Rivera Promotions brings boxing back to the 508 with the New England's Future 7!

This was the most incredible experience I have ever been a part of. Just three months ago I was sitting in a dark room with my head in my hands wondering where my life was headed. Broken relationship, broken foot, broken heart, broken soul, lost my job, my apartment, my home...I didn't know what to do. The doctor's told me to stay off my foot and let it heal, if I didn't, there was a 50/50 chance they would amputate. It was really dark in my head. I knew I wasn't far away from permanent darkness if I didn't find a way to occupy my mind. Instead of shutting down, or letting anger/depression get me once again I fought. I turned to my love of sports. Focused on a dream I never wanted to give up on. I started my podcast. My podcast launch was with guest and former Heavyweight Boxing Legend, Peter Mcneeley. Many conversations with him about boxing, fighting, life really piqued my interest in the sport. I've always loved fighting. Never understood the sport of boxing and what goes into it. The strategy, the dedication, the mentality. Fighting to me has always been fueled by anger. I'm learning that boxing is so much more than that. We had an absolute blast. Thanks again Peter, Next time you are coming with me!

Next, I decided to spotlight Worcester. I had a few different connections to the most successful boxer in Worcester's History. Jose "El Gallo" RIvera. I just couldn't believe the personality he had from the jump. He was super friendly, super outgoing, and humble. A three time World Champion, willing to give his time to an unknown podcaster for his love of Worcester. Love of this community and the good people here. Tough people here. After chatting with him, I knew the direction I wanted to go. They say you are who you surround yourself with. Successful, Driven, Respectful, Tough, Classy, Intelligent and Humble people. I paid attention to what Jose was doing and this show came along. Watched how these guys carried themselves and selected my picks to win and Team Shamrock was born. Thank you for inviting me to the press conference. That changed my direction with this project and probably my life.

The press conference was amazing. These guys were so pumped and the atmosphere there was incredible. I was literally on a video chat with Peter, chatting with Jose, Bobby Harris and Sean Fitzgerald in the meantime before they took the podium. Surreal. The first kid that really impressed me and immediately became my first target. Heavyweight from Worcester, Joey Edmonds. Very well spoken, confident, humble and when I approached him, he was more than welcoming. Big athletic kid, I knew he was going to be good. I just didn't have a clue how good. Wow. Genuine tough kid from Doherty High, who also scored the Marcus Blakney award. Since the fight, I've had a couple people reach out to tell me how hard of a worker Joey is. As far as boxing goes, Ill let the video of his dominance do the talking. I'm excited to see his next fight. Good luck to whoever draws him as their next opponent. Great fight Joey. Scary fast, strong and accurate. You have long successful career ahead of you. Keep working. You make the 508 proud. Go get what's yours!

Joey Got TeamShamrock our 2nd victory of the night, 2-0! Wooooooooooooo!

Next up on the podcast was none other than a guy my lead sponsor connected me with. Shout to Platts Landscaping. Owner of Platts Landscaping, Ryan Platts, set me up with his friend Chuck Shearns of Shearns Boxing. From the jump there was hype over his first signed boxer, Josniel "TG" Castro. When I talked to Chuck he admitted he was bias, but assured me that TG was the best fighter on the card. He really may not have been far off, but I do know one thing, He showed out with some serious power and attack schemes Saturday night. Joining us on the podcast was none other than legendary trainer/coach, Derik Santos of DS Boxing Gym in Florida. Before TG got on the zoom I had a chat that I should have recorded and added to the show. He was giving me a bit of his background and in the meantime I kept hearing a serious snap of someone sparring in the background. As he was dropping some serious names of guys he's trained and coached, I couldn't help but wonder who was dropping violent punches in the background. No big deal, only Vitor Belfort, Oscar De La Hoya's coming out opponent. So...Josniel Castro...Remember that name. This kid is going to be something special. By the way, Joey Edmonds smiled throughout his first fight. Josniel pretty much did the same thing. Just pure, raw power, and a intense ring presence. This kid has the skills, talent, ability, and stacked management/coaching team behind him. His demeanor in person is just humble, friendly, and can just see the excitement in his eyes when he gets in that ring. I have a ton of respect for a guy that gets excited to try and break someone's face. Great fight Josniel, looking forward to following you and your career. Team Shamrock was 1-0 after TG dominated!

