Rainone Wants to Have His Birthday Cake and Eat it Too!

Today being his 35th birthday and having just weighed in at a rough-and-ready 146.8 lbs. for his showdown against Dusty Hernandez-Harrison (24-0, 13 KOs), you would think that Long Island, New York's Tommy "The Razor" Rainone (22-5-1, 4 KOs) would want a victory over Harrison for his birthday gift. Wrong. "I want to eat!!!" said a hungry Rainone, after stepping off the scale. Rainone and Harrison (24-0, 13 KOs) will meet 10-round main-event showdown on music superstar Jay Z's Roc Nation Sports debut boxing card tomorrow (Friday, January 9), at Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City and live on FOX Sports 1 (10PM ET/7PM PT). "Eating like a normal person again after this long training camp," is my gift to myself," continued Rainone. "Beating Hernandez-Harrison tomorrow night? That'll be my birthday cake!" Also featured on the card at MSG is, Rainone's GCP stable mate, Cecile McCalla, of Randallstown, Maryland, who will face South African southpaw Chris "The Heat" van Heerden (21-1-1, 11 KOs) for the IBF International Welterweight Championship. ### About Greg Cohen Promotions One of boxing's premier promotional outfits, Greg Cohen Promotions (GCP) is a well-respected name for staging world-class professional boxing events and promoting elite professional fighters throughout the world. Founder and CEO Greg Cohen has been involved with professional boxing in various capacities since the late 1980s, honing his craft and establishing himself as a shrewd international boxing businessman. Distinguished by his ability to spot and develop raw talent, Cohen made headlines for his expert guidance of, among many others, former WBA Junior Middleweight Champion Austin "No Doubt" Trout, who Cohen helped guide from unknown New Mexico prospect to elite pay-per-view level superstar. In addition to Trout, Greg Cohen Promotions has worked with established names such as former unified and two-time heavyweight champion Hasim "The Rock" Rahman (50-8-2, 41 KOs); and all-time-great multiple-weight class world champion James "Lights Out" Toney (74-7-3, 45 KOs). Current world-rated contenders in the GCP roster include Arash Usmanee, universally recognized as a top-10 super featherweight; former WBA International Middleweight Champion and world-rated middleweight contender Jarrod Fletcher; top-rated featherweight Joel Brunker; Freddie Roach-trained heavyweight Lateef Kayode; Canadian lightweight and TV action hero Tony Luis, currently rated #12 in the WBA; Top 15 IBF and WBA and five-time Irish National Amateur Champion, Dennis Hogan; and Rising Undefeated Welterweight sensation Cecil McCalla.  Greg Cohen Promotions has hosted world-class boxing events in the finest venues throughout the United States and the world and has also proudly provided talent and/or content for several television networks including HBO, Showtime, ESPN, NBC Sports Network, MSG and FOX Sports Net.

