New England Super Bantamweight Champion, Jorge “Mantequilla” Abiague of Portland, will defend his New England Super Bantamweight Championship in a rematch against Josh Crespo of New Haven, CT. In their first match-up at Mohegan Sun Casino in CT, with the vacant New England title on the line, Abiague won a close unanimous decision over Crespo in an exciting hard-fought battle. The Abiague-Crespo rematch will be the co-feature of the rematch between Portland’s Russell Lamour and Thomas Falowo of Rhode Island with both the IBA North American and New England Middleweight championship titles at stake. The event will also feature Portland Boxing Club’s up and coming rising stars Jimmy “Marine Sargent” Smith and the undefeated Jason “The Fighting Fireman” Quirk and Casey “The Buzzsaw” Kramlich.

Making an appearance at the event in support of the Portland Boxing Club will be former World Lightweight Champion, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, who will sign autographs and take photos from 6 to 8 pm.

Tickets are on sale at Bruno’s Restaurant, 33 Allen Avenue, Portland and at PortTix.com or the Merrill Auditorium.  For further information, visit www.portlandboxingclub.org or call 207 761-0975.  There will be no TV or Live Streaming of this event.

Boxing Hall of Fame referee, Steve Smoger, has been appointed by the International Boxing Association to referee the IBA North American Middleweight Championship between defending Champion, Portland’s Russell Lamour Jr. and New England Champion, Thomas Falowo of Pawtuckett, Rhode Island.  In their first match up in Foxwoods Casino back in January, which was televised live on ESPN, Falowo handed Lamour his first loss as a pro in a hard-fought back and forth battle, winning a close decision and the New England title.  This bout will be the biggest boxing event in Maine in over 20 years with a sell-out crowd expected.

The event will also feature Portland Boxing Club’s New England Super Batamweight Champion, Jorge “Mantequilla” Abiague and rising stars Jason “The Fighting Fireman” Quirk, Casey “The Buzzsaw” Kramlich, and Jimmy “Marine Sargent” Smith.

Another Hall of Famer who will make an appearance at the event will be former World Lightweight Champion, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, who will sign autographs and take photos from 6 to 8 pm.

Tickets are on sale at Bruno’s Restaurant, 33 Allen Avenue, Portland and at PortTix.com or the Merrill Auditorium.  For further information, visit www.portlandboxingclub.org or call 207 761-0975.  There will be no TV or Live Streaming of this event.

Tickets will go on sale today for an event featuring a Rematch of Portland Boxing Club’s Russell Lamour Jr. and New England rival Thomas Falowo of Pawtucket, Rhode Island to be held on November 14 at the Portland Expo. Their first match, which was seen live on ESPN back in January of this year, was a thriller with back and forth toe-to-toe action in every round. Falowo won the close decision, handing Lamour his first loss as a pro. Two Championship belts will be on the line in November, Lamour’s IBA North American Middleweight Title, as well as Falowo’s New England Middleweight Title.

The event will also include four other PBC boxers, including New England Super Bantamweight Champion, Jorge Abiague, middleweight Jason Quirk, super welterweight Casey Kramlich, and welterweight Jimmy Smith.

The special guest for this event will be former World Lightweight Champion, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, who was recently inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame. Mancini will be on hand to sign autographs and to take photos with the fans. Tickets to the event are $25 for general admission, $35 for reserved bleacher and ringside, and $50 for VIP ringside. Doors open at 6:00 pm, and bouts start at 7:30 pm. The event will not be televised and there will be no live streaming of the event.

Tickets are available at PortTix.com (Merrill Auditorium) and at Bruno’s Restaurant, 33 Allen Avenue, Portland. For further information visit www.portlandboxingclub.org or call (207) 761-0975.

All Star Pro Boxing Returns to the Portland Expo on November 14, 2015 for “The Rematch”.  The event will feature the highly anticipated rematch between North American Middleweight Champion Russell Lamour Jr. and New England Middleweight Champion Thomas Falowo of Rhode Island. Their last bout was held at Foxwoods Casino in January of this year and was televised live on ESPN.  The bout was a toe-to-toe battle over eight rounds with

Falowo winning a hard fought close decision, handing Lamour his first pro defeat.  Lamour will look to avenge his only pro loss.

The show will also feature New England Super Bantamweight Champion Jorge Abiague, and up and coming pro prospects undefeated middleweight Jason “The Fighting Fireman” Quirk, undefeated super welterweight Casey Kramlich. Plus Welterweight Jimmy “the Marine SQT.”Smith. Special guest for the event for the November event is former World Lightweight Champion Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, who was recently inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame.

