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Rocha vs. Young Final Press Conference
In the lead up to his NABO Welterweight Title defense,
Alexis “Lex” Rocha (22-1, 14 KOs) and his opponent Anthony
“Juice” Young (24-2, 8 KOs) hosted a press conference at
Fantasy Springs Resort Casino ahead of their scheduled
12-round fight on Saturday, May 27. Fighters from the DAZN
undercard and the Golden Boy Fight Night: Rocha vs. Young
Prelims, which are streamed live on YouTube, also
participated.
In addition, the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation made a $30K
donation to the Lee Espinoza Coachella Valley Boxing Club.
The donation was accepted by club owner and legendary
trainer Librado “Lee” Espinoza who has been recognized not
only by Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D. for his work with boxers
in the valley but has been inducted into the West Coast
Boxing Hall of Fame and the California Boxing Hall of Fame.
Doors to the Special Events Center will open at 4:00 p.m.,
the Golden Boy YouTube Channel stream begins at 4:00 p.m.
PT/ 7:00 p.m. ET, and the DAZN broadcast begins at 6:00 p.m.
PT / 9:00 p.m. ET.
Here is what today's participants had to say:
ALEXIS “LEX” ROCHA - NABO WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION:
"I am not much of a trash talker either. My respects to him.
Whatever his thoughts are, that's good for him. I am
confident in my ability. I am confident in myself. You'll
find out about who I am on Saturday night. I hope he brings
this same kind of energy into the ring on Saturday."
ANTHONY “JUICE” YOUNG - WELTERWEIGHT FIGHTER:
"I looked at the odds again, and they're kind of
disrespectful - they got me 8-1 underdog. The last time they
did that, we shocked the world. I plan to do that again. I
didn't come here to lose; I am not with the script. They
built him up good: 22 wins, a couple of tough fights, one
step-up fight didn't go too well. I am going to win on
Saturday."
MELVIN “GRINGO” JERUSALEM, WBO MINIMUMWEIGHT CHAMPION:
"Good afternoon everyone. I am very grateful for this
opportunity. I want to thank Golden Boy Promotions for this
fight. I am excited to see my opponent today. We will see
you all on Saturday night."
OSCAR “EL PUPILO” COLLAZO, MINIMUMWEIGHT WORLD TITLE
CONTENDER:
"Thank you everyone for coming. Thank you to Oscar, Golden
Boy Promotions, and Miguel Cotto Promotions for making this
fight happen. Thank you for this opportunity to make
history, history for Puerto Rico, the opportunity to become
one of the fastest to become a world champion. We're feeling
very good about this. I earned this, and you're going to see
it this Saturday."
OSCAR DUARTE, LIGHTWEIGHT FIGHTER:
"I am very happy, I am very excited for this fight, for this
opportunity. I am ready for this Saturday. I will win. Thank
you, everybody."
JOHN “SCRAPPY” RAMIREZ, SUPER FLYWEIGHT FIGHTER:
"You already know, get your popcorn ready. I am not here to
take part, I am here to take over. Some people feel some
type of way by the way I move but I am just a man on a
mission. Saturday Night I am going to make a statement, mark
my words."
OSCAR DE LA HOYA, CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS:
"I have known Lee for many years; his son, Ruben Espinoza,
would beat me up all the time in the amateurs. On behalf of
the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation, I would like to present
this $30,000 check to the Coachella Valley Boxing Club. To
the young fighters here from his gym, the fighters who sit
at the dais started their love for the sport of boxing
through the local gym like the one Lee has given his life
to."
"It is an honor and pleasure to be here at Fantasy Springs.
We've had a lot of successful fights here, and we thank you
for your hospitality."
"I firmly believe that this Saturday’s fight card will leave
a mark in boxing. From top to bottom, we have historic world
championship matchups, world title contenders and newly
signed Golden Boy Prospects that I believe are going to
shake up their respective divisions."
LIBRADO “LEE” ESPINOZA, FOUNDER OF THE COACHELLA VALLEY
BOXING CLUB:
Thank you, Oscar and Thank you to your organization for the
support. Thanks to Golden Boy for supporting Coachella
Valley boxing.
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