McCalla Confident Heading into van Heerden Showdown this Friday

"It's the biggest opportunity I've had, but in my mind, it's just another fight," says undefeated welterweight Cecil McCalla (20-0, 7 KOs). The easy-going McCalla, a Randallstown, Maryland, native, will face South African southpaw Chris "The Heat" van Heerden (21-1-1, 11 KOs) for the IBF International Welterweight Championship this Friday, January 9, at Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City and live on FOX Sports 1 (10PM ET/7PM PT). McCalla vs. van Heerden will serve as the main supporting bout to fan favorite New Yorker Tommy Rainone (22-5-1, 4 KOs) taking on unbeaten Dusty Hernandez-Harrison (24-0, 13 KOs) on music superstar Jay Z's Roc Nation Sports debut boxing card, entitled "Throne Boxing." If McCalla is feeling the pressure before the biggest fight of his boxing career, he's hiding it well. But the 29-year-old has already proven himself a clutch player. He was scheduled to fight van Heerden last July until van Heerden pulled out with an injury two weeks before the fight. Despite having spent his entire training camp preparing for a southpaw, McCalla agreed to fight orthodox fighter Oscar Godoy (then 13-2) on short notice and won a dominant unanimous decision. "I feel like that opponent (Godoy) is a little tougher than this guy van Heerden," continued the confident McCalla. "He (van Heerden) is a southpaw from South Africa and a pretty rough pressure fighter, but I won't have any problems with him. I used to spar Paul Williams before I even turned pro and he's a lot stronger than this guy." If McCalla sounds supremely confident, it's because he has a secret weapon from across the ocean on his side. "I trained for my fight in the UK," explained McCalla. "My manager, Camero Mercer,knew a trainer named Lee Beard, and told me I should go over there and work with him. I decided to give it a shot two summers ago and I've been going there to train for every fight since then. Lee knows his stuff." McCalla says the improvements from working with Beard, best known for his work with Ricky and Matthew Hatton, have been incredible. "I felt like I was getting caught too much before and it's made a very big difference in working with Lee. He's hard to please and he pays close attention to everything. I like him." Happy with the opportunities afforded him by his promoter, Greg Cohen of Greg Cohen Promotions, McCalla says a victory over van Heerden will put him exactly where he wasnts to be. "Greg Cohen does a great job for me and I'm happy with where I am as far as opportunities coming my way. And I'll start getting better fights after this victory and that will put me in the mix with the Andre Bertos and Keith Thurmans and guys like that. Hopefully I'll be world champion sometime this year. This is my year!" ### About Greg Cohen Promotions One of boxing's premier promotional outfits, Greg Cohen Promotions (GCP) is a well-respected name for staging world-class professional boxing events and promoting elite professional fighters throughout the world. Founder and CEO Greg Cohen has been involved with professional boxing in various capacities since the late 1980s, honing his craft and establishing himself as a shrewd international boxing businessman. Distinguished by his ability to spot and develop raw talent, Cohen made headlines for his expert guidance of, among many others, former WBA Junior Middleweight Champion Austin "No Doubt" Trout, who Cohen helped guide from unknown New Mexico prospect to elite pay-per-view level superstar. In addition to Trout, Greg Cohen Promotions has worked with established names such as former unified and two-time heavyweight champion Hasim "The Rock" Rahman (50-8-2, 41 KOs); and all-time-great multiple-weight class world champion James "Lights Out" Toney (74-7-3, 45 KOs). Current world-rated contenders in the GCP roster include Arash Usmanee, universally recognized as a top-10 super featherweight; former WBA International Middleweight Champion and world-rated middleweight contender Jarrod Fletcher; top-rated featherweight Joel Brunker; Freddie Roach-trained heavyweight Lateef Kayode; Canadian lightweight and TV action hero Tony Luis, currently rated #12 in the WBA; Top 15 IBF and WBA and five-time Irish National Amateur Champion, Dennis Hogan; and Rising Undefeated Welterweight sensation Cecil McCalla.  Greg Cohen Promotions has hosted world-class boxing events in the finest venues throughout the United States and the world and has also proudly provided talent and/or content for several television networks including HBO, Showtime, ESPN, NBC Sports Network, MSG and FOX Sports Net.

Cohen Congratulates Cecil McCalla for Impressive KO Victory Friday Night

Greg Cohen of Greg Cohen Promotions is sending out congratulations to his welterweight fighter, Cecil McCalla, of Baltimore, Maryland, for his TKO 1 over Mexico's Francisco Javier Reza on Friday night at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Delaware.  McCalla (20-0, 7 KOs) came out firing hard punches, especially left hooks, from the opening bell and scored two knockdowns over the tough Mexican. After the second hard knockdown, referee Vic de Wysocki had seen enough and waved the fight off at the :47 mark. "That is exactly what a future star like Cecil McCalla is supposed to do with his opponents," said Cohen. "Although I am surprised by how quickly he was able to get Reza out of there." For 29-year-old McCalla, the victory over Reza was his fourth fight of 2014, after sitting out most of 2013.  "Cecil is sharper than ever and ready to make his assault on the division's best. He's constantly in the gym with his trainer Lee Beard and the combination of his diligent work and staying quite active showed in his performance tonight." Cohen says the next step for McCalla will be a bigger, televised fight in the coming year.