The Public is invited to the press conference.

The news of the passing of Portland boxing legend, Macka Foley, hit hard. Macka was a close personal friend of mine. We kept in contact through the years, and I spoke with him as recently as Friday morning as he was heading to Fortune Boxing gym in Los Angeles.

Macka Foley grew up in the West End of Portland, was a high school basketball star at Portland High School, and served in the Marines during the Vietnam war where he earned a Purple Heart. Before his tour of duty in Vietnam, he had a brief amateur boxing career and turned pro at the Portland Expo in 1969 when he was a senior in high school. He was trained by another local legend, Eddie Griffin, and became a fan favorite at the Expo. Macka boxed as both a light heavyweight and heavyweight with 54 pro bouts. He boxed two world champions in his career and boxed all over the United States and in Mexico, Italy, South Africa and Switzerland.

Macka and I lived and trained together for a time in Las Vegas in the 70’s and 80’s where we had the great privilege of working with Hall of Fame trainer, Chuck Bodak, at Johnny Garcia’s Main Street Gym. Macka stayed in the boxing game until the end, but he was also a member of the Screen Actors Guild. He trained many prominent celebrities (including James Franco who had the starring role in Annapolis) and he had an acting part in several popular movies including Ghost, Las Vegas Weekend, and Annapolis. Macka also made several commercials in his Hollywood career and most recently shot a music video with Adam Levine, but his love for the sport of boxing was unsurpassed. He worked 7 days a week not only with everyday people, but also with the who’s who of the boxing world. He loved to talk about the psychology of boxing to anyone who would listen and really enjoyed doing mitt work as a training tool.

Macka had many friends in the boxing and film industry, and he kept in touch with his friends in Maine even though he had not lived here for many years. Macka will be sorely missed by all of us at the Portland Boxing Club. He leaves behind a daughter Caroline, a grandson, Charles, his brothers Joe and John, and his many relatives and close friends. Funeral services to be announced.

Rest in peace my friend.

Bob Russo

Portland Boxing Club pro middleweight, Jason “The Fighting Fireman” Quirk of Scarborough, improved his pro boxing record to 4-0 as a pro with a close decision win over Mike Rodriguez of Springfield, MA. Quirk pursued the much taller and heavier Rodriguez from the opening bell in an awkward fight marred with excessive holding by Rodriguez.  Neither boxer sufficiently scored very many effective blows over the four rounds.

In the amateur prelims, PBC middleweight Sasha Lamour of Portland, in his first bout in the open class (10 or more bouts experience), won a unanimous decision over the more experienced Nikko Clow of Claremont, NH.  Lamour stayed busy throughout the three rounds to edge out a close decision.  PBC featherweight Gabriel “Tito” Morales of Portland, lost for the first time (8-1) to an opponent that he had beaten twice previously, losing to Isaac Escobar of Lewiston by unanimous decision.  Escobar pressed forward from the opening bell and was more accurate with his punches as Morales had trouble finding his range.

The pro-am card was held at the Skowhegan Rec Center and was headlined by the comeback of light welterweight Brandon Berry of West Forks, Maine, who came off shoulder surgery and his first loss as a pro in November 2014. Berry scored a fourth round TKO over Engelberto Valenzuela of Agua Prieta, Sonora,Mexico, bringing his pro record to 9-1.

The Portland Boxing Club will be offering our annual Summer Boot Camp training for anyone who might be interested in becoming a member of the PBC or for anyone who just wants to participate. Starting July 11that 9am and continuing every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6pm, as well as Saturdays at 9am from July 11th ending on August 8th (workouts take 1 – 2 hours) cost is $100.00 which includes handwraps, a mouth guard and dues for the month. After completing the boot camp you will be a member of the PBC and can use the gym as much as you want for $25.00 per month.

Call 207-761-0975 to reserve you spot

The boxers from the Portland Boxing Club had a very successful night, going 6 for 6 for the night on a pro-am event held at the Portland Expo on Saturday, June 20, 2015.

North American Middleweight Champion, Russell “The Haitian Sensation” Lamour Jr. of Portland, showed just how good of a boxer he is by surviving a rough moment in the first round. Lamour got caught with a major left hook near the end of the first round and was in trouble at the bell. Lamour quickly got back on track and won the next 7 rounds in a row, clearly out-boxing his tough and powerful opponent, Derrick Findley of Chicago, to win a unanimous decision.

