from the Miccosukee Indian Gaming Resort in Miami, Fla. In 130-pound world title fights, Joel Casamayor (25-0, 15 KOs) will make his fourth defense when he takes on Joe Morales (17-5, 4 KOs) and once-beaten Steve Forbes (19-1, 5 KOs) will make his first defense in a rematch against second-ranked John Brown (23-8, 11 KOs). America Presents Boxing, LLC will promote the fight card in association with Banner Promotions.
Freitas (29-0, 29 KOs), of Salvador, Brazil, has not put in a full night’s work since turning pro on July 14, 1995. The prolific puncher’s fights last an average of 2.86 rounds. A living legend in his homeland, Freitas has won 22 of his fights inside three rounds. Nineteen of his opponents have fallen in the first or second. None of his outings have exceeded nine rounds. Freitas, who turned 26 on Sept. 21, captured the WBO 130-pound title on Aug. 7, 1999, and has made six successful defenses. He registered a ninth-round TKO over Carlos Rios in his SHOWTIME debut on Sept. 23, 2000. Freitas also scored a first-round TKO over Daniel Alicea in a Dec. 16, 2000, non-title bout on SHOWTIME. In his last contest on Jan. 27, 2001, Freitas stopped Orlando Soto in the first round to retain his title. By the time he won the WBO title in his 21st fight, Freitas already had collected four minor titles at 135 pounds.
Kotey (24-7-1, 15 KOs), of Bukom, Ghana, has never been knocked out, nor has he lost inside the distance. Kotey, who captured the WBO bantamweight crown with a 12-round decision over Rafael Del Valle on July 30, 1994, made two successful title defenses before Daniel Jimenez dethroned the champion on Oct. 21, 1995. In his last outing, Kotey scored a sixth-round TKO over Anthony Maynard to win the vacant World Boxing Federation Intercontinental lightweight title on April 7, 2001. The Ghana native has fought some of the most talented boxers in his weight class, including former world champions Guty Espadas, Jimenez and Julio Borboa, as well as top contenders Juan Manuel Marquez and Armando Castro.
SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING’S Steve Albert and former world champion Bobby Czyz will call the action from ringside. The executive producer of the SHOWTIME telecast is Jay Larkin with Ray Smaltz producing and Bob Dunphy directing.
Photo: TOM CASINO/SHOWTIME
