Russell ready to floor ‘Michi’ early
Calling it “a fight made in heaven”, Jamaica’s Kemahl ‘The Hitman’ Russell says he is ready to punch down Mexican Jorge ‘Michi’ Munoz when he defends his North American Boxing Federation (NABF) middleweight belt in front of his home crowd on a Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum (Wray Rum)-sponsored card set to begin at 7:00 pm at the National Arena tomorrow.
The eight-round boxing matchup will be the feature of eight, and doubles as the launch of Season Eight for the hugely popular Wray and Nephew Contender boxing series.
“I feel good about the fight, I feel ready. I’ve been ready from last month, before the fight was pushed back and this month I’m even more ready because I got more time to prepare for the fight, so I’m definitely in one of the best shape I’ve been in a while and yea, it’s showtime!” admitted a confident-sounding Russell.
The fight is scheduled to last eight rounds, but Russell has no plan to go the distance.
“Normally I wouldn’t give a prediction, but for this fight I think Michi is the perfect match. I’m not putting anything past him, but I think this fight will be stopped in one of the rounds,” he said.
“I don’t know which round, but I think the fight will be stopped somewhere in the middle rounds, somewhere in the early rounds. It depends on how he takes the punches, but the fight will be stopped,” added Russell.
The Jamaican is a former champion in the made-for-TV Wray and Nephew Contender Series, where he experienced much growth and exposure before moving overseas to Holyfield’s Real Deal camp.
In September last year, Russell won the Junior NABF middleweight crown by beating American Ian Green at the Resorts World Casino in Queens, New York.
The 36-year-old Munoz, known as ‘The Mexican Sensation’, once held the North American Boxing Council (NABC) light middleweight title. His record shows 33 fights as a professional, with 26 wins, 17 of which have come by way of knockout. He has seven losses.
Russell has been taking notes on his opponent and believes the Mexican’s inability to withstand pressure is another factor leaning in his favour.
“Michi has problems with pressure fighters, boxers who can apply pressure, and I’m that type of boxer. So it’s a match made in heaven for me,” he said.
“I’m in the best shape and I’m ready to go on Friday.”
Also numbered on the showcase are Jamaican professionals, fan favourites Sakima Mullings, a two-time Wray & Nephew Contender champion and Tsetsi ‘Lights Out’ Davis, a two-time Wray and Nephew Contender finalist.
Mullings, popularly referred to as ‘Mr Smooth’, will fight Guyana’s Edmund DeClou in a super welterweight bout over eight rounds.
Davis will fight Canada’s Christopher Pearsons over six rounds in one of the night’s three middleweight clashes. Deandre Ware and Kwesi Jones make up the middleweight pairings.
An all-female clash, a bantamweight showdown between Italian Federico Bianco and Guyana’s Rewinna David, is also scheduled, with male bantamweights Lawrence Newton and Rudolph Hedges completing the overseas line-up.