Wednesday’s ShoBox card features four local fighters and three rising prospects
Showtime's Wednesday ShoBox card includes two rising Philly prospects, a South Jersey native, and a Philly fighter boxing in the main event.
Philadelphia became known as “the fighting city” due to the toughness that is synonymous with most boxers from the area.
Questions began floating last year about the future of Philly boxing as former champions Danny Garcia and Julian Williams suffered defeats. If ShoBox’s next show on Wednesday night is any indication, the future of Philly boxing is in good hands.
ShoBox’s card will feature three boxers from Philly and another from South Jersey. The card is headlined by rising prospect Brandun Lee (21-0, 19 KOs) , who will take on Philly native Samuel Teah (17-3-1, 7 KOs) in the main event, a 10-round super-lightweight bout. Action will take place at 9 p.m. on Showtime from the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn.
“We’ve been saying for Brandun Lee’s last four fights that he has to finally fight somebody,” commentator Barry Tompkins said. “At least in Sam Teah, he has a live body in front of him. [Teah] has had some good wins. He’s a quality opponent, and that’s a first for Brandun Lee.”
Misael Lopez (11-0, 5 KOs) and Jordan White (10-1, 8 KOs) will headline the co-main event. In an undefeated clash, Philly’s Steven Ortiz (11-0, 3 KOs) will go against Jeremy Hill (14-0, 9 KOs) . It will be Ortiz’s first fight since the COVID-19 breakout.
A lot has changed since Ortiz last fought in September 2019. He has a newborn daughter that he says has helped him take steps to better himself. Wednesday is the 27-year-old’s chance to make a statement.
“A couple years back, I wasn’t as disciplined in the gym,” Ortiz said. “Overall, I’ve been in the gym getting some good work. I’m ready to go.”
Thomas Velasquez (10-0-1, 6 KOs) and Victor Padilla (8-0, 7 KOs) will have the most intriguing fight from a local perspective. Velasquez is a North Philly native, and Padilla lives in Williamstown, N.J.
The connections between the fighters are endless. They once sparred in amateurs but Velasquez, a North Philly native, doesn’t remember.
“If it ain’t a fight where I’m getting paid, I don’t remember it,” Velasquez said.
Padilla reigns from a long heritage of Puerto Rican fighters, and he also wants to make a name there. He’s known as a fighter with power, as evident by his seven knockouts in eight fights.
“I’m anxious and ready to go,” Padilla said. “I’ve never made the weight like I made it for this fight. The weight’s been beautiful. I can’t wait to show what I’m about.”
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Velasquez is trained by Hamza Muhammad, who is also Fulton’s trainer. Padilla works with Rashiem Jefferson, who is also a well-known Philly boxing coach familiar with Muhammad.
“I think it just pumps them up more,” boxing analyst Steve Farhood said. “They feel more pressure to put on a good fight. Philly has that reputation since the old Blue Horizon days. If you fought in the Blue Horizon, there was something about that building that made you fight hard.”
ShoBox specializes in finding who is the real deal by placing rising prospects in fights that could go either way. The eight prospects featured on Wednesday have a combined record of 102-4-2.