Bound Boxing’s Friday Night Fights returns with 8 solid matches

After Gael Soler (center) of the United Boxing & Fitness Gym came out on top in the final bout of the evening, his proud coach, Marcel Acevedo had Soler’s very large support group come up into the ring for a group photo.

In Bout #1, it was 18-year-old Yonis Muya (top) from Old School Boxing located in the SDSU College Area, eking out a close victory over the power punching 17-year-old Hunter Williams (below) from the Encinitas Boxing & Fitness Club, Encinitas, Calif. From the look on both coach Mike Robinson and Hunter Williams’ faces after their bout with Muya, it’s likely they’ll be seeking a return rematch with Muya, who matched Williams’ output throughout their toe to toe battle. Photos: Jim Wyatt

How low can he go? In the above photo we see the 28-year-old Alexandro Leyva (140.4 lbs.) from the Nevarez Boxing Gym, Vista, Calif. almost touching the canvas in Bout #2, after ducking under one of the wide looping punches thrown by 21-year-old Richard Godoy (137.6 lbs.) from the host gym, the Bound Boxing Academy of Chula Vista, Calif.

At the conclusion of their slugfest, the winner, Alejandro Leyva (r) from San Marcos, Calif. was presented the championship belt by Andrea Medina (l), a young lady who has won more than her share of National Championships.

In the following bout, Bout #3, 10-year-old Alexandro Leyva Jr. (80.6 lbs., black trunks, gold stripe), Alexandro Leyva’s son, took on 11-year-old Guadalupe Estrada (77.8 lbs.) from the Bound Boxing Academy. Like his father before him, the youngster kept putting on the pressure and delivering the straighter and more meaningful punches to earn the 5-0, unanimous decision victory.  

Like father, like son. At the conclusion of his Amateur debut versus Estrada, the youngster, Alexandro Leyva Jr., was kept busy having his photo taken. First, there was the photo with stablemate Kyle Erwin and then the classic photo with his proud father.  

At the conclusion of Bout #4, it was 11-year-old Sammy Vences (left) of Backyard Boxing, Oceanside, Calif. having his arm raised in victory by referee Andrew Moreno after Vences defeated the game 12-year-old Fernando Lopez (98.8 lbs.) from Vista Calif. who trains at Nevarez Boxing.

“Lookout world, here I come.” In Bout #5, 14-year-old Xavion Douglas (110 lbs.) of Vista, Calif. (Unattached) earned a 4-1 decision victory over 14-year-old Esteban “Mexican” Rojas (103.2 lbs.) from the Bound Boxing Academy, Chula Vista, Calif. After training and competing in the sport for seven years, Douglas has now found himself in a growth spurt. Plus, he’s discovered he now has power in both hands, especially his left. With some work on his combinations, he could continue to surprise people. With Douglas doing so well against the highly regarded Rojas, someone mentioned in jest, “What’s up next, is he going after Deontay Wilder?”

At the conclusion of Bout #5, an extremely competitive match, Xavion Douglas (r) and Esteban Rojas (l) were joined by well wishers for a photo.

Bout #6 between 11-year-old Kevin Perales (90.8 lbs., blue gloves) from the National City CYAC and 10-year-old Giovanni Rosendale (94 lbs., red gloves) from the Backyard Boxing gym in Oceanside, Calif. at times was utter chaos as each boxer kept unloading with everything they had. In the end, it was Perales gaining the favor of the judges with his firmer stance and the way he sat in the pocket to get off the better leveraged punches.

Prior to the start of Bout #7, referee Andrew Moreno (c) gives last minute instructions to the boxers, Anthony Gonzalez (left, blue trunks) from the National City CYAC and Xadrian Garza (right, black trunks, red gloves) who is trained by Prince Tiger Smalls at the One Training Center in Spring Valley.

At the conclusion of the hotly contested Bout #7, we see referee Anthony Moreno raising the arm of the victorious Xadrian Garza who is trained by Prince Tiger Smalls of One Training Center, Spring Valley after Garza managed to defeat the game Anthony Gonzalez (l) from the National City CYAC. On hand for the presentation was Jorge Chavez (right) another of the top Amateur boxers from the National City CYAC.

Bout #8 featured Rio Hays (Blue corner) from Old School Boxing, San Diego taking on Gael Soler from the United Boxing & Fitness gym of Chula Vista, Calif. (red corner). As in the passed, it didn’t take long before Soler’s nose began to bleed. With his coach, Marcel Acevedo, working his corner and accustomed to this complication, Acevedo was able to counteract the bleeding problem with a nosebleed plug. After overcoming the distraction, Soler went on to win this hotly contested bout. Then, as if he needed a reminder of his last loss, the last time his nose bled, the show’s organizers had Vista’s Michael Figueroa present Soler with his championship belt. Just last week, on April 22nd, Figueroa defeated Soler in the Junior Olympic District Qualifying Tournament at the National City Community Youth Athletic Center.   

Worth a second look: on hand to support the ultra popular Gael Soler were a host of people: his father, three coaches, plus the parents and relatives of other boxers from the same United Boxing & Fitness gym.