Boxers to battle at ballpark
Four Butler boxers soon will realize a dream.
Newly renovated Pullman Park will host its first professional boxing card July 2, and Brian Minto, Jim Emrick, Dave Cook and Ryan Covert will be part of the show.
The event became official during a news conference at the ballpark. This will be the first time four Butler fighters will appear on the same pro fight card.
The fights will begin at 8 p.m. ESPN2 will televise the action live from 9 to 11 that evening.
"Pullman Park on national TV— who would have thought that could happen?" said Butler Cubs boxing trainer Don Spinetti, who's been in the fight game for 33 years. "ESPNgets 8 million viewers for those fight shows. This is history, plain and simple."
It's history the Butler Redevelopment Authority couldn't pass up.
"It's a short time frame and we still have some loose ends to tie up,"said Perry O'Malley, executive director of the redevelopment authority. "But all of our board's volunteers are committed to making this happen."
Pullman Park was scheduled to host an outdoor pro fight card in 1961, with eventual Butler Area Sports Hall of Famer Carmen Scialabba featured on the card. The show was rained out on successive nights and had to be canceled.
<table width="300" height="275" border="0" align="right" valign="top" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><embed src="/assets/mov/BE48140611.MOV" width="320" height="250" autostart="true" loop="false" ></embed></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="http://www.apple.com/quicktime/" target="_blank"><span class="style11">Requires Quicktime Media Player </a><br><font size="1" face="Tahoma, Times New Roman">Video by Brandon Gerthoffer</font></span><td></tr></table>Minto (30-2, 19 knockouts) is putting up his WBAFedecentro heavyweight title on the line in the 10-round main event against John Poore (20-2, 18 KOs) of Philadelphia.Minto also is putting up half the money for the show, with ESPNfooting the other half of the bill."It's a bit of a business gamble on my part, and hopefully the community will support this,"Minto said. "This is a great opportunity for all of us."O'Malley estimates between 3,000 and 4,000 tickets will be sold for the event."And it won't be our last boxing card here," he said. "We plan to do this again. ...Brian Minto's first world title defense is going to be right here."We consider Brian to be our hometown hero. We're proud of what he's done and it's important that we get this done."Minto described the 6-foot-3, 220-pound Poore as "one of the more powerful punchers" he will have faced."With his style, he gets beat up a lot,"Minto said. "He comes right in and he's gotten cut up quite a bit. But he's a tough guy. ... He got his jaw broken in a fight, kept going and eventually knocked the guy out."The vacant Pennsylvania heavyweight title will go to the winner of the Minto-Poore bout as well.The other Butler fighters face challenges as well.Emrick (4-1-1) is fighting Darryl Spears (1-1) of Indianapolis — the only opponent to have beaten him so far.That fight took place Nov. 3 and was a four-round unanimous decision in Morgantown, W.Va."Jimmy's going to actually train for the fight this time," Minto said. "I've been sparring with him and he's ready to go."Emrick fought Spears on a day's notice last year, after Spears' scheduled opponent pulled out."He'll see the real me this time,"Emrick promised. "Butler isn't going to be very good to him."Cook (3-0) will face his stiffest test as a young pro in Pittsburgh's Jimmy Lubash (6-1). The two will compete in a six-round middleweight bout."Lubash is a polished fighter, but Dave's ready for a guy of his caliber,"said Spinetti, Cook's trainer. "We wouldn't put him in the fight otherwise."Covert, 39-16 as an amateur, has not fought since July 3 at the Butler County Fairgrounds. He will make his pro debut — and perhaps his only professional fight — at Pullman Park."This might as well be Madison Square Garden for me," Covert said. "This is my world championship fight. That's how I'm treating it."It's a chance to get my 40th win. I'm showing up to knock somebody out."Covert's opponent will be Billy Greenwalt (1-3) of Youngstown, Ohio."I'm donating my share of the purse to a charity," Covert said. "I'm fighting for the love of the game, not for money. This sport turned my life around."Tickets go on sale at 3 p.m. Monday at the Pullman Park box office. Tickets will be available there from 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday each week leading up to the show.Tickets also will be available through Minto at 724-504-6708.Prices are $25 for general admission, $35 for reserved, $50 for box reserved, $500 for tables of 10 (rows 3 and 4), $1,000 for tables of 10 (rows 1 and 2).Luxury suites, seating up to 15, are available for $3,000 by calling Minto.
Here is the pro boxing card scheduled for 8 p.m. July 2 at Pullman Park:<B>Main Event</B>WBA Fedecentro heavyweight title and Pennsylvania heavyweight title:Brian Minto (30-2, 19 KOs), Butler, vs. John Poore (20-2, 18 KOs), Philadelphia, 10 rounds<B>Co-Feature</B>Tommy Karpency (11-0), Adah, Pa., vs. Dallas Vargas (21-4), Toledo, Ohio, eight rounds, light-heavyweight<B>Others</B>Dave Cook (3-0), Butler, vs. Jimmy Lubash (6-1), Pittsburgh, six rounds, middleweightJim Emrick (4-1-1), Butler, vs. Darryl Spears (1-1), Indianapolis, four rounds, heavyweightRyan Covert (0-0), Butler, vs. Billy Greenwalt (1-3), Youngstown, Ohio, four rounds, heavyweightKhristian Geraci (3-2), Pittsburgh, vs. Tom Joseph (2-1), Ohio, four rounds, welterweight
