Elieser Castillo Says He Wants Kimbo Slice

June 29, 2008

source: Sharon Robb, Combat Wire

Elieser Castillo sat quietly in the back row until it was his turn to talk during

the prefight ESPN2 Friday Night Fights news conference.

After promoter Luis DeCubas announced the seven-bout boxing card that

includes undefeated Colombian Breidis Prescott (18-0, 17 KOs) making his

U.S. debut at War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale, it was all Castillo.

The Cuban left-hander from Pembroke Pines called out streetfighter-turned-

mixed-martial-arts fighter Kimbo Slice, of Miami, for a MMA main event in

October.

Slice has become one of the best-known MMA fighters in less than a year. His

recent Elite XC Saturday Night Fights debut on CBS reportedly attracted

millions for his win over James Thompson.

"I want Kimbo Light," said Castillo, a cruiserweight who trains at American

Top Team in Coconut Creek and has a judo and jiu-jitsu background.

Castillo, a member of the Cuban national boxing and judo team before defecting, is 30-6-2 with 17 knockouts in boxing. His last fight was five months ago. He has had several opponents drop out at the last minute.

"A lot of people want to see this fight," said Castillo, eager to make his MMA debut. "I will take him out in the first round but he has to come to the fight first."

Preliminary talks are under way between Castillo's manager, Boca Raton businessman David Goldstein, owner of Gardens Memorial Park, and Slice's promoter, Gary Shaw. The two plan to meet before the live ESPN2 telecast Friday night.

Goldstein said Slice would be guaranteed a $1.5 payday and Castillo $750,000. Potential venues are the BankAtlantic Center at Sunrise and AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami. The event would either be televised on Showtime, CBS or pay-per-view.

"We could sell out anything in this area with those two fighters," Goldstein said. "It would give Kimbo a chance to come back to his backyard, fight and thank his fans. Kimbo has that lucky punch but I don't think he's in shape to take on Elieser. We think it will be fun and everybody will make money."

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