Fist Power to hit Chinese screens

Big-time boxing will take the plunge into China's mainstream sports with the Aug 26 debut of Fist Power: Fight to Win, a weekly hour of prime-time pugilism sponsored by Sands China Ltd and promoted by Top Rank, SECA and G-Sports.

Televised nationwide via regional carriers, the premiere will feature unbeaten Dalian prospect Ik Yang (15-0, 9 KOs) in a 10-round junior welterweight match against Thailand's Sukkasem Kietyongyth (13-2, 8 KOs) live from the Mercedes-Benz Center in Shanghai.

The co-main event will be a junior flyweight showdown between Randy Petalcorin (21-1-1, 16 KOs) of the Philippines and Panama's Walter Tello (20-7, 8 KOs) for the World Boxing Association's vacant interim world championship.

Zou Shiming, China's double Olympic gold medalist (2008 and 2012) who is represented by SECA and promoted by Top Rank, is a potential challenger for the winner of the Petalcorin-Tello match - perhaps as soon as November, in Macao.

"I am excited to be the main fighter on the debut live telecast of Fist Power. I am not going to disappoint my supporters." Yang told fightnews.com on Friday.

Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum has made it his mission to have the show replicate the glitz and glamor of championship cards in North America.

"We can't wait to go to Shanghai to present this world-class boxing event," Arum told the website.

"We believe the show should share the same spectacular features as our Top Rank-produced events where great fighters like Manny Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto, Zou Shiming and Vasyl Lomachenko have fought. Production values, including lighting effects and background music, will absolutely meet the standards developed by Top Rank."

For Zou, the show is a dream come true.

"Everybody knows that winning world titles is my dream, but I have an even bigger dream - to promote boxing in China," he said when Fist Power was officially announced in May.

"The launch of the television program is a big step towards my dream and a major milestone in the development of professional boxing in China. I will also be very actively involved in the development of the series, including giving boxing tips and an insider's view of the pro scene."

G-Sports, the Shanghai-based sport channel, plans to produce a documentary about the historic debut.

"Sands China fully supports Chinese professional sports, which is why the Venetian Macao hosts professional boxing events to bring Chinese fighters like Zou Shiming, Yang Lianhui, Rex Tso and K.K. Ng to an international stage to show their skills and help them improve," said Edward Tracy, president and CEO of Sands China Ltd. "With a population of 1.4 billion, China is home to many enthusiastic fight fans. We are confident it is an attractive choice to host boxing events while helping to develop new talent."

SECA CEO Li Sheng echoed those sentiments: "We are signing skilled boxers to give them opportunities to fight and we support both Zou and Yang to achieve their dreams of winning world titles."

Six boxers from SECA's stable will fight on the debut card, including unbeaten light heavyweight Zhou Yunfei (2-0), the bronze medalist at last year's National Games.

murraygreig@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 08/18/2014 page23)