Middleweight Ricardo Pinell, B Street Boxing (San Mateo)
By Ryan Maquiñana
In what the San Francisco Boxing Union hopes will be a more regular occurrence, the Roccapulco Supper Club in the Mission District hosted the first S.F. Amateur Boxing Championships last night.
An almost packed house witnessed 11 bouts of boxing where the ambience included Latin groove band Los Mocosos belting out tunes and the presence of past and present Bay Area boxing stars like Karim Mayfield, Jonathan Chicas, Ashanti Jordan, and Pat Lawlor.
“It was a great turnout between 400 and 500 fans, and the more shows we hold, the more our local fighters can build their craft and build a following,” founder Arturo Gastelum said. “We’ll be back September 13 at Roccapulco, and then October 27 at Longshoreman’s Hall in Fisherman’s Wharf.”
Mario Ayala (Don Conley, Sacramento) dec. Adrian Rodriguez (Phight Club, Oakland)
Featherweights
The night started with a dubious decision in favor of Ayala, who had his moments but was constantly beaten to the punch by Rodriguez.
Aside from a brief flurry in the second round where Ayala let loose with his foe on the ropes, the southpaw Rodriguez used his height disparity to his advantage throughout the bout, getting inside on the lanky Ayala and landing compact, more meaningful shots.
But of course, when my pencil hits paper, it doesn't go to USA Boxing for official results, and in this case, the judges thought Ayala deserved the victory.
“We know we won. Everybody saw it,” said Rodriguez’s trainer, Gilbert “Hurricane” Jackson.
Joel Lopez (3rd St. Boxing Club, San Francisco) RSC-2 Wahid Raza (Wrecking Crew Boxing Club)
Lightweights
Almost instantly, the orthodox Raza’s power was on display, flooring the southpaw Lopez with a one-two and momentarily wobbling him again before the close of the opening round.
Lopez turned the tide as the second began, throwing a whirlwind of punches that had Raza reeling into the ropes on more than one occasion. Raza found himself holding his opponent in order to weather the storm. Then Lopez struck gold, landing a big right hook that staggered Raza and led to a standing-eight count. As Raza attempted to recover, Lopez jumped on him, causing another standing-eight to be administered. The referee had seen enough by this time and waved it off at 1:50.
Raza spit his mouthguard onto the blue canvas in disgust, but the result was final.
“I had to come back. I used my signature punch, that right hook,” Lopez said. “After I hurt him that first time, I knew I was going to finish him there.”
Martin Avila (San Jose PAL, San Jose) dec. Andrew Moy (445 Boxing Club, San Francisco)
Featherweights
The fight had the makings of a slugfest, as the two combatants traded at will, but the southpaw Moy rode his solid right hook to victory. At least I thought so, until Avila was awarded the win by decision.
The southpaw Moy won the first round convincingly on the strength of his right jab and left cross, but the second was much closer due to the orthodox Avila’s overhand right and work inside. Still, Moy parried just enough punches, punctuated by his right hook, to outland Avila in my opinion.
Maybe watching the fight a second time will sway my opinion, but I doubt it. Avila hit Moy with some clear, effective shots, but I don't think they were sufficient in number and impact. Luckily for him, the judges disagreed.
“I thought I was breaking him down as the fight progressed, but that’s not my call to make,” Moy said.
Terry Fernandez (Phight Club, Oakland) RSC-1 Michael Fernandez (415 Boxing, San Francisco)
Middleweights
In a battle of fighters named Fernandez, Terry pulled off the upset on Michael, the reigning California PAL and Desert Showdown champion, with an explosive first-round stoppage.
The two were willing to exchange, and a short left and right uppercut from Michael connected and snapped Terry’s head back. Then just like that, it was over. After Michael committed a cardinal sin of leading with a left hook, a sledgehammer of an overhand right from Terry sent Michael to the canvas, leaving him unable to continue.
Official time was 1:40.
"I couldn't believe I knocked him out," Terry said. "It was easier than I thought, but when given the opportunity to throw a shot like that it can make it easier. I was excited and also relieved."
Mike Aguayo (Unattached) dec. Humberto Otoya (US Boxing, Hayward)
Junior Welterweights
The southpaw Aguayo traveled all the way from Tuscon, Ariz., to take the decision from Otoya.
Aguayo used a body attack in close quarters to score, while Otoya found a home for his left hook and looping right. Overall, Aguayo’s volume was enough in the judges’ eyes to win a close battle.
“It was really close, but I thought he pulled it out,” said Karl Sharrock, Aguayo’s cornerman. “I thought he took the first and third rounds.”
Erick Rodriguez (Club X, Santa Rosa) dec. Jesus Reyes (3rd St. Boxing, San Francisco)
Welterweights
In possibly the fight of the night, Rodriguez edged out the decision over a game Reyes.
The southpaw Rodriguez pressed the action early, with a right hook to the body and the straight left scoring early. But Reyes was not to be outdone, slinging a looping right hand that put Rodriguez into the ropes to close a furious first round.
Reyes turned on the heat in the second, going to the ribcage. But Rodriguez answered back with the one-two, and the war was on again. On the inside, Reyes found himself with his right foot forward and landed a right hook upstairs. Rodriguez returned fire with a lead left that landed three consecutive times. It was now Reyes’s turn and he flurried to end the frame.
Reyes opened the third with a lead left hook, and Rodriguez was more than happy to oblige him with a barrage of his own, landing two a double left hook as Reyes retreated on the backfoot. Reyes now swung wildly and left himself open to be picked apart. However, Rodriquez could not take advantage and let Reyes back into the round. But Reyes was noticeably tired, winging his shots as Rodriguez evaded them to the final bell.
“I noticed in the first round when I hit him with some body shots he started putting down his hands,” Rodriguez said. “I couldn’t finish him off, but I’m happy with the win.”
Irby Burnett (Weapons Factory, Fairfield) dec. Michael Davis (Richmond PAL, Richmond)
Heavyweights
Burnett, currently in the Air Force, outslugged Davis to the decision.
The shorter Davis was the early aggressor, coming forward while Burnett tried to catch him coming in. The end of the round turned into a crude brawl, as Burnett was somehow able to use his left arm to lock Davis in so he could club away with his right hand.
The second round was more of the same. While Burnett’s offensive output wasn’t pretty, as he often smothered his punches, they scored. Davis attempted to turn his foe and unleashed a combination of his own with Burnett on the ropes.
The third frame was a similar story. Every time Davis tried to initiate his offense, Burnett held him up on the inside, and it was the right strategy since the quicker Davis just could not string together any semblance of sustained offensive momentum. Burnett simply scored in spurts, and the judges’ choice was clear at the bell.
“Davis is the most elusive fighter I’ve ever met,” Burnett said. “This is the second time I’ve fought him, and he wasn’t easy. I picked my shots and kept coming forward.”
Joel Siapno (Kennel Boxing Club, San Leandro) dec. Dexter Bibbs (3rd St. Boxing Club, San Francisco)
Junior Middleweights
Aside from a slight hiccup in the third Siapno cruised to the decision win.
Siapno systematically wore Bibbs down in the first and second with combination punching downstairs and then to the head. It was in this second frame where Bibbs locked him up, seemingly tired, and Siapno countered with a right uppercut. At this point, Siapno wailed away at Bibbs’s body.
On shaky ground, Bibbs ate more clean combinations from Siapno to open the thid. While Bibbs retreated, Siapno pushed forward throwing a right uppercut that found its target. At this point, Siapno looked for the final blow, and another flurry led to a standing-eight count. Bibbs finally unleashed a salvo of his own moments later, landing a crushing right that sent Siapno’s sweat flying and resulted in a standing-eight. However, it was too little too late, and Siapno had his hand raised in victory.
“I felt like I was getting to him in the second,” Siapno said. “He got me clean in the third, but I did enough to win.”
Ricardo Pinell (B Street Boxing, San Mateo) dec. Yasir Mahmoud (Phight Club, Oakland)
Middleweights
With a raucous cheering section supporting their man, Pinell got the judges’ nod over Mahmoud to close last night’s festivities.
Pinell, a southpaw and California Golden Gloves finalist, opened the scoring with crisp combinations off the backfoot. The orthodox Mahmoud then threw a howtizer of a right hand that landed flush but did not noticeably damage Pinell. The San Mateo fighter then let his hands go to the delight of a pro-Pinell crowd, scoring on six or seven unanswered that definitely put him ahead as the round came to a close.
Mahmoud needed a strong second round to stay in the fight, and his corner pleaded for him to be first, so he scored off a one-two with Pinell on the ropes. The two traded and Mahmoud landed the hardest shot, a right over the top. But Pinell looked to counter, and connected with a right uppercut with his back against the ropes. He followed it up with a right hook followed by a short straight left that stopped Mahmoud in his tracks. Mahmoud led with a left hook and pushed Pinell on the ropes, but Pinell smothered the shots, slipping them and finding a home for his counter right hook.
The final round started with Mahmoud’s initial aggression. He pushed Pinell on the ropes and threw a looping right that found paydirt. Pinell pivoted out of the ropes. Mahmoud landed a with a short left and right hand, while Pinell continued to go with a right hook to the body. As Mahmoud began to tire, Pinell now jabbed and landed the straight left. The two locked arms and both landed solid shots. In the phone booth, Pinell landed two short rights while Mahmoud connected with a looping right to end a very spirited scrap that duly went the San Mateo fighter's way.
“It’s a good win but I still need to work on my conditioning,” Pinell said. “The right uppercuts and combinations were working but again, my conditioning could use a little work."
Mario Cabrera Jr. of Boxing Republic, one of the true fight fans of The City, contributed to this report, along with Kim Francesca Martinez of Leave-It-In-The-Ring.com.
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