Kip Diggs retiring from ring in special ceremony

Letterlough-Hall headlines July 18th ESPN2 show in Hyannis

30.05 - SANDWICH, Mass. – Cape Cod will officially retire one of its own, former IBO & NABF welterweight champion Kip “Top Kat” Diggs, in a special ceremony July 18 at “Battle Zone at the Tent” – headlined by a 10-round light heavyweight match between popular knockout artists Julian “Mr. KO” Letterlough (19-3-2, 18 KOs) and Richard “The Destroyer” Hall (25-4, 24 KOs) – at the Cape Cod Melody Tent in Hyannis (MA).

Hank Tuohy’s Old Colony Sports is promoting “The Battle Zone at the Tent,” live on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights, in association with Mohegan Sun, Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports, Inc. and Gary Shaw Productions, LLC.

Diggs (30-5, 22 KOs), of nearby Marstons Mills in Barnstable, fought four times in Hyannis, winning all but the last, in which, he lost a controversial fight (TKO5 due to a headbutt) four years ago to Jose Rivera.

“It’s going to be a great feeling,” the 36-year-old said about his retirement ceremony, “and has been a long time coming – four years! People have asked me if I was coming back, but that chapter is done. I have a trucking company (Top Kat Enterprises, Inc.) that’s doing well, a wife and three kids. I had to get boxing out of my blood and didn’t even go to a fight until a month ago. Nobody ever put me on my butt and I really only lost one fight.”

His friend, boxing promoter Tuohy, immediately included a public retirement party for Diggs as part of Hank’s inaugural promotion. “I wanted an opportunity to publicly thank Kip for all of the great entertainment he provided boxing fans in New England,” Tuohy explained, “as well as for all he’s given to his community on The Cape. He still plays hockey, works with Barnstable High football players, and has a business here. His retirement ceremony is part of our event/marketing promotion. We’ll give Kip, as they say, some lovely parting gifts. He’ll be available to sign autographs and pose for pictures.”

Diggs, of course, is a boxing icon on Cape Cod. “I never became a worldwide name,” he noted, “but boxing fans on The Cape and all over New England knew me. I was a (world-class) contender. But it’s time to move on and there are a lot of things for me to do. Boxing was awesome. I do think I can still contribute to boxing, someday maybe as a trainer, manager or matchmaker. I’d like to work with Hank on his promotions in the future.”

Event sponsors include Outback Steakhouse, Davidoff Cigars, Hooters of Hyannis, Robertson’s GMC Trucks, Dino’s Sports Bar of Mashpee, Enterprise Car Rental, Data Link/Nextal, Cigar Aficionado magazine, Amari’s Restaurant of Sandwich and Mari’s Sennott Today’s Real Estate.

A post-fight party will be open to the public at Hooters of Hyannis, as well as cigar smoking/wine tasting at Puff The Magic.

Ticket prices are $125.00 VIP (includes ringside seat and pre-fight cookout catered by Outback), $65.00 ringside and $35.00 general admission. Contact Ticketmaster (508.931.2787), the Cape Cod Melody Tent (508.775.9100) or Old Colony Sports (508.477.5355/www.oldcolonysports.com).

Doors open at 6 p.m. for the VIP party, 7 p.m. for the general public, with the first bout scheduled for 7:30 p.m. All bouts and fighters are subject to change.