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Hits keep coming for unbeaten UBF champ Gray as he puts perfect record on the line Oct. 17th

Posted by Bud Mench Media Group -BMMG on October 8, 2015 at 15:00
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Photo courtesy of Will PaUL
UNDEFEATED WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS junior middleweight Khiary Gray, seen here after winning the UBF Northeast Title in September, returns to the ring and puts his perfect record on the line against Denver's Marcus Dawkins in a six-round bout Saturday, Oct. 17th, 2015 on the undercard of CES Boxing's "Gold Standard" professional boxing event at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Gray is now 9-0 and has won each of his last seven fights by first-round knockout. 
 -- Kendrick Ball always knew his protégé,Khiary Gray, had the right pedigree to be a star in the junior middleweight division, but this recent string of first-round knockouts? It's bordering on the absurd.
 
"The situation is a little overwhelming," Ball admitted. "It's not something we plan, but what we work on is if you happen to give us an opening, we'll take that opening and hurt you.
 
"I always knew how good he was. It was just a matter of showing everyone else."
 
Gray (9-0, 7 KOs), the reigning, undefeated Universal Boxing Federation Northeast champion from Worcester, Mass., has won his last six fights by first-round knockout, including his most recent bout Sept. 18th against Kenton Sippio-Cook in what was supposed to be the first major test of his career. Instead, Gray ripped through his opponent in impressive fashion, stopping Sippio-Cook at the 2-minute, 2-second mark of the opening round to capture the vacant UBF strap.
 
Less than a month later, Gray is back at it, scheduled to face Denver's Marcus Dawkins (4-2, 1 KO) in a six-round bout Saturday, Oct. 17th, 2015 on the undercard of CES Boxing's "Gold Standard" event at Mohegan Sun Arena, headlined by the long-awaited return of former world champion Demetrius Andrade.
 
Tickets are priced at $25.00, $50.00, $125.00 and $200.00 (VIP) and available for purchase online at www.cesboxing.com or www.mohegansun.com,www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254, or at the Mohegan Sun Box Office. All fights and fighters are subject to change.
 
Will Gray finally face some opposition and get some much-needed rounds? Ball hopes so.
 
"We train for longer rounds. When we were fighting four-rounders, we were already training for eight-rounders. Right now, we're doing six-rounders, so we're training for 12-round fights," Ball said. "I'm not worried about the rounds. Eventually, I know we'll run into someone that can probably take it a little longer and we'll get him out later on, but I think people are finally starting to see more of what he can do."
 
The irony of Gray's impressive streak, Ball said, is fight fans really haven't seen the best of what he has to offer. They've yet to see how he'll respond in a major test, or how he'll hold up physically and mentally over the course of a six- or eight-round fight. Time will tell. For now, some of Gray's best attributes are being overshadowed by the sheer violence and astonishment of his current knockout streak.
 
"Everyone knows he can punch. You can see he throws a good body shot. He's pretty accurate," Ball said. "What people don't understand is he has really good defense and his boxing IQ is really high. We're hoping to get some work in with someone who can give us some rounds so he can display that also."
 
Dawkins might be the one. The 5-foot-9 lefty recently boxed 10 rounds in his last fight, or precisely as many rounds as Gray has boxed in his last seven bouts. A former football and basketball standout in high school, Dawkins recalls watchingMike Tyson dismantle Michael Spinks in 91 seconds back in 1988 at the age of 9. He immediately caught the boxing bug, but admittedly didn't put on a pair of gloves until 2004. A self-proclaimed "defensive fighter," he's gone the distance in four of his six professional bouts.
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"He's kind of a loopy fighter. Throws wide, loopy punches. Nothing I haven't seen before," Gray said. "It plays right into my game plan."
 
Echoing the same sentiment as his long-time trainer, Gray thought Sippio-Cook would give him "at least three, four rounds," but went for the kill when "the opportunity presented itself." The beginning of the end came with 1:16 remaining when Gray cracked his opponent with an overhand right that brought the crowd to its feet.
 
"That was the first one the whole fight," Gray said. "After that, he began to buckle every time I hit him."
 
Eleven seconds later, Gray delivered another right to the temple that sent Sippio-Cook to the canvas for good.
 
"I learned a lot in that fight. I learned to put more of my weight on my back leg and get more power out of my punches. Every fight, I learn something," Gray said.
 
"I just took it the same way I took my last fight. That's how I approach every fight. I don't try to put pressure on myself. I just go out and fight. I had a different mindset. I knew this was what I had been waiting for, a chance to step up."
 
Now he wants a chance to showcase his full arsenal in front of a packed house under the bright lights of Mohegan Sun. He might get that chance Oct. 17th, unless those trademark body shots get through.
 
"We did that a lot in the amateurs, and some of the fights he lost were due to the fact they weren't scoring body shots," Ball said. "I always knew he was a good body puncher and it was going to work out perfect for us when we turned pro, so even if we fought a guy we knew we'd eventually beat the body up, wear him down fast enough and beat the body to slow him down.
 
"There won't be anybody -- well, I can't say anybody, but it's going to take a really strong person to be able to take body shots for a certain amount of rounds. We're definitely going to touch the body a certain amount of times in a round where eventually three or four rounds later they're either going to shit on themselves or they'll be pissing blood."
 
The 10-round main event, promoted in association with Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing and Artie Pelullo's Banner Promotions, features Andrade (21-0, 14 KOs) against Argentinian Dario Fabian Pucheta (20-2, 11 KOs) for the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) and World Boxing Association (WBA) International Titles, Andrade's first fight in 16 months.
 
"Gold Standard" also includes the return of world-rated lightweight "Hammerin'"Hank Lundy (25-5-1, 12 KOs), No. 15 in the WBC, fighting for the WBC's vacant Continental Americas Title at 135 pounds. Super middleweight Vladine Biosse (15-7-2, 7 KOs) of Providence, R.I., returns in a six-round bout against Nathan Miller(6-0-1, 4 KOs) of New Brunswick, Canada.
 
Also featured on the undercard, New Haven, Conn., featherweight Josh Crespo (4-2-3, 2 KOs) battles Albany, N.Y., vet Rigoberto Miranda in a four-round bout; cruiserweight Mike Marshall (1-0, 1 KO) of the Bronx faces newcomer Hampton Miller of New Haven in a four-rounder and featherweights Carlos Pena of Worcester and Phil Dudley of Providence make their professional debuts against one another in a four-round bout.
 
For more information on "Gold Standard" visit www.cesboxing.com, follow @CESBOXING on Twitter and Instagram and "like" the official CES Boxing Facebook fan page.
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-- CES --
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Unbeaten boxer teams up with five-time champ Paz

Posted by Bud Mench Media Group -BMMG on March 19, 2015 at 17:30

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UNDEFEATED CRUISERWEIGHT JEAN Pierre Augustin of Lawrence, Mass., makes his Rhode Island and CES Boxing debut on Friday, April 3, 2015 when he faces Solomon Maye of New Haven, Conn., on the undercard of "The Revival," presented by CES Boxing. Augustin is now trained by former five-time world champion Vinny Paz and managed by award-winning film producer Chad Verdi, both of whom he met while playing a role in the upcoming movie, Bleed For This, based on Paz's legendary career. 

Film producer Verdi, boxing champ Paz team up with unbeaten New England prospect Augustin


LINCOLN, R.I. (March 19th, 2015) -- The phone call couldn't have come at a better time for Jean Pierre Augustin, even if he wasn't quite sure it was real.

 

"I didn't take it seriously at first," said the Lawrence, Mass., cruiserweight boxer. "I thought it was a prank."

 

But this was no joke. This was the opportunity of a lifetime, a chance for the 27-year-old fighter to play a role in Bleed For This, the upcoming Chad Verdi-produced film based on the career of five-time world champion Vinny Paz.

 

Augustin (4-0, 2 KOs) landed the role of former world champ Gilbert Dele, whom Paz beat in 1991, and made a lasting impression on the cast and crew, specifically Verdi and Paz, who are now guiding Augustin's boxing career, which resumes Friday, April 3rd, 2015 at Twin River Casino on the undercard of "The Revival," presented by CES Boxing in association with Verdi Productions. 

