Ava Knight and Aaron Coley Win Decisions in Mexico

By Ryan Maquiñana

Norcalboxing.net

Knight and trainer Ben Bautista celebrate title defense number two.

Chico's Ava Knight successfully defended her IBF flyweight title for the second time with a unanimous decision victory over Susana Vazquez at the Auditorio Centenario in Torreon, Mex.

Knight (NorCal No. 7; 9-1-3, 5 KOs) had a tougher time than expected with Vazquez (8-7-1, 2 KOs), who was coming in from the southern Mexican city of Toluca and will now have taken five current or future world champions the distance.

"Thank you to HG Boxing [Promotions] for this great fight," Knight said.  "Susana was tough, and I was fighting with a swollen, hurt right hand, but it was still not enough for me to give up my title.  And still!"

Knight's right hand showed swelling after the fight.

Official scores were 99-91 and 98-92 twice for Knight. 

Norcalboxing.net has also learned that her junior middleweight gym mate Aaron Coley (3-0, 1 KO) won by unanimous decision on the undercard over Josue Castaneda (0-4-1) of Gomez Palacio, Mex.  

"He won every round against a tough monster," trainer Ben Bautista said.  "Aaron hurt the guy several times in the fight but the dude wouldn't go down."

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

Watsonville's Godoy Wins Second Straight Bout

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

Junior middleweight Oscar Godoy (7-2, 3 KOs) of Watsonville utilized a strong left jab to set up his accurate combinations and win a unanimous decision over Riverside's Roberto Crespo (4-2) in Corona, Calif., Friday night.

Godoy outworked Crespo both in volume and in power shots, many of which came after the Watsonville native backed his foe into the ropes.

Official scores were 40-36 twice and 39-37.  Norcalboxing.net had it a 40-36 shutout for Godoy.

The bout was televised on ESPN2.  Godoy has now won two in a row.

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

Lopez No Longer London-Bound Due to Clerical Issues

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

Norcalboxing.net has been informed by San Jose PAL's Candy Lopez that he will no longer be heading to the 2012 London Olympics as an assistant coach for Team USA.  Although he was named to the staff on Wednesday, clerical issues will leave him sidelined for the Games.

“I was told by USA Boxing that I am not eligible because AIBA told them I am not qualified to get credentials for the Olympics," said Lopez, the longtime San Jose PAL head coach. "AIBA has coaching levels does like USA Boxing does, but I guess for this event, you needed to be credentialed through AIBA, and due to the limited time we had, I’m guessing they didn’t have time to check whether or not I would be eligible.”

With a new coaching staff selected just one month before the Games, Lopez stated that he would not have gone through the interview process on short notice if he knew he would be ineligible to make the team anyway.

“I’m obviously disappointed," he added. "I would’ve wanted to represent my country. USA Boxing should have been more upfront as far as the criteria needed, and if they didn’t know that, it was a big mistake on the administration’s part. Nevertheless, I wish the USA Boxing team the best of luck.”

Lopez was an assistant on the 2000 team that won four medals in Sydney.

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

Julaton Returns Aug. 3 in Mexico vs. Rodriguez, Wants Nava-Brown Winner

By Ryan Maquiñana 
Norcalboxing.net

Daly City's Ana "The Hurricane" Julaton (NorCal No. 10; 11-3-1, 1 KO) will return to the ring on Aug. 3 in Merida, Mex., against Magali "The Magician" Rodriguez (6-4-1, 3 KOs) of Monterrey, Mex.  The 10-round bout will be televised by GMA Pinoy TV and will take place at a contracted weight of 126 pounds.

The venue has yet to be determined but it will likely be the Kanasin Polifuncional.

"Magali is tougher than her record," said Angelo Reyes, Julaton's trainer/advisor.  "Two of her losses came at the hands of Janeth Perez, the current WBA 118-pound champion, and it was scored a draw even though many thought she won."

Julaton bounced back from her title loss to Yesica Marcos to post a dominant performance over a much heavier Yolanda Segura in the spring.  According to the Filipina-American's team, they still want a shot at WBA 122-pound champ Jackie Nava of Mexico.

