10/28/2026
Gettin Gritty in the City 3 at the Lewiston Armory on October 24th definitely lived up to it’s name. There was excitement from the first bell to the last. It has been our dream to fill the seats in the Lewiston Armory for the youth in our community for a long time. Day in and Day out in the gym we see the kids and we learn about their lives, their struggles and their dreams. We watch as their dreams get bigger and their struggles get more manageable. They lean on each other, they check on each other and they create bonds that will never be broken. They make bonds built on loyalty, mutual respect and goals. They face adversity and feel the weights that this world lays on them, but they still show up and on October 24th, 2026 they shined. It was clear to see when watching this team cheer each other on and lift each other up, that this is way bigger than boxing. It’s about giving these kids an outlet and something to look forward to that is positive. They got to do what they love in front of the people that they love, and it’s an opportunity that many of them haven’t had.
We could not have done this without the support of this community. Lewiston Rocks Community Page has been a huge help to get the word out to everyone. It was a good turnout and all of us at Cugno Boxing can’t thank you enough for taking time out to support this program and these fighters. We could not do it without our generous sponsors who were highlighted at the show and on the back of our Fight night shirts. They deserve to be mentioned a million times over: Taboo Hair Salon, RDA Automotive, Mid-Maine Auto, Nora Metal Buildings, Austin’s Tool, Norton Concrete, Coastal Auto parts, Fitzgerald’s Custom Concrete and Hotham Boys Concrete.
We also could not do it without all of the support we received to set up, run and tear down the arena. The amount of work that goes into a show this size is significant, and we had some wonderful volunteers that worked tirelessly to make sure it went smoothly. We want to send one more giant thank you to our volunteers. Special shout outs to Kelsey Kirkwood and Jillian Berry for holding down the concessions. They were so busy and did an amazing job serving all of our guests. Todd, April Collins and Steve Kirkwood managed the security at the doors. Steve also put in many hours of sparring and work with all of these fighters. He can and will literally give anyone work, and we can’t thank him enough for that. We had Erin Young, Dan Young, Matthew Crockett and Jen Derosby doing the tickets sales, which thankfully was a very busy job 😊. Our merch table was run by Izzy Derosby, Catherine White and Craig Derosby. Thanks to Sharity Medrano and Sierra Frost for doing anything asked of them in a moments notice. Matt Collins for being the all around “catch all” for any tasks necessary, including interpreter services. Thanks to Shannon Day for taking videos for the fighters, everyone was excited to have these after the fight.
Our announcer, DJ and friend Chris Moser is just an all-around good guy. He is calm in the face of chaos and brings to life anything we ask of him. He is learning the boxing world and willing to do just about anything including dress up and take the center of the ring. He is amazing and we are so thankful that we have him.
It is important to us to recognize the coaches and fighters that came out and put on a great show for all of you. The amateur fights were top notch and there were so many crowd pleasers. The amount of discipline, dedication and perseverance that goes into being a boxer is incredible. You can’t do it halfway. It’s you out there in that ring and it takes guts and sometimes you don’t get the glory, and you have to find a way to dig deep to step forward anyway. The night built up beautifully to the two professional bouts. We want to congratulate Hunter Dickinson on his first professional win. He worked hard in the gym after long days at his full-time job. He did all of this while taking care of his young daughter and family. His opponent is the same type of hard working type of guy, that worked extremely hard to get ready for this fight. These men put on one heck of a show, and it was definitely a crowd-pleasing hard-hitting war.
Special thanks goes out to Brandon Berry. Although he was preparing for his 45th professional bout, he poured so much time and effort into helping this be a successful show. He was up late nights and early mornings making sure everything was getting done and adding special touches like individual fight posters and posts. His extra touches made it an exciting lead up to the fight, and he helped make this a positive memory for the athletes. They all look up to him, and he models humility and grace through the good times and the bad. He and Jillian have become family through the years, and we are so thankful to have them.
Thanks to Debbie and Dino Dennis for all the support throughout our lives, that allows us to keep doing what we love. Having them by our sides really means a lot and we hope we make you proud. Thanks to my daughter, Jaylenn Cugno, for getting her coaches license and being right by my side through it all. Getting to work corners with her has been something really special that I didn’t expect but really enjoy. It is amazing to get to watch her grow to love the sport.
We are always thankful to Scott Frost. He is my right hand and always dedicates his time to the fighters. He is an excellent coach to these kids in the ring and outside of the ring. Everyone loves him, and words don’t really do justice for how much we appreciate him. Al Huntington is also a huge support as our conditioning coach and hot sauce boss. We all work together to fill all the gaps in training to try to make these fighters well rounded.
Thanks to the officials of USA Boxing and the Maine State Combat Sports Authority.
There was so much support from so many, that it’s hard to get everyone. If we forgot you we are very sorry. It doesn’t mean we don’t appreciate you. We recognize that every person is important. Again, we are so thankful to put on a Boxing Event in the historic Lewiston Armory. We are Lewiston Strong and proud.