 

Tickets for Augustin's Twin River and CES debut are priced at $40.00, $100.00 and $125.00 and available for purchase online atwww.cesboxing.com or www.twinriver.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254 or at the Twin River Players Club. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

 

"This is a blessing for me," Augustin said. "There's no other way for me to describe it."

 

"Vinny is 100 percent committed to training JP and making him a world champion," Verdi said. "This is the main reason I agreed to become JP's manager, and working with Vinny again is an absolute joy. Both Vinny and I feel JP has what it takes to become a champion, but it's up to him to put in all the hard work and dedication needed."

 

That part is nothing new for Augustin, who, with few connections on the local boxing circuit, needed the help of a sponsor at the beginning of his pro career just to pay his way onto various cards in West Virginia and North Carolina, where he amassed a 4-0 record with two first-round knockouts in 2014.  

 

But the money from fighting wasn't enough to pay the bills, so the Haitian-born Augustin found other ways to earn a living, working as a plumber, security guard and even a part-time Uber driver.

 

"I really didn't know where my career was going," he said. "I was basically living out of a suitcase moving from camp to camp, hustling here and there to get a job done and get some cash.

 

"I was pursuing a dream, but the dream really wasn't taking me anywhere."

 

Raised in Boston before moving to Lawrence at the age of 10, Augustin's first love was martial arts, but it wasn't "physical enough," so, on the recommendation of his sensei, he took up boxing at a local gym.

 

"I instantly fell in love with it," he said.

 

After 55 amateur fights (49 wins among them), Augustin finally turned pro in February of 2014. The struggle to land a spot on a card in New England with other promoters - "I just couldn't get a fair shake," he said - forced Augustin to remain a boxing nomad until he linked up with Verdi and Paz on the set for Bleed For This.

 

The rest is history. With Verdi as his manager, Paz as his trainer, and CES president Jimmy Burchfield Sr. as his promoter, Augustin now has an opportunity to build a fan base in New England and take his career to new heights. The journey begins April 3rd in a four-round bout against New Haven, Conn., vet Solomon Maye (1-4).

 

"Things have been unfolding quickly," said Augustin, who has been training and sparring at Balletto's Gym in Providence while also working with Rhode Island-based coach Vic Fagnant. "It's not overwhelming, but it's a lot to process.

 

"I'm just thankful for this opportunity."

 

"The Revival" features the 10-round main event between Universal Boxing Federation (UBF) female super bantamweight world championShelly Vincent (13-0, 1 KO) of Providence and three-time world-title challenger Christina Ruiz (7-7-3, 4 KOs) of San Antonio, Tex. Both Vincent's UBF title and the vacant International Boxing Association (IBA) world title will be on the line.

 

Unbeaten Providence super middleweight Angel Camacho Jr. (13-0, 4 KOs) faces the dangerous Chris Chatman (12-4-1, 5 KOs) of Jersey City, N.J., in the six-round co-feature, while undefeated welterweight Nick DeLomba (6-0) of Cranston, R.I., battles Hartford, Conn., vet Joe Wilson Jr. (3-1) in a six-round special attraction.

 

Bleed For This is the inspirational true story of Rhode Island's Paz, who defied the odds by winning the third of his five world titles just one year after a near-fatal car crash left him with a broken neck and an uncertain future.

 

Executive produced by Martin Scorsece, Michelle Verdi andJoshua Sason and produced by Verdi, Bruce Cohen, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Pam Thur and Noah Kraft, Bleed For This starsMiles Teller (The Spectacular Now, That Awkward Moment andGeneration X) as Paz; Golden Globe nominee Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight, Olympus Has Fallen, I and Frankenstein) as trainerKevin Rooney; Katey Sagal (Married ... With Children, Sons Of Anarchy) as Louise Pazienza; and Ciaran Hinds (Frozen, Munich,The Road to Perdition and Harry Potter) as Angelo Pazienza.

