By Luke Furman
According to multiple sources in Canada, former champion Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17KOs) has signed a co-promotional agreement with Groupe Yvon Michel (GYM) and InterBox. Previously, GYM had an exclusive promotional with Pascal, but that agreement ran out after Pascal's January decision win over Canadian rival Lucian Bute.
Pascal was one of the biggest free agents on the market and he was considering offers from Top Rank and Lou DiBella.
The agreement comes at a very crucial time, as promoter Yvon Michel of GYM is starting a brand new business relationship with Showtime. One of Michel's star fighters, WBC champion Adonis Stevenson, will make his Showtime debut on May 24th.
The signing of Pascal may certainly affect the immediate future of WBO champion Sergey Kovalev, who recently signed a multi-fight deal with HBO but finds himself with very few options that are lucrative. The other three champions - Stevenson, Beibut Shumenov and Bernard Hopkins are fighting on Showtime.
Luke Furman covers boxing for bokser.org.