"The statement we're trying to make is that we think Magali is the type of girl who can beat Nava, and we're going to show all the Mexican media why Nava doesn't want a fight with Julaton."

Nava faces former Julaton conqueror Lisa Brown of Canada in her next clash on Aug. 18, one that Reyes and his fighter will be watching intently.

"Whoever wins the Nava-Lisa Brown fight is who we want next," Reyes said.  "We know Lisa Brown's not scared.  She's stated she'd go to the Philippines and fight Ana.  But if Nava wins, we hope she'll stop being scared and fight Julaton."

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.


*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

NorCal Pound-for-Pound Top 10 Rankings (June 2012)

By Ryan Maquiñana

CSNBayArea.com

The new CSNBayArea.com Northern California Pound-for-Pound Top 10 list is out for June.  Andre Ward...Nonito Donaire...Karim Mayfield...Ava Knight...where's YOUR favorite fighter?

LINK: http://www.csnbayarea.com/fight-sports/news/NorCal-Boxing-Pound-for-Pound-Top-10-Jun?blockID=732852&feedID=8306

Correa vs. Ayala Off July 7 Amateur Show in San Leandro

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

 

Correa (right) will no longer make his bantamweight debut July 7. (AP)

The Kennel Boxing Club in San Leandro was scheduled to play host to a tantalizing main event July 7 that featured two of the best fighters in Region 11 exchanging leather in the main event between Eros Correa and Mario Ayala.  However, Correa informed Norcalboxing.net Tuesday that he would be unable to make the fight due to prior commitments.

The card will still go on as planned, as tournament organizer Arvin Jugarap has done an outstanding job putting together the rest of the event and will undoubtedly find another intriguing matchup to fill the now-vacant headline spot.

PHOTOS: Donaire Gears up for Mathebula on July 7

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

WBO junior featherweight champ Nonito Donaire of San Leandro gets ready for his July 7 unification bout against IBF 122-pound boss Jeffrey Mathebula of South Africa at Carson's Home Depot Center.  The action will be televised on HBO's Boxing After Dark.  PHOTOS: Chris Farina/Top Rank.

S.F.'s Hargraves Victorious in Minnesota

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

Hargraves and trainer Ben Bautista savor the win.

Richard "The Ruler" Hargraves (3-0-1, 2 KOs) will return home to San Francisco with a unanimous decision triumph over Michael Faulk (2-2) at the Black Bear Casino in Carlton, Minn., Saturday night.

Scores were 58-56, 58-57, and 59-55, all for Hargraves.  The Bayview native was fighting in his first six-rounder, which was televised by GoFightLive TV.

"Time to celebrate the win, and then back to work," said Hargraves, who was featured in my CSNBayArea.com Boxing Notes this week.

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

San Jose-Based Henry Cruises to Unanimous Nod over Selders

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

Junior middleweight prospect Omar Henry (12-0-1, 9 KOs) remained unbeaten with a 10-round unanimous decision over Tyrone Selders (8-3, 6 KOs) at the Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Fla., Saturday night.

Henry, a Chicago native now based in San Jose, cruised to the win with a dominant performance in his first 10-rounder, displaying a varied arsenal and even the ability to fight off the backfoot.

Scores were 100-88 and 100-90 twice.

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

Iron-Chinned Escalante Drops Decision to Villanueva

By Ryan Maquiñana
Norcalboxing.net

Escalante (white trunks) was lured into a war with Villanueva. (Jan Sanders/Goossen Tutor)

In a battle of unbeaten prospects, San Carlos junior bantamweight Bruno Escalante displayed an iron chin, but ultimately lost a unanimous decision to Palmdale's Matthew Villanueva.

Escalante (5-1-1, 3 KOs) captured the first two rounds by utilizing his footspeed and outboxing his much taller foe, but gave away the middle rounds as Villanueva (8-0-1, 7 KOs) outmuscled him on the ropes and scored with a hellacious attack.  Although Villanueva landed some crushing blows, Escalante was never noticeably hurt but was still outhustled in terms of volume.

