Rick Reeno of BoxingScene.com reports that the scheduled New Year's Eve boxing double-header on Showtime has been canceled, as Showtime has rejected Gabriel Campillo as a replacement opponent in the main event against Tavoris Cloud.
Cloud (23-0, 19 KO) was set to defend his IBF light heavyweight title against Zsolt Erdei (33-0, 18 KO), but Erdei pulled out of the fight after suffering a hand injury in training.
Campillo (21-3-1, 8 KO) was in California, in shape, and willing to take the fight, by all accounts. Apparently he was offered the fight, and was brought to the table for Showtime to approve, but the network turned it down.
I'll take a guess and figure that Campillo isn't a big enough name, but if Campillo's name value in the United States is a 0.2 out of ten, Erdei's is like, 0.5. If you're already set to go, why not just go? It's still a good fight, and Showtime has over the years prided themselves on giving deserving fighters a chance.
Also canceled is the 122-pound title fight between Rico Ramos (20-0, 11 KO) and Guillermo Rigondeaux (8-0, 6 KO), which has now been postponed twice, as it was originally going to take place on the Cotto vs Margarito card on December 3.
It's not like this was a huge show, and I'm sure the Ramos vs Rigondeaux fight will be rescheduled, and Cloud vs Erdei can still happen later, too, but damn it all, it was something for those of us who hate New Year's Eve to do. What a bummer.
Showtime's final boxing broadcast of 2011 will now be the December 30 ShoBox ShoCase for returning names Jermain Taylor (vs Jessie Nicklow) and Andre Dirrell (vs Darryl Cunningham) in California.