World’ best prizefighters signed to compete in Super 8

European specialists join the world’s biggest heavyweight boxing tournament – the last-man-standing SUPER 8 – in Auckland

Two heavyweight champions of the format – controversial Englishman Michael Sprott and hard-punching Irishman Martin Rogan – have joined the bill for SKY Arena’s exciting new boxing tournament, SUPER 8, on Wednesday, June 4.

They join New Zealand’s most accomplished heavyweight boxer, Kali Meehan, as the second and third fighters announced for the event.

SUPER 8, to be held in Auckland for the first time ever, will be the world’s biggest heavyweight boxing tournament. The format sees eight heavyweights compete in four quarter-finals, followed by semis and a final, all over three rounds and in quick succession on one night. One man is crowned champion.

The $500,000 purse makes it the world’s richest tournament of its type.

Knockout exponent Rogan, with a record of 16 wins (8KO) and 4 losses, is a former Commonwealth champ with a daunting record in the specialist Super 8 format, known as ‘Prizefighter’ in the UK, winning the tournament in 2008.

Sprott, recently returned from suspension for pushing a referee to the canvas, is a former Commonwealth and British champion with a 40 wins (27KO) and 21 losses. He defeated Brian Minto before Minto beat Shane Cameron at last year’s Fight For Life in West Auckland, and is a two-time Prizefighter champion.

SUPER 8 spokesperson Mark Keddell says: “A three-round fight is a different sport in a lot of ways – and these guys excel in this format. It’s like an 800m race against a 10,000m event. You’ll see knockouts; these boys will try and finish the fight as quick as they can. Super 8 could do for boxing what the UFC has done for MMA.”

Kali Meehan will be filling media commitments in New Zealand from 3-7 March.

Click here to download the media tour press kit for Kali Meehan.

FIGHTER QUOTES

SPROTT SAYS: “I beat Brian Minto, who’s beaten Shane Cameron, and I’m the world’s best at what I do. I’m coming down to sort out you Kiwis and Australians and anyone elsesilly enough to get in the way. I feel a bit sorry for the England rugby boys. They’re sending a whole team. I get to sort you all out on my own!”

ROGAN SAYS: “I’ve done it before and I’m going to do it again. Only this time I’m going to do it faster and a lot better. All my cousins live in NZ, so I’ll watch the All-Blacks beat England and then give them something else to cheer about. And don’t worry about putting a red carpet down either – and carpet you put down is going to be red by the time I’m finished anyway. Ha!”

“Every time I hit one of them I’m going to put a six-inch gap in them. I’m going to hit them that hard and that often they’ll look like a wobbling lump of Swiss cheese and smell twice as bad. By the time I leave NZ, everybody will have the flag of Ireland on their front door and celebrate me as the new president.”

MEEHAN SAYS: “SUPER 8's three-round format will suit me. I’m going to get very, very big and strong and then just bombs away. A lot of fights, you need to be cautious, but in this format, you need to land big punches as soon as you can. I can throw bombs for three rounds. I’m expecting to produce some knock-outs, put it that way.”

Event Detail:

SUPER 8: Last Man Standing Heavyweight Boxing Tournament
June 4, 2014
Auckland
Venue: TBA
For more info visit: www.supereight.co.nz
or: https://www.facebook.com/Super8boxing

© Scoop Media