Delossantos, Gonzalez add flair to Feb. 23rd card

UNBEATEN SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT Ricky Delossantos of Pawtucket, R.I., returns to the ring Saturday, Feb. 23rd, 2019 in a six-round bout against Javar Jones of Indiana on the undercard of CES Boxing's season opener at Twin River Casino Hotel in Lincoln, R.I. Delossantos last fought in September, dominating Jose Ortiz of New Jersey for his sixth win as a pro. Ortiz will be joined on the undercard by amateur standout Arnold Gonzalez of New York, who makes his professional debut. The Feb. 23rd card also features three title bouts in addition to the return of female featherweight sensation Shelly Vincent of Providence.

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Feb. 11th, 2019) -- The highly-anticipated CES Boxing season opener continues to get better with two major additions to the lineup.

Unbeaten Pawtucket, R.I., super featherweight Ricky Delossantos (6-0, 1 KO) returns for his toughest test to date Saturday, Feb. 23rd, 2019 at Twin River Casino Hotel while decorated New York amateur Arnold Gonzalez makes his long-awaited professional debut on the undercard of a stacked fight card featuring three title bouts.

Delossantos, a former two-sport star at Rhode Island's William E. Tolman Senior High School, faces Indianapolis native and U.S. Army National Guardsman Javar Jones (7-1, 2 KOs) in a six-round bout while Gonzalez battles Falls Church, Va., veteran Stacey Anderson (0-4) in a four-round super lightweight bout.

The addition of Delossantos and Gonzalez adds even more appeal to a fight card already generating considerable buzz throughout New England and the northeast. Worcester, Mass., lightweight Jamaine Ortiz (9-0, 4 KOs) faces Ricardo Quiroz (10-0, 5 KOs) of Oxnard, Calif., for the vacant WBC World Youth Lightweight Title in an intriguing battle of unbeatens. Heavyweights Juiseppe Cusumano (17-2, 15 KOs) of Carini, Sicily and Brendan Barrett (7-1-2, 5 KOs) of Ventura, Calif., battle for the vacant NBA World Title and Marcia Agripino (3-1-1) of Ledyard, Conn., faces undefeated Amanda Pavone (6-0, 2 KOs) of Boston for the vacant New England Female Super Bantamweight Title.

Tickets start at $47 and are available online at www.cesboxing.com or www.showclix.com, or by phone at 401-724-2253. The main card will stream live on the subscription-based 4K ultra high-definition platform VIVE Network TV. Visit https://tickets.vivetv.network to purchase. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

Gonzalez, a two-time Golden Gloves champion who boasted a 59-9 amateur record, recently sparred 24 rounds with Manny Pacquiao as the pound-for-pound great prepared for his world-title bout against Adrien Broner. The 24-year-old Ecuadorian prospect is trained by the world-renowned Freddie Roach out of the Wild Card Boxing Gym in California and is managed by George Foreman III, the son of two-time heavyweight champion George Foreman.

Delossantos is a familiar face in New England. The 29-year-old debuted in April of 2017 and continues to improve with each performance. He hasn't lost a round since his second professional fight and recently blanked tough, New Jersey veteran Jose Ortiz over six rounds last September. He faces a tall order against Jones, an accomplished Army boxer who began his career with seven consecutive wins, two by knockout, and works as a surface maintenance technician for the Indiana National Guard.

The entire card is headlined by the long-awaited return of female featherweight sensation Shelly Vincent (23-2, 1 KO) of Providence, R.I., by way of New London, Conn., who faces Budapest veteran Edina Kiss (15-9, 9 KOs) in an eight-round rematch of their 2015 bout, won by Vincent by majority decision. Vincent fights at Twin River for the first time since 2016. She is best known for two highly-publicized bouts against Heather Hardy, both of which were nationally televised. The rematch aired live on HBO in October, just the second female boxing bout televised by the network in 25 years.

Regional rivals collide on the undercard as Taunton, Mass., welterweight Marqus Bates (5-2, 3 KOs) faces Jair Ramos (5-2-2, 2 KOs) of Waterbury, Conn., in a six-round bout and super lightweight Nicholas Briggs (2-0, 2 KOs) of Worcester puts his unbeaten record on the line against Andy Aiello (1-1-1) of Bridgewater, Mass., in a four-round bout.

Junior middleweights Victor Reynoso (2-0, 2 KOs) and Lamont Powell (2-0, 1 KO) of Providence face their toughest tests in separate four-round bouts. Reynoso battles 1-0 John Williams of Baton Rouge, La., who scored a knockout win in his pro debut in August, while Powell battles 29-year-old Kenneth Chery (1-1, 1 KO) of Montreal Quebec.

The undercard also features the return of Providence lightweight Michael "Bling Bling" Valentin (4-0, 1 KO), the eclectic 19-year-old who fights despite being born with a rare intestinal disease known as Hirschsprung's. Valentin endured bullying throughout childhood and fights wearing a colostomy bag. He returns Feb. 23rd one year to the date of his last fight and will dedicate his fifth pro bout to the memory of Seven Bridges, a 10-year-old Kentucky boy who committed suicide after being bullied for wearing a colostomy bag. Valentin faces Philadelphia's Christopher Burgos (1-3-1, 1 KO) in a four-round bout.

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