The holiday season begins early this year as Golden Boy Promotions is pleased to present a Super Saturday for fight fans on Saturday, December 15 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. The event will be headlined by the return of former Unified Super Lightweight World Champion Amir “King” Khan who faces undefeated Californian Carlos Molina in a SHOWTIME /Sky Sports 1HD televised junior welterweight main event and will also feature a holiday fanfest complete with musical acts, memorabilia and gift giveaways, autograph signings, and meet and greets with some of boxing’s biggest stars. All in all, it’s the one day no boxing fan will want to miss.
Khan vs. Molina is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Khan Promotions and sponsored by Corona. The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast begins live at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) with preliminary fights live on SHOWTIME EXTREME®.
“I am looking forward to getting back in the ring and continuing my career,” said Khan, who recently announced his relationship with new trainer Virgil Hunter. “I believe in myself and my abilities. With each fight I learn what I am capable of doing and these opportunities afford the chance to better myself and continue to comeback stronger than before. I fight for all of the fans that continue to support me regardless of outcome and I will not be satisfied until I give them what they want. I want to be a world champion again and that is what the goal is starting with this fight against Molina.”
“I look forward to this fight and the opportunity to fight someone like Amir Khan,” said Molina, who will be looking for his 18th victory as he continues his quest for a world championship. “I expect him to fight with a new intensity, but I will be prepared and ready. I am the undefeated fighter in this fight and I do not plan on that changing.”
“I am looking forward to putting on this show, not only for boxing fans watching across the country and in the U.K., but also for the fans who will be able to attend and be part of this special Saturday of boxing,” said Golden Boy Promotions President Oscar De La Hoya. “Amir Khan is a fighter through and through and I believe he is taking the necessary steps to continue his career and become a champion again. Carlos Molina is not going to make that task an easy one as he is undefeated and always prepared to fight. We will see what happens on December 15.”
“Amir is eager to regain his place at the very top of the 140lb division,” said Asif Vali of Khan Promotions. “This path starts against Carlos Molina who is an undefeated fighter and someone who Amir knows he will need to be at his very best to overcome. This is going to be an exciting matchup between two talented fighters and one which we believe will lead Amir to another chance at world title glory.”
“Showtime has upped the ante this year,” continued Espinoza. “This is the perfect end to an incredible run of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING events in 2012.”
“We are very much looking forward to working with Golden Boy Promotions and Khan Promotions on this December 15th event,” said Joe Furin, Senior Director of Operations of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Sports Arena. “The Sports Arena was actually inaugurated with a boxing event and has hosted some momentous fights over the years, so we are very excited about an event of this magnitude coming to our venue.”
The former Unified Super Lightweight World Champion, British superstar Amir “King” Khan (26-3, 18 KO’s) is ready to bounce back under the guidance of new trainer Virgil Hunter following a controversial defeat to Lamont Peterson last December and an upset loss to Danny Garcia the past July, and knows a win over undefeated Carlos Molina on December 15 will end the year on a high note. The 25-year-old Bolton, England native won a Silver Medal in the 2004 Olympics and has been even more impressive as a professional with wins over a series of top guns, including Marco “El Chino” Maidana, Paulie “Magic Man” Malignaggi, Zab “Super” Judah and Marco Antonio “Baby Faced Assassin” Barrera. The young former champ knows his prime years are still approaching and it’s clear that the best is yet to come starting with December 15 against Molina in his SHOWTIME debut.
Former National Amateur Champion Carlos Molina (17-0-1, 7 KO’s) has passed all his tests thus far as a professional and the way he sees it, ‘Graduation Day’ is December 15 with his toughest test to date in Khan. After debuting in 2007, the talented 26-year-old from Norwalk, California has showed skill, patience and poise in the ring while defeating the likes of Manuel Leyva, Glenn Gonzales and Marcos Jimenez. Now ready to step up to the big leagues as he faces the former world champion in Khan, Molina is more confident than ever that he has what it takes to beat the best.
The Los Angeles Sports Arena opened its doors to the public in July of 1959, hosting a bantamweight boxing title match between Jose Becerra and Alphonse Halimi. The 15,000 seat Sports Arena plays host to a variety of events throughout the year, including mainstream and Hispanic concerts, religious events, and frequent other cultural and musical events. Among the many notable events that have taken place at the Sports Arena are the boxing competition for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, two NCAA Basketball Championships (men in 1968, women in 1992), numerous NBA Championship series, an NBA All-Star Game (1963), the 1960 Democratic National Convention where John F. Kennedy was nominated for as a presidential candidate. Major events at the Sports Arena have included Bruce Springsteen’s most two most recent, sold out Los Angeles performances (October 29th and 30th), as well as annual Halloween and New Year’s Eve Celebrations and electronic music festivals. The Sports Arena is also the site of frequent Naturalization Ceremonies, where immigrants make their way to the floor of the Arena to take the Oath of Citizenship. Notable professional boxing events to have taken place at the Arena include Sugar Robinson vs. Gene Fullmer (1960), Muhammad Ali vs. George Logan (1962), Muhammad Ali vs. Alejandro Lavorante (1962), Muhammad Ali vs. Archie Moore (1962), Bobby Chacon vs. Danny “Little Red” Lopez (1974), Roberto Duran vs. Pipino Cuevas (1983) and Jose Luis Lopez vs. Luis Ramon Campas (1996).
