Call-Out Provokes Response
Posted: April 3, 2008

Following his record-setting knockout victory over Francis McKechnai on Saturday, Tyrone Brunson issued a challenge to Michigan boxers Cornelius “K9” Bundrage and Brian “The Lion” Mihtar.

Brian Mihtar Statement
"Tyrone Brunson had the honor of sparring with me awhile back, and I beat him so bad that they had to pull him out of a 6 round scheduled sparring session inside 3 rounds with his blood all over my shirt. His lame excuse was my gloves were broken into and his weren’t, and to prove this Carlos Llinas videotaped the whole session and I hope he has the honesty and integrity of showing the media the beating I put on him, and I would do the same thing in a sanctioned bout. I would recommend for his good health that Tyrone Brunson continue his circus act at Barnum and Baileys show and stay away from real boxers like me and K-9."

Such call-outs aren’t rare in the world of professional boxing and neither are the responses they sometimes generate. Sometimes these back-and-forths are publicity-seeking efforts designed to create interest in a future fight but sometimes the challenged boxer takes offense. Mihtar’s advisor, and brother, Ray seems to reflect the latter.

“He’s not in the same league (as Brian),” said Ray Mihtar, earlier in the week, referring to Brunson. “We’ve moved on to bigger and better things.”

Ray Mihtar questioned why a fighter who just won his 19th straight fight by knockout would be calling out a 9-0 fighter, which Brian is. “The callout is a joke,” he said. “Brian is a serious fighter.”

The usually quiet fighter is speaking out.

“I don’t know why he’s calling me out,” Brian Mihtar said by telephone from his Florida training camp late Wednesday night. Mihtar will be fighting April 12 on a televised card from Tampa.

Brunson could not be reached for comment.

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