Haley’s Comet and a Bolt of Lightning

Barclays Center-New York- There were no real surprises last night. Gary Russell Jr. whom I call Haley’s Comet because he fights as often as IT appears. It sucks for the fans because Russell (29-1-17) is a very talented guy but picks his spots very carefully. He’s obviously not concerned with greatness or he wouldn’t be fighting Leo Santa Cruz’s leftovers. He claims he wants Leo but I don’t buy that shit. Leo’s not worried about Russell, for DAMN sure.  Kiko Martinez was Gary’s latest TBA. That used to be the ONLY people Gary fought. I guess he remembers what happened when he fought a guy with TWO fights and got the hell beaten outta’ him. That was Vasyl  Lomachenko (6/21/2014). I was there and that fight could’ve been stopped about the 9th round. Russell had more excuses than the number of times Sam Watson tries to find the cameras during a broadcast.

Martinez (39-8-2-28K) was just there to be beaten up, was a 50-1 ‘dog and played his part well. He may have won half a round before getting stopped in the fifth due to a cut over his left eye. What this win does for Haley’s Comet is a mystery to me. Hell, Hector Camacho Jr. won a comeback fight last night. They may have well had put his fight on tv. Camacho (59-7-1-33k) beat some guy with a slate of (9-6-5K). Russell says if he can’t get Leo he’ll move up and take on Gervontae Davis. I doubt THAT shit. He never calls out Lomachencko, I wonder why. If he fights Davis, it won’t be until around 2025.

In the main event, or rather the PAIN event, WBC heavyweight champ Deontay Wilder (40-0-1-39K) faced very LITTLE ‘trouble’ in Dominic Breazeale (20-1-18K). The loud mouth, threatening power  punching Wilder had promised to “kill” Dominic in the ring but the fight didn’t last long enough. I love it when a fighter gets to a major fight and decides to switch trainers, one with a ‘name’.  The ‘name’ Dominiic ran to was Virgil Hunter. Aside from Andre Ward, I don’t  know what the HELL Hunter’s done in tha’ game. Anyway, he sure didn’t get a chance to whisper his infinite wisdom in Breazeale’s ear OR stop him from getting hit in the nuts. After a few range finding stiff left jabs, the champ sensed that there wasn’t much ‘trouble’ on the horizon. He soon located Breazeale’s exposed jaw with that lightning bolt of a right hand and it was the ‘’the dog’s dick’ at 2:17 of the opening round. Wilder has a unique record, aside from the first Bermane Stiverene fight, he’s dropped EVERY opponent he’s faced. Who ELSE in tha’ game can make that claim? Breazeale said afterwards, the ref stopped it too soon”. This ‘fight’ should’ve been stopped at the contract signing. That right-hand should be banned. Hardly anybody survives it. Fury got dropped and ‘played dead’ before getting to his feet. Breazeale didn’t have that luxury, his ass was out. He can thank ref, Harvey Dock from allowing the champ to keep his pre-fight promise.

By: Boxing Don

, you ROCK

 

5/11/2019- Fairfax, Va.- I was rooting for my Philly Boi, Julian ( J-Rock) Williams (26-1-1-16K) to beat the WBA / IBF Jr. Middleweight boss Jarrett (Swift) Hurd but wasn’t sure enough to bet on him. I just felt his best shot was in the first 5-6 rounds and after that, the bigger, stronger champion would roll over the talented Philly boxer-puncher. Man, I’ve never been so happy being wrong about something. I was watching this thrilling back and forth bout with my Jr. lightweight boxer, Davonte ( D-MAC) McCowen. This war got my boi super fired up and raring to get back in the gym to resume training.

This firefight started out cookin’ right from the start. The bigger undefeated champion Hurd was on the attack but Williams and his team led by  his underated trainer, Breadman  Edwards. I was in my hometown of Philly a couple of years ago and interviewed Williams and his trainer. This was about a week before he fought Jermall  Charlo a in his first title attempt and was brutally dropped and stopped in 5 rounds. Written off by many after his first loss, Williams and Edwards were determined to NOT let that loss define them. Boxing smart and sharp, the smooth punching Williams was much too quick and accurate for the plodding, easy to hit, Hurd. In an exchange along the ropes in the second round, Williams dropped Hurd  with a left hook to the temple. It was a perfect  shot, dropping Hurd for the first time in his career.

Not badly hurt, the champ was buzzed and finished the round which was nearly over, anyway. But the script was pretty much written at this point. The sharp shooting Williams constantly beat Hurd to the ‘git off’ and landed the cleaner, more telling shots, maybe even the HARDER shots. This war took place near Hurd’s hometown and Williams knew he had to eliminate the crowd from the equation as they rooted for everything their homie did. This wasn’t a rout though and the burly champ landed some serious shit on the man from Philly but never hurt him badly or overpowered him, which was what I expected. There were many serious exchanges throughout and the only  real lulls came when Hurd’s tape on his gloves came loose about three times, even when Williams was landing shots.

After seeing some weird calls recently in fights, I was hoping the roaring crowd wouldn’t influence the judges. After all, there was already ONE decision overturned on the night, plus the announcers were tring their BEST to make us think Hurd was winning the battle. This time though, the scorers got it right when the cards were read, 115-112 (twice) and 116-111 and THEN those three words, AND THE NEW. The dedicated Williams and Breadman were completely overcome with joy as tears flowed. It was a joy to see and Hurd was a PRO in defeat, saying “he was the better man, tonight) This, my friends was a display of CLASS, all around. all around. And my hometown, a boxing  Mecca, has a new, classy champion. What a breath of fresh air for this writer’s favorite sport.  J, YOU ROCK, baby.

