BERNARD HOPKINS BATTLES WINKY WRIGHT

"Hopkins vs. Wright features two of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport who never back down from a challenge", said HBO Pay-Per-View's Mark Taffet. "Bernard's victory over Tarver and Winky's win over Trinidad are two of the most dominating big-fight wins in recent memory. Each of them will need to bring their 'A-game' into the ring for this showdown."

Tickets for Hopkins vs. Wright, “Coming To Fight” are priced at $850, $650, $450, $250 and $100 and are now on sale. Tickets are available at any Mandalay Bay box office and all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (Smith’s Food and Drug Centers, Macy’s stores and Ritmo Latino). To charge by phone with a major credit card, call the Mandalay Bay box office at (702) 632-7580 or Ticketmaster at (702) 474-4000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

A true legend of the game and a future Hall of Famer, the Philadelphia native Bernard ‘The Executioner’ Hopkins (47-4-1, 32 KOs) ruled the middleweight division for over a decade and defended his title a record 20 times, defeating the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad, William Joppy, and Glen Johnson. In 2005, he would lose his title in controversial fashion to Jermain Taylor, and after another disputed loss in their rematch, many believed Hopkins’ best days had passed. But in June of 2006, at the age of 41, the Philadelphia native moved up in weight for the first time in his career and was brilliant dominating the top 175-pound fighter in the world, Antonio Tarver, en route to a lopsided decision win. Hopkins announced his retirement immediately following his monumental accomplishment but shortly thereafter, decided he was still physically and mentally capable of fighting big fights against his elite peers. On July 21st, Hopkins will again look to show the world that age “ain’t nothin’ but a number” when he takes on Winky Wright.

The pride of St. Petersburg, Florida, 35-year old southpaw Winky Wright (51-3-1, 25 KOs) took the long road to boxing stardom. A standout amateur, Wright was forced to go overseas to get fights in the early part of his career, but it was in his opponents’ backyards that he learned the finer points of the game and developed the mental toughness that led him to the world junior middleweight title in 2001. Wright would defend his title six times (including two wins over Shane Mosley) before moving up to the middleweight division and nearly shutting out Felix Trinidad in 2005 in one of the most masterful performances in years. Two fights later, Wright would fight to a controversial draw with Jermain Taylor in a fight most believed he won, but with a win over former world champion Ike Quartey last December, Wright is back in the win column and ready for his showdown with ‘The Executioner.’

The Hopkins vs Wright pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT, will be distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 61 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. For your Hopkins vs. Wright fight week updates, log on to www.hbo.com