MASHANTUCKET, CT – Irvin Gonzalez (16-4, 12 KOs) challenges “King” Kevin Walsh (13-0, 6 KOs) for the New England Super Featherweight Championship on Saturday, September 7 at Foxwoods Resort Casino, the premier resort casino in the Northeast.
The bout is CES Boxing’s co-main event on a stacked ‘Live Championship Boxing’ card featuring 2 championship bouts and several of the best contenders and prospects in New England. The entire card will be televised live on Swerve Combat TV.
Tickets for Live Championship Boxing are available at CESFights.com and Ticketmaster. Doors open at 6pm, with the first bout at 7pm. Get your tickets now as they are quickly selling out!
For Gonzalez, a Worcester, MA native of Puerto Rican descent, an impressive win over Walsh signals his claim as “king” of the super featherweights in New England.
“It puts me back in the spot where I should have been years ago, fighting for titles that actually mean something,” says the 28-year-old when considering what a victory would do for his career. “It will show that I’m still the best 126/130 pounder coming out of New England.”
Like Walsh, Gonzalez was once an undefeated prospect on the way to world title contention. Turning pro in 2016 after an extensive amateur career, Irvin quickly won his first 12 bouts, 9 of them by stoppage. Then came 2019, a challenging year that saw Gonzalez lose 2 fights in a row, the first by knockout.
“My performances that year had a lot to do with issues outside the ring,” confesses Gonzalez. “I was just young and dumb, going through a lot of things. I wasn’t there mentally, and I was trying to push through it, and I just couldn’t.”
Following those losses to Elijah Pierce and Toka Kahn Clary, Gonzalez regrouped to win his next 2 bouts, picking up the WBC Youth World title in the process. Then came a razor thin decision loss in 2020 to world title challenger Edward Vasquez at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
“If you go back and rewatch that fight, they robbed me,” says a vehement Gonzalez about the encounter. “I beat him hands down, and in the first round of that fight, I had him hurt. He was on shaky legs, and I took my foot off the pedal.”
Gonzalez fought 3 more times following that frustrating defeat, going 2-1. His last bout was a first-round blowout of Rodolfo Montoya in November 2023.
However, while Gonzalez has not had a full bout in 9 months, he has been in the ring. The Worcester native joined the Boston Butchers in May of this year and fought 8 times for them, helping the Butchers enter the Team Combat League playoffs in July.
“It was a great experience,” says Gonzalez of his time with the Butchers. “It was a different atmosphere, a different game because you only have one round to score a point for your team, so you had to have a different mentality going into that ring.”
The experience rekindled Gonzalez’s love for the sport as he forged strong relationships with many of fighters on the team.
“I love the overall energy of the league,” explains Gonzalez. “It brought me back to the amateur days when we were all going to national tournaments together. We built bonds that we never had before.”
Those bonds led Gonzalez to join teammates Alejandro Paulino and Elijah Peixoto at the Big 6 Gym in Providence, RI, where Dr. Roland Estrada is preparing the 3 pugilists for separate bouts on September 7.
“Training has been going great,” says Gonzalez. “This will be my first fight at 130 but after this fight I’m going back down to 126. I don’t want to fight at 130. I’m making an exception for this fight because Kevin walks around like he’s the best 130-135 pounder in New England and that’s just not the case. We’ll find out September 7 who’s the best at 130, but from 126 to 130, I think I got it down. At 135, you’ve got Alejandro Paulino. Kevin thinks he’s the best in New England, so I’m just here to prove that he’s not.”
While many consider this fight to be a 50/50 matchup, Irvin believes that Walsh’s record is a mirage. Gonzalez doesn’t hold back when offering his opinion on Walsh’s previous opponents. He believes Walsh has yet to face a fighter of his caliber, and this fight will be a wake-up call for the Brockton native.
“I’ve seen him fight a few times,” says Gonzalez when assessing Walsh. “He does have skills, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t think he’s anywhere near my level, especially when I’m on my A game. When I’m not on my A game, yeah, he might be, but when I’m on my A game, he ain’t got nothing for me, especially if you look at the opponents he’s fought. In the professionals, he hasn’t fought a soul. On paper, yes, Kevin Walsh might be 13-0, but he’s fought all cab drivers. He’s fighting a real fighter this time. I’ve been in there with Elijah Pierce, Toka Kahn, Edward Vazquez. Toka Kahn alone blows all his opponents out of the water.”
Analyzing this fight, Gonzalez has the edge in youth and experience, while Walsh appears to be the naturally bigger man. The question is which of them has the superior skillset and what factor will speed and power play in the fight.
“I give him all the respect in the world, but I’ve had over 130 amateur fights and I’ve been in the game since I was 8 years old, so it’s very different,” insists Gonzalez of the experience gap. “I fight at 126 and when I got offered this fight, I said I’ll come up to 130 to fight him because I don’t think we’re on the same level. It might appear like we are on paper, but skill wise and experience wise I don’t think we’re on the same level whatsoever, but I guess we’ll just have to find out September 7th.”
On September 7, we will all find out who is the king of the super featherweights in New England.
For more information on Live Championship Boxing and all other CES Boxing events, visit cesfights.com.
INFORMATION
About CES Boxing
CES Boxing is one of the top promotions on the East Coast. Founded in 1992 by Jimmy Burchfield Sr., CES Boxing has promoted many world class fighters, including Jamaine Ortiz, Juiseppe Cusumano, Hank Lundy, Vinny Paz, Peter Manfredo, Mariusz Wach, Jason Estrada, Matt Godfrey, Chad Dawson and Ray Oliveira. CES Boxing has promoted such super fights as “The Thriller on Triller: Tyson v Jones Jr.”, “Mayweather vs. Gotti III” and “The Contender: Manfredo v Pemberton”.
About Foxwoods Resort Casino
Foxwoods Resort Casino offers guests a premier destination resort experience throughout its six world-class casinos, AAA Four-Diamond hotels featuring over 2,200 rooms, dining options for all tastes, luxurious spas, award-winning golf, state-of-the-art theaters, Tanger Outlet Mall and conference space for groups of all sizes. There is always something new at Foxwoods that gives guests more reasons to stay, including the opening of dining properties like Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen, Wahlburgers and Grace by Nia; celebrity pastry chef Zac Young’s storefront, Sprinkletown Donuts & Ice Cream; and a landmark deal with Great Wolf Lodge, opening in 2025. When it comes to sports betting and gaming, Foxwoods has partnerships with fan-favorite betting and entertainment platforms, including DraftKings and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe’s recently formed Wondr Nation. For a detailed look at Foxwoods Resort Casino and Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation visit Foxwoods.com.
