Stoneham's Vendetti Puts His Title On The Line June 9

The fight Khiary Gray has wanted for the past year and a half comes with a stern warning.

“Be careful what you ask for,” said Joe Ricciardi, longtime trainer of reigning New England Junior Middleweight Champion Greg Vendetti, “because come June 9th you’re going to get it, and you’re going to get it good.”

The upcoming Friday, June 9th, regional showdown at Twin River Casino between Worcester's Gray (14-2, 11 KOs) and Stoneham title-holder Vendetti (14-2- 1, 10 KOs) is a fight so big, everyone has an opinion. The soft-spoken Gray, who faced Vendetti twice in the amateurs, aims to bring the title back to Worcester following a loss to Brooklyn’s Courtney Pennington in February in which Pennington left town with Gray’s Universal Boxing Federation (UBF) 154-pound regional titles.

“He’s got the belt,” Gray said of Vendetti during Wednesday’s pep rally/press conference at Lock 50 in Worcester. “He’s No. 1 in New England and I want to be No. 1 in New England and keep progressing forward. After every loss, I never backed down from a challenge. I always wanted to fight the next guy in my weight class. On June 9th, I’m coming to take that title and bring it back to Worcester.”

The eight-round Gray-Vendetti championship bout headlines a stacked, 10-fight card next month at Twin River, promoted by CES Boxing in association with Murphys Boxing, which promotes both Vendetti and unbeaten Witman, Mass., junior middleweight Mark DeLuca (18-0, 12 KOs), who faces regional showstopper Chris Chatman (14-6- 1, 5 KOs) of Chicago in the eight-round co-feature.

Tickets are priced at $47, $102, $127 (VIP) and $152 (VIP) and can be purchased online at www.cesboxing.com, www.twinriver.com, www.murphysboxing.com or www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254 or at the Twin River Casino Players Club. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

The entire 10-fight card also airs live in its entirety on FITE TV Pay Per View for $14.99 beginning at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT. June 9 th is CES Boxing’s third event of 2017 as the region’s longest-running promotion continues its year-long 25th anniversary celebration, but the underlying story – aside from the tremendous matchups from top to bottom – is this unique collaboration between promoters, a trend that has escaped boxing in recent years, both at the regional and international level.

The mission to bring New England fight fans the best matchups, a tradition that began with CES Boxing’s inception 25 years ago, continued April 7th when regional welterweights Nick DeLomba and Jimmy Williams fought for the coveted World Boxing Council (WBC) United States Title, a fight Williams won by unanimous decision.

Gray-Vendetti is the next chapter, a fight regional fans have demanded for the past two years as both fighters simultaneously climbed the ladder to the top of the region’s 154-pound rankings. Vendetti captured the then-vacant title in May of 2016, firmly pressing him on Gray’s radar.

“This is major-league boxing,” Burchfield said. “This is a real fight.”

Gray is coming off losses in two of his last three bouts, sandwiched around a scintillating knockout win over Chatman in October, while Vendetti has won 10 in a row, eight by knockout, a streak that doesn’t impress Gray’s trainer, Kendrick Ball Sr.

“Greg’s a good, tough fighter. We’re not sleeping on him. We take nothing lightly. But I don’t think he’s fought anyone on our level. That night, you’ll see,” Ball Sr. said.

Ricciardi, who trains Vendetti out of the Bobby Tomasello Memorial Boxing Club in nearby Saugus, took exception with Ball Sr.’s “comment that my fighter has more or less been playing in the minor leagues.”

“Come June 9 th , what you’re going to get is a fighter that’s 110 percent 110 percent of the time,” Ricciardi said. Added Vendetti: “Two and a half weeks is a long time to come up with an excuse to pull out of the fight, so, I do have one thing to say: Mr. Gray, I’d like you to come live up to that name. I want you 100 percent and I don’t want any excuse after the fight. You come ready, just as I will be.”