The Battle of the Champions: 38 fighters from California, Flyweights to Heavyweights to compete Friday night at the Four Points by Sheraton in San Diego. Three titles to be defended.
The Boxing Zone of Imperial Beach, Coors Light, the Nutrition Zone of Chula Vista and the U. S. Muay Thai Association are co-sponsoring a Muay Thai Kickboxing tournament at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel at 8110 Aero Drive in Kearny Mesa on Friday, November 20, 2009 starting at 7:30 p.m.
The event known as the “The Battle of the Champions” will feature three California State Titlists defending their belts. Vu Mai of Pacific Beach (4-1-0) will face Angela Martin for the USMTA Jr. flyweight State Title. Tentatively, they have Gary Archuleta (4-0-0) of Poway MMA defending his USMTA lightweight state title against Clifton Gross. Tiffany Van Soest of Poway MMA will face Malia Spanyol of San Francisco, CA for the USMTA featherweight title.
Since this tournament is being sanctioned by the California Athletic Commission and the United States Muay Thai Association many of California’s top fighters will be on hand to compete, all ages from flyweights all the way up to heavyweights. Representing the heavyweights will be Eric Chavez of Oceanside, CA. taking on Tony Kalani of Pacific Beach. In all they have 19 bouts scheduled.
.jpg)
Photo of David Antonio Martinez (4-3) taken Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at the Black Tiger Gym off Miramar Rd. in San Diego. Photo by Jim Wyatt
In my daily travels I just happened to run into one of Friday’s combatants, David Antonio Martinez, a 25 year-old, who works at the Bangkok Thai Restaurant on Clairemont Mesa Blvd. Martinez has been training under Chris Getz’s tutelage for 6½ years at the Black Tiger Gym on Miramar Road. Martinez who is a welterweight has an amateur record of 4-3 and the three losses were all close decisions.
Instead of a rags-to-riches story, Martinez has a riches-to-rags storyline. When he was eight years old he accompanied his father to the lumber yard where his father worked. At the lumber yard was a guard dog, a surprisingly vicious dog that Martinez, then 8 years-old, tried to befriend. When he went to pet the dog, the dog attacked him and ripped off both cheeks. The resulting lawsuit netted him $200,000 plus the money to cover the needed plastic surgery. After the many operations, you can barely see any consequences of that terrible ordeal.
Still, you have to wonder how such a calamity may have affected his psyche, especially at such an early age. As soon as Martinez turned 18, he was given the settlement money which up until that time had been held in trust. Martinez went through the money like a drunken sailor. Now the 140 pound mixed martial arts student, with almost zero percent body fat, has his sites set on a different goal, that of being the very best MMA fighter.
Martinez's story is just one of the many I'm going to learn more about on Friday night.
If you would like more information about the event you can call the tournament director, Victor Beltran at 619-575-7760 or e-mail him at: victor_beltran@msn.com
Comments