{"id":79270,"date":"2019-04-03T14:21:03","date_gmt":"2019-04-03T20:21:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=79270"},"modified":"2019-04-03T14:36:15","modified_gmt":"2019-04-03T20:36:15","slug":"breaking-news-on-the-claressa-shields-christina-hammer-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=79270","title":{"rendered":"Breaking News on the Claressa Shields &#8211; Christina Hammer Card"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\">[AdSense-A]<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=79270\" rel=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=79270\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-79271 size-medium\" style=\"margin-right: 10px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/image001-300x76.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"76\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/image001-300x76.jpg 300w, https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/image001.jpg 624w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Unbeaten rising heavyweight contenders Jermaine Franklin and Otto Wallin will be looking to make a splash and announce themselves in the heavyweight division when they step in for separate bouts live on SHOWTIME Saturday, April 13 from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.<\/p>\n<p>The SHOWTIME BOXING: SPECIAL EDITION tripleheader will air beginning at 9 p.m. ET\/PT and is headlined by Claressa Shields battling Christina Hammer for the undisputed women\u2019s middleweight championship.<\/p>\n<p>Franklin will face Rydell Booker while Wallin takes on Nick Kisner in a pair of 10-round attractions leading up to the main event. For both Franklin and Wallin, they see April 13 as a step towards their larger goals.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cBooker is in the way of where I\u2019m eventually trying to be,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cI\u2019m part of that next generation of heavyweights and I\u2019m working hard to end up as the heavyweight champion when the dust settles. I always find a way to win and I\u2019m going to show it on April 13.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cComing to the U.S. for the second part of my career is very exciting,\u201d said Wallin. \u201cI\u2019ve accomplished a lot in my career in Europe but this is a new beginning. This is the moment I\u2019ve been dreaming of since I first laced up mitts and I can\u2019t wait to introduce myself to the fans here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A 25-year-old from Saginaw, Michigan, Franklin hopes to show that he\u2019s primed to become the next American heavyweight champion, and is ready to take the mantle from current WBC titlist Deontay Wilder and the long line of American heavyweight champions that came before him.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WtFjOOuzPSI\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\u201cI\u2019m going to raise the competition amongst the heavyweights,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cThe division is definitely back on the map and I\u2019m planning on having a hand in making it must-watch TV once again. America needs another face in the heavyweight division and that\u2019s going to be me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI already believe that I am the best heavyweight in the world. There are a lot of big, strong heavyweights, but I\u2019m a balanced athlete, which makes me different. I\u2019m strong, fast, athletic and getting better with each fight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Although his native Sweden is not known for boxing, Wallin\u2019s home country has previously produced a heavyweight champion in Ingemar Johansson, who famously stopped Floyd Patterson in their first fight at Yankee Stadium in 1959. After defeating fellow Swedish heavyweight Adrian Granat in his last fight, Wallin decided it was time to fight in the U.S., following previous training camps in New York with trainer Joey Gamache.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTraining here in New York brings me a great energy and it shows in my performance,\u201d said Wallin. \u201cIt\u2019s the center of the world, and while I\u2019m fully focused on training, I feed off the energy of the city.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIngemar Johansson is of course a big inspiration for me. When he came to the U.S. and beat Floyd Patterson, he was the baddest man on the planet. I\u2019m looking to take that mantle and become a hero for young Swedish boxers, just like he has been for me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In addition to being Wallin\u2019s U.S. debut, the unbeaten heavyweights will make their first appearances on SHOWTIME and it will be Franklin\u2019s first time fighting in the northeast. They each hope to show off their respective talents and are prepared for what comes with the increased platform.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a great chance for me to showcase my skills, but I still treat it like just another fight,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cI\u2019m going to adapt to my opponent and expose his weaknesses. I\u2019m always improving because once you think you know it all, that\u2019s when you find out you know nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m just a kid from a small town in Sweden and I\u2019ve worked hard to get to this point,\u201d said Wallin. \u201cTraining here in the U.S. and fighting here is going to help me put on the best performance of my career. The fun begins on April 13 and I\u2019m not stopping until I am champion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both recently signed with Dmitriy Salita\u2019s Salita Promotions and on April 13 will begin a year that could leave each fighter on the precipice of a title shot.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn April 13 two of the best heavyweight in the world, one from the U.S., one from Sweden, will both have a chance to make a claim that they are ready to challenge for the heavyweight title,\u201d said Salita.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJermaine Franklin is by far the best American heavyweight prospect who is soon to be a contender and a champion. He will have a great opportunity to showcase his skills and worth against the experienced, hungry and accomplished Rydell Booker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBoxing is a sport of individual stories and Otto Wallin is a great example of that. A top-rated heavyweight from a small town in Sweden, he is showing that dreams, combined with hard work, can come true. He is one of the best heavyweight contenders from Europe and on April 13 he will show that he belongs with the elite in the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With this opportunity to announce themselves in the resurgent heavyweight division, Franklin and Wallin are keyed for eye-opening performances next Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy ultimate goal is to become world champion and I believe right now I\u2019m on the right path,\u201d said Wallin, who is ranked No. 5 by the IBF and WBA. \u201cI had good years fighting in Europe, but now is the time for me to go to the next level. I can\u2019t wait to show everyone what I\u2019m all about and give the fans great fights.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m planning to be a major force in the heavyweight division by the end of the year,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cIt\u2019s my coming out party. I feel like my dreams are going to come true. I\u2019m going to show everyone who I am: the best new heavyweight in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[AdSense-A] Unbeaten rising heavyweight contenders Jermaine Franklin and Otto Wallin will be looking to make a splash and announce themselves in the heavyweight division when they step in for separate bouts live on SHOWTIME Saturday, April 13 from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The SHOWTIME BOXING: SPECIAL EDITION tripleheader will air beginning at 9 p.m. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[19871],"class_list":["post-79270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-boxing-news","tag-breaking-news-on-the-claressa-shields-christina-hammer-card"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=79270"}],"version-history":[{"count":-2,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79270\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=79270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=79270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=79270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}