 

The undercard of "The Revival" also features several noteworthy regional showdowns, including a four-round junior welterweight bout between unbeaten Worcester, Mass., native Freddy Sanchez (3-0, 2 KOs) and Briam Granado (1-0, 1 KO) of New Bedford, Mass., and a four-round super middleweight bout between Zachary Christy (1-0-1) of Warwick, R.I. (St. Petersburg, Fla.), and former amateur champion Bobby Flynn of Sandwich, Mass., who is making his professional boxing debut. New Bedford junior middleweight Ray Oliveira Jr. (3-0, 2 KOs) returns to face Cambridge, Mass., newcomer Yves Thevenin while unbeaten middleweight prospectKhiary Gray-Pitts (5-0, 3 KOs) of Worcester battles New Haven vetGreg McCoy (3-4-1, 1 KO).  

 

For more information on "The Revival" visit www.cesboxing.com, follow @CESBOXING on Twitter and Instagram and "like" the official CES Boxing Facebook fan page.

 

 

- CES -

 

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N.E. champ Gingras eyes another title Friday night at Twin River CASINO

Posted by Bud Mench Media Group -BMMG on September 11, 2014 at 13:30
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CES photo by Ian Barnard
REIGNING NEW ENGLAND Light Heavyweight champion Rich Gingras of Lincoln, R.I., will face UBF Northeast champion Joey McCreedy in the main event of CES Boxing's "Title For Title" card Friday, Sept. 12, 2014 at Twin River Casino. Both belts will be on the line in the eight-round bout as Gingras fights for a title for the second time in his last three fights. 
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Between trading punches with opponents in the ring and showing off the results of his hard work in the gym on stage, it's been a while since Rich Gingras has taken a well-deserved break from his routine.

 

Twenty-two days after beating Jaime Velazquez in June for the vacant N.E. Light Heavyweight title, Gingras participated in his first bodybuilding competition, bruises and all.

 

A month later, he and his wife, Alyssa, competed in another fitness show in Las Vegas alongside some of the world's elite bodybuilders. On Friday night, just 32 days since they stepped off the stage out west, Gingras will climb back into the ring and battle Joey McCreedy of Lowell, Mass., in the eight-round main event of CES Boxing's "Title For Title" show at Twin River Casino.

 

Counting calories, cutting weight, logging miles and preparing for each invidual challenge has taken its toll on Gingras these past few months, perhaps more mentally than physically. A break from competition - and his diet - is in order.

 

"I'm ready to get fat and eat a little bit," he said.

 

Until then, the task at hand is adding another belt to the trophy case. In addition to defending his N.E. title, Gingras will fight for McCreedy's Universal Boxing Federation (UBF) Northeast title in a unique main event featuring two champions who both consider Twin River their home venue.

 

"Since he won that belt, I've kept my eye on him," said Gingras, born and raised in New Hampshire and now living and training out of Lincoln, R.I.

 

"I've been licking my chops wanting to fight him. I'm very excited about this one. The fans will love this fight."

 

Stylistically, this is a fight fan's dream. Gingras (14-4-1, 9 KOs) and McCreedy (15-7-2, 6 KOs) are practically identical in terms of their approach. Neither fighter will shy away from contact and figure to spend all eight rounds -- or however long it lasts -- looking to inflict as much damage as possible.

 

"I won't have to chase him around," Gingras said. "We'll meet in the middle somewhere. Whoever has a higher tolerance for pain and can dish out the most punishment will end up winning."

 

Gingras is confident he'll be the one -- "I can take a punch," he noted -- thanks to his pinpoint diet and impeccable conditioning, making him a stronger, more durable fighter since he began competing at 175 pounds this year instead of 168.

 

"I'm not a cocky person by any means and I don't take anyone lightly," he said, "but I believe I'm a bigger, stronger individual than him. My conditioning will be the key factor."

 

Though it's hard to believe now, Gingras was a cruiserweight when he first turned pro in 2006. A change in his diet and conditioning helped him slim down to 168 when he fought Joe Gardner in May of 2013. He also stays in the gym between fights -- literally. He and his wife own one in nearby Pawtucket, so staying motivated to train and live a healthy lifestyle is never an issue.

 

"I've always had incredible conditioning," Gingras said.

