Cappiello Promotions

If there are any certainties about winters in the New England region, they are cold nights and boxing venues with a plethora of fans coming in from the frigid conditions to warm up with some entertaining fistic action. That is exactly what happened Thursday night, as The Roxy in Boston, Massachusetts was packed full of fight-fans eager to catch what will likely be the last professional boxing show of 2007 in the New England area. "It was a great night, tonight," exclaimed promoter Rich Cappiello. "This is exactly what these fans expect when they come to The Roxy; action-packed, competitive boxing, and I'm glad we had the opportunity to give that to them one final time this year. I tip my hat to these guys for the show they put on tonight! "

Dunwell UD 6 Jordan
In the opening bout of the evening, Simeon Dunwell (6-0, 2 KO's) earned a hard fought 6-round unanimous decision over Akron, Ohio veteran, journeyman Jason Jordon (4-17-2), much to the delight of those in attendance. Considering his last bout was in March, Dunwell, a promising lightweight prospect, showed little signs of ring-rust in his return. Dunwell began his entertaining 6-round bout with several lead left hooks that were thrown with very bad intentions. However, Jordon, a 22-fight-veteran immediately began to nullify the hook by keeping his right hand plastered to the side of his head. Jordon spent the majority of the fight utilizing some lateral movement and his long jab, in an attempt to keep the shorter Dunwell at a distance. Dunwell turned his left hook into a nice lead jab, and worked his way inside on his tall, lanky opponent. Though Jordon had some success in tying-up Dunwell on the inside, for the most part Dunwell followed up his double jabs with very good body work, once he moved in close. Judges at ringside tallied the bout 60-55, and 59-55 twice.

Lopez UD 4 Rosado
Revere, Massachusetts native, Juan Lopez (1-0) got his professional career of to an impressive start, earning a unanimous 4-round decision victory over Worcester, Massachusetts' Edwin Rosado (1-3, 1 KO). Lopez, a graduate of a stellar amateur background, showed great promise in his pro debut, and is definitely a fighter to look for in the future. While Rosado was a more than game opponent, as he has proven quite well in the past, Lopez managed to control the action on both the outside, and even on the inside, against the shorter Rosado. A very strong third round for Lopez, during which most of the action took place in close quarters, even earned him a 10-8 round in the eyes of one of the ringside judges, although there were no knockdowns. Though he was the far taller of the two, Lopez utilized a tremendous interior body attack, and appeared to hurt Rosado downstairs on a couple occasions. Though Lopez earned every round on all three judges scorecards, it was by no means an easy fight, as Rosado stood toe-to-toe with him every step of the way. Judges tallied the bout 40-35, and 40-36 twice.

Beauchamp UD 6 Edwin Carmona
If matchmaker Danny Sheehan hit a home run with the competitiveness of each and every fight tonight, he hit a grand slam in this one! Just four-and-a-half months following their first encounter, an outstanding 4-round swing bout that was televised on ESPN2's Wednesday Night Fights, both fighters began right where they left off; with fists flying! Once again, two of boxing's little men (Beauchamp and Carmona both weighed in at the 112-pound flyweight limit) brought big time excitement. Though all three judges scored the bout 59-55, the action in this fight was so fast, often, and furious that each and every round was very close. While two 112-pound fighters don't occupy much space in a boxing ring, there certainly wasn't much need for it anyway, as this fight literally could have taken place in a phone booth. Neither man backed down. Neither man stepped back. And, certainly, neither man stopped throwing his fists. In the end, however, the undefeated Beauchamp (3-0) proved to be the slightly busier man, thus earning the action-packed decision victory over Carmona (1-3), for the second consecutive time.

Eklund TKO 5 Hatcher
Lowell, Massachusetts fan-favorite, Sean Eklund (4-2, 1 KO) scored the only knockout of the evening, a fifth round TKO (2:32) of Ohio's Scorn Hatcher (0-3), to up his current win streak to four bouts in a row. Though Hatcher was very careful in engaging with the hometown favorite, Eklund continued to stalk his prey, much like his uncle and trainer "Irish" Micky Ward did in his day. Eklund's superior conditioning and ability to cut off the ring finally caught up to Hatcher in the fourth stanza, of what turned out to be another tremendously exciting affair. While both fighters engaged in some heated exchanges throughout, Eklund's tireless pressure simply proved to be too much for Hatcher. In the latter half of the fourth round, with Hatcher trapped in the corner, Eklund unloaded a countless barrage of punches that had Hatcher out on his feet at the completion of the round. While some wondered if Hatcher would come out for the fifth, he not only answered the bell, but did so with ferocity, immediately attempting to take the action to Eklund. Though Eklund managed to hurt Hatcher almost immediately, the Ohio native was game and continued on valiantly, until another Eklund assault left him out on his feet, and taking some serious punishment, thus forcing the referee to immediately jump in and call a halt to the bout at 2:32 of the fifth round.

Gingras UD 4 Rainwater
Undefeated cruiserweight prospect Richard Gingras (5-0, 3 KO's) gained some valuable ring experience in capturing a 4-round unanimous decision victory over durable, seasoned veteran John Rainwater (10-15, 3 KO's). Gingras, a stellar amateur whose straight-ahead style and punching power in both hands, took the fight to Rainwater from the onset. However, Rainwater, a 14-year professional whose last knockout defeat came in 2000 at the hands of Joe Mesi, stood his ground and answered back on every occasion. Gingras did manage to introduce Rainwater to the canvas in the third stanza, resulting in the evening's only knockdown, but Rainwater climbed back to his feet, more than eager to continue on. Gingras landed a tremendous left hook to the ribcage of Rainwater to begin the fourth and final round, but anyone familiar with "The House of Rain" knew he would continue to fire back right up until the end. That's exactly what Rainwater did, however, when the final bell tolled, judges at ringside scored the bout 40-36, and 40-35, all in favor of Gingras.

CONGRATS TO
MIKE “MACHINE GUN” OLIVER
IBO Super Bantamweight Champion

Congratulations
Brandon Cappiello
2007 Rocky Marciano
Tournament of Champions Winner

Oliver Captures IBO Title

Mike "Machine Gun" Oliver (21-0, 7 KO's) maintained his unblemished professional record, with a dominant 12-round performance against Savannah, Georgia's Al Seeger (27-3, 21 KOs), en route to capturing the IBO super bantamweight world title, Thursday night at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT.

Though ringside judges scored the bout far closer than it appeared to have been, promoter Rich Cappiello was nevertheless ecstatic with the crowning of his first world champion. "This is what makes being a promoter all worth while. To play a part in guiding such a nice young man, such an extremely talented fighter, to move him along and to see him achieve his dream...is absolutely an incredibly satisfying feeling. I'm honored to have played a role in Mike Oliver's winning a world title," stated an emphatic Rich Capiello.

Judges at ringside tallied the bout at 115-112, 114-113, and 116-111, while most ringside observers stated they would have been hard-pressed to give Seeger more than one round.

Oliver's hand speed, southpaw style, and devastating left hand / right hook leads, proved to be simply to much for the more experienced Seeger. "He was a dirty fighter," Oliver stated. "I just had to stick to my game plan, though. I did everything I had to do, and I came out with the win, and that's all that matters."
Though Oliver appeared to win the bout handily, it was clearly not without adversity. Early in the 12-round affair Oliver, during an exchange of punches, suffered a partially closed right eye, the result of what Oliver believes was the thumb of Seeger's glove. With his right eye severely swollen throughout the bout, Oliver was impressive in his ability to deal with the long, rangy punches of the lanky Seeger. "This fight quickly turned into a serious gut check for Mike Oliver and I am very, very pleased to say that he came through like, well, like a champion," stated Oliver's trainer "Iceman" John Scully.

While Oliver, currently ranked No. 2 by the IBF, with the No. 1 ranking vacant, was thrilled with capturing his first world title, he did not hesitate in proclaiming who is next on his intended hit list. "I want (Steve) Molitor," Oliver exclaimed. "He's been ducking me, but I'm going to go home right now and get on the internet and offer him a challenge. I want to his IBF belt next."

Oliver intends on taking a brief break from the gym for the Thanksgiving holiday, then plans on getting right back in the gym in hopes of a showdown with the IBF champ...one he hopes to bring to his hometown of Hartford, Connecticut.

