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Kevin Reist, left, takes punch from Daniel Castillo (Photo by L. Hollimon)
The Kansas-Oklahoma Regional Golden Gloves finals event included eight junior bouts and a novice in the middleweight class. Here were the results:
70 lbs Junior Division: Saul Ramirez vs Lonnie Lucero, Jr.
In the 70 lbs class, Saul Ramirez of Team Punisher in Winfield, Kansas won by decision over Lonnie Lucero, Jr. of Garden City Boxing Club.
Lonnie had a great showing in his win against Matt Barker the day before but Saul’s skill was a little more developed. Saul was able to utilize his footwork and timed his attacks well. Lonnie couldn’t catch on to Saul’s tactics but this can only serve as a learning experience for Lonnie. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
75 lbs Junior Division: Carlos Ibarra vs Oscar Acevedo
The 75 lbs bout was a great match as Carlos Ibarra of Team Punisher pulled off a close decision win over Oscar Acevedo of Bad Boyz Boxing Club in Garden City. Carlos has great footwork and combination punches but Oscar's fearless attacks made this a long night for Carlos. Carlos was able to score very well with his attacks enabling him to pull off the decision. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
108 lbs Junior Division: Angel Perez vs Dominic Williams
The 108 lbs bout drew a lot of excitement as both boxers scored a lot of shots on each other. Angel Perez of Northside 316 Boxing in Wichita landed the harder punches as Dominic Williams of Villa Boxing club in Wichita was getting stunned. The referee stopped the bout in the second round giving Angel the victory.
Angel showed great accuracy and aggression in the bout. Dominic was getting caught with a lot of shots to the head because his chin was up and his gloves were down. Dominic was tenacious in the early rounds but his attacks gradually subsided as he was taking the hard shots by Angel. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, and winner announced.)
Alfred Reed vs Fabian Coutreras Rd 1 of 3 (Video by Wichitaboxing)
120 lbs Junior Division: Alfred Reed vs Fabian Contreras
The 120 lbs bout featured two Oklahomans, Alfred Reed of the Reed Foundation in Tulsa versus Fabian Contreras of Owasso Boxing Club in Owasso. This was a very close decision that went to Fabian Contreras. This bout could have gone easily to Alfred depending on what was observed.
Both boxers landed the same amount with a little give or take but the style would have to go to Alfred. Alfred slips the punches very well and has great comebacks punches after an attack by his opponent. His style is very similar to Floyd Mayweather Jr. but with more of an offensive tactic rather than countering off of defense.
Fabian made the most of his punches and was able to land during an exchange but wasn't able to dictate his attacks well since Alfred was slipping the punches well. Fabian did very well engaging Alfred's attacks and dealing with the pressure.
After observing the video, this could have gone to Alfred in my humble opinion for two reasons. First, Alfred dictated the attacks and was the aggressor. Second, Alfred's style is perfect for the national amateur level as he shows great composure, throws combination punches meaning he's not a one time puncher, and his defense enables him to be successful against all types of boxers. With that said the critique for Alfred is that his punches were aimed too high against a taller boxer. He may want to mix it up aiming at the chest and the forehead but the jabs to control his opponent should have been aimed at the neck area.
The reason is that aiming too high will cut your reach and opens a shorter boxer to the favorable hooks and uppercuts thrown by the taller opponents. The shorter boxer should cut the reach of the taller but not at the cost of cutting your own reach. Alfred is an exciting boxer to watch and he is another prospect to keep an eye out for. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
122 lbs Junior Division: Adan 'JR' Rodriguez vs Richard Acevedo
Another exhibit of great boxing skills was in the 122 lbs bout between JR Rodriguez of Northside 316 Boxing and Richard Acevedo of Bad Boyz Boxing Club. Richard, the taller boxer, didn't utilize his jab to control the bout against JR. However, JR's style prepares him well against taller opponents as he uses a lot of slips and weaves to get inside for his combination punches.
A taller boxer like Richard did well aiming at JR's chin and neck area but his reach distance was still cut short as he didn't bend more at his knees. JR being a strong physical boxer can only be controlled with hard stiff jabs and straight rights from a taller opponent. That's easier said than done since JR is very agile and quick. This was an exciting bout and once again JR has continued to show the maturity in his style. JR won the decision over Richard. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
132 lbs Junior Division: Todd Anderson vs Jonathan Agualar
The 132 lbs class featured Todd Anderson of Ghost Dog Boxing in Tulsa, Oklahoma against Jonathan Agualar of Bad Boyz Boxing in Garden City, Kansas. This was Todd's debut into amateur boxing and at 5 ft and 8.5 inches; he was able to utilize his reach and height very well for a first timer.
Todd showed great composure and discipline as he threw direct combination punches not once going 'Taz' (Tasmanian devil; expression of throwing uncontrollable punches). Jonathan showed great aggression and fortitude but his punches weren't effective as they were telegraphed and thrown wide. His head was down as he was throwing his punches allowing Todd to pick him clean for some points. He did land quite a few punches because of the quantity he threw.
Jonathan's heart will take him a long way but he'll need to discipline himself in throwing sharp, crisp, unpredictable punches. Todd shows great promise in his first bout as he won by a close decision. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
Nico Hernandez vs Humberto Sanchez (video by Wichitaboxing)
Super Heavyweight Junior Division: Eli Florence vs Owen Keener
Believe it or not, the junior division featured a super heavyweight bout between Eli Florence of Pawhuska Boxing Club in Pawhuska, Oklahoman and Owen Keener of Ottowa Boxing Club in Miami, Oklahoma.
The referee stopped the bout in the second round giving Eli the win against Owen. Eli was able to utilize his height and reach to stun Owen with a few hard shots. Even though Owen didn't show signs of a boxer who was unable to continue, the referee made the call that he was taking too many hard shots to continue. Amateur boxing officials have a trademark quote that they would rather stop 1,000 bouts too early than stopping 1 too late.
A referee stoppage allows the losing boxer to continue competing at another event without suspension as long as the doctor approves of his condition. However, a stoppage other than will result in 30+ days suspension from any competition. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
95 lbs Junior Division: Nico Hernandez vs Humberto Sanchez
Boxing fans were in for a treat as Wichita's four time National Silver Gloves champion Nico Hernandez of Northside 316 Boxing took on Wichitan Humberto Sanchez of the Backyard Boys. Words don’t justify the type of boxer Nico is because it's unreal how smooth and developed his skills are for a boxer at 13-year old.
Humberto was not a push over as he put Nico in a position to move and throw a lot of punches. Humberto wasn't a push over and the two made this a wonderful bout to observe for many fans. This bout can be seen on the uploaded videos referred in the following links. (View videos Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, and decision.)
The Kansas-Oklahoma Regional Golden Gloves tournament is not only for the selection of a team to represent the region in the national tournament but it has also given the fans a sneak peek into the future of our upcoming boxers. The future of our boxing community looks promising from what was observed on Saturday night
For other Kansas boxing news visit Front Page Boxing Kansas.
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Photos by LeBaron Hollimon. For boxing photo purchases visit here.
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