By Marlon Munroe
Following the US Embassy’s refusal to grant Guyanese boxer ‘Deadly’ Denny Dalton a visa so he could travel there to keep his ring date with Hector Camacho Jr. for the vacant World Boxing Federation Intercontinental middleweight title, the fight will now be held here at the Princess Hotel on June 5.
Dalton, who was scheduled to battle Camacho, who has a record of 51 victories from 56 fights, at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut, USA, last Saturday, was denied a visa.
It is unclear what the reasons were for the denial, but Stabroek Sport was told by promoter of the fight Seon Bristol that Dalton was told to reapply at another time.
Bristol, who owns BrisO Promotions, said that while money was lost through the promotion of the fight in the USA, he was still eager to have the fight go on.
He told Stabroek Sport that he sees this event as an investment in the local promotion of boxing, talent and Guyana.
When Stabroek Sport enquired whether the other bouts will materialise he said that there will have to be other negotiations for those bouts.
He also pointed out that the main focus at the moment was the Dalton/Camacho bout, which would have been the main event at last Saturday’s card.
With this in mind, he said he made alternative arrangements to have the fight held in Guyana and duly asked Camacho if he was prepared to fight here.
He stated that the Puerto Rican answered in the affirmative and BrisO Promotions entered into negotiations with the hotel management and a deal was reached for the event to be held there.
Stabroek Sport was told that the cost for the preparation lies in the region of US$100,000 after negotiations with the hotel.
Yesterday, Bristol and General Manager of the Princess Hotel Muharren Kulekci wrapped up negotiation talks for the June 5 event.
Stabroek Sport was also informed of an intention to collaborate with Mc Neal Promotions to have the Shondel ‘Mystery Lady’ Alfred/Corrine ‘Sexy Panther’ De Groot world title rematch on the same card. However, at the moment the two promotional companies are negotiating the wisdom of such an alliance.
Bristol thinks that this can be a good promotional move especially with the calibre of fighters who will be on show.
He noted that the Princess Hotel was chosen because of its ambience and was the most appropriate venue for a boxing match of that magnitude. Bristol also indicated that the aim was to promote a card of world class standards.
Meanwhile, should this upcoming event have all the trimmings of an international production, it can definitely consolidate the long term arrangements between BrisO Promotion and the Foxwoods Resort Casino for the promotion of Guyanese fighters at home and abroad. Initially, when the partnership was brokered between Foxwoods representative, Don Lewis, and BrisO Promotions it was agreed the success of the first card banked on the support that would have been given to the May 7 event.
Also on last Saturday’s card would have been Dalton’s compatriots Gwendolyn ‘Stealth Bomber’ O’Neil, Guyana’s first female world champion, fighting USA’s Crystal Davis for the vacant WIBA heavyweight title in the main supporting bout. Additionally, USBA light middleweight champion Raul Frank would have been challenging Dave Saunders.
Bristol had also told this publication that he was attempting to get opponents for Lennox ‘Too Sharp’ Allen and Elton ‘The Real Coolie Bully’ Dharry but it was problematic at the time.
Apart from the Guyanese, Melissa Hernandez of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic’s Cassy Hernandez were scheduled to fight for the WIBA super featherweight title.
Pay-per-view
Bristol, who holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Organisational Management, told this newspaper that there are systems in place for a live internet pay-per-view audience. He said that he has a contract in North America that he is currently working with to set up the system so that persons can view the fight via the worldwide web.
He said that a PayPal account will be set up and persons outside of Guyana will be able to view the fight for a reasonable cost. He revealed also that companies can buy television rights and this too will also add to the international flavour of the card.
PayPal is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. PayPal serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as cheques and money orders and has been involved in many cases of litigation concerning fraud scams.
