Cranston, RI – Father Time catches up to everyone, but he’s still chasing Jaime “Hurricane” Clampitt.
The 46-year-old Clampitt won her 24th professional bout Saturday in the main event of CES Boxing’s Rhode Wars 3 card at the Historic Park Theatre & Event Center, out-classing Miami’s Taynna Cardoso for a 79-73 unanimous decision win on all three scorecards. The show was CES’ first at the Park Theatre, built in 1924 and recently renovated under new ownership.
Clampitt christened the venue Saturday with a vintage performance fitting for a classic theater setting. A four-time world champion and International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame inductee, Clampitt initially launched her comeback in 2021 after eight years out of the ring. A win over Kim Wabik in February of 2022 shook off some of the ring rust, but a loss to 21-year-old Miranda Reyes in June planted some seeds of doubt as the Warwick, RI, resident carefully began plotting her next steps.
With a more focused approach in camp, including hiring a physical therapist and sports psychologist, Clampitt looked better than ever Saturday, boxing circles around Cardoso (5-3), who had just gone eight hard rounds in a much closer majority decision loss to Heather Hardy in February.
On Saturday, Clampitt was a step ahead, looking much faster, sharper, and more reactive than she did in June and shows no signs of slowing down as she approaches her 47th birthday in July. Where this win takes her next remains to be seen, but it’s clear Clampitt is far from done as she continues to find her place in this new era of women’s boxing – a path she and many others paved for the current torch-bearers.
On a night that featured six fights – and the debut of CES’ first female ring announcer, Margaret Cresta – Alejandro Paulino (12-0, 10 KOs) and Anthony Velasquez (12-0, 11 KOs) provided ample firepower.
Paulino, the fast-rising unbeaten super featherweight from New London, CT, demolished St. Louis’ Derrick Murray (17-8-1) via technical knockout in the opening round. A flurry of shots early in the round put Murray in defense mode before Paulino snuck in a short left hook that caught Murray directly on the chin and sent him crashing to the canvas. Murray made it to his feet, but stumbled into the ropes trying to take a step forward, prompting referee Johnny Callas to wave it off.
Velasquez, the hard-hitting Springfield, MA, super welterweight, also made quick work of his opponent, blasting the durable Rodrigo Lopes Rodrigues (8-5) of Brazil in the opening round with a barrage of punches that forced referee Joey Lupino to step in and quickly stop the fight.
The newest addition to the CES family, Velasquez is on the fast track to success and will return to the ring at CES’ next event April 22 at Mohegan Sun Arena. He and Paulino, 26 and 24 years of age, respectively, continue to dominate the regional circuit and now boast 24 wins with 21 combined knockouts.
Fan-favorite Gary Balletto III, who grew up just miles from the Park Theatre in Cranston, also put on a show in his unanimous decision win over Raphael Torres of Marlborough, MA. Both fighters entered unbeaten and fought at cruiserweight with Balletto simply out-working Torres over six hard rounds to earn a 60-54, 60-54, 59-55 victory. The two-sport star who also competes as a welterweight in mixed martial arts is now 4-0 in boxing, following in the footsteps of his father, Gary “Tiger” Balletto.
Johnston, RI, middleweight James Maner (3-0) scored an early knockdown en route to a 40-35 unanimous decision win on all three scorecards over debut Everet Desilets (0-1) over Pawtucket, RI; and welterweight Jeffrey Gonzalez (2-0) of East Haven, CT, won a spirited 39-37, 37-39, 39-37 split decision over Jesus Salas (1-2) of New Bedford, MA.
For more information, follow CES Boxing on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @CESBOXING.
INFORMATION
CES Boxing is one of the top promotions in the northeast and one of the few to successfully promote both mixed martial arts and professional boxing. Launched in 1992 by longtime boxing judge Jimmy Burchfield Sr., the promotion is the only in professional boxing to boast two reigning WBC Youth world champions in lightweight Jamaine Ortiz and featherweight Irvin Gonzalez. CES Boxing recently teamed with UFC FIGHT PASS, the world’s No. 1 streaming platform for combat sports, to showcase its events to a worldwide audience, and worked as a promotional consultant for the Mike Tyson-Roy Jones Jr. pay-per-view event in November of 2020.
Celebrating its 99th anniversary, the Historic Park Theatre & Event Center is a 1,015-seat performance art theatre that originally opened in 1924 and reopened in October of 2022 under new ownership with major renovations that include the newly-launched Park Place Café, Comedy Park, and Rolfe Supper Club on the second floor. Owned by restaurateurs Ed Brady and Jeff Quinlan, the historic Park, located across the street from Cranston City Hall at 848 Park Ave., is capable of hosting an array of events and will expand later this year to include tributes to Queen, Bruce Springsteen, and Michael Jackson. The Park Theatre will be a space for the Rhode Island community to come together and bring history back to life.
