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here is an article from todays detroit free press about the top american heavyweight prospect Johnathon Banks... he is fighting as a cruiserweight now but aims to win the WBO cruiserweight title in 2007 before moving to heavy...
for the record, johnathon banks KTFO david haye... 8 days a week
BY MIKE BRUDENELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS COLUMNIST
When: 7:15 p.m. Saturday (doors open at 5:30 p.m.).
Where: Bert's Warehouse Theater, 2739 Russell St., Detroit.
Main event: Johnathon Banks (12-0, 9 KOs), Detroit, vs. Sebastian Hill (10-13-1, 6 KOs), Houston, cruiserweights.
Bruising Detroit cruiserweight Johnathon Banks got a taste of his own medicine when Cuban-born Eliseo Castillo decked him twice in the first round of their fight in New York in July.
Banks (12-0, 9 KOs), who has a devastating left hook and seven first-round wins, climbed from the canvas, cleared his head and went to work.
In Round 4, Banks hit Castillo (20-2-1, 15 KOs) with jolting jabs and finished him off with a thundering right hand.
The win protected his undefeated record and established him as one of the most dangerous fighters in the 200-pound division.
Saturday night, Banks meets Houston's Sebastian Hill for a second time on a pro-am card at Bert's Warehouse Theater in Detroit's Eastern Market.
He should handle Hill (10-13-1, 6 KOs) easily, based on their first fight at Joe Louis Arena in March, when Banks scored a first-round TKO. But Banks isn't taking his opponent lightly.
"I feel good about the fight, but you have to respect every opponent," said the 24-year-old Banks, who is trained by Emanuel Steward. "I set Hill up with jabs and hit him with a left hook in the first fight. But you never know what he might do this time."
Banks hopes to fight for a WBO title in 2007 and said he's set to bring a world championship back to Detroit.
He has been the chief sparring partner of Wladimir Klitschko, also trained by Steward, for some time, training with the big Ukrainian in camp in Pennsylvania and gaining a lot of ring savvy.
"Many of Wladimir's sparring partners end up with black eyes," Banks said. "I haven't received one yet, but he's taught me a heck of a lot."
When in town, Banks has been training at the Dearborn Kronk, following the closure of the original Kronk Gym in Detroit. Banks, like many others, feels displaced.
"It's a sad thing," Banks said of the Kronk's demise. "It's a slap in the face. The Kronk brought a lot of fame and fortune to the city and now it could be demolished. Emanuel put half his life into the place and it could be gone tomorrow."
Banks says he'll be fighting for the Kronk and Detroit in his quest for a world title.
"I want to breathe life into the cruiserweight (200-pound) division and win for the city and Kronk," he said. "I can't ease up no
for the record, johnathon banks KTFO david haye... 8 days a week
BY MIKE BRUDENELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS COLUMNIST
When: 7:15 p.m. Saturday (doors open at 5:30 p.m.).
Where: Bert's Warehouse Theater, 2739 Russell St., Detroit.
Main event: Johnathon Banks (12-0, 9 KOs), Detroit, vs. Sebastian Hill (10-13-1, 6 KOs), Houston, cruiserweights.
Bruising Detroit cruiserweight Johnathon Banks got a taste of his own medicine when Cuban-born Eliseo Castillo decked him twice in the first round of their fight in New York in July.
Banks (12-0, 9 KOs), who has a devastating left hook and seven first-round wins, climbed from the canvas, cleared his head and went to work.
In Round 4, Banks hit Castillo (20-2-1, 15 KOs) with jolting jabs and finished him off with a thundering right hand.
The win protected his undefeated record and established him as one of the most dangerous fighters in the 200-pound division.
Saturday night, Banks meets Houston's Sebastian Hill for a second time on a pro-am card at Bert's Warehouse Theater in Detroit's Eastern Market.
He should handle Hill (10-13-1, 6 KOs) easily, based on their first fight at Joe Louis Arena in March, when Banks scored a first-round TKO. But Banks isn't taking his opponent lightly.
"I feel good about the fight, but you have to respect every opponent," said the 24-year-old Banks, who is trained by Emanuel Steward. "I set Hill up with jabs and hit him with a left hook in the first fight. But you never know what he might do this time."
Banks hopes to fight for a WBO title in 2007 and said he's set to bring a world championship back to Detroit.
He has been the chief sparring partner of Wladimir Klitschko, also trained by Steward, for some time, training with the big Ukrainian in camp in Pennsylvania and gaining a lot of ring savvy.
"Many of Wladimir's sparring partners end up with black eyes," Banks said. "I haven't received one yet, but he's taught me a heck of a lot."
When in town, Banks has been training at the Dearborn Kronk, following the closure of the original Kronk Gym in Detroit. Banks, like many others, feels displaced.
"It's a sad thing," Banks said of the Kronk's demise. "It's a slap in the face. The Kronk brought a lot of fame and fortune to the city and now it could be demolished. Emanuel put half his life into the place and it could be gone tomorrow."
Banks says he'll be fighting for the Kronk and Detroit in his quest for a world title.
"I want to breathe life into the cruiserweight (200-pound) division and win for the city and Kronk," he said. "I can't ease up no
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