 

By: John Pinto “SHOWBOX*The New Generation*” Omega Products Events Center Corona, California

Thompson Boxing Promotions and Banner Promotions presented a total of 7 boxing matches, three of which were carried live on Showtime, as part of their regular SHOWBOX*The New Generation* on May 10, at the Omega Products Events Center. A near “full-house” of lively and boisterous fans were on hand to enjoy all of the action.

he Ontario Doubletree Hotel.

The show opened with a scheduled 8 Round contest in the Super Lightweight Division between 2 “ring veterans”, Petr “El Zar” Petrov (137 lbs., Madrid, Spain, 39-6-2, 19 KOs) and Ruben “Kanelito” Tamayo (135.7 lbs., Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, 27-12-4, 18 KOs). The two combatants went right to work from the opening bell with a lot of “leather” flying, though Petrov appeared to get the best of it. This pace continued into the 2nd Round, however Petrov continued his domination. Just past the halfway point in the round, a left to the body of Tamayo made him take a seat on the canvas. Just before the 10 second warning for the end of the round, Tamayo took another trip to the canvas, and took yet another trip to the canvas, just before the bell ending the round sounded. At this point, Referee, Tom Taylor had seen enough, and called a halt to the contest at 2:59 of the round. Petrov won by KO.

A 4 Round Super Flyweight Battle followed between Steven “Canelo” Acosta (113.9 lbs., Dallas, Texas, Pro Debut) and Jose Emmanuel “Kobe” Lopez (115 lbs., Ensenada, Mexico, o-3-1). These two went right to work from the opening bell, though as the round progressed, Acosta appeared to be landing the better shots, in spite of a very game effort by Lopez. Acosta unleashed a wicked body attacked in Round 2 that appeared to this writer to be “target-practice” for this fighter. In the 3rd Round, the pace slowed somewhat, but Acosta still continued to land the better shots, yet there was no “quit” in Lopez. Lopez finally came to life in Round 4, but it was too late. All 3 judges scored the contest the same, 39-37, in favor of Acosta, giving Acosta a Victory by Unanimous Decision in his debut.

Next on the card were the three bouts that were televised live on Showtime, as part of SHOWBOX*The New Generation*. The first of the three televised bouts was a scheduled 10 Round Battle for the vacant WBO Latino Bantamweight Championship between Saul “The Beast” Sanchez (118 lbs., Pacoima, California, 11-0, 6KOs) and Brandon “El Leoncito” Benitez (117 lbs., Queretaro, Mexico, 14-1, 6 KOs). The momentum of the fight went back-and- forth between the two fighters in Rounds 1 & 2. Both started at a fast pace with very little feeling out taking place. Round 3 was a continuation of the first two rounds and the first half of Round 4, as well, but Sanchez exploded upon Benitez in the last 45 seconds, leaving Benitez a bit bewildered. The pace of the fight slowed some in the fifth round. Both landed some punches, but not as many as in the first four rounds. In Round 6, it was much the same story, though Sanchez did unleash a flurry right before the bell rang to end the round. In Round 7, it became a toe-to-toe battle with both having their moments, though it appeared to this writer that Benitez was more the “worse for wear”. Eighteen seconds into Round 8, Sanchez landed a right hand to the side of Benitez’s head, which made his legs buckle slightly. Referee Raul Caiz, Jr. had seen enough and called a halt to the contest. Sanchez won the Championship belt by a Knockout.

The second bout of the 3 that were to be shown on Showtime was a scheduled 8 Round Super Lightweight contest between Michael “The West Texas Warrior” Dutchover (138 lbs., Midland, Texas, 12-0, 9 KOs) and Rosekie “Little Giant” Cristobal (137.8 lbs., The Philippines, 15-3, 11 KOs). Even though Cristobal took the fight with only Three days notice, from the opening bell he showed no fear or intimidation from Dutchover, a powerful KO artist, as his record indicates. The two went right at each other from the opening bell. Dutchover utilized a body attack from when the bell rang to start contest, and at 1:46 of the opening round, a left to the body spelled the end. Victory 13 for Dutchover came by a Knockout.

The third and final bout of the 3 Showtime bouts, the Main Event of the evening, was a 10 Round WBO International Featherweight Championship. It featured the current WBO International Featherweight Champion, Luis Alberto “Venado” Lopez (125.4 lbs., Mexicali, Mexico, 17-1, 8 KOs) against Ruben “RV4” Villa (125.1 lbs., Salinas, California, 15-0, 5 KOs). After a brief feeling out process, the two began to let the gloves fly. It became apparent almost immediately, that Lopez had a very awkward style, while Villa chose to remain in the center of the ring, and pivot on one foot at a time. In the second round, Lopez continued his awkward style and he had his moments, but Villa continued his style as well, and as a result he landed the better punches. This was the story of the third round as well, but in the fourth round, Villa Opened it up a bit, taking a more aggressive attack upon Lopez. Both continued their respective styles in Round 5, and the result was that while Lopez threw far more punches than Villa, more of Villa’s landed. Rounds 6 & 7 were more of the same, Lopez throwing countless wild punches that did not land, while Villa landed about everything he threw, and he even trapped Lopez on the ropes for a brief moment at the end of Round 7. Lopez continued his wild, awkward style in Round 8, and result was the same, Villa landed more punches. Lopez settled down somewhat in the 9th, and actually landed some decent shots, but Villa still did enough to take the round. In the 10th, the desperation of Lopez was obvious. The Judges scored the bout, 97-93, 98-92, and 96-94, all in favor of Villa, the Winner and New IBO International Featherweight Champion by a Unanimous Decision. This concluded the Showtime segment of the evening, but two more “Off-TV” bouts followed.