Oliver's IBO title win over Seeger represented promoter Rich Cappiello's first world champion, but Cappiello, ever the workhorse in the boxing promotional industry, is already looking toward more great things to come in the future. "My brother Mike and I are thrilled with this accomplishment, but we plan on working tirelessly to bring forth many more world championship fighters under the Cappiello Promotions banner."

Elvin Ayala (18-2-1, 8KOs) outworked the Contender Season 1 Champion Sergio Mora (19-0-1, 4KOs) Tuesday night at The Home Depot Center. Unbeaten middleweight Mora left the ring with a ten round draw against Ayala. Mora's skills showed up late in the fight with an end result of the following scores: 96-94 Ayala, 95-95 and a controversial 99-91 for Mora.

Oliver Dominates Cruz

Mike "Machine Gun" Oliver earned a lopsided 12-round unanimous decision victory over former Cruz "Chucho" Carbajal in their IBF super bantamweight title eliminator bout, in the main event of last nights Cappiello Promotions - ESPN2 fight card at The Castle at Park Plaza. The 27 year-old Oliver's hand speed, effective counterpunching, and overall ring generalship, was simply too much for Carbajal, as judges tallied the bout 118-111, 118-110, and 118-110.

The victory launches Oliver into the #1 slot in the IBF's super bantamweight division, thus making him the next mandatory challenger for reigning champ, Steve "Canadian Kid" Molitor. "Mike's ones step away from achieving his lifelong dream, now," stated Promoter Rich Cappiello. "He did exactly what we knew he would do. Mike Oliver just became a star!"

Whether counter-punching or inflicting offensive barrages, Oliver (20-0, 7 Kos) was able to withstand the never-ending, pursuit of his 15-year, 44-fight veteran foe, Carbajal (28-14-2, 24 Kos). "I felt really good in there, tonight," stated a jubilant Oliver. "Me and Scully trained really hard, and we were ready."

Though Molitor will have up to six months to meet the requirement of his mandatory defense, Oliver, says he will not idly sit back and await his world title shot. "I'm going to take a little time off, then it's right back in the gym. He's got a while before he has to fight me, so I'm going to talk with Cappiello and see about fighting in Hartford, maybe in September.

For Oliver, who's been boxing since he first entered a gym at the age of two, the desire to fight should come as no surprise.

Nguyen Out slugs Gonzalez
In the co-feature bout of the evening, undefeated featherweight prospect Dat "Dat Be Dat" Ngueyn (11-0, 6 Kos) and Castulo Gonzalez (9-3, 3 Kos) engaged in an all out war, with Nguyen ultimately earning an extremely hard-fought unanimous decision victory. The eight-round affair, which must now be added to the list of candidates for Fight of the Year, had the raucous crowd on it's feet for nearly every brutal moment of good old toe-to-toe action.

"These guys truly define what it is to be a fighters, stated Cappiello, who promotes the two stable mates. They put on one hell of a show. Regardless of who won, they can both move forward in their careers after that one!"

While a Nguyen left hook opened a large cut above the right eye of Gonzalez to open the third stanza, the blood-covered face of the Guatemalan-born pug, never stopped him from moving forward. "I hit him with some big shots," stated Nguyen who was nursing a swollen and badly bruised right hand. "He's a very tough guy. I hurt him several times, but he just kept coming. I give him all the props he deserves."

While both fighters landed some devastating punches in the slugfest, amazingly, neither one met the canvas. Gonzalez' face was far worse for the ware, after the fight, but the superficial damage inflicted by Nguyen will heal, and as usual Gonzalez plans to push forward with his future in boxing.

Nguyen, on the other hand, might have just become boxing's next big star. The unanimous decision win in his national televised debut, particularly given the type of fight in which he was engaged in, might just make him a household name in the boxing world.

Nguyen is tentatively slated to fight again in August on a Telefutura card in Arizona. Anyone who caught last nights affair, will certainly want to tune in for that one.
Judges at ringside scored the bout 78-74-78-74, and 79-73 in favor of Dat Nguyen.

