Team from R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility wins Battle of the Badges

At the end of the Battle of the Badges boxing show at the Barona Casino in Lakeside, CA, the boxers and coaches from the R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility were presented the team trophy.

Saturday, June 12th, local pride was on the line as law enforcement officers and a sailor competed in the annual charity boxing tournament known as “Battle of the Badges” held at the Barona Resort & Casino. Assisting the participants in their quest to become the next Manny Pacquiao were local coaches from nearby boxing gyms: the Alliance Training Center of Chula Vista, the Undisputed Fitness and Training Center of North Park and Downtown, City Boxing of Downtown, Barrio Station and the National City CYAC.

The Barona Band of Mission Indians, the Community Youth Athletic Center of National City (CYAC), and the National Latino Peace Officers Association have been partnering for many years to help local disadvantaged youth through this fundraiser.

This year’s participants included members of the San Diego Police Department, San Diego Sheriff’s Department, Harbor Police, Boise, Idaho Sheriff’s Department, Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, Correction Corporation of America, U.S. Border Patrol, San Diego Probation Department, California and Sycuan Fire Departments, plus the US Navy. All participants volunteered to go head-to-head in this brutal sport for three tough rounds.

Bout #1 featured heavyweights, Juan “Kodiak Express” Prishker of the US Border Patrol, who weighs 318 lbs. and is an ex-Oklahoma Sooner defensive back, facing Vincent “Dirty” Sanchez of Correction Corp of America who weighed in at 295 lbs. Prishker dominated the bout to earn a unanimous decision.

Bout #2 featured heavyweights, Pedro “Iron Man” Martinez of the San Diego Sheriff’s Dept. gaining a unanimous decision over Israel Rodriguez of the US Border Patrol.

Bout #3 featured welterweights, with Sergio Bustos of the RJ Donovan Correctional Facility defeating Claudio Asiong of the Harbor Police.

Bout #4 featured middleweights, with Raul “Showtime” Munoz of the Harbor Police defeating Sergio Zapata Roldon of the US Border Patrol who showcased a most impressive ring entrance.

Bout #5 featured middleweights, the very impressive Fernando “Rock Mountain” Arechiga of the California Fire Dept. defeating the shorter Adrian Rubio of the SD Probation Dept. Rubio showed great stamina and toughness while being hit repeatedly.

Bout #6 had  jr. welterweight Kathleen Bonja of the SD Probation Dept. defeating Lisa Almanza of Corrections Corp of America. This bout featured non-stop in your face pummeling.

Bout #7 featured heavyweights with Marco Del Rio of the SD Probation Dept. defeating Tony “Too Smooth” Silva of the RJ Donovan State Prison. Silva’s entourage was so large he probably needed to charter a fleet of buses to get his supporters to the event.

Bout #8 featured heavyweights, Josue “Jalapeno Popper” Pacheco of the Corrections Corp of America and Carlos Elizarraras of the US Border Patrol. Pacheco surprised Elizarraras by rushing him and slugging non-stop. The tactic worked resulting in one of the quickest knockouts on record, just 27 seconds into the first round.

Bout #9 featured a rematch between heavyweights David “Average Joe” Rodriguez of the SD Police Dept. going up against Enrique “Brawling Bull” Frias of the San Diego Probation Dept. After a fairly even exchange through the first and second rounds, Rodriguez took over in the third, landing some powerful left and right combinations.

Bout #10 featured two very accomplished middleweights, Maggie Murrillo of the RJ Donovan State Prison and Joelene McAllister of the Harbor Police. Murrillo got the nod by being the busier of the two in the third and deciding stanza.

Bout #11 featured heavyweights Frederic “Super Soy Sauce” Sabas of the Sycuan Fire Dept., who was 3-0 in past Battle of the Badge competitions, going up against Bernardino “El Matador” Soto of the US Border Patrol who was 2-0 in past matches. Carlos Barragan, jr. who announced the bout called it, “Pinoy Pride versus Mexican Pride” and the representative of the Philippines came out victorious. Since the match was so hotly contested, it was later recognized as the top match of the tournament.

Bout #12, the final match of the day, featured EM2 SWRMC Rodolfo Castillo, of the US Navy, assigned to the SWRMC Divers unit at the 32nd Street Naval Base going up against Jose Luis Del Rio of the Boise Sheriff’s Dept. Both boxers landed punches that would normally knock a building over. In the end it was Del Rio who received the majority decision.

It took Josue "Jalapeno Popper" Pacheco of the Corrections Corp of America all of 27 seconds to dispose of Carlos Elizarraras of the US Border Control.