The first “Off-TV” bout that followed the Showtime part of the night, was a scheduled 6 Round Welterweight contest between Angel “Relampago” Ruiz (143 lbs., Los Angeles, California, 4-0, 10 KOs) and Luis Gerardo Avila (142.1 lbs., Mexicali, Mexico, 8-17-3, 5 KOs). The opening round was more of a feeling out process, though both landed a couple good shots. As the second round opened, Ruiz landed a left to the body of Avila, and the fight was over. The end came at :26 of the 2nd round. Ruiz was the Winner by KO.

The final bout of the evening was 6 Round Super Lightweight contest between George “El Yuyu” Acosta (135.6 lbs., South Whittier, California, 7-0, 1 KO) and Ruben “Ace” Torres (135.8 lbs., South Central Los Angeles, California, 8-0, 7 KOs). Though they started at a somewhat slower pace than some of the earlier fights, both landed good shots in the opening, and it became readily apparent from the opening bell, that both had brought a loud cheering section. Round 2 was pretty much like the opening round except that the pace got faster at the end of the round. The third round was pretty much like the 2nd round. In Rounds 4 & 5, the momentum went back and forth between the two contestants. In the 6th round, Torres had a couple of moments, but otherwise, the 6th round was a carbon copy of the previous rounds. In this writer’s opinion, it was an exciting closing bout. All three judges scored the contest 59-55 in favor of Ruben Torres, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

And the May 2019 Co-promotion of Thompson Boxing Promotions and Banner Promotions came to an end. Thompson Boxing Promotions next show will be on June 14, at t

By: Boxing Don D-MAC’S DEBUT AT THE DOUBLETREE

D-MAC’S DEBUT AT THE DOUBLETREE

4/19/2019-Having been a boxing coach for MANY years I’d stepped away for a minute and told myself it was gonna’ take a special person to get me back in the gym.  Last night at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontariio, Ca. on my long time friend Kenny Thompson’s  LOCK ‘N LOADED SHOW, I think I found him. Turns out he was there all the time. I’d been training Davonte (D-MAC) McCowen  off and on for about six years. Since we’ve renewed our ties, he seems to be not just a new fighter  but more importantly, a new man.

After a brief and I do mean brief, amateur career,  we decided it was time to get paid to punch people. His amateur career consisted of a mere five ( that’s right) bouts and he won only one. One would say I’d lost my remaining marbles for doing this. But I’d seen a serious drive and dedication in this ‘new’ Davonte and liked what I saw. He works hard at the AV Boxing gym in Palmdale (owned by the Jack of all trades, Hervi Estrada) and handles his business away from the gym. I have always felt that what you do away from the gym is in some ways more important than what you do IN the gym.

It was a bit of a struggle finding a debut opponent at first but we settled on one, a Chris Crawle, fighting out of the TKO Boxing club in Santa Ana. Now there are debuts and there are debuts. Crawley turned out to be one of those strong, tough Irish guys that don’t seem to give a shit about too much of ANYTHING. People often ask “hey coach is your boy gonna’ do well tonight” and I always say, “I know what he can do and what he should do but I won’t know what he’s gonna’ do until he does it”. I knew this was a bit of a gamble because Mr. Badass Crawley had thirty  five amateur fights and was accustomed to fighting with no head gear. He was 25 years of age, as is my guy. In the weeks leading up to the fight, D-MAC was calmer than I’d ever seen him, calm and collected and unconcerned about the task at hand. He asked me, “you worried coach”? I jokingly said, “I’m worried because you’re NOT.

In the dressing room he was still as calm as can be,  shadow boxing in his fluid style, slick and sharp. He also happens to be a hard puncher so I knew this wasn’t gonna’ be your ‘garden variety’ debut. The main eventer,  Eric Ituarte was also from the TKO gym and I had word that Thompson was interested in our opponent. So, we had an ‘us v. the world’ attitude going in. I told D-MAC “ I want you to land the first punch AND the last”. If the fans were expecting a sloppy, feel ‘em out opening round between these two debaters, they were pleasantly in error. Shit got started right away. These two acted like they owed each other money.  My boy started with the jab and was boxing smoothly and picking his spots. Chris was looking to get this ‘novice’ up outta’ here early. He launched an assault and we met it head on and the crowd was already involved. Back and forth it went. Chris would start an attack and when he stopped, D-MAC  would land hard shots, earning his props. Each ‘newbie’ landed their share of hard shots and this was a REAL throw down. The action was ebb and flow and going into the last round, it was ‘anybody’s scrap’ Crawley got off first, forcing my boy to the ropes but was hit with counter shots on the way in. At the 10 seconds left, clapper, the crowd was on its feet and I think, rooting on both warriors. Keeping to our plan,  a second before the final bell, McCowen landed a hard left hook causing Crawley to pause just for a second, signaling a great finish to a war rarely seen in newbies.

The crowd was wet with anticipation, KNOWING this could go either way and I admit, I was concerned, as they carried Chris around the ring. Then, came the call, 39-37 for Crawley and then, 38-38, a draw. Nobody seemed disappointed as this was an EVEN fight. I would love to know what went through Chris’ mind, getting THIS much grief from a guy with FIVE amateur fights. Afterwards,  we were approached by LOTS of fans saying we won the fight. Even later at Denny’s restaurant, we were approached by people saying the same thing. All in all, I was extremely  proud of my boy’s performance, he was NOT here to lose this fight. A rematch you say? Not anytime soon, as D-MAC  feels better at 130 and this fight was 135 lbs. In fact, he weighed in at 131lbs. He’s 5’10” has long arms, boxes well and punches hard so I’m looking for great things from McCowen. Veteran ringside writer  Francisco Salazar wrote that this was the ‘fight of the night’. Imagine that and he wasn’t alone in his comment. A  job well done by BOTH guys. My guy’s already asking “when can I fight again, coach”? Music  to my ears.

