SAUL “CANELO” ALVAREZ VS. MATTHEW “MAGIC” HATTON

SET FOR MARCH 5 AT ANAHEIM’S HONDA CENTER

HBO’S “BOXING AFTER DARK” TO TELEVISE

LOS ANGELES - In 2010, fight fans saw the emergence of both Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Matthew “Magic” Hatton onto the world boxing scene, with the two contenders combining for a 9-0 record with six knockouts.  On Saturday, March 5, at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., these two fighters will collide with only one moving on to the next level.

Alvarez vs. Hatton, a 12 round junior middleweight bout is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and Hatton Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, DeWalt Tools and Tres Generaciones.  HBO’s Boxing After Dark will televise the bout beginning at 10:30pm ET/PT.

Tickets, priced at $200, $125, $75, $50 and $25, go on sale Saturday, January 22 at 10:00am PT and will be available at all Ticketmaster locations, online at ticketmaster.com and via charge-by-phone at 800-745-3000.  Tickets will be available for sale at the Honda Center Box Office beginning Monday, January 24 at 10:00am PT.

“Matthew Hatton is a very good fighter with an exciting style and I think together we’ll give the fans a great fight,” said Alvarez.  ”I know he’s hungry to get this victory and move closer to a world championship, but I want this one more, and I’ll show it on March 5.”

“Everyone’s talking about Saul Alvarez because he’s a solid young fighter,” said Hatton.  ”But I’ve paid my dues and this is the fight I’ve been waiting for to display my skills to the entire world.  On March 5, I’ll show everyone why they call me “Magic” by making ‘Canelo’ disappear.”

“When it came to our first HBO fight of 2011, we wanted to give fans a great style matchup with significance, and we’ve got that in Alvarez vs. Hatton,” said Oscar de la Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions.  ”Saul was on everyone’s top prospects list last year and Matthew has been on a tear in Europe.  These fighters are on a collision course, they’re in top form and it’s going to be an explosive night that you don’t want to miss at Honda Center on March 5th.”

“We’re looking forward to returning to Honda Center with a great fight between Saul Alvarez and Matthew Hatton,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions.  ”This is a spectacular venue for boxing and we’re expecting to pack the house with fans of both fighters as well as boxing fans who know they’ll be getting their money’s worth for the great fight card we will deliver March 5th.”

“We’re excited to partner once again with Oscar de la Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions to host another night of world-class boxing at Honda Center,” said venue President and CEO Tim Ryan.  ”With two of the sport’s best young stars on display, we’re confident fans are in for quite a show on March 5th.”

Last year’s breakout star, Guadalajara, Mexico’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (35-0-1, 26 KO’s) earned ESPN.com’s prestigious 2010 Prospect of the Year award the old-fashioned way…with his fists.  Keeping a busy schedule that saw him in the ring five times and during which he captured the WBC super welterweight silver title, the 20-year-old Alvarez followed a March defense of his NABF welterweight title against Brian Camechis with successive knockout victories over world-class foes Jose Miguel Cotto, Luciano Cuello and former World Champion Carlos “Tata” Baldomir.  His win over Baldomir was only the second knockout ever scored against the iron-chinned former welterweight champ.  Alvarez ended the year by defending the belt with a 12-round decision over another former world champion in Lovemore “Black Panther” N’dou and now sets his sights on Hatton.

The younger brother of former World Champion Ricky Hatton, Matthew “Magic” Hatton (41-4-2, 16 KO’s) has carved out a niche for himself in the boxing world with his gritty determination and exciting fight style.  A veteran of more than 10 years in the professional game, Manchester, England native Hatton, like Alvarez, broke new ground in 2010 with a series of stellar performances that saw him defeat former two-time world title challenger Gianluca Branco for the vacant EBU welterweight championship and then defend his new belt against Yuriy Nuzhnenko and Roberto Belge, two fighters who owned a combined 55-1-2 record coming into their fights with Hatton.  On March 5, the 29-year-old Hatton is confident that he will put the first “1″ in his opponent’s loss column.

An action-packed co-featured bout and undercard will be announced at a later date. For more information, visit www.goldenboypromotions.com, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GoldenBoyBoxing, www.twitter.com/ssab or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GoldenBoyBoxing.  Follow HBO Boxing news at www.hbo.com/boxing and on twitter at www.twitter.com/hboboxing. For up the to the minute updates on Honda Center events and shows as well as exclusive pre-sales, follow them at www.facebook.com/hondacenter or www.twitter.com/hondacenter.

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