By Austin Killeen Ringside     Photos by Octavio Vera     (click on picture to enlarge)

Make it twenty in a row when counting sellouts at the Buffalo Thunder Resorts and Casino. Fans in northern New Mexico love their boxing and they prove it at the turnstiles fight card after fight card. Fidel Maldonado got a ‘W’ in his comeback, but not without some questions being raised. If anyone still thinks girls can’t box, they weren’t in attendance this weekend. There were two female bouts on the card and both offered action equal to their male counterparts.  Speaking of the ladies, New Mexico witnessed their first woman ring announcer. And the late Tom Crego was honored during intermission with a special ceremony.

In the main event of the evening, scheduled for 8 rounds, lightweight Fidel Maldonado (25-4-1, 19 KO) of Albuquerque, NM won by UD over Luis Gerardo Avila (8-15-3, 5 KO’s) of Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, Mexico. Entering the ring Maldonado was surrounded by questions, regarding his future; basically was he still relevant or was his career over. After eight rounds of boxing he had his win, but it raised more questions than it answered.The opening round was a feeling out round with neither boxer taking any chances. In the second round Maldonado landed two solid overhand lefts to the head of Avila, but made no attempt to follow up his advantage. Avila was displaying good footwork, making him a difficult target. In the third stanza the slow pace of the match continued, Maldonado was displaying a nice defense which caused his opponent to lunge off balance at times. Any questions concerning the reflexes of the “Atrisco Kid” were being answered; he was quick as a cat. In rounds four and five the slow pace continued, Maldonado scored with some nice counter punching, but seemingly made no effort to capitalize on what appeared to be obvious advantages.

In the sixth round fans were becoming frustrated with the lack of action, and realized what little action that was taking place was due to the efforts of Avila. Every time Maldonado would lie on the ropes, Avila would throw punches. If the judges felt that some of these blows were landing, Avila could be stealing rounds. The final two rounds were a repeat of the first six. By the end of the fight, fans were openly letting their displeasure known; they had come to see the Maldonado they knew, not the Maldonado they witnessed on this evening. In the past, Fidel made his opponents pay for their mistakes, but for some reason he continually let those opportunities slip by Saturday night. Chris Tellez scored the bout 79-73, Ester Lopez 77-75 and Robert Romero had it 80-72 a unanimous decision in favor of Maldonado. Although most people clearly felt Maldonado won, they continued to express their displeasure with what had taken place. Maldonado has one objective when he enters the ring and that is to score a win. He doesn’t owe me or the audience the need to stick his chin out to be hit.

Sunday morning in the lobby of the casino, Maldonado’s father told me “We came here to win, not take unnecessary punishment.” I’ve known Maldonado Sr. for over seven years and he has always been nice to me; this conversation was no different. We continued our discussion in the lobby talking about boxers as entertainers, fans expectations of the previous evening and will this new style be sustainable against top ranked fighters. Only time will tell what the future holds for the “Atrisco Kid.”

During intermission the late Tom Crego 1948-2019 was honored for his many contributions to the boxing scene. A veteran of the Viet Nam war, Tom sponsored many boxers around the state, regardless of their gym affiliations. Promoter Pat Holmes and ring announcer Mike Adams spoke lovingly about Tom Crego and what a loss it was to New Mexico boxing. Photos and a short clip about Tom were shown on the monitors around the room.

 

 

In the semi-final scheduled for 6 rounds, lightweight Antonio Martinez (10-5-4, 6 KO’s) 139.2 lbs., of Espanola, NM won by UD over Pablo Batres (9-17-1, 2 KO’s) 139.6 lbs., of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. From the opening bell both fighters were working behind strong left jabs and good defense. Martinez was more aggressive in the opening three rounds, but the contest was contested and Batres had his moments. During the second half of the bout Batres tried to force much of the action and probably captured some rounds. Although Martinez wasn’t flashing his usual power, he was scoring off his jab and comfortable when handling incoming punches. There were few clinches which made the referee’s job easy. Chris Tellez scored the bout 60-54, Ester Lopez 59-55 and Robert Romero had it 58-56 in favor of Martinez. If the hometown boy can add his former punching power to his new display of boxing skills, it would make for some interesting developments.

In the fourth bout scheduled for 6 rounds, debuting Amy Salinas 123.2 lbs., of Las Cruces, NM won by UD over Leanna Martinez (4-1-0, 3 KO’s) 112.7 lbs., of Espanola, NM. There was no feeling out round in this fight. When the opening bell rang Salinas exploded from her corner with bad intentions.  Martinez found herself under a barrage of leather seconds into the first round. Salinas had over one hundred amateur bouts, including international competition, and it showed. Throwing punches from every angle possible, the Las Cruces import easily captured the round.  Martinez made sure the second round was not a repeat of the first, working behind a hard left jab. The home town favorite wasn’t allowing her opponent time to do anything, but retreat.  In the second half of the round Salinas started to land some punches to make it close.