Cohen Congratulates McCalla and Luis for ShoBox Victories Friday Night

After co-promoting (along with GH3 Promotions) the historic 200th episode of "SHOBOX: The New Generation," last Friday, July 25, at the Turning Stone Resort Casino, Greg Cohen of Greg Cohen Promotions wishes to congratulate his two victorious fighters, Cecil McCalla and Tony Luis. Welterweight McCalla (19-0, 6 KOs), of Randallstown, Maryland, won a dominating eight-round unanimous decision over Watsonville, California's Oscar Godoy (13-3, 6 KOs), while Canada's "The Lightning" Luis (18-2, 7 KOs) handed Newark, New Jersey's Wanzell "Venom" Ellison (11-1-1, 5 KOs) his first defeat via unanimous decision in a lightweight eight-rounder. While many experts had predicted McCalla would be in tough against the capable Godoy, McCalla made it look easy and cruised to a wide unanimous decision with only one judge giving Godoy even a round. Scores were 80-72, 80-72 and 79-73. McCalla's clever upper body movement and lead right hand backed up and befuddled Godoy, backing him to the ropes and slowing the Californian's work rate to minimal levels. Luis, of Cornwall, Ontario, was considered an underdog in his battle against formerly undefeated Ellison, but stuck to his game plan and worked the body to great effect. Ellison had a few moments in the middle rounds, but the determined Luis wrested back control and cruised to the victory by scores of 79-73, 77-75 and 78-74. "Both of my fighters were given strong tests and both passed with flying colors," said Greg Cohen. "Cecil's performance was strong enough to solidify him as someone to watch in the welterweight division, which is something I've known for a long time. And Tony Luis came back from a questionable loss to show what he's learned since then. He stuck to the strategy the team laid out for him and reignited his career with a clear win over a very talented opponent." Cohen says he's already back at work, finding the next step for McCalla and Luis. "They'll both be back in high-profile fights very soon. I'm very proud to be working with both of these fighters and they deserve high praise for coming through when tested."

Douglas and Soro battle to majority draw on 200th Espisode of Sho Box: The New Generation

Odom scores spectacular stoppage over Quinonez; McCalla decisions Godoy; Luis decisions Ellison

