Coming to America - Part Deux

By Manouk Akopyan
Manouk.akopyan@gmail.com

He’s back! Almost two years removed from a resounding debut in the United States, king Arthur Abraham will return for a good ole’ helping of American seconds when he faces off against Andre Dirrell for his fight in Group Stage 2 of the Super Six World Boxing Classic.

Set to take place on March 27th at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan – just an hour-long drive away from Dirrell’s Flint, Michigan hometown, Abraham (31-0, 25 KOs) said he is looking forward to putting on a winning performance for his much anticipated return to America, one of which the parameters have undergone a 180 degree turn and two seismic shifts in recent weeks.

The fight was first postponed from March 6 to March 27 after Dirrell revealed he had a back injury, of which the severity was never discussed or detailed.

Abraham said in an exclusive interview that he’s disappointed he will not be fighting in front of his loyal Armenian fans in Los Angeles, but added that he wouldn’t let the pre-fight mind games alter his ultimate goal of pounding Dirrell in the ring. When asked if Dirrell, the 2004 U.S. Olympian bronze medalist, could pose any serious threat to his potential Super Six throne, the King was quick to set the pre-fight record straight.

“Dirrell and [his promoter] Gary Shaw are trying to pull a fast one, but this is not going to affect me in my preparation of demolishing Dirrell,” he asserted. “They’re just delaying the inevitable. Andre Dirrell can’t give me a serious fight. He is not a fighter. He’s a dancer. His technique is punch, grab, run, and repeat. When I cut the ring in half, we’ll see where he’ll end up going.”

Within hours of Dirrell revealing his injury, the bout was rescheduled in record time and given a new date of March 27. Inconveniently for Abraham, but conveniently for Camp Dirrell, the Aqua Caliente was already committed to a concert event on the 27th. With all other venues in Los Angeles out of question due to availability and the fight being too small for the bright lights of Las Vegas, in stepped in the city of Detroit as the alternate.

Skepticism was also raised by Ulli Wegner, Abraham’s trainer, when he called into question Dirrell’s injured back. He asked, “How can Dirrell already know that he’ll be a 100% fit come March 27? When someone gets injured, he can’t really call the date of being healthy again. Camp Dirrell just wants to play mind games with us, but this won’t give them any advantage. We will continue to keep Arthur focused; we will not be thrown off track.”

By competing in the Super Six World Boxing Classic, 30 year-old Abraham is in the most defining stretch of his career in which he aims to achieve global recognition. Of the Berlin resident’s 31 fights, 29 have been held in Germany.

“After I win this tournament, I want the world to know of Arthur Abraham,” he stated.

He currently leads the round-robin tournament that features six of the world’s elite super middleweights with three points for his 12th-round knockout win against Jermain Taylor, the former undisputed middleweight champion.

The bout was originally scheduled to take place at the Aqua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage, California, with Vic Darchinyan headlining the undercard and providing a presumable night of nirvana for Armenian fans across Los Angeles. Armenian fans who predominantly contributed to the sellout of the originally-scheduled Palm Springs fight are now in a pickle as they look to somewhat balance the 21,000 strong that will show up in support of their own grown.

“I hope the entire arena will be filled to the rafters with Armenians, so that the boxing world will be amazed that an Armenian fighter out-drew an American fighter in his own country,” Abraham stated.

Tickets pricing is $28, $53, $78, $103 and $128 and could be purchased at OlympiaEntertainment.com, Ticketmaster.com, and the Joe Louis Arena box office. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000. For additional information, call 313-471-6611.



Editor’s Note: The interview with Arthur Abraham was conducted in Armenian and translated into English.