Results from Saturday’s Legacy Training Center Show
There were boxing fans galore at the latest USA Amateur Boxing show in Vista on Saturday, February 16. Two of the youngest and most photogenic fans just happened to bring their Moms along.
With so few USA Amateur Boxing Shows on the docket, it was a foregone conclusion that the Legacy Training Center boxing card of February 16 would be loaded to the gills with boxers hoping to test their skills.
Without further ado, here are the results from Saturday’s contests.
Bout #1 winner Gabriel Meza (L) of the Villegas Park Boxing Club in Riverside, CA awaits the announcement of his victory over Angel Barrientes (R) of Pound for Pound Boxing of Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, February 16, 2013 at the Legacy Training Center in Vista, CA.
In Bout #1, it was 11 year-old Gabriel Meza of Villegas Park (65.2 pounds) taking on 10 year-old Angel Barrientes of Pound for Pound, Las Vegas (61.8 pounds).
In Round #2, Meza became and remained the more dominate boxer after cornering Barrientes and then going non-stop.
In Bout #2, it was Jose Chollet of the Barrio Station Boxing Club in Downtown San Diego getting the win over Daniel Martinez of the Grace Boxing Club of Palmdale, CA.
In Bout #2, it was 12 year-old Jose Chollet of Barrio Station (78.2 pounds) taking on 11 year-old Daniel Martinez of the Grace Boxing Club of Palmdale, CA (77.8 pounds).
Martinez, the shorter of the two, was busier but he didn’t have the same pop that Chollet exhibited. Chollet was winding up with these thunderous shots to the head and body. He even added some surprising uppercuts to his repertoire to secure this victory.
In Bout #3, it was Demler Zamora (R) of Pound for Pound Las Vegas putting on a dominate performance against the always tough Xavion Douglas of Rhinos’ Boxing, Vista, CA.
In Bout #3, it was 10 year-old Xavion Douglas of Rhino’s Boxing, Vista (69.2 pounds) taking on 9 year-old Demler Zamora of Pound for Pound, Las Vegas (70 pounds).
With his height and reach advantage, Zamora could land his blows from afar. Only on a rare occasion could Douglas get close enough to deliver his power shots.
In Bout #4, it was Diego Molano (R) eking out the close victory over Ramon Gonzalez.
In Bout #4, it was 13 year-old Ramon Gonzalez unattached (109.8 pounds) taking on 13 year-old Diego Molano of Coachella (112.2 pounds).
In Round #1, Gonzalez took center stage and dominated Molano who proved to be a slow starter. Molano wasn’t unable to mount any sort of comeback until the later stages of Round #2 when he started landing the more accurate shots to Gonzalez’s head, mostly off counters. The slugfest that ensued in Round #3 made judging this contest difficult. In the end, the judges awarded the victory to Molano in a close match.
In Bout #5, it was Jordi Blancarte (L) getting the win over Arnulfo Ramirez (R).
In Bout #5, it was 14 year-old Jordi Blancarte of Coachella (110 pounds) taking on 15 year-old Arnulfo Ramirez from Rhino’s Boxing, Vista, CA (107 pounds).
This one featured a lot of in-fighting as if they were boxing in a telephone booth. Every once in a while Blancarte would take a step back to get better leverage and this proved to be Ramirez’s undoing.
In Bout #6, it was Rommel Caballero (R) getting the win over Jojit Butgg-Filon (L).
In Bout #6, it was 12 year-old Jojit Butgg-Filon of Bound Boxing (117.4 pounds) taking on 14 year-old Rommel Caballero of Coachella (114.2 pounds).
It was obvious Caballero had more experience and after landing the majority of the cleaner shots in Round #1, he became a bit cocky. His opponent, Butgg-Filon, demonstrated better defense and on occasion he matched Caballero punch for punch. Trying to catch up on the point totals proved too difficult as Caballero won this battle on the scorecards.
In Bout 7, it was Jovany Contreras (R) getting the win over Adrian Vega (L).
In Bout #7, it was 13 year-old Adrian Vega of Coachella Boxing (99 pounds) taking on 13 year-old Jovany Contreras of Barrio Station, San Diego (102.6 pounds).
Contreras, a sharp power puncher, scored well with the booming overhand rights and as a result he had Vega, bloody nose and all, backing up. By the end of Round #2 both boxers were running low on petrol. With both boxers almost completely spent, the third and final round could be considered a toss-up. In the end, Contreras had done more than enough in Rounds #1 and #2 to gain the victory.