By: John Pinto “Locked and Loaded” Ontario Doubletree Hotel Ontario, California

Photos by; John Pinto

Thompson Boxing Promotions hosted their April installment of Professional Boxing at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel on April 19. Billed as “Locked and Loaded”, a total of 5 bouts of differing weight classes, that varied in their intensity, were presented to those in attendance. An almost “full-house” of lively boisterous fans were on hand to enjoy all of the action.

The opening bout of the evening featured the “Pro Debut” of two contestants in the Lightweight Division, Chris “The Irish Mexican” Crowley (134.7 lbs., Brighton, England, Pro Debut) and Davonte “D-Mac” McCowen (131.1 lbs., Lancaster, California, Pro Debut). Young McCowen is trained by WestCoastBoxing.com’s owner and Editor, “Boxing Don” Dinkins. It was a “feeling-out” process at the beginning of the opening round, but this soon changed. Crowley soon unleashed a wicked body attack upon McCowen, and in this writer’s opinion, took the opening round. But McCowen was not yet finished. In the second, he made quite a comeback, and in the opinion of this writer, won the round, thus evening the score to this point. The remaining two rounds became a non-stop, toe -to-toe battle to the end, with both fighters having their moments. While one of the judges had the bout scored 39-37, the other two scored the bout 38-38, the result being a Majority Draw, but a very exciting opening bout, nonetheless.

Next on the program was a scheduled 4 Round contest in the Heavyweight Division, between Thomas “The Conqueror” Hawkins (253.6 lbs., Houston, Texas, 4-3, 1 KO) and Oscar Torrez (214.4 lbs., Rialto, California, 4-0, 1 KO). As usually happens with heavyweights, this contest started at a slower pace than the opening contest. The better shots were definitely landed by Torrez in the opening round. While Hawkins had his moments in the second round, Torrez continued to dominate the action. In spite of a game effort by Hawkins, Torrez continued to dominate the action in the third round, landing some “bombs”. Torrez had Hawkins reeling in the fourth round, from a flurry of punches, and at 1:20 of the round, Referee Tony Crebs had seen enough and called a halt to the contest. Torrez won by a KO.

A 4 Round Welterweight battle followed between Daniel Perales (146.9 lbs., Monterrey, Mexico, 10-16, 5 KOs) and Luis Lopez (145.3 lbs., Corona, California, 5-0, 3 KOs). The two combatants went right to work in he first round, but Luis Lopez got the best of the exchanges. Perales came out swinging in the second round, but the better shots were definitely landed by Lopez. Though Perales continued his game effort in the third round, Luis Lopez continued his domination of the fight, and continued it into the fourth and final round. All three judges scored the contest 40-36, in favor of Luis Lopez, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

The 4th fight of the evening was a 4 Round Super Middleweight battle between Sergio “Phoenix” Ramirez (163.3 lbs., Tijuana, Mexico, 6-5, 6 KOs) and Richard “Cool Breeze” Brewart (156.7 lbs., Rancho Cucamonga, California, 4-0, 2 KOs). Brewart dominated the action from the opening bell in Round 1. Though he slowed his pace down in the second round, Brewart continued to dominate contest. In the third round, Brewart unleashed a vicious body attack upon Ramirez, and continued to dominate in the fourth and final round. It was no surprise that all three judges scored the contest 40-36, in favor of Brewart, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

Before the Main Event of the evening commenced, two special introductions took place. The first was of Jose Sanchez, who was scheduled to fight on this evening’s card but had to “pull-out” of the contest due to an injury, and the second was actually a “Final 10 Count” for the late Dr. Joe Noriega, a Thompson Boxing “Regular” for many years, who had recently passed away. Dr. Noriega’s tribute was followed by the singing of the National Anthem, by Amanda Reeves.

It was time for the Main Event of the evening, a 10 Round Featherweight contest between Jose “Hollywood” Estrella (125.7 lbs., Tijuana, Mexico, 20-15-1, 14 KOs), and local favorite, Erick “All American Boy” Ituarte (125.3 lbs., Santa Ana, California, 20-1-1, 3 KOs). The fight began with a feeling-out process in round one. They stepped up the pace in round 2, but neither clearly dominated, in this writer’s opinion. The pace got busier in Round 3, but still neither appeared to dominate. Ituarte unleashed a wicked body attack in the fourth round, but Estrella did not “give any ground”, and it continued to be a “back-and-forth” contest. Round 5 was a duplicate of Round 4. Though the sixth round started somewhat slower, the pace soon quickened and became a toe-to-battle as the previous rounds. The contest remained this way through round nine, though it appeared that Estrella was hit with a low blow at the end of Round 7, but he was able to continue. By Round 9, Estrella appeared to have won over some of the crowd, and it appeared to this writer, that he had won some of the later rounds of the contest. After the customary, touching of the gloves to begin the tenth round, Ituarte “got on the bicycle” for most of the round. It was a battle to the end, and Estrella was really forcing the action. The judges scored the contest 98-92, 100-89, and 100-89, all in favor of Ituarte, declared the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

And the April 2019 Installment of Thompson Boxing Promotions came to an end. Their next show will be on May 10, at their Corona location.

