Hitz Grateful to Abell for Agreeing to Oquendo Bout

The promoter of long-time heavyweight contender "Fast" Fres Oquendo (33-7, 21 KOs) commends Oquendo's next opponent, Minnesota's Joey "Minnesota Ice" Abell (28-5, 27 KOs), for agreeing to fight. Oquendo and Abell will meet for the WBA Fedelatin Heavyweight Championship in the 10-round main event of Hitz Boxing's latest "Fight Night at the Horseshoe" event on Friday, May 25, 2012, at the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Indiana. The bout is presented by Hitz Boxing in conjunction with Roy Jones Jr.'s Square Ring Promotions. "We sent challenges out to a bunch of guys," said promoter Bobby Hitz. "Chris Arreola, Bryant Jennings, Seth Mitchell, the list goes on, and none of them are willing to fight him. Abell was the only one with the balls to step up." Similar to fellow Chicagoan Carlos Molina, the majority of Oquendo's losses have been of a questionable nature. He dropped horrid decisions to Jean-Marc Mormeck and Oliver McCall in two of his last three fights. Hitz says Oquendo losing two of his last three should have been a flashing green light for up-and-coming heavyweights to try and add a notable opponent to their resume, but such was not the case. "It makes you wonder about the future of the sport and especially the heavyweight division when not one young contender is willing to accept a challenge." Hitz also gives credit to his fighter for taking such a potentially dangerous fight off-TV, just to stay busy. "Joey Abell has 27 knockouts in 28 wins. He can crack. You have to admire a guy like Fres who would choose a puncher like this as his opponent for a non-televised show in front of his hometown fans." The high-class atmosphere and luxurious surroundings the Horseshoe has to offer make their boxing shows a Las Vegas-style night of boxing that Chicago-area fans don't have to get on a plane to enjoy.      The Horseshoe Casino has an intimate, comfortable venue with luxurious seats, a spectacular gaming area, free parking, exquisite food and all the amenities -- and is just 20 minutes from Downtown Chicago.  Tickets for "Fight Night at the Horseshoe" are on sale now, starting at a fan appreciation price of $10, and are available atthe "Venue" box office, ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster outlets.

Fres Oquendo Wants Seth Mitchell, Chris Arreola and Any Other American Heavyweights Willing to Fight

photo by Joey Hill -
Chicago Boxing News

Watching Jean-Marc Mormeck get blown out by Wladimir Klitschko last weekend, the frustration was overwhelming for long-time heavyweight contender "Fast" Fres Oquendo (33-7, 22 KOs).



The Chicago-based fighter had soundly beaten Mormeck (everywhere but the scorecards) in Mormeck's adopted home of France in 2010. And that "victory" by Mormeck, coupled with another questionable win over former champ Timur Ibragimov, seemed to be the two fights that propelled Mormeck into the embarrassing Klitschko fight.



"I get robbed and he gets a title fight," said the angry Oquendo of Mormeck. "I beat him easily, but because we fought in his backyard I would have had to knock him out to win by split decision. I could have told you that would happen to him against Klitschko. He's not a real heavyweight. I played with him. And if you saw his fight with Ibragimov, he lost that one too (also held in France)."



It was hardly the first time controversy has hampered Oquendo's career. A legitimate case could be made that he hasn't lost a fight since 2006. In addition to the Mormeck fiasco, in recent years, Oquendo has dropped other stinky decisions to James Toney (2008) and Oliver McCall (2010), while winning his other seven contests. Add in that in 2003, Oquendo lost a hideously unfair decision to then-champion Chris Byrd in a challenge for Byrd's IBF title.



"I keep trying to do the right things, taking any fight they've got for me that is halfway fair and reasonable and I keep getting the short end of the stick," he continued. "So from now on, I'm going to be calling guys out and making things happen on my own, rather than waiting for boxing to do the right thing. I want any of these new guys. I'll take Seth Mitchell. Chris Arreola. Any of them. Bring them on. I'm the best American heavyweight in boxing and I am going to prove it."



"At 38, Fres is still a very good fighter with plenty left," says his promoter, Bobby Hitz of Hitz Boxing. "He's only really lost two fights in the last decade and he's fought a who's who of heavyweights in the world. He's an established guy and he deserves one last shot at the title. Who else are they going to give the next shot to? Tony Thompson or Eddie Chambers again?"



Hitz also says Vitali Klitschko and Oquendo sparred together while Klitschko was preparing for Tomas Adamek and Oquendo very much got the better of the oldest brother.



"Fres has always been a nice guy who believed his time would come, but now he's seeing he's got to make things happen, so what he's going to do is KO one guy after another until they can no longer ignore him. Tell all the American heavyweights they've got a fight waiting for them. Pick up the phone and we're ready. We're calling out every last one of you."