Bernard Hopkins-Jean Pascal fight on track to be one of the biggest ever in Canada
Good news for Showtime and the folks in Groupe Yvon Michel.
According to Michel, who heads promotion for light heavyweight champion Jean Pascal, more than 15,000 tickets were sold within 48 hours of the on-sale date for Pascal’s upcoming defence against Bernard
Hopkins on December 18.
Hopkins-Pascal will take place at the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City and likely be the biggest Canadian boxing event in Quebec since “Sugar” Ray Leonard fought Roberto Duran in 1980. It will be broadcast
on Showtime.
Success in the ticket offices was further demonstrated by the fact that upwards of 6,000 tickets were sold within a half an hour of sale openings, and 12,000 by the tw- hour count.
Pascal is coming off a spectacular win over opponent Chad Dawson, whom he defeated in Montreal, Canada. The bout resulted in a huge surge of popularity for the Haitian-born Pascal, who was the underdog
in the fight.
Hopkins, a future boxing Hall of Famer and two-division champion, looks to win the WBC title at the remarkable age of 45. Doing so would make him one of the oldest fighters to win a world title in the
history of the sport.
Hopkins won the middleweight title on Showtime in 1995, and defended it no less than 20 times.
Hopkins, now an executive and fighter of Golden Boy Promotions, has turned heads in the sport for more than 20 years, with notable wins over stars such as Felix Trinidad, Oscar De la Hoya, Antonio Tarver
and Kelly Pavlik.
In a recent press conference to promote the fight, Hopkins vowed that he would ‘school’ Pascal like he has so many fighters over the years. He confirmed that the fight would be do or die for him, and
that he refuses to go out without a bang.
In a witty response, Pascal produced a college diploma and said he had passed school with flying colours, insinuating he would be ready for the upcoming challenge.
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