Jason Pires Wins In Rhode Island

LINCOLN, R.I. (March 22^nd, 2012) – “Mr. Providence” is back – perhaps not entirely, but, according to Vladine Biosse himself, “it’s a start.”

Searching for his first win in 11 months, Biosse delivered Thursday night in front of a standing-room only crowd at the Twin River Event Center, earning a hard-fought, 59-54, 59-54, 59-55 unanimous-decision victory over George Armenta in the main event of Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports’ “Home Invasion” show, the official launch of CES’ 2012 Thursday Night Fight Series.

“I feel great, but I’m not satisfied,” said Biosse, who improved to 12-1-1 with the win. “We did what we came to do, which was win, but I want to finish the fight on my terms.

“We’ll be back in the gym on Monday correcting the little things we did wrong so we can get better for the next fight. I want to end fights, not leave it in the judges’ hands.”

New Bedford, Mass., welterweight Jason “School Boy” Pires also went the distance in a six-round bout against fan-favorite Eddie Soto of Pawtucket, R.I., escaping with a 59-55, 56-58, 58-56 split-decision victory in Thursday’s special attraction. The bout was Pires’ first in nearly three years as he begins his second comeback.

“I definitely had a lot of ring rust, but I expected that,” Pires said. “I wasn’t able to get off as much as I wanted to, and I could’ve thrown more flurries, but I’m back. That’s a good feeling.”

Biosse got off to a slow start Thursday, but picked up the pace dramatically after a body shot sent Armenta (14-8) to the canvas early in the third round.

“I got myself back a little bit,” said Biosse, who hadn’t fought since October following a draw against John Mackey. “I was trying to find my old self in the beginning. I felt a little cold, but I got it back after that knockdown.”

Armenta continued to fight over the final three rounds, but Biosse’s aggressiveness ultimately made the difference on the scorecard, giving Biosse his first win since knocking out Tim Connors on ESPN2 in April of 2011.

“He’s a tough kid,” Biosse said of Armenta. “You can’t take anything away from him.”

Pires (23-4-1) returned Thursday night following a much longer layoff; he hadn’t fought since May of 2009 when he lost a nine-round bout to Michael Clark, ending his first comeback attempt after four fights. On Thursday, his work on the inside made the difference, softening Soto’s defense while keeping his opponent from controlling the fight at short distances.

“It was close; Eddie’s a tough kid,” Pires said. “I thought he’d stay in front of me more, but he moved around a lot and whenever I got close he would grab me. I got my feet wet tonight, and that’s really the important thing.

Asked about the split decision, which included one judge awarding Soto four of the six rounds, Pires said, “I don’t know what they saw, but so be it.”

Soto disagreed.

“I thought I won,” he said. “He caught me with some good body shots, but other than that I feel I landed more punches. It could’ve even been a draw – maybe 57-56 – but I take nothing away from Jason. He’s a hell of a fighter. I wanted to fight the best, and I think he’s one of the best there is at 145 pounds.”

Rematch, perhaps?

“I think it would be a great fight,” Soto said. “I’ll do it if the money is right.”

“Home Invasion” also included two devastating knockouts, the first from light heavyweight Alex Amparo (3-0, 2 KOs) of Providence, who flattened newcomer John Downey (0-1) of Spencer, Mass., 1 minute, 2 seconds into the opening round. New Bedford welterweight Johnathan Vazquez (5-1, 4 KOs) following with a first-round knockout win over Pawtucket newcomer Jeff Anderson (0-1) of Lincoln in just 90 seconds. Both Downey and Anderson made their boxing debuts Thursday after combining for 26 professional bouts in mixed martial arts.

Forty-year-old Warwick, R.I., veteran Benny Costantino (7-1) suffered the first loss of his career against middleweight Yolexcy Leiva (5-2, 4 KOs) with Leiva earning the stoppage at the 42-second mark of the third round despite hitting the canvas in the second. Costantino fought back to drop Leiva after a lopsided opening round in which Costantino himself hit the deck, but Leiva came out strong in the third and cornered his opponent with a flurry that ultimately led to the stoppage. Light welterweight Carlos Hernandez (2-2, 1 KOs) of Bridgeport, Conn., also won by stoppage, defeating Robert Hunt (0-2) in a bout stopped at the end of the third round due to cuts.

Light heavyweight Kevin Cobbs (3-0) of Burlington, Vt., and middleweight Thomas Falowo (6-0) of Pawtucket both remained unbeaten with unanimous-decision wins. Cobbs beat Ahmad Mickens (1-2-1) of Stamford, Conn., 40-36, 40-36, 39-37, while Falowo held off a strong charge by New York veteran Troy Artis (3-3-1) in a 59-55, 59-55, 58-56 victory.

Marshfield, Mass., welterweight Aleksandra Magdziak Lopes (6-1) won her sixth consecutive bout via unanimous decision, 40-36, 39-37, 39-37 over Ashleigh Curry (4-7-2).