SHOWTIME SPORTS TO SHOWCASE FIGHTS OF THE YEAR IN APRIL AS PART OF 30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
NEW YORK (April 6, 2016) – SHOWTIME Sports presents its latest installment of a year-long salute commemorating 30 years of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® with “Fights of the Year” in April on SHO EXTREME.
The fourth round of a 12-month tribute will be highlighted by four of the most rousing and unforgettable fights in boxing history:
- Jorge Castro vs. John David Jackson I – 1994 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year (Round 9 earned Round of the Year honors)
- Paulie Ayala vs. Johnny Tapia I – 1999 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year (Ayala earned Fighter of the Year honors)
- Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo I – 2005 Consensus Fight of the Year (Round 10 earned Round of the Year honors)
- Lucas Matthysse vs. John Molina Jr. – 2014 Boxing Writers Association of America Fight of the Year.
The four celebrated battles will air on “Throwback Thursdays” all month at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHO EXTREME and are available on SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, SHOWTIME ANYTIME® and via the network’s online streaming service. Each fight will be wrapped with brief context and commentary from SHOWTIME Sports ring announcer and International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Lennon Jr.
Below is the schedule of SHOWTIME EXTREME premieres for the month of April:
- Thursday, April 7: Jorge Castro vs. John David Jackson I
- Thursday, April 14: Lucas Matthysse vs. John Molina Jr.
- Thursday, April 21: Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo I
- Thursday, April 28: Paulie Ayala vs. Johnny Tapia I
Castro-Jackson I (Dec. 10, 1994, Castro KO 9) –Castro, thoroughly battered, bloodied and losing by a wide margin, rallies from the absolute brink of defeat to score three knockdowns in the ninth round to overcome Jackson in one of the most dramatic turnarounds ever.
Ayala-Tapia I (June 26, 1999, Ayala W 12) – In some of the fiercest two-way action in the history of Las Vegas boxing, southpaw Ayala hands Tapia his first professional loss in 49 fights and captures the WBA bantamweight title by the scores of 115-114 and 116-113 twice. Game On: As the boxers were being announced, Tapia walked across the ring and shoved Ayala causing a momentary skirmish.
Diego Corrales-Jose Luis Castillo I (May 7, 2005, Corrales TKO 10) -- After nine intense, back-and-forth rounds, Corrales accomplishes the unthinkable, miraculously regrouping from two knockdowns in the 10th to stop Castillo in the same round (2:06) and etch his spot in boxing lore. After managing to beat the count (and lose a point for excessive spitting out of the mouthpiece), Corrales got Castillo on the ropes and connected with a huge right hand. He continued to unload and Castillo got nailed with a bundle of vicious punches. Moments later, the ref stopped it.
Lucas Matthysse-John Molina Jr. (April 26, 2014, Matthysse KO 11) -- A bloody slugfest, in which both fighters were knocked down multiple times, became an instant classic. Matthysse who went down in the second and fifth rounds, came back with a late-fight onslaught to wear down and drop Molina in the eighth, 10th and 11th rounds. The tremendous brawl was as brutal as it was exciting and more compelling to witness than anyone could have imagined.
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