ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- The reach of Michael Jackson, who died Thursday at age 50, was worldwide. All the way to the African country of Cameroon.
That's where Olivier Lontchi grew up before moving to Montreal, where he relocated to as an adult to pursue his professional boxing career.
Lontchi (18-0-2, 8 KOs) will challenge Puerto Rico's Juan Manuel Lopez (25-0, 23 KOs) for a junior featherweight title Saturday night in the main event of Top Rank's "Latin Fury 9" pay-per-view, and Jackson's music will be part of Lontchi's motivation.
Lontchi grew up as a huge fan of Jackson and his music. So devastated by the passing of the King of Pop was Lontchi that he made a special request to the Top Rank technical crew producing the show.
"Lontchi came up to me [Friday] morning and specifically asked Top Rank's technical crew to download as many of Michael Jackson's songs as possible to play in his locker room [Saturday] night for inspiration," Top Rank publicist Lee Samuels said. "Michael Jackson is his all-time favorite artist, and Olivier is making his ring entrance to Jackson's 'Thriller' music video. I wouldn't be surprised if he moonwalked into the ring."
Samuels said the video will be projected on screens inside the Boardwalk Hall ballroom where the fight will take place.
Samuels added that the DJ Top Rank hired to keep the fans entertained between rounds and bouts will rely on a heavy dose of Jackson's music in tribute.
Hopefully, the card itself is a "Thriller," and not "Bad."
On the other side of the country, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where Jackson lived and had been rehearsing at the arena this week for his upcoming soldout concerts in England, there is an HBO boxing card on Saturday night.
Junior welterweights Victor Ortiz and Marcos Maidana meet for a vacant junior welterweight belt in the main event. Golden Boy will honor Jackson with a traditional 10-bell count. Also, Golden Boy's David Itskowitch said that the company will request that all of the fighters on the card walk out to Jackson songs.
Dan Rafael
