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Who says the Brits are stiff?
It was announced today that tickets for the title bout between English light welterweight Amir Khan and D.C.’s own Lamont Peterson will go on sale Friday.
Khan will put his WBA and IBF belts up for grabs in the fight, which will take place Dec. 10 downtown at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
D.C. was once a fabulous boxing town, but decades of administrative bungles and corruption have left boxing fans suspicious about whether the city can really even put on a match. One example of the malfeasance: In 1988 former D.C. boxing commissioner Cora Masters Barry, back when she was known as Cora Wilds, pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges related to her global travel to watch championship matches on the people’s dime, while not bringing any fights to the District.
But, not to worry: The British have jumped in at the highest levels to help out with the Khan/Peterson promotion.
British Deputy Ambassador Philip Barton issued a statement of support for his homeboy:
“Amir, you may have ceded home advantage to Lamont,” Barton said. “But you— and he—should know this—there are a lot of us Brits here in Washington. We have had some notable victories here over the years. We even managed to burn down the White House in 1814!”
Whoa! Joking about burning down the White House? After only 197 years?
How great is that?
The statement also had Barton boasting that “all of us looking forward to another great British victory.”
“Another”? Awesome!
(Full disclosure: When I got Barton’s burning-down-the-house statement, I figured the whole thing was from somebody affiliated with the Khan/Peterson fight who was trying to use a hoax to drum up interest. Being a historical neanderfuck, I also thought the White House got burned down in 1812. So I called the British Embassy to verify its authenticity. It bloody well is authentic, folks in the media office giggled. “The deputy ambassador wrote it himself!” said Hetty Crist, deputy press secretary for the embassy. Smack talkin’ diplomacy! I love these people! I’ll still be rooting for Peterson, though…)
Tickets for the fight cost $25-$300 and will be available beginning Friday at 10:00 a.m. through Ticketmaster.
Don’t Miss Big-Time Boxing’s Return To Washington, DC When Unified Super Lightweight World Champion Amir Khan Meets DC’s Own Lamont Peterson
At The Walter E. Washington Convention Center On December 10
Washington, DC (October 26)…Tickets for “Capital Showdown: Khan vs. Peterson” go on sale Friday, Oct. 28 at 10:00 a.m. ET. Big-time boxing’s return to our nation’s capital has created a buzz amongst sports fans ready to see the Unified Super Lightweight Champion Amir “King” Khan defend his titles against the No. 1-rated IBF Contender Lamont Peterson on Saturday, Dec. 10 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. Plus, Brandywine, Maryland’s undefeated top heavyweight contender and former Michigan State University standout linebacker Seth “Mayhem” Mitchell and Lamont’s brother and top lightweight contender Anthony Peterson will be featured in separate fights.
Tickets, priced at $300, $150, $75, $50 and $25, go on sale Friday, Oct. 28 at 10:00 a.m. ET through Ticketmaster by calling (800) 745-3000 or by purchasing them online at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets for fans traveling from the United Kingdom are available for purchase by calling 0800 555 666.