Top Contender and Big Screen Star Shannon Briggs to Battle Vinny Maddalone on HBO Pay Per View

Top Contender and Big Screen Star Shannon Briggs to Battle Vinny Maddalone on HBO Pay Per View

Short, Successful Bout Expected on October 1st For Briggs' 4th Fight In Under 6 Months

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Sept. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- HBO Pay Per View will broadcast an action-packed heavyweight duel this Fall -- top heavyweight contender Shannon Briggs, 33, will battle it out with Vinny Maddalone on October 1, 2005 at The St. Petersburg Forum. The fight will be on the same card as the third installment of the Roy Jones and Antonio Tarver trilogy.

Shannon Briggs (43-4-36 KO), coming off of the recent Hollywood Labor Day film release of "Transporter 2," stands at 6'4" and last weighing 257 lbs, is up against Flushing New York's Maddalone (25-2-17 KO). Shannon is best known for his victory on November 12, 1997, over boxing legend George Foreman for the Linear World Heavyweight Championship.

"Shannon is in the best shape of his career," explained Scott Hirsch, Briggs' Manager. "We are certainly expecting an exciting, but very short fight!"

On August 26, 2005, former WBO, World Heavyweight and Gold Medalist Ray Mercer fell to Briggs' feet in the seventh round at The Hard Rock Cafe's Hollywood, Florida venue in front of more than 4,000 spectators and Showtime's large PPV audience. Earlier this summer, on June 10, 2005, previously undefeated heavyweight Abraham O'Kine was dropped by Briggs in a third round KO at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York; that bout was broadcast nationally on ESPN.

Briggs' fighting career led to his entry into Hollywood. Aside from his supporting role in this summer's "Transporter 2," Briggs made a splash with his performance in the box office hit "Bad Boys 2." In addition to the silver screen, Briggs recently appeared as a guest analyst for ESPN's "Friday Fight Night" on September 2, 2005.

For his third fight in less than six months, Briggs has formidable competition. While both Briggs and Maddalone enjoy "fan-favorite" status, Briggs is looking for his next KO for the fourth time in six months.

Source: TransMedia Group

CONTACT: Jamie Schwartz, TransMedia Group, +1-561-750-9800, ext. 232, or jschwartz@transmediagroup.com

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