In the co-feature bout, bantamweight Jorge “Mantequilla” Abiague put on an impressive performance, scoring two knock-downs over a very game Jesus Gonzales of Bethlehem, PA, winning a unanimous decision.

Other Portland Boxing Club results:

Middleweight Jason “The Fighting Fireman” Quirk of Scarborough won a unanimous over Jesus Cintron of Springfield, MA.

Super Welterweight Casey “The Buzzsaw” Kramlich of Raymond, scored a unanimous over Robert Hunt of Dorchester, MA.

Super Welterweight Jimmy “The Marine Sargent” Smith of Biddeford, scored an overwhelming first round TKO over Carlos Galindo of South Boston, MA.

Undefeated amateur star Featherweight Gabriel “Tito” Morales, of Portland, won a 2 to 1 split decision over Isaac Escobar of Lewiston.

Two other bouts that did not involve PBC boxers were MMA star, Cruiserweight Buck Pineau of Portland, lost a hard-fought, close but unanimous decision in his pro boxing debut to Tracy Johnson of Framingham, MA. In an amateur light heavyweight bout, Julien Bapiste of Billerica, MA, won a close 2-1 split decision over Johnny Rosa of Lawrence, MA.

Former undisputed World Heavyweight Champion, Riddick Bowe, was the special guest of the night, signing autographs and taking photos with the fans.

Former undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Riddick Bowe will receive a special proclamation from the City of Portland on Friday, June 19, at the Portland Regency Hotel and Spa on Market Street in Portland.  Bowe will be in town to make an appearance at the All Star Boxing Event on Saturday June 20, Father’s Day Weekend, at the Portland Expo.  Bowe will be on hand at the Expo Saturday for photos and autographs from 6-8pm.to support the non-profit Portland Boxing Club.  Bowe was just inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in New York last week.

Bowe joins an elite group of iconic boxing legends who have come to Portland in support of a grass roots programs like the Portland Boxing Club. Other boxing legends who have come to Portland in support of the PBC are former boxing Champions Buster Douglas, Evander Holyfield, Michael Spinks, Roberto Duran, Tony DeMarco, “Irish” Micky Ward, and Vinny Paz.

Tickets for the All Star Pro boxing event at the Expo are on sale at PortTix.com, at the Merrill Auditorium box office, and at Bruno’s Restaurant in Portland.  Tickets will also be available at the door from 4pm the night of the event. Doors open at 6pm bouts start at 7:30pm.

The Portland Expo celebrates its 100th birthday this month.  The Expo has been host over the years to every kind of event from presidential visits to rock concerts, high school sports, and flower and home shows to name a few.  But the Expo is probably best known as an iconic boxing venue.  Some of boxing’s all-time greats have fought there during the years, and during the 60s and 70s it was the busiest boxing venue in the country.  Most recently, the Portland Boxing Club has brought pro boxing back to the Expo with great success after a 20 year absence, packing the house with enthusiastic fans who cheered on the very accomplished local boxers who put on some great performances.

Pro boxing will return to the Portland Expo on Saturday, June 20, 2015 (Father’s Day Weekend) with another all-star card filled with local stars and featuring North American Middleweight Champion Russell Lamour Jr.  The City of Portland will present a special Proclamation commemorating the 100th year for the Expo and welcoming boxing Hall of Famer and former Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Riddick Bowe at the Regency Hotel on Friday June 19 at 2:30 pm.  The former Heavyweight Champ is in town in support of the Portland Boxing Club by making an appearance at the All Star Boxing Event on June 20.

The former #1 ranked amateur MMA middleweight in the Northeast, Buck Pineau, of Portland, has decided to try pro boxing.  Pineau has been added to the All-Star Pro Boxing event on Father’s Day weekend, June 20, at the Portland Expo.  The event will also feature North American Middleweight Champion Russell Lamour Jr., New England Super Bantamweight Champion Jorge Abiague. Also on the card are the up and coming“Fighting Fireman” Jason Quirk, Jimmy “The Marine Sargent” Smith, and Casey Kramlich.

The special guest of the event will be the former undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Riddick Bowe who will take photos and sign autographs from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Doors to the event open at 6:00 and bouts start at 7:30.  Tickets are available at PortTix.com, the Merrill Auditorium box office, or at Bruno’s Restaurant at 33 Allen Avenue, Portland.