LONG ISLAND – Tommy “The Razor” Rainone plans to turn heads by unseating the recently-crowned New York State Welterweight champion Daniel Sostre on May 8 at the Plattduetsche Park Restaurant in Franklin Square, NY.
Rainone, 12-2 (4 knockouts), considers it to his advantage that the fight will take place in his neck of the woods where his loyal home crowd will be out in force to support their native son.
“We came close to fighting a few times in the last year or so but things didn’t quite pan out,” Rainone, 29, of Plainview, Long Island says. “They wanted to have the fight in Monticello but it made no sense since the fans wouldn’t be able to make the trip. We’ve waited a bit and now we’re fighting with something important on the line.”
Sostre, 8-3 (3 knockouts), is known as “The Hudson Valley Kid”. Hailing from Highland, NY, he is five years younger than the challenger. Sostre won the New York State title in a mild upset over Mike Ruiz this past January, earning a majority decision victory.
“I’ve seen him fight live twice,” says Rainone. “I think he’s a good, solid all-around fighter. He’s smart but doesn’t do anything great. He’s got good ring intelligence and is good defensively. I won’t be able to beat him throwing one punch at a time, I have to really work to get through to him.”
Just like every fight, Rainone will train at Westbury’s Winters Boxing Club with Jorge Gallardo. Rainone intends to bring in world class sparring, including number two world junior-middleweight contender Yuri Foreman of Brooklyn, as well as Sostre’s last opponent Mike Ruiz to help prepare for this challenge.
“Sparring with the class of fighters that I have been has given me a lot of confidence going into the fight. I’m going to be in the best shape of my life.
“Right now, the New York State Welterweight title means everything to me. This will be a good step in the right direction. With the amount of people who will be there supporting me, the public will have to take notice.”
The Plattduetsche Park Restaurant is located at 1132 Hempstead Turnpike in Franklin Square, Long Island, NY. The fight will headline a boxing event promoted by Ring Promotions.