 

By: John Pinto – “New Blood” Ontario Doubletree Hotel Ontario, California

Thompson Boxing Promotions hosted their first monthly installment of Professional Boxing, for the 2019 season, at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel, on February 8. Billed as “New Blood”, a total of 5 bouts of differing weight classes, were presented, that varied in their intensity, to a nearly full house, that included some very lively boisterous fight fans. The show also featured the “return” of well-known Boxing writer and Commentator, Doug Fischer, to the live stream of the boxing action on the Thompson Boxing Facebook production. All who attended were in store for a “Knockout” night of boxing.

The show opened with a scheduled 4 Round Junior Middleweight contest between Leo Ruiz (151.6 lbs., San Bernardino, CA, 3-0, 1 KO) and Adan “Cangrejo” Ahumada (154.4 lbs., Matamoros, Mexico, 3-6-2, 2 KOs). From the opening bell, it was target practice for Ruiz, and this continued to the end of Round 1, despite a game effort by Ahumada. Every punch that Ruiz threw, landed with authority. This continued until :49 of the second round, when the Referee, Raul Caiz, Jr. had seen enough, and called a halt to the contest. Ruiz won by KO, improving his record to 4-0.

Next on the program was another scheduled 4 Round Junior Middleweight battle between Richard “Cool Breeze” Brewart, Jr. (151.7 lbs., Rancho Cucamonga, CA, 3-0, 1 KO) and Abel “Dinamita” Reyes (151 lbs., Reynosa, Mexico, 4-2, 4 KOs). From the opening bell of Round 1, it was all Brewart. Reyes gave a game effort, but he was dominated by Brewart. During the round, Reyes claimed to have been hit illegally, went to his knees, and took a 8 count, but was able to continue until the end of the round. The two combatants picked up where they left off as Round 2 opened, and Reyes even rallied for a brief moment, but at 1:28 of the round, a crushing right hand from Brewart put Reyes to the canvas for the count. Brewart won by KO, keeping his undefeated record intact.

Next on the card was a 4 Round Lightweight contest between George “Yuyu” Acosta (134.2 lbs., South Whittier, CA, 6-0, 1 KO) and Guadalupe “Beach Boy” Arroyo (136.1 lbs., Huntington Beach, CA, 3-14). The 1st Round of this contest was open season for Acosta, as he hit Arroyo, at will. At about the 2:00 mark, Arroyo was warned for turning his back (after committing this offence for the third time). Arroyo gave a better effort in Round 2, but Acosta continued his domination, and he continued to dominate in the 3rd Round. By the 4th Round, in this writer’s opinion, the Referee could have stopped at any point in the round. To no one’s surprise, all three Judges scored the bout 40-36, in favor of Acosta, the winner by a Unanimous Decision.

It was time for the Co-Main Event of the evening, which was a scheduled 4 Round Junior Welterweight battle between “Ace” Ruben Torres (136.8 lbs., South Central LA, CA, 7-0, 6 KOs) and Elliot Brown (137.7 lbs., Erie, PA, 2-6, 2 KOs). Brown put forth a good effort from the opening bell, but Torres dominated the action, definitely landing the better shots. Torrez continued to dominate in the second round as well, in spite of the good effort by Brown. Between the 2nd & 3rd rounds, the Referee called a halt to the contest, as Brown was unable to continue. Torres was the winner by TKO.

It was time for the Main Event of the evening. Scheduled for 8 Rounds was a Super Bantamweight battle between Mario “El Gallito” Hernandez (118.3 lbs., Santa Ana, CA, 8-0-1, 3 KOs) and Luis “Siete Barrios” Saavedra (118.9 lbs., San Luis Potosi, Mexico, 7-6, 3 KOs). In the opening round, Hernandez took a trip to the canvas, the Referee called it a knockdown, so it most likely cost him the 1st round. Both had their moments in the 2nd Round, making that a hard round to score. Early in the 3rd Round, Hernandez’ legs looked a bit shaky due to a hard shot, but he recovered, as the round progressed, and the contest became a “toe-to-toe” battle for the remainder of the 3rd Round, and also the 4th & 5th Rounds. The pace of the fight slowed somewhat in the 6th Round. In the 7th Round, it had become a seesaw battle, with each fighter having their moments. By Round 8, the wear began to show on both contestants, but it was still a fight to the finish. The Judges scores were 79-72, 78-73, and78-73, all in favor of Saavedra, the winner by a Unanimous Decision

And one more evening of exciting boxing action came to a conclusion.

The next Thompson show at the Ontario Doubletree will be on April 19.

By John Pinto – “Locked and Loaded” Ontario Doubletree Hotel Ontario, California

Thompson Boxing Promotions hosted their final installment of Professional Boxing for 2018 at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel on November 16. Billed as “Locked and Loaded”, a total of 6 bouts of differing weight classes, that varied in their intensity, were presented to those in attendance. A near “full-house” of lively boisterous fans were on hand to enjoy all of the action.

The first fight on the program was a four round Super Featherweight contest between Arnold “The Hawaiian Pitbull” Dinong (127.5 lbs., Ewa Beach, Hawaii, 2-0, 1 KO) and Alex “Girito” Solorio (127.5 lbs., San Quintin, Mexico, 4-4, 1 KO). Dinong dominated all four rounds, in spite of a game effort by Solorio. He landed by far the more effective punches, through the first two rounds, as Solorio seemed content to land one punch at a time, while Dinong landed punches in rapid flurries. In the third round, Solorio sort of came to life, and landed a few combinations, but Dinong continued his domination. This continued into the fourth and final round, and both released flurries at the conclusion of the contest, to the delight of the crowd. All 3 judges scored the fight, 40-36, in favor of Dinong, the winner by a Unanimous Decision.

A 6 Round Bantamweight contest between Mario “El Gallito” Hernandez (118.7 lbs., Santa Ana, California, 7-0-1, 3 Kos) and Luis “Cañitas” Montellano (118.6 lbs., Tijuana, Mexico, 0-3-2) was next. Round 1 started very slow, with Montellano forcing the action the first 2 minutes, and Hernandez dominated the last minute of the round. The pace of the fight picked up in the second and third rounds, and Hernandez dominated both. The pace slowed somewhat in the fourth round, and despite a game effort from Montellano, Hernandez continued his domination. In the fifth round it became a “toe-to-toe” battle from beginning to end, with a very good effort by both fighters. The pace slowed a bit in the sixth, but it picked up a little as the round progressed. All three judges scored the bout 59-55, in favor of Hernandez, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

Next on the program was a 4 Round Junior Middleweight battle between Leo Ruiz (152.6 lbs., San Bernardino, California, 2-0, 1 KO) and Nam Phan (155 lbs., Garden Grove, California, 3-7-1). From the opening bell of this contest, it was a case of Ruiz landing by far the better punches, while Phan threw wild punches, sometimes with an open glove, a slap, if you will. Phan must be credited for a game effort, but from start to finish of the bout, Ruiz dominated. The judges scored the contest 40-35, 40-36, and 40-36, all in favor of Ruiz, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision.

Another 4 Round Junior Middleweight battle followed. Matched against each other were Richard “Cool Breeze” Brewart (153.1 lbs., Rancho Cucamonga, California, 2-0, 1 KO) and Antonio Luis “The Dangerous” Hernandez (155 lbs., Kansas City, Missouri, 1-5). These two went right at each other from the opening bell. Both threw a lot of punches, but Brewart landed the better shots. This was the story for the second round as well. It became a toe-to-toe battle in the third round, as both fighters had their moments, but Brewart continued to dominate. The battle continued in the fourth round, and in this writer’s opinion, Hernandez won this round. The judges scored the contest 39-37, 40-36, and 40-36, in favor of Richard Brewart, the winner by a Unanimous Decision.

A scheduled 6 Round Junior Welterweight contest between Pedro “El Gallito” Moreno (139.5 lbs., Sacramento, California, 9-0, 5 KOs) and Erik “Monkey” Aguirre (136.1 lbs., Tijuana, Mexico, 6-9-1, 4 KOs) followed. Round 1 of this contest was mostly a “feeling out” round, yet, each had their moments. Moreno went on the attack from the opening bell in round 2, chasing Aguirre all over the ring. About one minute into the round, he bounced Aguirre of the ropes. A couple of seconds later, the Referee had seen enough, and called a halt to the contest at 1:13 of the 2nd Round. Moreno won by a KO.

It was time for the Main Event of the evening, a scheduled 8 Round battle between Michael “The West Texas Warrior” Dutchover (134 lbs., Midland, Texas, 11-0, 8 KOs) and Ruben “Kanelito” Tamayo (134 lbs., Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, 25-11-4). Both fighters started slow in the opening round though Dutchover got the better of it. Tamayo gave a game effort in the next round, but Dutchover let loose a vicious body attack that would continue through the end of the bout. In the 3rd Round, Tamayo’s game effort continued, but about one minute into the round, a wicked body shot from Dutchover, sent Tamayo to his knees. From this point, it was only a matter of time. Dutchover continued his body attack, and at about the 2:10 mark, he sent Tamayo to his knees for the second time in the round, and the Referee called a halt to the contest at 2:15. Dutchover had another victory by KO.

And Thompson Boxing Promotion’s “Grand Finale” of 2018 came to an end. Their 2019 season will begin in this coming February.

 

 

By: John Pinto – “Path to Glory” Ontario Doubletree Hotel Ontario, California

Thompson Boxing Promotions hosted their latest monthly installment of Professional Boxing at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel on October 19. Billed as “Path to Glory”, a total of 5 bouts of differing weight classes, which varied in their intensity, were presented to a less than full house, yet still very lively boisterous fight fans. Thompson Boxing’s “up and coming” star, Danny “The Baby Faced Assassin”, was on hand to autograph photos, and later, during the show, work as a commentator on Thompson’s livestream broadcast.

The show opened with a scheduled 6 Round contest between two veteran Lightweight combatants, Rafael “Big Bang” Rivera (128.8 lbs., Tijuana, Mexico, 25-2-2, 16 KOs) and Jose “Pelon” Ramos (132.4 lbs., Guanajuato, Mexico, 11-14-1, 8 KOs). The very beginning of the bout was a “feeling out” process for both fighters, but about 1 minute into the contest, “Big Bang” Rivera unloaded Ramos’ body and head. The Referee, Ray Corona, gave Ramos an 8 count about 40 seconds later, but at the 1:51 mark had seen enough, and called a halt to the contest, in favor of “Big Bang” Rivera, who won by a KO.

Next on the card was a 4 Round Junior Middleweight contest between Anthony “The Future” Franco (154.2 lbs., Redlands, California, 2-1-1) and “The Dangerous” Antonio Louis Hernandez (153.3 lbs., Kansas City, Kansas, 1-3). In this contest, both fighters exploded upon each other from the opening bell. By the end of the opening round, however, in this writer’s opinion, Hernandez was in control. As the 2nd round began, Hernandez continued to dominate, but as the round progressed, both fighters landed some good shots, in what would prove to be a very tough round to score. Round 3 began as a continuation of Round 2, but about halfway through the round, a left hook from Franco sent an “off balance” Hernandez to the canvas. For the remainder of the round, Hernandez adopted a “back-pedal” strategy. By Round 4, the contest had become a “seesaw” battle, as each contestant had their respective moments, and both began to show the wear. Throughout the contest, in this writer’s opinion, Hernandez did too much clowning. Three judges scored this contest 40-35, 39-36, and 38-37, respectively, in favor of Anthony Franco, the winner by a Unanimous Decision.

A 4 Round Heavyweight contest between Oscar Torrez (207.1 lbs., Rialto, California, 2-0, 1 KO) and Richard Soto (257.2 lbs., Dinuba, California, Pro Debut) followed. The first round of this contest was mostly a “feeling-out” process. Both combatants landed some good shots. The next round was punctuated by a lot of wrestling and holding, a tactic more peculiar to the heavier weight classes, and also a slower pace. This continued into the 3rd round as well. Round 4 would prove to be the most exciting round of the fight. Around the 1:10 mark, a series of blows sent Soto to the canvas, in a sitting-down position. The 3 judges scored the contest 39-36, 40-35, and 39-36, in favor of Torrez, the winner by a Unanimous Decision.

Next on the program was another 4 Round Junior Middleweight contest between Loui Lopez (152.9 lbs., Corona, California, 4-0, 3 KOs) and “Sugar” Ray Cervera (154.7 lbs., Bakersfield, California, 0-1). In the 1st Round it was Lopez who forced the action, in spite of a game but not a very effective effort by Cervera. Lopez landed far better punches than Cervera. The 2nd Round was all Lopez. He landed some wicked shots throughout the round. Cervera began to hold quite a lot in the 3rd Round. The punches Cervera through were not effective at all. Lopez, by this time, was “pitching a shutout”. In the final round, Cervera made a game, but not very effective effort.  The three judge’s scores told the story. All three scored the contest 40-36, in favor of Lopez, the Winner by a Unanimous Decision. Loui Lopez made a special presentation to his grandfather, after the result was announced, for his continued battle against cancer, which touched this writer.

It was time for the Main Event of the evening. The contest would be an 8 Round Bantamweight contest between Saul “The Beast” Sanchez (117.8 lbs, Pacoima, California, 10-0, 6 KOs) and Fernando “7 Barrios” Saver (118 lbs, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, 7-5, 3 KOs). These two gladiators went at each other from the opening bell for Round 1. It was a very active round. The momentum was with Sanchez for the first half of the round, and with Saavedra for the last half of the round. By Round 2, it had become a seesaw battle with the action and momentum going back and forth between the two. Each fighter had their respective moments. As Round 3 began, the two fighters picked up where they left off from Round 2, and they battled to the end of the round. Round 4 was no different. The action continued to be nonstop. The pace slowed somewhat in Round 5 but both fighters continued to land blows. The pace continued to be a bit slower in Round 6, but the toe-to-toe contest continued, nonetheless. Saavedra’s mouthpiece came out about halfway through the round. Because of the torrid pace of the earlier rounds, the action slowed somewhat in Round 7. Both let everything go in the final round, battling to the end. Judges Fernando Villareal and Krysti Rosario scored the contest 77-75, while Judge Ed Hernandez scored it 76-76. The Winner by a Majority Decision was Saul Sanchez.

One more evening of exciting boxing action came to a conclusion.

Thompson Boxing Promotions’ final show of 2018 will be on November 16.

By John Pinto : “New Blood” Ontario Doubletree Hotel Ontario, California

Thompson Boxing Promotions hosted their latest installment of Professional Boxing at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel on September 21. Billed as “New Blood”, a total of 5 bouts of differing weight classes, that varied in their intensity, were presented to a near full house of very lively boisterous fight fans.

The show opened with a 4-round contest in the Welterweight division. Matched against each other were David Ortiz III (140 lbs., Bloomington, California, making his professional debut), and Mario “El Lion” Angeles (145 ¾ lbs., San Diego, California, 2-10-2). A good part of the “lively boisterous” crowd mentioned in the previous paragraph appeared to be in attendance to cheer for Ortiz. Though Angeles gave a very game effort, Ortiz dominated the contest throughout with a wicked body attack. Angeles had a few brief spells of activity, but the fight was all Ortiz, and all three judges scored the bout 40-36, in favor of David Ortiz III, the winner of his pro debut by a Unanimous Decision.

Next on the card was a scheduled 4-round Junior Middleweight contest between Richard “Cool Breeze” Brewart, Jr. (152 ¾ lbs., Rancho Cucamonga, California, 1-0), and Edward “Eddie” Aceves (152 ¾ lbs., Houston, Texas, 0-4). From the opening bell, Brewart unleashed an onslaught of punches upon Aceves that did not stop. Aceves took a trip to the canvas at the end of round 1. Only the bell saved Aceves from getting knocked out. However, in the 2nd round, Brewart continued has onslaught, and at 1:32 of the round, Referee Edward Hernandez, Sr. had seen enough, and called a halt to the action. Brewart had won his second pro fight by a Knockout.

A scheduled 6-round Lightweight contest between Ruben “Ace” Torres (136 lbs., South Central, Los Angeles, 6-0, 5 KO’s), and Eder “Koreano” Amaro (132 ¾ lbs., Matamoros, Mexico, 6-5, 2 KO’s). This fight appeared to be more evenly matched than the fight that preceded it. Both contestants exploded upon each other from the opening bell, each one having their moments. Rounds 2 and 3 were pretty much the same, however, by the end of the 3rd round Torres started to take charge. Torres continued his domination of the contest in the 4th round. Amaro’s corner stopped the contest in between the 4th and 5th rounds. Torres was the winner by a KO.

