PROVIDENCE -- RUNOVER LINE: SPINA, C6

Every young athlete, no matter what the sport, dreams of turning pro one day.

Very few actually do.

Providence's Joe Spina, 28, was one of the lucky ones who had enough skill and desire to accomplish the feat. The first time Spina laced up his boxing gloves, he knew he was going to be a professional boxer.

"I want to be the champion of the world," Spina said. "That has always been my dream."

He knew that becoming a professional boxer would mean years of personal sacrifice, getting up at 6 a.m. to go running. Training hours upon hours every day, pushing his body to the limit.

He has done that, and all of his hard work is paying off.

After stopping tough veteran and crowd favorite Jay Pina (16-2), 42, in the fourth round two weeks ago to retain his United States National Boxing Championship super middleweight title and win

the vacant International Boxing Federation International super middleweight belt at the Cape Cod Melody Tent, Spina, unbeaten in 20 pro fights (19-0-1, 14 KOs), moved up four notches and now is ranked 13th in the world by BoxRec.com.

"I felt great," Spina said about the fight. "Everything was on point. My jab, my hook, my body punches. I was as sharp as I've ever been. Everything worked out perfectly."

With each victory, Spina, ranked 16th by the World Boxing Council and sixth by the United States Boxing Organization, moves a step closer to accomplishing his ultimate goal -- fighting for a world title.

He believes it won't be long until he gets his shot.

"I'm taking little steps," Spina said. "You have to crawl before you walk. I've been crawling for a long time. Now I'm starting to walk. Jimmy Burchfield and Eddie Mustafa Muhammad are putting me in the right fights and are bringing me up the right way. A couple more steps and I'll get a world-title shot."

Spina is ready to take on all challengers.

"I'll fight whoever they put in front of me," Spina said.

He proved that on Oct. 15, 2005, at Foxwoods. That's when he was pitted against Jesse Brinkley (26-3, 17 KOs), a semifinalist on the first season of The Contender. Some people thought he was overmatched when he fought Brinkley, but Spina quieted his critics by scoring an 11th-round TKO despite having broken his hand three weeks before the fight.

"I just sucked it up and did what I had to do," Spina said. "My last fight I had a tooth infection and had to get emergency surgery a few days before the fight. I just had to make sure that my hands were up, but this is what I do. I'm a fighter."

On June 2, 2001, Spina made his pro debut at Rhodes-on-the-Pawtuxet after a brief and successful amateur career. He thrilled the crowd by knocking out Thomas Barker (2-7-1) in the first round.

He had two more fights before the year ended, scoring a first-round knockout against Ronek Ross (0-6) and a second-round KO against Damon Brooks (0-7) before finally meeting an opponent who went the distance with him -- Antonio Baker (1-4). But that didn't matter. Spina earned a unanimous decision over Baker at Foxwoods on April 4, 2002, before recording another first-round TKO against Ronek Ross (0-9).

Wanting to live up to his nickname, the "KO Kid" challenged Baker again on July 26, 2002, because he wanted to knock him out, but he had to settle for another four-round decision. Then, in his first fight at the Dunkin' Donuts Center, Spina knocked out William Bailey (1-3-1) in the first round.

After that fight, Spina and his camp decided that he was ready to take the next step and take on boxers who had winning records. On July 25, 2003, Spina met another up-and-coming fighter, Johnny Taylor (4-1), and earned a third-round TKO, his fifth knockout in seven fights.

Spina reeled off six more wins over the next year and a half, displaying dominating punching power that left 11 of his first 14 opponents knocked out. Early last year, Spina left the comfort of Providence for the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas to train with former light heavyweight champion Muhammad, who has since brought Spina's boxing skills to another level.

"He brought me from a C-minus fighter to an A-minus fighter," Spina said. "I'm learning so much every day. He is not just a great trainer, but a great motivator, too. It was hard at first, leaving my family and friends, but that's what I had to do to become a better fighter."

His decision was a difficult one. His father had a stroke and Spina was struggling with trying to become a better fighter while taking care of his dad, Joe Sr. The money he earned from boxing he used to hire nurses for his father.

Joe Sr. wasn't able to watch Spina post an eight-round unanimous decision against Manu Ntoh (15-9-1) at the City Wide Fieldhouse in New Haven, Conn., on April 1, 2005, but he was there to watch him win his first pro title -- the USNBC super middleweight crown, against former World Boxing Association and World Boxing Federation light middleweight champion Carl Daniels (49-6-1) via a unanimous decision on June 17, 2005.

Spina dedicated that win to his father and to his former trainer, Lorenzo Guglielmette, who died in May, one day after Spina had returned to Las Vegas to train for six weeks.

His boxing career has skyrocketed since winning the USNBC championship.

Spina successfully defended that title against Anwar Oshana (23-4, third-round knockout), Jose Spearman (24-9-3, majority decision) and Brinkley (26-3) before stopping Pina.

He is slowly becoming a household name across the country.

"For guys like Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather Jr. to come up to me and recognize me as a world-class boxer means a lot to me," Spina said. "That lets me know that I'm going in the right direction, and it pushes me to work harder. I'm the next big thing out of Providence. I've got two titles now. We are going after the WBA or NABA (North American Boxing Association) title next. By the end of the year, hopefully I'll crack the top five in the world rankings and sometime next year get a world-title shot, so keep your eyes open."

roblee@projo.com / (401) 277-7340