Beauchamp Outpoints Carmona
Undefeated Massachusetts flyweight prospect Icender Beauchamp (2-0) maintained his unblemished record with a four-round unanimous decision victory over New Haven, Connecticut's Edwin Carmona (1-1), in the ESPN2 televised swing bout. Beachamp, a graduate of a stellar amateur background who trains out of the Rivera Brother Gym with Castulo Gonzalez, displayed his excellent boxing skill in earning a relatively easy decision.

If the 19 year-old , Revere, Massachusetts based Beachamp can find enough opponents in his 112-pound weight class to maintain his activity, he will certainly be a fighter to watch in the future. Judges had the bout scored 40-36, 40-36, and 39-36.

Morganelli Defeats Foster by DQ
In post television action, South Boston prospect "Nasty" Nick Morganelli (7-0, 3 Kos) earned a second-round disqualification victory over New Haven, Connecticut journeyman William Foster (4-10, 1 KO). Morganelli, making his much-anticipated return to the ring following two years of inactivity, dropped Foster to the canvas on two occasions, and had the New Haven native out on his feet prior to the unfortunate ending. As the second round was coming to a close, Morganelli landed a big right hand to the head of Foster, forcing Foster to tie up, and resulting in the two fighters falling to the canvas. Foster, whether still dazed from the onslaught that had been inflicted, or simply out of frustration, refused to release his hold on Morganelli. While referee Mike Ryan tried in vein to separate the two, members of the Massachusetts Boxing Commission and corner men alike, stormed the ring. The final result was a disqualification victory for Morganelli, and the Massachusetts Boxing Commission should be commended greatly for not allowing the unfortunate turn of events from growing into something very ugly.

LaMonica Stops Farmer
Undefeated Boston junior welterweight Tony "Tiger" Lamonica (4-0,3 Kos) scored a second-round technical knockout victory over the usually durable Jeff Farmer (1-7). LaMonica caught Farmer with a devastating straight right hand midway through the first stanza, that introduced the Des Moines, Iowa native to the canvas. Farmer, who was still on uneasy footing, managed to survive LaMonica's onslaught, but would be unable to fully recover in the end.

In the following round, LaMonica would begin to work the body of Farmer, landing with very good effect. Two more knockdown's would once again put Farmer on unsteady legs, and referee Kevin Hope called a halt to the action. Time of the stoppage was 2:13 of the second.

Millier Decisions Irizarry
In the opening bout of the evening from Boston, Massachusetts, Phillip Miller earned a unanimous decision victory over journeyman Robert Irizarry. Miller (1-0) began the bout with a fast and furious pace, punishing Irizarry (1-4) with one big shot after another.
Miller's first and second round onslaughts left both fighters depleted of any energy they might have thought they had, and the action grind to a slow pace from there until the final bell. Judges scored the bout 40-36, 40-36, and 39-37.

“BATTLE ZONE 3” RESULTS
May 4, 2007 – Uncasville, CT

HEAVYWEIGHTS: Tony Grano (9-0-1, 8 KOs), Hartford, CT WTKO1 (1:35)
Jay Sweetman (7-6, 3 KOs), Smyrna, DE.

CRUISERWEIGHTS: Chris McInerney (8-0-1, 5 KOs), Stoughton, MA WTKO5 (2:10)
Eric Starr (15-31-3, 4 KOs), Hillsborough, NC.

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS: Rodney Toney (29-4-4, 17 KOs), Boston, MA NO DECISION
3 Anthony Russell, 15-2-1, 4 KOs), Brockton, MA (stopped on advice of ring physician due to cut suffered over Toney’s eye from an accidental foul - IBA Americas Light Heavyweight title remains vacant).

FEATHERWEIGHTS: Dat Nguyen (9-0, 5 KOs), Vero Beach, FL WDEC6 (60-54, 60-54, 59-55)
Jorge Ruiz (5-2-1, 0 KOs), Miami, FL.

SUPER BANTAMWEIGHTS: Mike Oliver (19-0, 7 KOs), Hartford, CT WTDEC8 (79-72,
79-72, 78-73)
Vernie Torres (27-10, 15 KOs), Pensacola, FL
(stopped on advice of ring physician due to cut on Torres’ forehead from an accidental foul).