For Immediate Release Verona, NY (July 25, 2014)--Undefeated Antoine Douglas and former world title challenger Michel Soro fought to a majority draw that headlined the 200th Episode of ShoBox: The New Generation at Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York. The televised quadruple header was promoted by GH3 Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions and sponsored by Modell's Sporting Goods.  In round two, Douglas started to work the body of Soro with a combination against the ropes. In round three, Douglas was very effective working the body with both hands and then came up with a right uppercut. Moments later a power jab sent Soro to the ropes which facilitated a five punch flurry. In round four, Douglas once again sent Soro to the ropes with a hard combination. In round six, Soro got in his best offense as he landed a three punch combination that was capped by a hard uppercut. Douglas shook it off nicely and came back to land a nice body combination of his own. In round seven, Douglas blasted Soro with a pair of right hands.  In round eight the door opened for Soro as he landed a flush right hand that wobbled Douglas to the ropes. Soro jumped on the opportunity and landed a follow up flurry and it looked like Douglas may go to the canvas but he gathered himself by throwing punches and then holding to get out of the potentially disastrous round. In round nine, Soro carried on the momentum as he rocked Douglas several more times and had Douglas in a little trouble. Douglas recovered enough to be competitive in the decisive 10th round but it was Soro who controlled the action with Douglas looking to counter. Soro took a scorecard by a 96-94 tally but was overruled by two cards that read even at 95-95. "I feel real bad but after the first couple of rounds I wasn't feeling myself," said Douglas. "After being hit in the 8th round, i knew I had to respond and I would fight him again." Soro said, "In the first few rounds, I was stressed because I was fighting outside of home." "Around the 4th or 5th round, I started to relax. I know in the later rounds that experience was the difference. When I had him hurt in round eight, i just had to be more precise and had to accelerate my output a little more. This is not my best weight and I know I can do better." Douglas, 155 1/2 lbs of Burke, VA was fighting his 2nd consecutive former world title challenger is now 14-0-1. Soro, 157 lbs of France is now 23-1-1. Jerry "The King's Son" Odom won the WBC Interim FECARBOX Super Middleweight title with a spectacular 7th round stoppage over fellow undefeated Vilier Quinonez. Quinonez landed a solid left in the opening moments of the 1st round that briefly drove Odom back. Odom finished off the round strong by landing a series of right hands. After one flurry, Quinonez came out with a cut around his right eye. It was ruled from a head butt. Odom started putting punches together in round two. Quinonez settled down in round three and pecked away with his jab and came back with straight lefts. In round four, Quinonez landed a hard left but that was only the beginning of things as Odom came back to land a huge flurry that Quinonez on the ropes and Odom landed a booming right that sent Quinonez to the canvas. Odom went in for the finish and landed some hard shots but it spurred Quinonez to gather himself and land some lefts at the end of the round. In round five, Quinonez forced the action and landed some good left's to the body. In round six, Odom rocked Quinonez with a perfect right on the ropes. That made Quinonez stumble across the ring. Odom pounced on Quinonez and in the process he suffered a cut around his left eye. In round seven. Odom started digging right's to the body. Late in the round, Odom landed a huge hook that staggered Quinonez clear across the ring and down and the fight was stopped at 2:25 of round seven. Odom. 167 lbs of Bowie, MD is now 12-0 with 11 knockouts. Quinonez, 167 lbs of Miami, FL is now 8-1. Cecil McCalla remained perfect with an 8-round unanimous decision over Oscar Godoy in a Welterweight bout. McCalla started to show his quickness in round two. Later in the round, he smacked Godoy with a good left hook to the side of the head. McCalla then landed a hard left right combination in the corner. McCalla began to sit down on his punches in round three as he landed a nice three-punch combination to the body and then blasted a right to the head. The both tried working the body on the inside and then McCalla landed a couple right hands from distance that had Godoy backing up and then holding on. Godoy tried to trade power shots but at the end of round four, he was met with a hard right from McCalla. McCalla continued to land quick combinations on the inside. Later in round five, he ripped a perfect right that forced Godoy to hold on. In round seven, Godoy tried to mount some offense but McCalla shook it off and even motioned to the crowd that he as not affected by any of the blows. In the 8th round, McCalla landed some sharp and had Godoy in brief trouble on several occasions but he was unable to put Godoy away. McCalla, 147 lbs of Randallstown, MD won by scores of 80-72 twice and 79-73 and is now 19-0. Godoy, 146 lbs of Watsonville, CA is now 13-3. "I fought a great fight. I dominated like I said so," said McCalla. "I had my way but he is tough but I knew my rights hands would come." "He is tough and he took a lot of shots. I know I have things to work on but I am ready to take over." Said Godoy, "I couldn't adjust to his jab but he won fair and square." Tony Luis pounded out an 8-round unanimous decision over previously undefeatedWanzell Ellison in a Lightweight bout. Luis was quicker in the early going as he focused his lefts to the body. In round three, Luis continued to land lefts to the body. Later in the round, he landed a 4-punch combination in the corner that had Ellison holding on. It was more of the same in round four as Luis pushed Ellison back with a 4-punch combination.. The two finished off the round trading left hooks. Luis continued it in round five as he landed countless left hooks and stunned Ellison with a shot to he body and two separate left's to the body and one to the head. Luis landed some hard combinations in round six including a beautiful double body shot-left to the head combo. Ellison was competitive and the beginning round seven but then ate a thudding left and right to the body that Luis cleaned up with a flush left to the head. Ellison fought hard down the stretch and even landed his best punches but he came up short as Luis won by score of 79-73, 78-74 and 77-75. Luis, 135 lbs of Cornwall, ONT, CAN is now 18-2. Ellison, 133 lbs of Newark, NJ is now 11-1-1. "I did what I had to do to win," said Luis. "The body shots worked and they slowed down his attack. I am happy with my performance. I boxed him from the outside and outfought him on the inside", finished Luis. Said Ellison, I don't know what the judges saw. It was a good learning experience. I was coming up in weight but I thought I won." In a battle of undefeated Lightweights, Lavisas Williams scored a 4-round majority decision over Sam Teah. It was a close and competitive fight with Williams being credited with little better work rate over Teah landing more of the harder shots. Scores were 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38 for Williams, 134 lbs of Rochester, NY and he is now 5-0-1. Teah, 136 lbs of Philadelphia is now 4-1. Jorge Diaz moved up two-weight divisions and pounded out a 6-round unanimous decision over Ramon Ellis in a Lightweight bout. Diaz showed his superior hand speed through out the bout and consistently go through with three and four punch combinations. Ellis who was the naturally bigger man tried to force a rough fight and had some success with his right and and the fight was highly entertaining with some solid two way action. Diaz got the better of those exchanges and even played to the crowd. Diaz, 133 1/2 lbs of New Brunswick, NJ won by scores of 60-54, 59-55 and 58-56 and is now 18-3. Ellis, 134 1/2 lbs of Philadelphia, PA is now 4-12-2.  Glenn Dezurn scored a 1st round stoppage over Andre Canada in a scheduled 4-round Jr. Lightweight bout. Dezurn landed some hard body shots and then dropped Canada with a double left hook to the body. Upon getting up, referee Paul Brown ruled that Canada would be unable to continue at 1:24 of the first frame. Dezurn, 130 1/2 lbs of Baltimore, MD is now 4-0 with 3 knockouts. Canada, 132 lbs of Columbia, SC is now 0-2.

