Light heavyweight Kendrick Ball, Jr. fought in a familiar setting Saturday night. Maybe too familiar of a setting. (photo by Emily Harney)
Ball outboxed gatekeeper Oscar Riojas of Mexico, winning by decision at Polar Park in his hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts. All three judges scored the bout 80-72 in favor of Ball, who improved to 21-1-3 1 NC, 12 knockouts.
Riojas falls to 28-17-3, 16 KOs and is now winless in his last five bouts.
Family and friends came out to support Ball, buying general admission or ringside seats. The ring was set up directly behind home plate.
What was unique for Ball was he fought in a venue he was very familiar with. Ball was a union construction worker who helped build Polar Park, which is the home of the Worcester Red Sox, which is a Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. The 9,500-seat ballpark opened in 2021.
Ball began working on the project in 2020.
Saturday’s card marked the first ever boxing event at the venue, but it was not on the forefront of the mind of Ball.
“Leading up to the fight, that (fighting at home in the first boxing card at Polar Park) wasn’t my focus,” said Ball after the fight. “Now, it means a lot to me for me to accomplish what I wanted to and have my fans watch. I made some new fans, too.”
“When I first started working at Polar Park, it was just a dirt field. I saw the blueprint and it looked cool, but I couldn’t imagine it would look like it does today. It looks so weird being there now. It brings back memories and I picture myself working there in different spots. Two years later, my Dad (head trainer Kendrick Ball, Sr.) is promoting the first boxing show there with Chuck (Stearns). I’ve thrown out the (ceremonial) first pitch three times at Polar Park and (then) I’m headlining the first boxing show there. Life is weird sometimes.
“Some people had been talking about boxing there back then and I wanted to headline. I think I deserve it as the biggest ticket seller in Worcester. It really (didn’t) hit me that I headlined the first outdoor show in Worcester boxing history and the first boxing (card) ever at Polar Park. I know it was big. I hope people understand the magnitude of this historic boxing event.”
The 30-year-old has not lost since a unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Alexis Gaytan in his 12th pro fight in June 2018.
In his previous fight on March 16, Ball defeated Mike Stegall by decision over six one-sided rounds. Stegall entered the Ball fight unbeaten.
Ball is managed by Artie DePinho.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for BoxingScene since September 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing