CANASTOTA, NY – DECEMBER 5, 2018 – The International Boxing Hall of Fame and Museum announced today the members of the Class of 2019. Inductees include two-division champions Donald “Lone Star Cobra” Curry, Julian “The Hawk” Jackson and James “Buddy” McGirt in the Modern category and welterweight champion Tony DeMarco in the Old Timer Category. Non-participants and observers to be inducted include matchmaker / promoter Don Elbaum, referee / judge Guy Jutras, publicist Lee Samuels and broadcaster Teddy Atlas.

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“We’re extremely excited about the Class of 2019 and are very much looking forward to honoring the newest class of inductees,” said Executive Director Edward Brophy.

The 2019 Hall of Fame Induction Weekend will be held June 6-9th in Canastota, NY. Many events in “Boxing’s Hometown” of Canastota throughout the four-day celebration, including a 5K Race / Fun Run, golf tournament, boxing autograph card show, VIP Cocktail Reception, Parade of Champions and the Official Induction Ceremony on the Hall of Fame Museum Grounds, are scheduled. The Hall of Fame Weekend evening events include Friday night’s Fight Night at Turning Stone and Saturday’s Banquet of Champions. Both events will take place at Turning Stone Resort Casino in nearby Verona, NY.

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The Hall of Fame also released the name of one posthumous honoree: journalist Mario Rivera Martino in the Observer Category. Inductees were voted in by members of the Boxing Writers Association and a panel of international boxing historians. Biographies on the Class of 2019 can be found on www.ibhof.com

For more information on events planned for the Hall of Fame’s 30th Annual Induction Weekend please call (315) 697-7095, visit online at www.ibhof.com, on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

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COMMENTS UPON RECEIVING INDUCTION NEWS

“Alright! Now we’re talking. It’s an honor. This is the greatest day of my life. I’m overwhelmed to get this call from the Hall of Fame. It’s a dream come true.”

– Donald Curry

“I tell you what, I’m speechless. This is a tremendous honor. Thank God for his grace and mercy. Wow! It’s amazing! I really don’t have words for this but eventually they will come.”

– Julian Jackson

“To be honest, I can’t even talk right now. This shows you’re appreciated by the boxing world and that all the hard work and dedication pays off.”

– James “Buddy” McGirt

“I am honored to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame Class of 2019. I am grateful to the international sportswriters and to the boxing community.”

– Tony DeMarco

“I’ve been in the game over a thousand years and this is one of the greatest days of my life…absolutely one of the greatest days of my life. This is like winning the heavyweight championship of the world!”

– Don Elbaum

“You don’t know how much this means to me. This is unbelievable. Fantastic. My whole life has been dedicated and attached to the sport of boxing and this is the greatest news I could ever get. Being recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame is the greatest reward that anybody can ever get.”

– Guy Jutras

“The biggest honor in the sport of boxing is induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the greatest honor any publicist can hope to get. This is a tremendous honor. I now will be in the Hall of Fame with my former boss, the best publicist in the sport of boxing, Irving Rudd. And I wouldn’t be where I am without Bob Arum.”

– Lee Samuels

“The sport of boxing has given me direction and a clarity for the difference between work and passion and a job and a purpose. It has also given me opportunities to share special moments with my family, as it has now with the news that I have been elected into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.”

– Teddy Atlas

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TURNING STONE RESORT CASINO

OFFICIAL RESORT CASINO OF THE

INTERNATIONAL BOXING HALL OF FAME WEEKEND

In 2017, Turning Stone Resort Casino and the International Boxing Hall of Fame announced a five-year multifaceted partnership to spotlight the entire region, garnering national attention and boosting tourism in Central New York. The program includes a series of nationally-televised boxing events at Turning Stone, culminating every year in June with an elaborate and bigger-than-ever International Boxing Hall of Fame Weekend with several exciting events in Madison County and Oneida County throughout the four-day celebration.

Promoter Sampson Lewkowicz of Sampson Boxing, along with Lesley Comissiong and Jose Rosario of U.S. Virgin Islands-based 340 Boxing, proudly announce the re-signing of “The Hawk’s Flock”, the sons: John “Da Rock” Jackson (18-1-15 KOs) and Julius “The Chef” Jackson (17-0 13 KOs), and nephew, Samuel “Rock City Cobra” Rogers (14-1, 8 KOs), of former three-time world champion Julian “The Hawk” Jackson to a long-term promotional agreement.

The fighting trio originally signed with Sampson Boxing/340 Boxing in 2008, but has made such remarkable progress during the term of their first promotional agreement, that each says they are happy to continue the partnership.

“It feels great. I wouldn’t even think about signing with anyone else,” said 2008 Olympian and WBC #7 Junior Middleweight John “Da Rock” Jackson (18-1-15 KOs). “We’ve got the best team in the world and I’m excited to see where this year brings us. I can’t wait to get back in the ring.”

“This team that has been put together has been the best thing that ever happened to my career,” said WBC #6, WBA #14, and IBF #15-rated super middleweight Julius “The Chef” Jackson (17-0 13 KOs). “We’re going to keep working with this team and I’m excited for the future.”

“I am very pleased to be staying with this team,” said junior middleweight contender Samuel “Rock City Cobra” Rogers (14-1, 8 KOs). “I will continue to work my hardest and do my part to make the most of all the great opportunities my promoters have given me. The future is very bright.”

The fighters are not the only ones happy to be continuing this promotional alliance.

“There was not even a thought about not re-signing this deal. Sampson Boxing has been very good to us through the years and we will be together for years to come,” said Tony Rosario of 340 Boxing. “There was not even a thought about not re-signing this deal. We have the best promoter in the world with Sampson Boxing. He is the most honest and transparent man there is in boxing and that was a big thing. We are very happy with him. Sampson and 340 in 2014 will be a force to be reckoned with in the near future.”

“We are very pleased to continue our relationship with Sampson Boxing and thankful for the opportunity to re-sign, John, Julius and Samuel,” said Lesley Comissiong of 340 Boxing. “We’re looking forward to taking the boxing world by storm with these three athletic phenomenons.”

“It has been a pleasure to work with all three fighters and my wonderful partners at 340 Boxing,” said Sampson Lewkowicz. “The sons and nephews of Julian Jackson are on their way to making their own boxing history and I am proud to be part of it.”

The family patriarch, former three-time world champion Julian “The Hawk” Jackson, says he’s also pleased with the deal. “Having a deal like this for my boys is something that I have always dreamed of. I’m very pleased with the way things are going and I never had anyone else in mind than Sampson. He is the man who will finish the job and make my boys world champions.”

ABOUT SAMPSON BOXING

After a very successful run as a matchmaker and adviser, Sampson Lewkowicz switched over to the promotional side of professional boxing in January 2008.

Sampson Boxing has grown into one of the world’s most prestigious promotional firms, representing many of the world’s best fighters and most promising young contenders.

Sampson Boxing has promotional partners all over North and South America, Africa, Asia, New Zealand, Australia, Europe and Central America and Sampson Boxing events have been televised on such premiere networks as HBO, Showtime, ESPN, VS. and several international networks.