Everett’s Shea Willcox dazzles in his pro debut

‘Fight Night at the Vets Club 2’ results from Bridgewater

Special to The Advocate

Everett, Mass., junior welterweight “Showtime” Shea Willcox had a dazzling pro debut in last night’s “Fight Night at the Vets Club 2” card – presented by Granite Chin Promotions (GCP) – at the Bridgewater Veterans Club in Bridgewater, Mass. Fighting in front of a packed venue, in which the large majority of attendees were there supporting him, the 22-year-old Willcox did not disappoint: He floored Travis Crain three times, the last leading referee Jack Morrell to wave off the fight at the 43-second mark of the opening round.

Willcox, who was this year’s New England Golden Gloves Champion, as well as the Most Outstanding Boxer of the championship final, displayed poise beyond his age would indicate, calmly setting up his vaunted left hook. Willcox used his left hook for the first two knockdowns, a minute into the fight and again 30-seconds later, and he closed the show with a crisp right cross for the technical knockout.

“I had a lot of fans at the New England Golden Gloves, and they really turned out for my pro debut,” Shea said after the fight. They’re always there for me and I’m grateful for their support. I love it!

“We had a game plan, and I knew what to do. I figured that he’s a southpaw and he’d be right there for my left hook. We trained nine weeks for it. My left hook, whether to the head or body, is my best punch. I saw him back up when I hit him early and knew that I had him. I’ll go right back into the gym to work on being a little more relaxed and balanced.”

Friday the 13^th certainly wasn’t unlucky for the popular Willcox.

“I knew Shea had a big fanbase, but WOW, what a turnout,” GCP promoter Chris Traietti commented. “It was a great night of local boxing. Shea certainly didn’t disappoint with an impressive first-round stoppage. He was poised and really handled the moment well. The supporting bouts were also incredible. We had two draws and a razor-thin opening bout that ended in a unanimous decision. Nobody left the Vets Club disappointed and that is always the goal, to give the fans their money’s worth. Thank you to everyone that came out, our sponsors, the Granite Chin Staff, and most importantly…the fighters for making this night our best show at the Vets Club to date!”

The other three bouts on the card were all action-packed, entertaining and competitive. Two ended in draws. Rhode Island middleweight Alfred “Keenan” Raymond (2-10-3, 0 KOs) and Daniel “The Hudson Valley Kid” Sostre (13-26-2, 5 KOs) fought to an entertaining four-round draw that could have been fought in the proverbial phone booth. Keenan won all four rounds on one of the judges’ scorecards, while Sostre took two of three and one from one of the other judges, and 36-36 on the third for a draw. Sostre nearly snapped his 17-fight losing streak. Lightweight Brandon Sandoval, fighting out of Salem, Mass., by way of Mexico, was the aggressor from the opening bout of the evening’s first fight en route to a four-round win by unanimous decision.

A portion of the proceeds went to the Fire For Effect Foundation (www.ffefinc.org), which honors and empowers veterans, first responders and their families in the community.

“Fight Nights at the Vets Club 2” was taped live and will be posted this week on the Bridgewater (BTV) YouTube page.