Framingham cruiserweight Raphael Torres fighting at home in co-feature

Framingham cruiserweight Raphael Torres fighting at home in co-feature

“Road 2 Stardom” streaming live June 25th on

BXNGTV.COM from Framingham, MA

QUINCY, Mass. (June 16, 2022) – Hometown favorite, Framingham cruiserweight Raphael Torres (1-0, 1 KO) faces Brazilian Igor Pessoa (0-2) in the matinee’s 4-round co-featured event on “Road 2 Stardom,” presented by Granite Chin Promotions, at the Sheraton Hotel in Framingham, Massachusetts.

“Road 2 Stardom” is the first doubleheader in Massachusetts’ long professional boxing history.

All the action - evening and matinee shows – will be streamed live and exclusively for only $24.99 at BXNGTV.com.

The 22-year-old Torres is a Framingham native without a single amateur fight in his background. He was a standout athlete, good enough to receive several Division 1 college basketball scholarships offers, who also played football as a youth. Raphael became an amateur mixed-martial-arts fighter in 2018 who accepted an offer to take a pro fight last November in Derry, New Hampshire, in which he knocked out Scott Lampert in the third round.

“I like both (boxing and MMA) but I’m now dedicated to boxing,” Torres said. “Boxing is easier because I don’t need to worry about elbows, kicks or fighting on the ground. Maybe I’ll do both but, for now it’s only boxing. I took my first boxing fight when offered, after talking with my boxing coach, Kendrick Bell. He’s helping me game plan.”

Matched against Brazilian Igor Pessoa (0-2), Torres is excited to be making his Granite Chin debut in the co-feature with his family and friends from the Framingham area in attendance.

“This is really big for me,” he noted. “I’ll going to have a lot of friends and family there to show them I’m the future. I was a troubled kid growing up here and I want kids like I was to see that there is a place for them too. I want to be impactful and a motivator for them. I don’t want to be too emotional in the ring because one punch can change the whole fight.”

“I was really impressed with Raphael in his pro debut,” Granite Chin president Chris Traietti commented. “I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised. Our communications kind of flat-lined after that fight for reasons that weren’t his fault at all. When I found out he was now being trained by Ken Ball at Camp Get Right, I jumped on the chance to work with him. Ken is a top tier trainer and very reasonable to do business with. He understands how to work with promoters and get fighters ready to go., I look forward to working with Raphael for the foreseeable future.”

The matinee card will be headlined by Pittsfield (MA) super middleweight Steve Sumpter (5-0, 5 KOs) in his first scheduled 8-rounder against Florida veteran Manny “Shake Em’ Up” Woods (17-6-1, 6 KOs).

Steve’s older brother, undefeated heavyweight Quinton Sumpter (4-0, 3 KOs), will also be fighting on the afternoon show in his first scheduled 6-round bout versus Tracey “The Titan” Johnson (4-10-6, 0 KOs), the brother of world champion Demetrius “Boo Boo” Andrade.

Also fighting on the matinee undercards, each in 4-round matches, are Swansea (MA) junior middleweight Anthony “The Gentle Savage” Andreozzi (2-2, 1 KO) vs. 62-fight veteran Rynell Griffin, New York cruiserweights Andrew “Hard Body” Nolan (2-5, 2 KOs) vs. Scott “Bombz” Lampert (0-4), Methuen (MA) junior middleweight Luke Iannuccilli (1-0, 1 KO) vs. Robert Bricks (0-10), and Florida light heavyweight Carlos Arredondo vs. Michael Medeiros (0-1).

Undefeated Holyoke (MA) welterweight prospect Denzel “Double Impact” Whitley (8-0, 6 KOs), headlines for the first time in his young career on the evening card against Maycon Oller Da Silva (1-4, 1 KO) in the 6-round main event.

Intra-state rivals Bryan Urday (2-1), of Attleboro, and Dracut’s Nathan Balakin (3-1, 1 KO) will battle in the 6-round co-featured event for the vacant Massachusetts Welterweight Championship.

In a pair of 6-rounder, undefeated Floridian welterweight Josniel “TG” Castro (8-0, 6 KOs) faces Bryan Goldsby (5-16), while Warwick (RI) junior middleweight Alfred “Keenan” Raymond (1-2) faces Julien “Black Dragon” Baptiste (3-2, 2 KOs), of Woburn (MA), in a rematch. Of a fight last November that Raymond won by way of a 4-round split decision.

In another 6-rounder, undefeated Lowell (MA) welterweight Nicholas “Saint Nick” Molina (9-0, 3 KOs) risks his unbeaten record against upset-minded Argentinian Jose “El Chino” Aubel (8-10, 7 KOs).

Brockton (MA) welterweight Dave Ribeiro, a 2020 New England Golden Gloves champion, makes his delated pro debut versus Rakim Johnson (6-17-1, 5 KOs), and Providence junior middleweight Rob “The Golden Child” Nolette (1-1, 1 KO) opens the evening card in a 4-round fight against DeWayne Wisdom (7-61, 3 KOs), in two 4-round matches.

Both cards are subject to change.

Separate admission tickets are available for purchase at tickerriver.com (Search: Road2Stardom): day - $45.00 (general admission), $60.00 (ringside) and $750.00 for a table of 10; night - $50.00 (general admission), $75.00 (ringside) and $1,000 for a table of 10.

Doors open at 1:00 pm ET and 7 p.m. ET, respectively, with first bouts at 1:30 p.m. ET and 7:30 p.m. ET.

INFORMATION:

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