In Bout #8, Juan Mondragon (L) secured the victory over Rodolfo Ortigoza (R)
In Bout #8, it was 15 year-old Juan Mondragon of 20th Street Boxing, Denver, Colorado (98 pounds) taking on 14 year-old Rodolfo Ortigoza of Penacho Boxing (97.8 pounds).
For some unexplained reason, Ortigoza continually allowed his opponent to corral him into the various corners or against the ropes. As a result, it appeared Mondragon was getting the best of the more accurate Ortigoza who spent three rounds firing off these straight punches.
The visitor from Denver was also penalized for losing his mouthpiece twice. In the end, the close decision went to Mondragon.
Bout #9 saw Phillip Veller (R) get the victory over the tough Adrian Hernandez (L).
In Bout #9, it was 8 year-old Adrian Hernandez of United Boxing, Chula Vista, CA (57.4 pounds) taking on 8 year-old Phillip Veller, unattached (56.8 pounds).
Both boxers were extremely busy throughout and in my eyes this was the bout of the day. After a non-stop first round, Hernandez became the aggressor in Round #2. Halfway through the round, the skittish Veller fell backwards from an onslaught of blows. The knockdown was ruled a slip or trip. Though unhurt, it certainly came about from an accumulation of blows from Hernandez. That ruling could have turned the tide in this very close match.
Veller gained most of his points from his strong finish. To close out the final round, he landed three unanswered solid lefts.
Raul Filimon finds himself on his back after the Brian Nevarez KO punch in Bout #10.
In Bout #10, it was 19 year-old Raul Filimon of JSK Boxing (155 pounds) taking on 24 year-old Brian Nevarez of Rhinos Boxing, Vista (159 pounds).
From the age of 12 through 16, Brian Nevarez trained to be a boxer. Then for the next seven years, he helped his father, Bernie Nevarez, train the large stable of boxers at the Rhino’s Boxing Gym in Vista. Even though he’d always had the passion to compete, that desire had to lay dormant for years while he helped others.
This year, all the stars must have been aligned, and he began in earnest to show not only his father and brother Johnny (a professional boxer) but all his students, that he could do more than just talk boxing.
I’m certain Filimon, Nevarez’s opponent on Saturday, had no inkling as far as Nevarez’s background. He certainly picked the wrong opponent at the wrong time.
From the opening bell, Nevarez was like a lumberjack swinging an axe, mostly hard body shots, the ones that make even a bystander cringe. After Filimon sustained two 8-counts in round one, it seemed it was just a matter of time before the referee would stop the bout. Early in the second round, there was Filimon on his back. Later on, Filimon added this comment, “What can I tell you. He knocked the air out of me.”
In Bout #11, it was Remeses Williams (R) gettin the win over Jabin Chollet (L).
In Bout #11, it was 11 year-old Remeses Williams of Pound for Pound (80.4 pounds) taking on 11 year-old Jabin Chollet of Barrio Station (76.4 pounds).
This was another of the most entertaining bouts of the show. With the bout’s many momentum swings, Chollet and Williams fought three solid rounds. In the end, the decision victory went to Williams, the visitor from Las Vegas.
In Bout #12 it was Ivan Padilla (R) getting the win over Alfred Vargas (L).
In Bout #12, 11 year-old Alfred Vargas of Barrio Station, San Diego (76 pounds) took on 11 year-old Ivan Padilla (76.4 pounds) of the Legacy Training Center in Vista, CA. This bout was a judges’ nightmare. In the end, Padilla won the very close match which featured an incredibly high number of punches and hardly any defense.
In Bout #13, Antonio Lopez was a victim of complete domination by the powerful Favian Zanco (R), shown here having his arm raised by referee Dana Kaplan.
In Bout #13, it was 17 year-old Antonio Lopez of the Legacy Training Center (135.2 pounds) taking on 17 year-old Favian Zanco from Barrio Station, San Diego (133.8 pounds).
In the fast and furious first Round, Lopez was issued an eight count. An additional two 8-counts followed in Round #2. Zanco’s accuracy and persistence proved too much for Lopez who seemed overwhelmed by Zanco’s skillset.
After getting the best of Guillermo Garcia (l) in Bout 14, referee Dana Kaplan raises the arm of the victorious Daniel Ruiz (r).
In Bout #14 it was 17 year-old Guillermo Garcia of the National City CYAC (129.2 pounds) taking on 16 year-old Daniel Ruiz of the Legacy Training Center (133.6 pounds).