ANTOINE DOUGLAS & MICHEL SORO FIGHT TO MAJORITY DRAW IN MAIN EVENT OF 200th TELECAST OF SHOBOX: THE NEW GENERATION

Don’t Miss The Replay Thursday, July 31 At 10 p.m. ET/PT On SHOWTIME EXTREME^®

Photo Credit: Stephanie Trapp / SHOWTIME

VERONA, N.Y. (July 26, 2014) – Antoine Douglas and Michel Soro fought to a majority draw (96-94 Soro, 95-95 twice) in a bout that was a tale of two halves in the main event of Friday’s ShoBox: The New Generation, live on SHOWTIME^® from Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, Calif. 

The undefeated Douglas (14-0-1, 9 KOs) dominated the first half of the fight, controlling the action with a plethora of jabs against the vastly experienced former world title challenger.  A rip in Soro’s gloves caused a halt in the bout midway through the fourth, but it was more of the same once the bout restarted with Douglas controlling the action. 

Soro (23-1-1, 13 KOs) had a solid sixth that gave him a bit more confidence, but as he took more risks it allowed Douglas to land his power shots.  A right hand followed by an onslaught of punches from Soro had Douglas dazed in the seventh, but the Frenchman stepped off the gas and allowed Douglas to escape the round.  Douglas was still struggling as he entered the ninth for the first time in his career and stayed in survival mode for the remainder of the fight. 

“I feel bad,” Douglas said.  “After the first couple of rounds I wasn’t feeling myself.  I would like to fight him again.  I had to respond and find myself in the eighth round, but I made it through to the end.”

Experience was certainly the difference for Soro, who had gone 12 rounds three times and 10 rounds twice but was fighting in the U.S. for the first time in his career.

“In the first rounds I was stressed because I wasn’t at home,” Soro said.  “I relaxed in the fourth and fifth rounds and I was never hurt.  I know experience was the difference down the stretch.  I need to be more precise and accelerate what I was doing in the eighth.  This is not my real weight and I am better than that.”

Expert analyst Steve Farhood agreed with the judges’ scorecards.

“We all felt a draw was reasonable,” Farhood said.  “It was a tale of two fights and there was nothing in the first half of the fight that would suggest what we’d see in the second half of the fight.  To Soro’s credit, he hurt Douglas with one punch and to Douglas’ credit he survived the two last rounds while being hurt.  I’d like to see them do it again.”

Jerry Odom overcame the first cut of his career and knocked out previously undefeated prospect Vilier Quinonez in the seventh round (2:25) of a matchup of undefeated super middleweights. 

Odom (12-0, 11 KOs) leaned in and fought from close quarters to start the bout and a heabutt opened a deep gash over the left eye of his opponent.  Quinonez (8-1, 5 KOs) rallied back and had Odom tired and backing up in the ring, but a big right hand set up by repeated shots to the body in the fourth sent Quinonez to the canvas. 