 

The only time he's ever run out of gas was when he fought Peter Manfredo Jr. in November, but what few people know is Gingras injured his Achilles tendon three and a half weeks before the fight, which prevented him from running or jumping rope for the rest of his camp. He looked strong early, but faded down the stretch before Manfredo Jr. stopped him in the eighth round.

 

"I never really told anyone about it because I didn't want it to sound like I was making an excuse because he's a tremendous fighter and his experience broke me down," Gingras said. "The difference was in rounds six, seven and eight."

 

With the Achilles' injury behind him, Gingras is back to his old ways, pushing himself to the limit every time he steps foot inside the gym. His trainer, Orlondo Valles, keeps close tabs on him to make sure he doesn't overextend himself.

 

"He has to tell me to chill out once in a while," Gingras said of Valles. "I push a little harder than I should sometimes."

 

The hard work has paid off. Gingras is now a reigning champion in New England with his eyes set on another prize Friday night and, if possible, perhaps a third title down the road if he ever gets a shot at a rematch with the N.E. Super Middleweight Champion Vladine Biosse. The two fought to a disputed draw in July of 2013 (Gingras was initially announced as the winner due to a scorekeeping error), allowing Biosse to retain his title.

 

"I was shortchanged in that fight," Gingras said. "To have all three belts would be amazing. I have unfinished business to settle there. I could get down to 168 tomorrow if they asked me."

 

Tickets for "Title For Title" are on sale now at $45.00, $60.00, $76.00 and $125.00 (VIP) and can be purchased online at www.cesboxing.com or www.twinriver.com or by phone at 401-724-2253/2254. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

 

Worcester, Mass., junior middleweight Khiary Gray-Pitts (1-0, 1 KO) faces Sergio Cabrera (0-2) of Boston: junior middleweight Ray Oliveira Jr. of Fall River, Mass., battles fellow newcomer Angel Valdez in his pro debut and Fall River lightweight Scott Sullivan takes on Moises Rivera (0-3) of Boston in his debut. Italian-American cruiserweight Antonio Mignella (3-0, 3 KOs) of Providence, nicknamed "Little Rocky," will battle Louisana's Alvin Varmall Jr. (2-0, 2 KOs) in a four-round bout.

 

Cranston welterweight Nick DeLomba (4-0) will face 15-fight veteran Christian Steele of Staunton, Va., in a six-round bout. "Title For Title" also features the professional debut of Cranston native and U.S. Air Force veteran Zack Christy, who takes on Saul Almeida of Framingham, Mass., in a four-round super middleweight bout.

 

Visit www.cesboxing.com for more information, follow CES Boxing on Twitter at @CESBOXING and Instagram at CESBOXING, or "like" CES Boxing on Facebook.
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CES' "Home Sweet Home" card Former champ Johnson invades Rhode Island Feb. 21st

Posted by Bud Mench Media Group -BMMG on February 11, 2014 at 20:02

11020609872?profile=original

Former two-time world champion Glen "The Road Warrior" Johnson (above right), seen here knocking out Allan Green during their Super Six World Classic super middleweight bout in 2010, will return to the ring Friday, Feb. 21st, 2014 at Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., in the 8-round main event of CES' "Home Sweet Home" card as he faces fan-favorite Jaime Velazquez.

Former champ Johnson invades Rhode Island Feb. 21st 
 
Providence's Toka Kahn will return to his hometown and put his unbeaten record on the line on the undercard of CES' Feb. 21st event at Twin River Casino.11020610468?profile=original                                                          Providence's Toka Kahn
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Feb. 11th, 2014) -- The man who once put Roy Jones Jr. to sleep and earned a reputation as boxing's toughest "Road Warrior" will test his luck in another city far from his home in Jamaica.


Glen Johnson, the former International Boxing Federation (IBF) and The Ring world light heavyweight champion, will headline Classic Entertainment & Sports' Feb. 21, 2014 card at Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., when he faces veteran Jaime Velazquez of Pawtucket, R.I., in the 8-round main event of "Home Sweet Home."
 
Velazquez (11-5-2, 6 KOs), 42, a former New England title contender in the mid- to late-1990s, will end a 15-year layoff in his long-awaited return to the ring Feb. 21st, and he'll do it against one of the most prolific light heavyweights of this generation. Johnson (53-18-2, 36 KOs), 45, has been actively fighting for the past 25 years, a late-bloomer who didn't turn pro until he was 20, but during that stretch he's fought 11 world-title bouts and enjoyed an impressive run as the IBF and The Ring title-holder, which included his shocking knockout win over Roy Jones Jr. in 2004. Three months later, Johnson unified the light heavyweight title by beating Antonio Tarver and earned the Boxing Writer's Association of America's Fighter of the Year award.
 
Tickets for "Home Sweet Home" are available for $40, $100 and $126 (VIP) and can be purchased online at www.cesboxing.com or www.twinriver.com or by phone at 401-724-2253/2254.
 
Nicknamed "The Road Warrior" for frequently fighting -- and winning -- in his opponents' hometowns, Johnson's resume also includes a knockout win over the hard-hitting Yusaf Mack of Philadelphia and an inclusion in the Super Six World Boxing Classic in which he dropped to 168 pounds to replace an injured Mikkel Kessler and knocked out Allan Green before losing a close majority decision to World Boxing Council (WBC) champ Carl Froch in the semifinals.
 
Like the loss to Froch, many of Johnson's setbacks have either been too close to call or have fallen under a cloud of controversy, including a disputed draw against Clinton Woods for the then-vacant IBF title in 2003 in Woods' backyard in the United Kingdom, which Johnson avenged later that year by beating Woods unanimously for the belt. He faced Woods a third time in 2006 in the same country for the same belt and lost a close split decision in which one judge awarded the fight to Johnson by two points.
 
Following the trilogy with Woods, Johnson went on to beat former world champion Montell Griffin by 11th-round knockout and faced off twice against WBC title-holder Chad Dawson, losing both fights by narrow unanimous decisions. Johnson also challenged for the IBF title a third time against Tavoris Cloud and took a shot at the IBF super middleweight belt against Lucian Bute, going the distance against both fighters. Johnson pushed Cloud to the brink for 12 rounds and lost a unanimous decision despite landing more punches than Cloud, according to the CompuBox numbers.
 
In addition to knocking out 36 of his 73 opponents, a staggering 49 percent knockout rate, Johnson has only been stopped once in 25 years, proving his chin is as solid as his fists. The lone stoppage occurred in 1997 in the first of his 11 world-title belts against then-IBF middleweight champ Bernard Hopkins, the ageless wonder who, at 49, now holds the same light heavyweight title Johnson defended twice during the peak of his dominance in 2004. Born in Jamaica, Johnson moved to southern Florida at the age of 15.
 
Velazquez is best known for a series of memorable bouts on the New England circuit in the '90s, including a thriller against former world-title challenger Scott Pemberton and a six-round battle against Richard Grant, who later went on to face former super middleweight world champ Jeff Lacy. Velazquez also went the distance with former IBF contender Gabriel Hernandez and fought two draws against Holyoke, Mass., cruiserweight Darren Whitley.
 
"Home Sweet Home" also features the homecoming of Providence native Toka Kahn (9-0, 6 KOs), a highly-decorated amateur and now undefeated super featherweight prospect fighting under the promotional guidance of Bob Arum's Top Rank Boxing. Kahn will fight in his hometown for the first time since 2012 in a six-round bout.
 
"The Vermont Bully" Kevin Cobbs (7-1, 2 KOs), now fighting out of Fall River, Mass., will end his year-long layoff in a four-round light heavyweight bout while Pawtucket, R.I., middleweight Thomas Falowo (10-2, 7 KOs) will return for the first time since his loss to Chris Chatman in July of 2012 in a separate six-round bout. The undercard also features the return of undefeated Providence middleweight K.J. Harrison-Lombardi (4-0-1), who will star in a four-round bout, and the Twin River debut of Louisiana cruiserweight Alvin Varmall (1-0, 1 KO), also fighting in a separate four-round bout. All fights and fighters are subject to change.
 
-- CES

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