February 25, 2008
Providence amateur boxer Demetrius Andrade, a member of the U.S. Boxing Team fighting in Russia, was one of three members from team USA to record a victory Sunday night in the first of two duals.
Andrade, the United States amateur welterweight champion (152 pounds), earned a convincing decision victory over Russia’s Dmitri Ivanov. He was named the Outstanding Boxer of the day for his performance.
Team USA heavyweight Olympian Deontay Wilder (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) earned a decision victory over the 2007 World Championships silver medalist Rakhim Chakhiev, and Team USA’s super heavyweight Michael Turner (Las Vegas) defeated Denis Sergeev via a decision.
The two teams will face off in a second dual in Novosibirsk, Russia, on Friday.
-- ROBERT LEE
Posted by Chris Venditto 
at 6:07 PM | Permalink
February 21, 2008
Super middleweight Peter Manfredo, Jr. returns to the ring March 14, headlining “Rumble at the River,” against Shane Benfield in the main event at the Twin River Events Center in Lincoln.
Manfredo (28-5, 13 KOs), star of The Contender I television reality series, fights Benfield (17-1, 9 KOs) in the 10-round main event. Coming off of a 10-round loss by decision to former world champion Jeff Lacy on the Floyd Mayweather-Ricky Hatton pay-per-view card, Manfredo hopes to rebound against Benfield, who dropped a 12-round decision in his last fight to DeAndrey Abron for the NABO belt that Manfredo once held.
IWBF lightweight champion Jaime Clampitt (18-4-1, 7 KOs), fighting out of Cranston, defends her crown against battle-tested Belinda Larcuente (23-20-3, 9 KOs), the GBU junior welterweight title-holder from New York City, in the 10-round co-feature.
Clampitt is a 3-time world champion, while 20 of Larcuente’s last 21 bouts, dating back nearly five years, have been against world champions.
--CES BOXING
Posted by Corey Bourassa at 8:45 PM | Permalink
November 29, 2007
BROCKTON, Mass. (AP) - The World Boxing Council wants to commission a statue in honor of Rocky Marciano, but the plan to build it in Boston has angered people in the boxing legend's hometown of Brockton.
"That's stupid," said Dean Seidschlaw, 65, he sat at the bar in George's Cafe in Brockton, where the walls are covered with pictures of the undefeated heavyweight.
"I think that if they were to dig up Rocky and ask him, there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that he would want the statue in Brockton," said Peter Marciano, Rocky's younger brother.
But the WBC, which announced plans for the statue Nov. 17 at its annual convention in Manila, Philippines, said the council wants tourists and casual boxing fans to see the statue, and it's afraid only boxing die-hards will see it in Brockton.
Of 42 WBC representatives who voted on where to put the statue, just five chose Brockton while 37 chose Boston, including the three U.S. voters, said WBC President Jose Sulaiman.
"We want people to see Rocky even if they are not looking for him, and then they will have the opportunity to appreciate him as a legend in the sport of boxing," Sulaiman said. "Boston is visited by people of the world."
Marciano was 49-0 in his career, with 43 knockouts, reigning as world champ from September 1952 to April 1956, when he retired. He died in August 1969 in a plane crash in Iowa.
Brockton talked in 2000 about building a bronze statue of Marciano, but nothing materialized.
Sulaiman said the WBC plans are not meant to hurt Brockton, but to honor it "by having the statue in a place where more people will see it."
"And the people of Brockton can travel to Boston and say look, this is our hero," he said.
Posted by Mike McDermott at 9:27 AM | Permalink
November 21, 2007
Saturday night’s scheduled “Pinnacle FiteNite: The Heat’s on In Hartford,” featuring NABF cruiserweight champion Matt “Too Smooth” Godfrey, of Providence, and Jeremy “Half-Man, Half-Amazing” Williams, has been canceled due to Pinnacle FiteNite reneging on its financial funding and television agreement.
“We regret having to cancel the show but it was out of our control once Pinnacle pulled the plug,” Classic Entertainment & Sports, Inc. president Jimmy Burchfield explained. “We have incurred tremendous expenses and everyone associated with this promotion is terribly disappointed. Pinnacle was contractually responsible for providing television and made other financial commitments. It isn’t fair to anybody, particularly the fighters who’ve trained so hard and long for this show, as well as fans who’ve looked forward to watching these fights. Everybody worked so hard on this promotion, including the staffs at CES and the Connecticut Convention Center, and members of the Connecticut Department of Public Safety Boxing Commission.
“So many people changed their Thanksgiving Day plans and because the holiday is so close, we had to make a final decision now so others weren’t adversely affected. We have a contract with Pinnacle that it has reneged on and this matter is now in the hands of our legal advisors. CES has taken a terrible hit because we believed in Pinnacle FiteNite; we don’t do business like this.”
Anyone with tickets should return to their place of purchase for a full refund. If there are any problems call the CES office at 401.724.2254.