Next on the card was a 6-round Bantamweight battle, introduced as the Co-Main Event of the evening. The contest featured Mario “El Gallito” Hernandez (118 lbs., Santa Ana, California, 7-0, 3 KO’s) and Ivan “Ivan Lee” Gonzalez (115 ¾ lbs., Mexico City, Mexico, 4-1-1, 1 KO). This contest began at a somewhat slower pace than the preceding bouts had, but Hernandez came to life about halfway through the opening round, and dominated the round to its conclusion. The pace of the fight got faster in the 2nd round, and Gonzalez gave a very game effort. In the opinion of this writer, Gonzalez gave a very game effort in the third round, but Hernandez won the round by a slim margin. This torrid pace continued in the 4th, 5th, and 6th rounds. This fight was a “seesaw” battle to its conclusion, with each contestant having their moments. When the final bell rang, one judge scored the contest 58-56, in favor of Hernandez, while each of the other 2 judges scored the contest 57-57, the result being the fight ended in a Majority Draw.

It was time for the Main Event of the evening. The contest was scheduled for 8 rounds in the Lightweight Division. Matched against each other were Michael “The West Texas Terror” Dutchover (136 lbs., Midland, Texas, 10-0, 7 KO’s), and Bergman “Snake” Aguilar (135 ½ lbs., San Jose, Costa Rica, 14-3-1, 4 KO’s). Though the contest started at a slow “feeling-out” pace, in the opening round, Dutchover soon took control, and dominated the opening round, and he continued his domination in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. By the 4th round, it was literally “target-practice” for Dutchover, and to this writer it appeared to be only a “matter of time”. In the 5th, the pace slowed somewhat, but Dutchover continued his domination. A vicious left to the body sent Aguilar to the canvas, and Referee Wayne Hedgepeth had seen enough, calling a halt to the contest at 2:31 of the round. Michael Dutchover had scored his 11th victory with a KO.

And a very enjoyable, exciting evening of Professional Boxing had reached its conclusion.

 

 

 

 

Father Time + Pedraza Take Down Beltran

08/25/2018- In the hot desert town of Glendale, Az. the wily ‘ol vet, WBO lightweight champion, Ray Beltran (35-7-1D-21K() surrendered his title to a fired up and on point, Jose (Sniper)  Perdraza (24-1-12K(). Beltran who’s never an easy night for ANY body, was in a battle from the beginning. He was cut over the left eye as early as the second round. The cut was nothing new to Beltran, actually, they’re more of a habit. In fact, Ray was lucky to finish in an upright posture as he was being battered from a two-fisted assault just as the final bell rang. The ref knew the bell was about to ring and gave the former champ a shot at finishing on his feet. That was ‘noble’ of him, but it caused Beltran to accept unnecessary punishment, bell or NO bell. The once-beaten Pedraza  ( stopped by Tank Davis) was in great shape and on his game as he beat Beltan up, insisde and at distance. Beltran, as usual, put in his night’s work but tonight was all about the Sniper, as Jose is called. To put n exclamation point on things, Pedraza  dropped a tiring Beltran in the eleventh with a short left uppercut. Beltran survived that but he was pretty much done at this point. The smooth,  switch hitting Pedraza kept Beltran in check with his constant stance switching. He does it very effectively and was always two-three steps ahead of Beltran. In the   twelfth round, Pedraza didn’t wanna’ leave ANY doubt and at the two minute mark, pinned a defenseless Beltran in the corner and fired both hands, nearly stopping the champ.  After a long and successful career and many hard fights and loss of blood, this was probably (I hope(), Beltran’s swan song. The decision was unanimous and there were no dissenters. Now, there’s  already talk of a year’s end hookup between the skilled Pedraza and the undefeated WBA boss Vasyl Lomachenko, which will be worth watching.

Can boogymen stand about 5’2 and weigh 122 lbs? If NOT, how do you explain African bomber, Issac Dogboe (18-0-13K)? This is a ferocious punching and strong African that seems to enjoy punishing folks. The smooth, articulate Dogboe dissected poor Hidenori Otake in one round. Dogboe hit Otake as if he were a heavy bag. Otake was hit with sizzling left hooks, air-sucking body shots and thudding  rights to the head. This was pretty sad, actually. The brave Asian did all he could to keep from getting killed and it was damn near not enough. After landing at will to start things, Dogboe sent a rocket of a left hook Otke’s way and unfortunately, Otake was  there when it landed and down he went. Up and in bad shape, he was pounced on by the champ and rocked on several other occasions. At one point, I was HOPING he’d go down. After being dropped again, he was erect and telling the ref he wanted more. Well, damn if he didn’t get it as the bombs were landing again from Dogboe and FINALLY the ref called things to a halt. This was about as one-sided as it gets to last just one round. Afterwards, the little monster called out all 122 pounders, NONE of which I think has much of a shot at beating this guy. Vargas gets cut at the contract signing and talented Danny Roman doesn’t seem to have the power to keep Dogboe off his ass. Dogboe has the stuff stars are made of, talent, looks, ferociousness and personality.

Call me chauvinistic, but I’m not wasting much time on that women’s fight, it was PITIFUL. Makaela Mayer beat up and dropped a helpless Edina Kiss (as in ‘kissed’ the canvas). Mayer is now 7-1-4-5k as she stopped Kiss in the third.