An Unfortunate Loss for the Gladiator

In the season opener of ESPN2's Wednesday Night Fight series, middleweight contender, Willie "The Gladiator Gibbs (20-3, 16KOs) suffered an unfortunate loss against Ray "Hallelujah" Jovel (36-4, 16KOs) in an intensifying fight at the Paradise Theater in New York. "Gibbs gave it his all", said Cappiello; "but unfortunately, things didn't fall as planned". The bout went the distance with the following judges scores 96-94, 97-93, 97-93.

Dunwell Victorious At Foxwoods...
Defeats Ventry!

In the final bout of an evening filled with exciting and competitive bouts, lightweights Simeon Dunwell and James Ventry kept the crowd attentive through the final bell. This four rounder was no less competitive than its predecessors.

In round one, the boxers traded jabs, fighting close inside. Dunwell counterpunched with the jab, while Ventry connected with his own point-scoring jabs.

Dunwell was the aggressor in round two, lunging with jabs. Ventry tried to advance but Dunwell was the faster fighter, jabbing and circling his prey. Despite Ventry's valiant offensive punching, Dunwell was able to roll and dodge the onslaught and continued counterpunching effectively.

In round three, Dunwell connected with a left hook to the body that left Ventry crying low blow, but it looked on mark. Ventry retaliated with a venomous low blow and Ezzo stopped the action, grabbed the fighters and cautioned them to fight fairly.

In the fourth and final round, Ventry knew he had to score, but Dunwell stayed out of harm's way, weaving and dodging in a squat position.

The unanimous nod went to Dunwell, 40-36 thrice.

With the win, New Bedford, Massachusetts, Simeon Dunwell gains fans and remained undefeated at 5-0- 2 KOs, while James Ventry (now 2-3, 1 KO) has nothing to be ashamed of as he returns home to Rochester, New York. -- Peter Mark Heintzelman

Grano KO's Turlington In 1

Heavyweight prospect Tony Grano (8-0-1, 7 KO's) scored a first round knockout victory over John Turlington (5-11-1, 4 KO's) on Friday night at Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Ledyard, CT. Grano, the 2005 United States Amateur Heavyweight Champ, pounced on the journeyman Turlington from the moment the bell sounded to begin the bout.

After a few busy exchanges between the two, Grano dropped his veteran opponent with a right hand right to the chin. "I felt it the second I landed it on him," Grano stated. " He took some big shots. He's been in with some good fighters, and he wasn't going to back down, but that right landed on the button."

Turlington, though on wobbly legs, managed to rise back to his feet, but an immediate heavy-handed Grano flurry, would result in referee Charles Dwyer stepping in front of Grano and waiving off the fight. The stoppage came at 2:25 of the first stanza.

Due to the early stoppage in the ESPN2 main event and co-feature bout, the Grano - Turlington bout, albeit a brief one, was aired live on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights. It was Grano's first national exposure, since turning pro in November 2005.

Feb 23rd Results
Mohegan Sun • Telefutura

Cappiello Promotions held another tremendous night of boxing Friday night, at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT. The seven-bout card, some of which was broadcast live on the Telefutura network, drew an impressive 4,200 spectators.

Ayala Falls Short In Rematch
In the evening's main event, New Haven, CT super-middleweight, Elvin Ayala fell short, once again, in his rematch with Portland, Oregon's David Banks. Banks was simply the busier man, outworking Ayala throughout the ten round main event. Ayala did have some success with his jab, and his defensive ability helped him to block many of Banks' attacks, but his failure to be busy offensively was reflected on the judges scorecards. Judges at ringside scored the bout 99-91, 97-93, and 96-94, all in favor of Banks. With his second consecutive loss, at the hands of Banks, Ayala drops to 16-2, with 7 knockouts, while Banks improved to 14-1-1, with 2 knockouts.

Gonzalez UD 8 Zepeda
Wilmington, Massachusetts' featherweight Castulo Gonzalez earned an eight-round unanimous decision victory over Chicago's Barbaro Zepeda (8-11-1, 2 KO's), in the evening's co-feature bout. For Gonzalez (9-2, 3 KO's), it was his second consecutive unanimous decision win in three months, with both victories having been co-feature bouts that aired live on the Telefutura network. In his last bout, on November 24, Gonzalez earned an eight-round unanimous decision victory over veteran Priest "Tiger" Smalls.

