PROVIDENCE (July 30, 2005) – Only 14 months into his pro boxing career, unbeaten Providence cruiserweight Matt Godfrey (8-0, 5 KOs), rated No. 13 by the NABF, is preparing for his ninth fight August 26 against Willie Herring (13-3-3, 2 KOs) with the vacant USNBC cruiserweight championship on the line.
“CES’ Prime Time Fights” is presented by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports, Inc (CES), in association with Mohegan Sun, at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence. Godfrey, coming off an eight-round “shutout” decision against Jermall Barnes, was an outstanding amateur boxer, registering a 194-23 record, including six national championships, highlighted by a gold-medal performance in the 2004 Everlast U.S. Championships. He was a Bronze medal winner at the 2001 Pan-American Games and second heavyweight alternate for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team.
Herring, rated No. 11 by the NABF, is an upset specialist. His last match was a 10-round draw against 10-0-1 Shauna George on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights. Prior to that Herring won an eight-round decision against previously undefeated Troy Ross (12-0).
“Last year,” Godfrey said, “I was looking forward to being right here at this stage, fighting for my first title. I’ve built up my record fighting good opponents, not sub-.500 fighters. (Note: The aggregate record of Godfrey’s opponents when they fought Matt is 34-20-4.) I take one fight at a time and all I’m concerned with is the guy in front of me August 26. After that we’ll sit down and talk about what’s next.
“I don’t know too much about Herring other than his record and I know he’s beaten some good fighters. I’m sure he doesn’t know too much about me and I’ll be a big surprise to him. My biggest improvement has been settling down, being patient, instead of just showing shots. I pitched a shutout in my first eight-round fight and now I’m working on my stamina for 10 rounds.”
The 10-round Godfrey-Herring co-feature is one of three title fights on the Aug. 26th card. Newly crowned USNBC super middleweight champion Joey “KO Kid” Spina (16-0, 11 KOs), of Providence, makes his first title defense against TBA in the 12-round main event. Spina is rated No. 34 by the WBC, as well as No. 8 by the NABC and No. 12 by the NABO. Former world champion Jaime “Hurricane” Clampitt (15-3-1, 6 KOs) takes on Shelby “Girl” Walker (7-4-1, 6 KOs) for the vacant IWBF lightweight crown in the 10-round special attraction.
The series will be broadcast on a tape-delayed basis on CN8, The Comcast Network, Cox Sports and other cable outlets.
CN8, The Comcast Network will air the Aug. 26 show SUNDAY, August 28 9:00-11:00 PM/ET. CN8’s Ed Berliner will provide blow-by-blow commentary for all of the six New England boxing shows. Former five-time world champion Vinny Paz is the color analyst. The CES package is part of CN8’s Primetime Fights series, a monthly show featuring New England and Mid-Atlantic boxing events broadcast into 7.1 million homes on the East Coast.
Also scheduled to fight on the card is Providence heavyweight Jason “Big Six” Estrada (3-0, 1 KO), 2004 US Olympian, in his first six-round match; Manchester featherweight Matt “Sharp Shooter” Remillard (3-0, 2 KOs), two-time Everlast Under-19 National champion; Cranston super featherweight Missy “The Fury” Fiorentino (12-1, 6 KOs), Pawtucket via Puerto Rico super lightweight Eddie Soto (1-0, 1 KO).
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