Boxing Returns To Nassau Coliseum; Fails To Generate Local Interest

The renovated Nassau Coliseum last night held a boxing event "for the first time" since '86, as a crowd of 7,492 turned out to see the Premier Boxing Champions card on Fox, headlined by Omar Figueroa Jr.-Robert Guerrero (ESPN.com, 7/16). Despite the return to Long Island, the main event "failed to generate local interest." But there is a "commitment from management ... to make boxing a regular part of the Coliseum schedule." Promoter Lou DiBella: "You have to start somewhere. There hasn't been big-time boxing on Long Island in 31 years. This is a start" (NEWSDAY, 7/16).

Meanwhile, a crowd of 5,846 turned out to The Forum last night to see Miguel Berchelt beat Takashi Miura to retain the junior lightweight world title (ESPN.com, 7/16).