Quinonez again worked his way back into the fight and landed a powerful shot that opened a deep gash over Odom’s left eye – the first cut of his professional career.  But the blood seemed to rejuvenate Odom, who came out blazing in the seventh and staggered Quinonez against the ropes.  Sensing he was about to score his 11^th KO in just 12 fights, Odom continued the onslaught and referee Charlie Fitch stopped the bout as the Cuban was falling into the ropes. 

“I said I was going to come out and do whatever I had to do to win,” Odom said.  “I got cut and I kept fighting.  Blood doesn’t discourage me or make me back down; I just keep pushing no matter what.  I could have stopped him a couple of times but I paced myself like a true champion. 

Welterweight prospect Cecil McCalla kept his perfect record intact with a dominating eight-round unanimous victory (79-73, 80-72 twice) over previously twice-beaten Oscar Godoy. 

McCalla (19-0, 6 KOs) controlled the pace and tempo from the opening bell, landing over 50 percent of his power shots and 87 body shots to Godoy’s (13-3, 6 KOs) seven.  It was an impressive performance by McCalla, who went eight rounds for just the third time.  It was his first time going the eight-round distance in five years. 

“He was tough and he took a lot of my shots,” McCalla said.  “I dominated like I said, I had my way.  I knew the right hands would come.  I know I have things to work on, but I am ready to take over.”

Late-replacement Godoy couldn’t’ figure McCalla out and didn’t disagree with the decision.   

“I couldn’t adjust to his jab and he beat me fair and square,” Godoy said. 

In the opening bout of the telecast, lightweight Tony Luis handed Wanzell Ellison the first loss of his career with an eight-round unanimous decision scored 77-75, 79-73, 78-74.

Effective aggressiveness and power punches to the body were the difference for the naturally bigger Luis (18-2, 7 KOs), who’s most damaging and impressive punch was a brutal left hook to the body landed that with ease.  Ellison (10-1-1, 5 KOs), who picked up the pace in the second half of the fight, went eight rounds for the first time in his career and clearly tired in the middle rounds. 

“I did what I had to do to win,” Luis said.  “The body shots were what worked – they slowed down his attack.  I’m happy that I boxed him from the outside and fought him on the outside.”

Ellison became the 121st fighter to suffer his first loss on ShoBox. 

“I don’t’ know what the judges saw but it was a good learning experience,” Ellison, said.  “The world got to see it.  I came up in weight and I feel I won the fight.”

Friday’s fights will replay on Thursday, July 31 at 10 p.m. ET/PT SHOWTIME EXTREME and will be available on SHOWTIME ANYTIME^®and On Demand through Aug. 22.  

Barry Tompkins called the ShoBox action from ringside with Farhood and former World Champion Raul Marquez serving as expert analysts. The executive producer was Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.

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About ShoBox: The New Generation

Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talent matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise exciting, crowd-pleasing and competitive matches while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. Some of the growing list of the 54 fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes: Andre Ward, Erislandy Lara, Shawn Porter, Lamont Peterson, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Omar Figueroa, Nonito Donaire, Devon Alexander, Carl Froch, Robert Guerrero, Timothy Bradley, Jessie Vargas, Juan Manuel Lopez, Chad Dawson, Paulie Malignaggi, Ricky Hatton, Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams and more.

ShoBox Weigh In Video Plus Fighter Video Interviews

Verona, NY (July 24, 2014)--Below are videos from Thursday's weigh in plus interviews with all 8 fighters that will compete on the television quadruple header that will take place Friday night at the Turning Stone Resort Casino. The show is promoted by GH3 Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions and the broadcast will begin at 10 PM ET. In the main event, Antoine Douglas takes on Michel Soro for the WBA International Middleweight title while Jerry Odom battles Vilier Quinoez for the WBC Interim FECARBOX Super Middleweight title. Media outlets may use the videos for journalistic use by copy/pasting the embedded codes on their websites. ShoBox Weigh in 072414 Antoine Douglas 072414 Michel Soro 072414 Jerry Odom 072414 Vilier Quinonez 072414 Cecil McCalla 072414 Oscar Godoy 072414 Wanzell Ellison 072414    Tony Luis 072414          Tickets are on sale now at The Turning Stone Resort Casino  for $60, $35 and $25 or by calling 315-361 7469 or via Ticketmaster at or 1 800-745-3000   1st Bell: 7:30 PM ET