Grano UD 6 Smith
Hebron, CT heavyweight prospect, Tony Grano (7-0-1, 6 KO's) earned a unanimous decision victory over Boston Police Officer Tyrone Smith (5-4-1, 2 KO's). Grano, fighting in front of a boisterous hometown crowd, controlled the fight from bell to bell. In the fifth stanza Grano landed what appeared to be a clean body shot, that forced Smith down to a knee, however referee Ken Ezzo ruled that the punched strayed low, and allowed Smith time to recover. Smith, after taking roughly two of the allotted five minutes time recovery time, managed to make it out of the fifth. Grano appeared to have Smith somewhat in trouble again in the sixth, but Smith managed to make it to the final bell.
Grano is expected to return to action almost immediately, with a March 23 bout at Foxwoods likely.

Eklund UD 4 Farmer
Lowell, MA junior welterweight Sean Eklund (2-2) used a quick jab and great ring generalship to dominate his four-round bout with Des Moine, Iowa's Jeff Farmer (1-5). After shaking off some initial ring-rust, Eklund began to open up on farmer in the fourth-round, following the jab with some crisp right hands and left hooks. Eklund had been inactive for over 15-months, following an automobile accident that resulted in numerous bodily injuries. After having lost his first two professional bouts by close, if not controversial, decisions, Eklund, who is trained by his uncle Micky Ward, has since followed with two unanimous decision victories. Judges scored the bout 40-36, 40-36, and 39-37.

Beauchamp UD 4 Cruz
In the most exciting bout of the evening, a 112- pound flyweight attraction, Icender Beauchamp got up off the canvas in the first round to earn a narrow unanimous decision victory over Gabriel Cruz. Beauchamp and Cruz, both making their pro-debut's, engaged in some incredible exchanges throughout the fight.
Halfway through the opening stanza, Cruz caught Beauchamp with a devastating left hook that flattened the Revere, MA native. Beauchamp, amazingly, hopped right back to his feet and, had it not been for the knockdown, would have managed to win the round. Showing his true grit, Beauchamp came back to win the final three rounds on all three judges scorecards. Both fighters had extensive amateur backgrounds, and should be commended on taking such a fight in their respective pro-debut's. All three judges scored the bout 38-37.

Nguyen UD 6 Rungea
Undefeated featherweight prospect Dat Nguyen (8-0, 5 KO's) earned a hard fought unanimous decision over the rugged and durable Vineash Rungea (2-6-2). Rungea, who has never been introduced to the canvas in a bout, withstood the power punching of Nguyen, and fought valiantly to the final bell. Nguyen, who prepared for the bout by sparring with Paulie Malignaggi, was well-conditioned, in his first bout to go the full six rounds, and pressured Rungea throughout.

Wilson UD 6 Elliot
The first bout of the evening saw Philadelphia prospect Kaseem Wilson (7-0-1, 3 KO's) score a unanimous decision victory over Dorchester, MA journeyman Hollister Elliot (7-18-1, 2 KO's). The tall and lanky Wilson used his height and reach to defeat the far more experienced Elliot. His quick jab, from the southpaw position, managed to make it difficult for the shorter Elliot to work his way inside. Judges at ringside all tallied the bout 60-54.

David Banks (14-1, 2 KO's)	UD 10	Elvin Ayala (16-2, 7 KO's)
CCastulo Gonzalez (9-2, 3 KO's)	UD 9	Barbaro Zepeda (8-11, 2 KO's)
Tony Grano (7-0-1, 6 KO's)	UD 6	Tyrone Smith (5-4-1, 2 KO's)
Sean Eklund (2-2)	UD 4	Jeff Farmer (1-5)
Icender Beauchamp (1-0)	UD 4	Gabriel Cruz (0-1)
Kaseem Wilson (7-0, 3 KO's)	UD 6	Hollister Elliot (7-18, 2 KO's)
Dat Nguyen (8-0, 5 KO's)	UD 6	Vineash Rungea (2-6-2)