While Escalante would take the eighth and final round by getting the fight to return to the center of the ring, being lured into a war from the third through seventh rounds ended up hurting him on the cards.

The official scores were 79-73, 78-74, and 77-75 for Villanueva.  Norcalboxing.net had it 77-75 for the winner.

Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.

*This is a legal waiver. By copying and using the material from this article, you agree to give full credit to Norcalboxing.net or provide a link to the original article.

Local Pros Go 3-0 on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights Card

By Ryan Maquiñana

Norcalboxing.net

Dallas, seen here in a previous fight, was on point Friday in a stoppage win. (Goossen Tutor)

A trio of local pros won their respective matchups at the Soboba Casino in San Jacinto on a card televised by ESPN2 Friday Nights.

In the main event, Bakersfield junior welterweight Mike Dallas Jr. (19-2-1, 8 KOs), who has been training in Hayward and Oakland with Virgil Hunter, overwhelmed Mexico's Javier Castro (27-5, 22 KOs) in the sixth round with speed and power en route to a referee stoppage.  Dallas annexed the WBO Latino 140-pound regional title.

The co-feature saw Sacramento middleweight and 2011 CSNBayArea.com NorCal Prospect of the Year Brandon Gonzales (16-0, 10 KOs) remain unbeaten with an eight-round shutout of Elie Augustama (6-5, 3 KOs) of Haiti.  Scores were 80-72 across the board.  After the bout, Gonzales, who also trains with Hunter, had 11 stitches applied to two cuts near his left eye.  Earlier in camp, Gonzales had actually opened the cut in sparring with unified super middleweight champion Andre Ward, but glued it shut and fought anyway.

Brandon was actually the subject of our CSN Spotlight this week: Click HERE to read how boxing is a love story in more ways than one for him.

Off-TV, Sacramento's Guy Robb (8-1, 4 KOs) made a successful transition from 130 to 126 pounds in a fifth-round stoppage of Las Vegas-based Rodrigo Aranda (8-18, 2 KOs).  Robb, who participated in the 2011 CSNBayArea.com NorCal Fight and Round of the Year, finished the job with a body shot.

Special thanks to all three fighters for taking out the time to talk to Norcalboxing.net immediately after their victories.

J.O. WRAP-UP: Region 11 Goes 6-0 in Finals, 12 Medalists in All

By Ryan Maquiñana

Norcalboxing.net

Region 11 celebrates a perfect Friday night in Mobile. (Lydia Martinez Razo)

Region 11 left its mark on the Junior Olympic National Championships in Mobile, Alabama, going a perfect 6-0 in Friday's finals and landing a dozen fighters on the podium overall.

As a result of their respective performances, the girls won the overall team title and the boys took home third-place honors.

Gutierrez (right) and Florida's Erickson Lubin after winning Best Boxer honors. (USA Boxing)

Among the six newly crowned champions, four local fighters--Main Event B.C.'s Efren Lopez (119-pound boys) of Fresno, Marisol Lopez (106-pound girls) of Avenal's King's Gym, Ruben "Dracula" Villa IV (114-pound boys) of Salinas, and Caballero B.C.'s Nancy Gutierrez (132-pound girls) of Sacramento--distinguished themselves by taking home Best Boxer awards for their weight classes.

In addition, Lydia Martinez Razo won Most Outstanding Judge honors, indicative of the quality representation that Region 11 enjoyed as a whole.

Special thanks to team manager Rudy Valdez of Arvin B.C. for the final results; he was quick to recognize the efforts of the coaches on Friday as well, which include Felipe Martinez (Felipe's B.C., Lathrop), Marcus Caballero (Caballero B.C., Sacramento), Anna Murrieta (Velarde T.C., Fresno), Sergio Lopez (King's Gym, Avenal), Pablo Lopez (Main Event, Fresno), Rudy Puga Sr. (Back Yard B.C., Salinas), and Ralph Gomez (Left to Right B.C., Gilroy).

The Region 11 team takes time to pose. (Lydia Martinez Razo)

I would like to take the time out to congratulate all the coaches and fighters who fought under the Region 11 banner!

Here are the results for Friday's finals.  For the previous results, click on the appropriate day: