VERO BEACH, Florida (June 25, 2006) – North American Boxing Organization cruiserweight champion Prince Badi “The Boxing Prince” Ajamu has dedicated his July 29 title fight, against five-time world champion Roy Jones, Jr., to his cousin, the late two-time world heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson (1956-59, 1960-61).
Prince Badi (25-2-1, 14 KOs), rated No. 5 by the World Boxing Council and No. 7 by the World Boxing Organization, defends his NABO belt against Jones in the 12-round main event headlining the July 29 “Hold Nothing Back!” pay-per-view show at Qwest Arena in Boise, Idaho.
“I’m dedicating my fight with Roy Jones to the memory of my first cousin, Floyd Patterson,” Prince Badi said. “I thought he did a lot of good things in his time, in and out of the ring. I started boxing very young and my grandfather, Pat Patterson, used to speak a lot about Floyd. I heard so much about him and followed his career.”
Prince Badi, of Camden (NJ), clearly is the underdog against Hall of Fame-bound Jones, who is returning to the ring after a 10-month absence. Although extremely respectful of Jones, a fighter he’s admired for many years, Ajamu feels that July 29 will be his coming out party, so to speak, on a much larger stage than he’s every fought.
There’s a reason for the conspicuous lack of “name” opponents on his record as Jones pointed out in a recent conference call. “Prince Badi is a very tough person who a lot of guys don’t want to fight,” Jones noted. “A lot of guys have avoided getting in the ring with him. He’s sparred with top fighters, but no one wanted to get in the ring for real with him. ”
“I give it to Roy for what he said,” Prince added. “It told me he did a lot of research and has a lot of respect (for me) with his quite accurate statements. I’ve trained with a lot of top light heavyweights, but never got the opportunity to fight them. I’m solid (sparred) with Bernard (Hopkins), Antonio (Tarver), Charles Brewer, Omar Sheika and others. There are not a whole lot of top light heavyweights and super middleweights, not like in the welterweight division, but I’m in solid with the best in my division. I know I can compete at that level and will prove it in this fight. Come July 29th, all the great fighters from Philly (where Prince learned how to box) and Jersey, especially the guys who never got their shot, will be on my shoulders. Roy is going to have to take all of us on.
“I’m excited to fight Roy and training is going very well. A lot of people speak of things they have no knowledge of and can’t understand. When they (critics) see this fight, a lot of them are going to ask, where has he (Prince Badi) been?”
“Hold Nothing Back!” — presented by Xyience, Inc. in association with Sports and Entertainment Media, Inc. — will be broadcast live in North America on cable and satellite PPV beginning at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT. The event is being produced and distributed for North American Pay Per View by Integrated Sports and will be available in more than 50-million homes in the United States and Canada via InDemand, TVN, DirecTV & Dish Network in the US and Viewer’s Choice & Bell ExpressVu in Canada. The suggested retail price for the PPV telecast is only $24.95.
Tickets, priced at $50, $100, $150, $250 and $350 (plus handling fees), are on sale and available exclusively at the Qwest Arena Box Office. Call 208.331.TIXS (8947), toll free 888.330.TIXS (8497), or go on line at www.qwestarenaidaho.com.
Prince Badi is promoted by Silverhawk Boxing, managed by Rider Boxing, and trained by Buddy McGirt. For more information about Prince Badi or Silverhawk Boxing go to www.silverhawkboxing.com.