The first taste of adversity for a professional boxer reveals a great deal about the character of the fighter. Heavyweight prospect Travis Kauffman of Reading, PA intends to show that what hasn't killed him will only make him stronger when he returns to the ring this Saturday, February 27th at the Rodeway Inn & Conference Center in Allentown, PA against Mike Miller of Akron, OH in the six round main event.

King's Promotions will promote the ten-bout event that will feature both professional and amateur boxing action.



Kauffman, 18-1 (15 KO), will be making his first appearance since his first professional loss to Tony Grano in September. Ahead on the scorecards and trying to finish off his fading opponent, Kauffman was drawn in by his opponent's dirty tactics and left himself open in the process. After taking some time to deal with the defeat, Kauffman has put the experience into perspective.

"It got me down a little bit at first," admits Kauffman, "but I feel I've won bigger fights than that as an amateur. I fought with my heart instead of my head and that was my biggest mistake in that fight. I got over it in time and am now 100% focused in the gym. I still feel I have the potential to be the heavyweight champion of the world and hold the title. All this has done is strengthen my desire to prove that I am a world class fighter."



Kauffman, a former number one ranked heavyweight amateur in the country, accrued a number of amateur accolades, including a gold medal in the 2004 PAL Nationals. The 6′3″ Kauffman was one an eight-fight knockout streak prior to the defeat but has demonstrated technical boxing skills in addition to power.

Kauffman was originally supposed to face Baltimore, MD's Bernard Brown. Plans changed when Brown suffered from cold feet in the last 24 hours and pulled out of the fight. Stepping in on short notice is the durable Mike Miller, 6-15 (3 KO), who was the first person to extend Kauffman the distance in the pros.

"It doesn't matter who they put in front of me, I'm ready to fight. I want to show Allentown, the entire Pennsylvania and the world that I'm still on a mission to become heavyweight champion of the world."



In the co-featured attraction, Jason Cintron of Reading, PA will clash with Maurice Chalmers in junior-welterweight action. Cintron, 11-1, is the brother of former welterweight champion Kermit Cintron. He is fresh off a unanimous decision win over Martinus Clay at Reading's Sovereign Center in December.

Rounding out the professional action, undefeated super-middleweight Farah Ennis (11-0, 5 KO) of Philadelphia will face Emmanuel Gonzalez of San Juan, Puerto Rico in a six round bout. Featherweight Coy Evans (6-0, 1 KO) of Philadelphia, PA will face Robert DaLuz of Providence, Rhode Island in a six round bout. Middleweight Derrick Webster of Glassboro, NJ will face Pete Guthy of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina in a four round bout. New York super-featherweight Emanuel Gonzalez will face Jamar Saunders of Atlanta, GA in a four round bout.

Bragging rights will be at stake in the amateur portion of the night when fighters from the Allentown Boxing Club challenge their counterparts from Reading's King's Gym.



Tickets are priced at $25.00, 50.00 and 65.00 and are now available at the Rodeway Inn (610-395-3731), Kingsboxing.com and the Allentown Boxing Club (Luis Melendez: 484-860-5162). A special student discount of $5.00 off any ticket price will be available at the door only along with student ID. A portion of ticket sales will be donated by King's Promotions to the Allentown Boxing Club. Doors open at 6:00 pm; first bout starts at 6:30.