By Charlie Knoxville
Tom “Tommy Z” Zbikowski, 25, a former Notre Dame football standout and current safety for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, announced that he will return to the boxing ring on March 12, 2011 on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto vs. Ricardo Mayorga Showtime pay-per-view card that takes place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The young 25-year-old Zbikowski is no newcomer to the sport of boxing, he’s been boxing since the age of 9 and has an amateur record of 68-13 before making his professional debut on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto vs. Paulie Malignaggi undercard at the famous Madison Square Garden in New York.
Tommy’s fight on the undercard of Cotto vs. Malignaggi lasted a mere 50 seconds when he stopped his opponent Robert Bell by TKO, Zbikowski was still in college and playing football for Notre Dame when he made his pro boxing debut and fought at heavyweight, for his fight on March 12 he will drop down to the 200-pound cruiserweight division.
Video of Tom “Tommy Z” Zbikowski pro debut versus Robert Bell
With the potential of an NFL lockout, Tommy could be the shot in the arm that boxing needs in America, he could help get the attention of the American public once again. If Zbikowski does plan to fight often during the possible NFL lock out and if he sticks to boxing he could fight for a cruiserweight title in a few years, depending on how good he looks in the ring and how serious he takes the sport.
If Tom Zbikowski gets past his opponent on March 12, maybe he can have another fight on the undercard of the May 7th, Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley mega fight on Showtime pay-per-view. That would be another great opportunity to showcase himself and gain more exposure if he fights on the Manny Pacquiao undercard. Pacquiao is arguably the best boxer of the past decade and biggest boxing star right now, who knows, maybe Tommy Z can attain that same type of greatness in boxing as well.
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I am an avid fan of boxing and video games. My first fight of memory was watching Prince Naseem Hamed destroy Kevin Kelly. I enjoy all aspects of the sport. My favorite current boxer is Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao. My favorite boxing match is Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo 1. I love watching boxing on Pay-Per-View more than being there live because you can really enjoy and watch the action from the best view.