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David Lemieux to face Curtis Stevens March 11 on HBO

Fighters Network
16
Jan

In a bout that should come with the tagline, “Knockout guaranteed or your money back,” the power-punchers David Lemieux and Curtis Stevens will square off on March 11 on HBO from Turning Stone Casino in Verona New York in a scheduled 12-round middleweight affair, it was announced on Monday.

The match-up has been discussed since early 2016 and even had a date of Oct. 22 before talks fizzled. Now, with Canelo Alvarez opting to face Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Stevens and Lemieux, a former titleholder, struggling to find other big-name opponents, they will turn to each other to prove their worth in the middleweight division. For HBO, which has come under heavy criticism for pushing most of its boxing programming to pay-per-view, it marks just the second regular HBO date that has been announced in 2017.

“The time for talking is done, and after many long months of hearing Curtis yell about all the things he’s going to do in the ring, I’m really looking forward to shutting his mouth on March 11,” Lemieux said in a prepared statement. “I’ve told everyone my goal is to once again become middleweight champion of the world. Curtis is in the way, and I’m going to go right through him.”

Lemiuex (36-3, 21 knockouts) has rebuilt his career since he was demolished in an eighth-round stoppage at the hands of middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin in October of 2015. He has won twice, stopping trial-horse Glen Tapia last May and winning a decision against Cristian Fabian Rios in a homecoming fight in Quebec this past October.



Similarly, Stevens (29-5, 21 KOs) has also breathed new life into his career since he was beat up by Golovkin in 2013 and lost a lackluster decision to Hassan N’Dam in 2014. He has partnered with trainer John David Jackson and won two straight to become relevant again. “The wait is finally over!” said Stevens in a release, who crushed previously undefeated and Golden Boy prospect Patrick Teixeira in just two rounds in May of 2016. “No more talking. My hands will do the talking on March 11.”

Added Oscar De La Hoya, CEO of Golden Boy, which handles Lemieux while Main Events promotes Stevens, “We often see fighters pretend not to like each other to help draw an audience — these two guys aren’t faking it, they don’t like each other at all.”

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