Wednesday, January 19, 2011
When: Feb. 19. First bout starts at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6.
Where: Byzantine Center, 3801 Shady Run Road, Youngstown
Main event: Jake “The Bull” Giuriceo (9-0-1, 2 KOs) of Campbell vs. Angel Hernandez (14-8, 11 KOs) of Gary, Ind., six-round light welterweight
Co-main event: Dannie Williams (15-1, 13 KOs) of St. Louis vs. TBA, six-round lightweight
Other featured fighters: Aaron Dufour (2-1) of Ashtabula, light heavyweight; Michael Moore (6-0) of Cleveland, light middleweight; Anthony Pietrantonio (9-8) of Youngstown, light heavyweight; Derrick Moss (0-0) of Cleveland, lightweight
Tickets: Can be purchased at Buena Vista Cafe in Warren, the Byzantine Center, Check-N-Go in Youngstown, Patsy’s Bar in Campbell, Up a Creek Tavern in Warren, Southside Boxing Club in Youngstown, Bedford Trails in Coistville, Wine Cellar in Youngstown.
For more details: Call Mike Cefalde (330-787-4228) or Tom Kordell (330-717-4201).
Vindicator staff report
By Joe Scalzo
BOARDMAN
Finally, a winter storm you can look forward to.
Valley favorite Jake “The Bull” Giuriceo and Youngstown transplant Dannie Williams will headline the professional boxing show “Winter Storm” on Feb. 19 at the Byzantine Center.
It will be the fifth fight in 12 months for Giuriceo, who will meet Angel Hernandez of Gary, Ind., in the main event, a six-round light welterweight bout. Hernandez (14-8, 11 KOs) has lost his last five fights.
“He’s a really dangerous kid for us,” said Giuriceo, a Campbell High graduate. “It’ll be a step up in class for me for sure.”
Giuriceo (9-0-1, 2 KOs) has won four straight fights after battling to a draw with Henry White Jr. in December, 2009. This will be his sixth fight in the Valley, where he is a fan favorite.
“I love the crowd we draw here, I love the fans here and I love fighting here,” he said. “I’d fight all my fights here if I could.”
Giuriceo’s trainer, Keith Burnside, said they hope to jump from six-rounders to eight-rounders after this bout.
“I think he’s ready for that,” Burnside said. “This is a good stepping stone for us. Hopefully we’ll be 10-0 and just going from there.”
Williams (15-1, 13 KOs), a St. Louis native, will fight in the Valley for the second time. He also fought on a Giuriceo undercard in June of 2009.
Williams has won three straight but hasn’t fought since July of 2010, due to a combination of a leg injury and several fights falling through. His trainer, Jack Loew, is still finalizing his opponent for the Feb. 19 bout but he’s got a busy few months ahead.
Williams is promoted locally by Rumble Time and nationally by Lou DiBella, who is expected to put the lightweight on the undercard of Sergio Martinez’s bout on March 12. Martinez defeated Kelly Pavlik to win the middleweight titles last April.
If he wins the next two fights, Williams will fight for the NABF title on April 14 in St. Louis.
“He’s following the same path Kelly followed,” Loew said. “He can punch and that’s the key that takes you to that next level. You can be down 11 rounds to nothing and in one punch, the fight’s over.
“That’s the difference in Dannie and some of the other guys in the lightweight division.”
Williams said he wants to put on a good show in Youngstown to help him develop a local following.
“I want to get a fan base so when another fight comes up, everybody will know who I am,” he said.