PROVIDENCE (February 20, 2012) — 2004 U.S. Olympian Jason “Big Six” Estrada returns to the ring March 9 at home, headlining an entertaining “Who’s Next?” card that will feature many of New England’s most popular boxers, at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence.
“Who’s Next?” is presented by Big Six Entertainment. Estrada will face an opponent to soon be approved and announced in the eight-round main event.
The 31-year-old Estrada (17-4, 4 KOs), fighting out of Providence, is coming off of a win by eight-round unanimous decision last December against Joseph Rabotte. Estrada had been sidelined 10 months after undergoing elbow surgery. One of the most highly-decorated U.S. amateurs of all-time, Jason went the distance on the road with World Boxing Association (“WBA”) heavyweight champion Alexander Povetkin and Tomasz Adamek, a two-time world champion. Estrada’s most notable victories have been against Lance Whitaker, Derek Bryant, Charles Shufford and Zuri Lawrence.
“We’re very excited to bring this level of entertainment to Providence,” Big Six Entertainments president Artie DePinho commented. “Our goal is to provide local boxers with opportunities to improve and continue their careers, as well as to provide competitive fights for fans to watch. We had a great turnout for our last show and we plan to carry that momentum and success into this show.”
Former USBA/NABO middleweight champion Brian “The Bull” Barbosa (30-6, 22 KOs) continues his comeback against dangerous John Johnson (13-2, 10 KOs) in the six-round, co-feature.
Cruiserweight Rich Gingras, one of the stars of The Contender, Season IV reality television show, will provide chief support in a six-round cruiserweight match. Gingras has relocated to Providence from New Hampshire and he remains a popular draw.
Pawtucket (RI) junior welterweight Diego Periera (6-0-1, 2 KOs) will attempt to keep his unbeaten pro record intact vs. TBA in a six-rounder.
Also fighting on the undercard in four-round match-ups are Providence middleweight Kali Reiss (3-1-1, 2 KOs) vs. pro-debuting Marva Dash, of Bridgeport (CT), crowd-pleasing Fall River (MA) junior middleweight Dustin Reinhold (4-2, 2 KOs) vs. Springfield’s Jose Angel “KO” Ortiz (4-6-1, 1 KOs), along with Woonsocket (RI) super middleweight Joe Gardner (7-4-1, 1 KO) and Cape Cod light heavyweight Paul Gonsalves (2-2, 2 KOs), fighting out of Harwich (MA). All fights and fighters are subject to change.
Tickets, reasonably priced at $35.00, $45.00 and $75.00, are available to purchase by calling 1.401.241.3490 (RI) or 1.617.312.5059 (MA), going on line at www.bigsixentertainment, com or www.ticketmaster.com, and at the Rhode Island Convention Center box office.
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
