*Santa Monica, CA – The B. Riley FBR, Inc. 9th Annual “Big Fighters, Big Cause” Charity Boxing Night returned to the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel for a star-studded night of boxing presented by Golden Boy Promotions to benefit the Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation, and their mission to fund life-changing research, care & awareness for pediatric type 1 & 2 diabetes, and to help children live healthier lives through diet and exercise.
Emceed by actor and comedian Bill Bellamy, the night featured a national anthem performance by Kennedy Stephens, as well as a live and silent auction display, which included iconic memorabilia and other one-of-a-kind items and experiences to benefit the foundation. Additionally, the evening honored actor, comedian, and committed philanthropist, Cedric “The Entertainer” with the 2018 Golden Glove Award. The award was presented to him by Sugar Ray Leonard in recognition of Cedric’s numerous charitable endeavors, including his work with Step On Up™, the educational program shedding light on diabetic nerve pain, developed by Pfizer Inc. in collaboration with the American Diabetes Association.
Celebrities and Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation supporters in attendance included Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, Oscar de la Hoya, Arsenio Hall (Actor/Comedian), Catherine Bach (Actress), Chris Hale (Former NFL Player), Chris Tucker (Actor/Comedian), Holly Robinson Peete (Actress), Jimmy Jam, Johnny Gill (Actor/Recording Artist), Rodney Peete (Former NFL Player), Tommy Chong (Actor/Comedian), Daisy Lang (Boxer), and more.
Super featherweight prospect Jousce “Tito” Gonzalez (8-0, 8 KOs) of Glendora, Calif. scored a technical knockout victory at the end of the fourth round against Juan Sandoval (7-22-1, 4 KOs) in tonight’s main event.
“I’m happy with a victory but I think I should’ve done better in this fight. I feel I should’ve use my distance more and thrown straight punches. Next time I will use my job more and my footwork.”
Rising welterweight Aaron “Silencer” McKenna (4-0, 3 KOs) of Monaghan, Ireland defeated Darel Harris (1-2-1, 1 KO) of Sarasota, Florida via technical knockout after a cut, which was caused by a punch, forced the referee to stop the fight.
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“When I saw the blood, I wanted to go after him even more,” said Aaron McKenna. “Though I thought I was going to stop him in the next round, it was a good learning experience.”
Rommel Caballero (1-0-1) of Coachella, Calif. defeated Daniel Bastien (4-8, 1 KO) of Nuevo Leon, Mexico via unanimous decision across four rounds of lightweight action. Caballero won with three scores of 40-35.
“After the first body shot, I thought I was going to drop him,” said Rommell Caballero. “But he’s tough and stayed in there. I learned a lot from this fight and I’m happy it turned out better than the first bout.”
In the first bout of the evening, Oscar “El Motorcito” Acevedo (3-0) of Garden City, Kansas scored a four-round unanimous decision victory against Ricardo Fernandez (3-8-4) of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Acevedo won with three scores of 40-36.
“Out of all my previous opponents, he had the most fights,” said Oscar Acevedo. “That’s why it was a learning experience. It showed me where I am. Now I’m ready to come back and fix all my mistakes at the gym on Monday.”
About Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation
The Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation was established in 2009 by boxing legend and six-time world champion Sugar Ray Leonard and his wife, Bernadette. The Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation is committed to funding research and care for pediatric type 1 & 2 diabetes and creates awareness for both diseases. The Foundation also strives to help children live healthier lives through diet and exercise.
Type 1 diabetes strikes both children and adults at any age. It comes on suddenly, causes dependence on injected or pumped insulin for life, and carries the constant threat of devastating complications. Type 2 diabetes in children is on the rise, fueled largely by the obesity epidemic.
Leonard draws from his personal experience and boxing career to provide inspiration for funding research to combat the disease. For more information, visit www.sugarrayleonardfdn.org, like and follow on twitter at @SugarRayLeonard and Facebook at www.facebook.com/SugarRayLeonard6.
About B. Riley FBR, Inc.
- Riley FBR, Inc. is a leading investment bank which provides corporate finance, research and sales and trading to corporate, institutional and high net worth individual clients. Investment banking services include initial secondary and follow-on offerings, institutional private placements, merger and acquisitions advisory services and corporate restructuring. The firm is nationally recognized for its highly ranked proprietary equity research. Learn more about B. Riley FBR at www.brileyfbr.com.
- Riley Financial, Inc. is a publicly traded, diversified financial services company which takes a collaborative approach to the capital raising and financial advisory needs of public and private companies and high net worth individuals. The Company operates through several wholly-owned subsidiaries, including B. Riley FBR, Inc., Wunderlich Securities, Inc., Great American Group, LLC, B. Riley Capital Management, LLC (which includes B. Riley Asset Management, B. Riley Wealth Management, and Great American Capital Partners, LLC) and B. Riley Principal Investments, a group that makes proprietary investments in other businesses, such as the acquisition of United Online, Inc. To learn more, visit. www.brileyfin.com.
About Golden Boy Promotions
Los Angeles-based Golden Boy Promotions was established in 2002 by 10-time world champion in six divisions Oscar De La Hoya, the first Hispanic to own a national boxing promotional company. Golden Boy Promotions is one of boxing’s most active and respected promoters, presenting shows in packed venues around the world and has worked with networks such as HBO, Estrella TV, ESPN, TeleFutura, FOX Sports 1, FOX Deportes, Televisa and TV Azteca. The company has also promoted some of the top boxing events in the history of the sport including De La Hoya vs. Mayweather, Mayweather vs. Canelo, Canelo vs. Golovkin and other notable pay-per-view fights featuring fan-favorites Bernard Hopkins, Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Marco “Baby Faced Assassin” Antonio Barrera, Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Sugar Shane Mosley.
For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, follow on Instagram and Twitter at @GoldenBoyBoxing and like on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing.
source:
Christina Canseco
PMK•BNC
1840 Century Park East Suite 1400 | Los Angeles, CA 90067
[email protected]
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