The Team Cunningham/Alexander camp is on course for their August 7th showdown against Andreas Kotelnik for Alexander’s two championship belts. It is all part of HBO’S BOXING After-Dark, which is making its debut at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.
For months now, Team Cunningham starts its day at 5 a.m. with a five-mile run in the high elevation of mountains some 30 miles from the Las Vegas strip. Next comes breakfast, a brief nap, a lot of sparring with his two partners, dinner and lights out!
That’s the typical day in the life of WBC and IBF welterweight champion of the world Devon Alexander “THE GREAT” and Team Cunningham.
If you want something out of life you have to have discipline and make the sacrifices to get you to greatness. Even the humble yet determined Alexander, who by his own admission, knew he wasn’t the most skilled fighter coming up through the ranks. But as a young fighter, his hard work caught the eye of all of his victims and naysayers.
The handsome, mild-mannered, soft-spoken champ is a warrior while training and in the ring. Some of the most powerful people in the boxing business as well as in sports are finally starting to recognize how sharp Devon Alexander is both in and out of the ring.
In a recent interview with Dan Rafael of ESPN.com, Alexander recently chatted for more than an hour regarding HBO Boxing for the final months of the year and beyond.
One of the most powerful men in sports – HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg –had nothing but praise for the Jr. Welterweight Division, and particular Alexander.
In the interview, Greenburg was speaking of how division was filled with good fighters such as Alexander, Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana, and Victor Ortiz.
“These guys are flamboyant and charismatic in the ring and real athletes” said Greenburg in his interview with ESPN.com Dan Rafael. “I think with a mix of these young fighters and a veteran like Juan Manuel Marquez, this is a hot division with some scintillating match-ups. If Khan-Marquez and Alexander-Bradley happens, we will have a hot division.
These fights have to take place. We ultimately have to get to the point where somebody is standing on the mountaintop.”
In a perfect world, according to the article, Bradley makes his HBO debut July 17th against Carlos Abregu in a non-title welterwieght fight.
If Bradley wins in a couple of weeks – and when Devon Alexander ‘The Great” knocks out Koltelnik in ‘The Great’ Homecoming on August 7th – Greenburg stated he would like Timothy Bradley and Devon to fight the night before the Super Bowl. This is a night when HBO usually rolls out there red carpet for the up-coming boxing season for HBO PPV and Boxing After Dark.
As for Team Cunningham, its day-by-day and business on August 7th that has them focused right now.
Winning on that night will be another notch of many for Alexander, on his first homecoming since winning another title.
Everything else will work out for itself, and a payday against Timothy Bradley and a possibility of becoming the face of HBO’s Jr. Welterweight division looms large in the near future.
Get ready for Countdown to Devon Alexander “The Great” HOMECOMING part two next week only in the St. Louis American….STAY TUNED!
Scott’s Notes:
*Ticket sales are going fast for Devon Alexander “The Great” and his homecoming to St. Louis. Get your tickets at the Scottrade Center and other ticket outlets in the area.
* Cory “The Next Generation” Spinks was recently named along with his father, Leon Spinks, as the best father/son combination ever according to ESPN.com. The article however idetifield Michael Spinks as his father instead of his uncle. But Leon was in the picture. Congrats to Cory Spinks!
