By Jake Donovan

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Unbeaten local hero Demetrius Andrade gets his long-overdue homecoming headliner, as the unbeaten southpaw defends his middleweight title versus Poland’s Maciej Sulecki (28-1, 11KOs).

The bout takes place Saturday evening live on DAZN from Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, R.I.

UNDERCARD

Alexis Espino made Kerby St. Juste’s pro debut a night to forget.

The 19-year old former amateur standout scored three knockdowns en route to a 2nd round stoppage of the Trenton (N.J.) debutant in their over-the-limit middleweight affair.

Espino struck early, connecting with a left hook late in round one which wobbled St. Juste. The ropes prevented his fall, which referee Eddie Claudio correctly ruled a knockdown. A far more potent left hook midway through round two put St. Juste down hard, functionally ending the fight.

The referee took a long hard look at the fallen boxer before allowing action to continue. Las Vegas’ Espino (3-0, 2KOs) finished him off with a final right hand which sent St. Juste (0-1) through the ropes and forcing the stoppage at 1:49 of round two.

Whitman, Mass. super welterweight Mark “Bazooka” DeLuca provided plenty of thrills for his local fans in a spirited 10-round decision win over Canada’s Brandon “L-Jack” Brewer. Scores were 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93 in favor of DeLuca in a battle of free-swinging southpaws.

Both fighters would have to fight through facial cuts, but DeLuca (24-1, 13KOs) was the first to draw blood. The Marine gunner and war veteran broke through with left hands in round two along with a right hook which opened a gash over the left eye of Brewer. The favor was returned just one round later, when incidental contact opened up a cut just outside DeLuca’s right eyelid.

A spirited round four ended with referee Ricky Gonzalez allowing the two to jaw at one another well after the bell before sending them to their neutral corners. The two-way trash talk was a bit surprising, as Brewer seemed on the verge of being stopped but dug deep and bravely fought back as fatigue appeared to set in for DeLuca.

Or so Brewer thought.

DeLuca found his reserves down the stretch, steamrolling ahead in a dominant round nine where he was able to work the body and force Brewer to fight in reverse. Brewer stood his ground while fighting out of a conventional stance in the 10th and final round but was repeatedly beaten to the punch by the quicker and sharper DeLuca, who scored with straight lefts as well as sharp right hands on the occasions he switched his stance. Two-way action graced the final 30 seconds of the contest, bringing the lively crowd to its feet.

Brewer suffers his first defeat as a pro, which also marked his first fight outside of Canada in more than four years. DeLuca has now won three straight since a points loss to Walter Wright, which he avenged last October. 

The two stateside fights for Otha Jones III have turned out to be far more challenging than his one fight abroad.

Eight days following a 1st round knockout in England, the unbeaten 19-year old from Toledo, Ohio was given a much stiffer challenge from Argentina’s Matias Arriagada (6-5, 3KOs) in a six-round decision victory.

Scores were 60-54—not quite reflective of the action—in favor of Jones III (3-0, 1KO), who has now gone the six-round distance twice within his first three fights as a pro. 

Jones III was sharp with his right hand in the opening round, catching Arriagada on the temple and drawing several oohs and ahhs from the early bird crowd. His overwhelming desire to score an early knockout, however, led to several sloppy moments and loose defense, which Arriagada did his best to fully exploit.

The Argentine boxer had a solid round two, catching Jones III far more often than would be expected of a blue-chip rookie prospect. Of course, these are the fights his team seeks on the way up, as evidenced by his being aggressively matched in his pro debut less than four months ago. Jones adjusted quick enough to bank rounds—all of them in the eyes of the judges, apparently—and seize control down the stretch.

Raymond Ford lived up to his “Savage” nickname, making quick work of Mexico’s Isidro Figueroa (1-1) in their featherweight preliminary contest. A left hook to the body delivered a one-punch knockout for Ford (3-0, 1KO) at 1:21 of round one.

Ford, a 20-year old newcomer from Camden, N.J., signed with Matchroom Boxing USA earlier this year following a brilliant amateur career. He made his pro debut this past March in Philadelphia, having gone the four-round distance on that night as well as his second fight his past May in Nottingham, England.

Shelly “Shelito’s Way” Vincent emerged victorious in what she insists was the final fight of her eight year-career. The 40-year old Connecticut-bred featherweight scored an eight-round decision over Brazil’s Simone Da Silva (16-13, 6KOs).

Scores were 79-73 (twice) and 78-74 in favor of Vincent (25-2, 1KO), who is best remembered in the ring for her pair of fights with Heather Hardy.

Their first fight in 2016 was among the year’s fiercest contests, with the two going to war in their NBC Sports Network-televised slugfest. The rematch came with far higher stakes, but was less competitive as Vincent dropped a 10-round decision to Hardy in their vacant featherweight title fight last October live on HBO.

Local middleweight Anthony Concepcion (4-0, 4KOs) wasted no time in the evening’s curtain raiser, scoring a 1st round knockout of Miami’s Yasmani Pedroso (2-7, 1KO). A right hand shot put Pedroso down and out at 2:02 of round one.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox