Griffin-Mack IBF Eliminator tops New Years Bash January 7! For Immediate Release Minneapolis, MN (December 27, 2010) USBA Light Heavyweight titlist Otis Triple OG Griffin and Yusaf Mack will battle it out to become IBF champion Tavoris Clouds mandatory challenger when they meet Friday, January 7 in the main event of New Years Bash from the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Minneapolis. The card is presented by Seconds Out Promotions in association with Brewer Sports International and tickets start at $30. Griffin, who won Oscar De La Hoyas reality show The Next Great Champ owns a solid 23-6-2 pro ledger with 9 wins by way of knockout. The Sacramento, CA native has shared the squared circle with the likes of Danny Green, Jeff Lacy, Marcus Oliveira, Enad Licina and Jesse Brinkley. Last May, Griffin won the USBA belt with a shocking eighth round knockout of two time WBA Super Middleweight champion Byron Mitchell. Mack, 28-3-2 (17 KOs), is universally recognized as a player in the light heavyweight division that has fought some of the worlds best. Born and bred in the fighting city of Philadelphia, PA, Mack holds impressive victories title challengers Chris Henry and DeAndrey Abron while falling just short against Glen Johnson, Alejandro Berrio and Librado Andrade. This is going to be an outstanding fight and the fans are in for a real treat, said Promoter Tony Grygelko of Seconds Out Promotions. Both men have been in the ring with top fighters and the winner will be one victory away from becoming an elite light heavyweight. Griffin-Mack is scheduled for 12 rounds. Unbeaten junior lightweight Ismail Sharp Shooter Mudendo will look to move to 8-0 with 7 knockouts when he faces an opponent to be named in the six round co-feature. The Minneapolis based Ugandan is regarded as one of the Midwests best prospects and at age 22 has plenty of time to develop. Also appearing on the undercard will be former amateur star Javonte Starks (4-0, 4 KOs), Charles Meier (4-1-1, 2 KOs), the pro debuts of Mellissa Littlejohn and Tristan McNutt in separate bouts and two mixed martial arts featuring local favorites. Tickets can be ordered by going to soboxing.com or calling 612-807-5547. Doors open at 7 PM and the first bell is scheduled for 8.
Otis Griffin is ****. Yusaf Mack is slightly less ****. Goddamn it I wanna see Cloud fight someone good now.
Maybe he will. He just fought a couple weeks ago I highly doubt they're shoulders deep in any serious negotiations. Is he required to fight Mack/Griffin as the next opponent? Two bad things happened for Cloud. The first thing that happened was he was less than exceptional against Zuniga. The second thing was Hopkins found the fountain of youth again so not only might there be a Pascal-Dawson rematch...there might be a Pascal-Hopkins rematch as well. There's always hope that he can fight Diaconu or maybe an Erdei or Campillo. He has a lot of work to do though.
Right, and if Cloud winds up being forced to take the Griffin-Mack winner or lose his belt he'll almost have to make that defense because he isn't a name and his IBF belt is the only leverage he has. but I worry that Cloud isn't going to develop and grow as a fighter if he keeps fighting lower level boxers. (Diaconu or Campillo would be good tests for Cloud)
I definitely share those same concerns (though he did beat Glen Johnson this year, who I consider good). I'm really hoping he lands not necessarily a BIG fight like Pascal or Hopkins, but at least a noticeable fight(Campillo, Diaconu, Erdei) against a quality opponent to build his name up.