Next TeamShamrock508 pick and Worcester legend Bobby "BH3" Harris III. Everyone in this city knows Bobby's bloodline and connection. I've never met BH III, but his demeanor from the minute we started chatting was all business. Polite, Respectful and well spoken. His father/coach/mentor is legendary Heavyweight Bobby Harris II from Worcester, Ma. I've known his father for a long time and when I seen him at the press conference, he didn't want to discuss anything but his son. My spot at the media table couldn't have been any better to watch Bobby and his team work that night. BH III was on BeanTown Banter and Bullshit and discussed the respect him and his father have. They work together even though they have different fight strategies. I can honestly say, after a long layoff from the ring, Bobby came back with some serious style and strategy. Hometown favorite for sure and he owned the crowd from minute one. He has character, speed, strength, style, and no doubt an advanced ring IQ. His opponent was strong, but clearly got out-boxed. Looking forward to his next fight, and Ty again Bobby for showing out for the 508. He got us our 3rd victory of the night. TeamShamrock was 3-0!

And last but not least, my guy, Wilfredo "El Sucaro" Pagan, out of Southbridge, Ma came to the ring. After his podcast appearance with Shamrock Sports, I was excited to say the least. He's a known competitor in anything he does. Heart on his sleeve. No quit and keep going to beat him. You might have to literally kill this dude to stop him. Wilfredo owned the crowd from the minute he walked to the ring. Huge fan presence. It had to get underneath his opponents skin because he looked angry and appeared to be throwing angry hell blows that slowed Wilfredo down but definitely didn't even remotely stop him from throwing punches. I need to review this fight a few more times and try to count exactly how many punches were thrown in this fight by both opponents. Shamrock Sports gave this the Gotti/Ward Fight of the Night Award. The ending was controversial but I believed to be correct. No way this could have been anything but a draw, the winner would have had to be a straight KO. Props to both fighters but obviously a huge shout to our guy El Sucaro! Hope to see you again in there brother. Amazing. Goosebumps when that bell rang. This was heart on display by both fighters. Definitely check this out.

Shout out to AJ Rivera, Jose Antonio Rivera, and Rivera Promotions for the opportunity to cover this fight and congrats on a massively successful show. You guys are a class act and what you are bringing to this city is nothing short of incredible, looking forward to working with you guys. Shout to Bob Trieger and Full Court Press for guiding me through my first boxing rodeo. Shout to my lead sponsor Platts Landscaping for connecting me with Shearns Boxing and Josniel Castro. Shout to Joey Edmonds, Josniel Castro, Bobby Harris 3, and Wilfredo Pagan. You guys are the heart of the 508 that I am trying to spotlight with my Shamrock venture. TeamShamrock508 ended the night 3-0-1. Overall, I cannot express what this event meant to me. Not bad for my first rodeo. Oh. And I shared the media table I had with the Telegram and Gazette. They had to use my Wifi hot spot and my IPad went down and it corrupted my video of the Collazo fight. Sincere apologies to Enrique Collazo and Nate Torres. Next time I will be max prepared. If anyone else has that fight recorded, please forward to me. He dominated that fight from start to finish. And also shout to the other fighters in the show. Much respect for what you guys go through to prepare and train not only for the fight, but the lifestyle. Best part of the night, I didn't act like I had been there before. Not my style. I showed, made some mistakes, and will be better next time. I always say if it's a long term goal, get 1percent better every time you do it.

PS. The most outstanding performance of the night that didn't involve punching was my new friend and talented singer Elion Virtuoso. Flawless rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. Elion was kind enough to let me borrow his wireless charger so I could keep the T and G up and running. Wooooooooooooo! Check it out here!

PSS. Also shout to the most legendary Dj and Icon in this city. Goes unnoticed somehow but the work that DJ Chuck Chillin does in this city is ridiculous. He Dj'd the Worcester Library Block Party, then this show, and I seen him on air for his radio show later that night. He was dropping perfect hype beats at the show and does it week in and week out for different establishments and events in this community. Kudos Chuck. It doesn't go unnoticed. Breezin through from the left side of the dial to say 508Respect! Check out his upcoming event!