From the outset, Ruiz, a righty, demonstrated he would have no problem with Garcia, a southpaw. Early in Round #2, with Ruiz landing punches at a 3-1 clip, it wasn’t long before an 8-count was issued to Garcia in Round #2. Early in Round #3, referee Will White called a halt to the action and had the fight doctor look over Garcia’s bloody nose.
In Bout 15, it was Jehmon Norris (L) of City Boxing getting the nod over Luis Enriquez of the National City CYAC. All photos: Jim Wyatt
In Bout #15, two 15 year-olds faced off, Jehmon Norris of City Boxing (135.6 pounds) and Luis Enriquez of the National City CYAC (139 pounds). The seasoned sharpshooters unloaded on each other for the full three rounds. On this day, it was Norris winning over the judges by landing more blows and avoiding the wider looping punches of Enriguez.
Bout #16 featured 21 year-old Francisco Valdovinos unattached (131.4 pounds) going up against 23 year-old Ahmad Noori of the Black Tiger Gym, San Diego (131.2 pounds).
In round one, Valdovinos was giving it everything he had and before long had Noori in deep trouble. As a result referee Will White stopped the bout to issue Noori an 8-count. The match appeared to be going only one way, that would be Valdovinos’ way. If Noori had any inkling of pulling out a victory, he needed to win the next two rounds.
Halfway through Round #2, Valdovinos started to tire. His punches had less and less power and Noori became stronger and began to counter off each of Valdovinos’ misses. Noori’s counters went from one punch to two punches and then to combinations. Now it was Valdovinos who was in trouble and this trend continued right up until the final bell.
In the above photos, we first see Ahmad Noori (r) in a pensive state as he muses over the pending outcome of his bout with Francisco Valdovinos (l). At the outset, there was dread on his face as he watched his opponent reveling. “Is it possible that I lost?” In the second photo, he’s replaying the bout over in his mind and becomes more reflective. Then came the announcement, “Our winner is out of the Blue Corner!” Ahmad Noori’s face lit up.
At the end of the show, Ahmad Noori’s all out battle with Francisco Valdovinos (l) was honored by the show’s organizer, Bill Dean (c), as “The Bout of the Day.”
In Bout #17 Andre Tinajero (l), who dominated his opponent in the first two rounds, had just enough staying power to finish against the hard charging Alex Calaya.
In Bout #17, it was 13 year-old Andrew Tinajero of Villegas Park (95.2 pounds) taking on 13 year-old Alex Calaya of USIAA (93.2 pounds). Early on, Tinajero was the busier boxer and showed better head movement to prevent payback. Then, after a serious tongue lashing from his coach, Calaya finished strong. However, the early lead proved too much to overcome.
In Bout #18, Daniel Morales (l) chased after his opponent, Andrew Ibarra (r), as if he was a juicy steak and Morales was a hungry lion.
In Bout #18, it was 9 year-old Daniel Morales of The House of Boxing (71.2 pounds) taking on 9 year-old Andrew Ibarra of the host gym, Legacy Training Center (66.8 pounds).
A pre-fight comment from the coaching staff of the House of Boxing: “We couldn’t be more pleased with Morales’ development. He’s a natural, a gifted boxer/puncher.”
On Saturday, it showed as he was all over Ibarra from the opening bell. Ibarra, no slouch himself, showed his toughness by getting up off the mat three times. After the fourth stoppage, a standing 8-count, referee Hondo Fontan felt it was time to call it quits.
(photo, top, right) Bout #19 featured Kyle Olson (r), a slick boxer, going up against Jason Tipaloa (l), a former football player, muscle builder who was making his debut in the sport. In the photo (left side), we have a young lady holding a puppy who calmly watched the entire show without a whimper or one demand for any special treat.
In Bout #19, it was 23 year-old Kyle Olson of City Boxing (153 pounds) taking on 28 year-old Jason Tipalda of The Arena MMA in Point Loma (158.4 pounds).
It was your classic match-up between Tipalda, the solid, ex-football jock with tons of muscle but slower hand speed, going up against the more wiry, more seasoned, slick boxer in Olson. Olson controlled the match by being more elusive and yet deadly accurate with his counters.
As you might expect, the boxer won over the judges by controlling the bout and punishing Tipalda with his combinations.
The next LBC 44 boxing show is scheduled for March 9, 2013 at the Rock Church in Point Loma, San Diego, Calif., 92106. As far as all upcoming USA Amateur Boxing shows, you can always check the upcoming schedule on this website.