A ten pound weight advantage in the lower divisions is a huge benefit, and it showed over the remainder of the fight. Salinas repeatedly landed a left hook the body, followed by an overhand right to the head. Martinez never tried to clinch, instead firing back with hard rights of her own. When you’re being outscored by a margin of two to one it’s hard to turn the tide of the fight. After six blistering rounds the verdict was as follows;  Ester Lopez and Chris Tellez scored the bout 60-54, while Robert Romero had it 59-55 in favor of Salinas. Amy Salinas took the fight on six days notice which accounts for the weight disparity. Her trainer, Hugo Salinas, told me by phone he hopes to have her down to 112 pounds within the next two months. In defeat Leanna Martinez actually gained in status, as her gritty performance and punching power never wavered during the entire fight. I liked her before and I like her even more now. Both these girls are going to be a force in boxing over the next few years. Without question, this turned out to be the fight of the night.

The remaining bouts were scheduled for 4 rounds

In the third bout, light heavyweight Maurice Jackson 181.2 lbs., (2-0-0, 2 KO) of Chicago, IL won by TKO over debuting Gabriel Rodriguez of El Paso, TX. In the opening round Jackson gave a clinic in slipping punches, cutting off the ring and combination punching. In the second round the southpaw from Chicago dropped Rodriguez twice with powerful overhand lefts. Referee Ray Chavez halted the contest at 2:48 to save the brave Rodriguez from further punishment. The El Paso boxer is a dangerous opponent for anyone, but he found himself in against a real prospect in Mr. Jackson. Jackson, who at age 35, waited a long time before turning pro and time might prove to be his biggest opponent.

 

After the fight, Jackson said he would like to fight the son of the former world champ (he couldn’t remember Sean McClain’s name). Suddenly the sound of Irish bagpipes filled the air and Bryant McClain (4-1-2, 1 KO) entered the ring in a kilt, to announce he was more than willing to accept the challenge.  Although this was a rip off of every wrestling match ever held, it was very well done and entertaining. The boxers exchanged some pleasantries (no fake shoving) and this bout might actually happen.

In the second bout, middleweight Loretto Olivas (3-0-0, 1 KO) 158 lbs., of Santa Fe, NM won by UD over Andre Galarza (1-3-0) 157.9 lbs., of Albuquerque, NM. This proved to be an appealing bout between two evenly matched opponents. The first round was a duel of left jabs, with both boxers very confident. In the second Galarza started scoring with some nice 1-2’s, while Olivas was looking for a place to land some heavy artillery. Galarza was having a nice third round when he walked into a right hand from Olivas. Clearly hurt he had to use all his skills to survive the fired up Olivas. Olivas opened the fourth round looking to press his advantage and it wasn’t until late in the round that Galarza came to life.

In the final round Olivas started fast, while Galarza closed fast. Chris Tellez scored the contest 40-35, Ester Lopez 40-34 and Robert Romero 39-36. I agreed with the judges, in particular with the score of Judge Romero. Olivas is building a fan base and has some snap in his punches. Galarza has mainly been an opponent, but I’ve seen a lot of improvement in his last two fights. Neither of these boxers will be looking for work for long.

In the opening bout of the evening, Jordanne Garcia (3-0-1) 156 lbs., of Albuquerque, NM won by UD over Karina Mendoza (0-2-1) 152.3 lbs., of El Paso, TX. Jordan took the opening round due to a nice 1-2 left jab, right cross, but Mendoza scored with a nice uppercut. Garcia continued her 1-2’s in the second round and why not, it was working. Mendoza picked up the pace in the second, attacking the body and head. I gave the third to the El Paso boxer as she caused some swelling to Garcia’s right eye, but it didn’t stop Garcia from landing an attention getting right cross. 1-2’s were working for Garcia in the first couple of round, so why not go back to it. Mendoza proved to be one tough customer and much better than her record would indicate, while the Garcia express just keeps rolling along. All three judges had it 39-37 for Garcia.

Alyssa Adams became the first female boxing announcer in New Mexico, when she announced the opening bout of the evening between Jordanne Garcia and Karina Mendoza. She has a clear, powerful voice without the annoying screeching that some announcers employ. I asked her how she was chosen to be the ring announcer and she replied; “Pat Holmes heard me introduce my father into last year’s NM Boxing Hall of Fame and asked if I would like to try my hand at being a ring announcer.” So apparently the rumors are true, Pat Holmes plans to dump Mike Adams in the near future. I asked if she was nervous and she replied; “I was a little nervous, but I told myself to relax and be loose and everything would be ok.” Alyssa is a sophomore at New Mexico State with a major in Hotel Restaurant and Tourism Management. Last year she did an internship for Marriott in Dallas, TX and this summer she will do an internship in Denver, CO for Marriott.