--CES
Posted by Corey Bourassa at 9:21 PM | Permalink
June 20, 2007
Peter Manfredo Jr. continued his comeback for a world title shot as the Providence native won for the second time in just over a month, defeating David Banks by decision in a 10-round super middleweight fight last night at Foxwoods Resort and Casino.
Manfredo Jr. (28-4, 13KOs) won on all three judges’ scorecards, 97-93.
Narragansett’s Jaime Clampitt won the IWBF and NABA junior lightweight championships with a unanimous decision over Jane Couch.
The judges scored the fight, 100-90, 98-92, 98-92.
Posted by Chris Venditto at 11:43 PM | Permalink
June 18, 2007
Providence native Robert Daluz will take on Clarence Vinson, a bantamweight bronze medalist in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, for the WBC U.S. NBC bantamweight title Saturday at Howard University’s Burr Gymnasium in Washington D.C. — Vinson’s hometown.
Daluz, 28, who trains in St. Augustine, Fla., won the Georgia Golden Gloves championship in 2003. Vinson, 29, most notably lost a decision to Mexico’s César Morales in 2004 and won by technical decision over Jose German Cruz in 2006.
Posted by Chris Venditto at 8:31 PM | Permalink
June 5, 2007
Jaime "The Hurricane" Clampitt is scheduled to fight Jane Couch of England for the IWBF Junior Welterweight World Championship, in a live televised bout from Foxwoods Resorts Casino, on June 20th. The fight will be featured on ESPN2 "Wednesday Night Fights."
Clampitt looks to revenge her loss to Couch two years ago. She comes in with a record of 17-4-1 and a recent dominating win over Mia St. John. Jaime has three world title belts to her name.
Couch comes in with a 28-9-0 (9 KO's) record. The previous fight with Couch was named the 2004 Female Fight of the Year by Ring Magazine, which was a very close decision victory for Couch.
For further information on the fight, go to www.cesboxing.com or www.foxwoods.com.
Posted by Thom Cahir at 6:35 PM | Permalink
April 10, 2007
CARDIFF, Wales — Joe Calzaghe broke his left hand in the TKO win over Peter Manfredo to retain his WBO super middleweight title last week.
The 35-year-old Welshman broke a bone in the third round Saturday, just before referee Terry O'Connor stopped the fight in front of a British indoor record crowd of 35,018 fans at the Millennium Stadium.
In September 2005, Calzaghe broke a different bone in the same hand in the third round against Evans Ashira of Kenya, but still won a unanimous points decision. After recovering, he beat IBF world champion Jeff Lacy.
Saturday's win was Calzaghe's 20th title defense, drawing him even with Bernard Hopkins and Larry Holmes and moving within five of Joe Louis' record. He also improved to 43-0, within sight of Rocky Marciano's 49-0.
“I'm disappointed that I fractured my hand, but that's boxing and injuries happen,” Calzaghe said Tuesday in a statement. “I shouldn't be out for too long though, probably about four weeks, and then I'll be back to light training in preparation for the proposed July date, which I am really excited about.”
Calzaghe is expected to fight Russian challenger Denis Inkin in July, although middleweight super champion Jermain Taylor remains his preferred opponent, with Hopkins another option.
ASSOCIATED PRESS --
Posted by Thom Cahir at 10:37 PM | Permalink
April 7, 2007
CARDIFF, Wales -- Joe Calzaghe stopped Peter Manfredo in the third round Saturday to retain his WBO super middleweight title and improve to 43-0.
It was Calzaghe's 20th successful defense since he won the title from Chris Eubank in 1997, equaling Bernard Hopkins and Larry Holmes and moving within five of Joe Louis' record.
Manfredo, runner-up in the first season of "The Contender" reality television show, fell to 26-4. Calzaghe dominated with superior hand speed and punching power in front of 35,000 at the Millennium Stadium.
Manfredo was backed onto the ropes early in the third round and referee Terry O'Connor stopped the bout after 30 seconds.
Manfredo evaded the 34-year-old Welshman's punches in an uneventful first round, but Calzaghe increased his tempo in the second, dropping his hands to entice a wary Manfredo. He connected before covering up to defend against the American's response.
After getting Manfredo on the ropes in the third, Calzaghe threw a flurry of combinations.
Manfredo initially beckoned Calzaghe to continue, and the Welshman launched a sustained assault to the American's head and body to finish the fight early.
Calzaghe used the bout, broadcast to the United States on HBO, to increase his profile in America.
He has identified Hopkins, Winky Wright and Jermain Taylor as future opponents. Pressure also will grow to fight WBA and WBC champion Mikkel Kessler in a unification bout -- especially after beating Manfredo.
On the undercard, Amir Khan (12-0) stopped Steffy Bull in the third round in a lightweight non-title bout, and Enzo Maccarinelli retained his WBO cruiserweight title by stopping Bobby Gunn in the first round.
Khan was relentless as he handled the outclassed Bull, landing punches to the head and body.
--ASSOCIATED PRESS
Posted by Chris Venditto at 6:46 PM | Permalink
