By Austin Killeen                           January 30, 2016                           Photos by Brandon Sanchez

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At the risk of being redundant, once again there was a sellout crowd at the Buffalo Thunder Casino in Santa Fe before 2,100 fans. After each sellout, Promoter Pat Holmes Sr. figures out a way to add a few more seats to the venue. I figure there will be seats added to the ceiling before the next show. Holmes has developed a number of local heroes including his two sons, Pat Jr. and Brandon, Antonio Martinez and top pro Fidel Maldonado Jr. None of the four disappointed on Saturday night and the audience loved it. Southpaw Maldonado showed why he’s a threat to anyone in the lightweight division with some serious hitting power. Both Holmes brothers thrilled their fans, one by stoppage and the other in an exciting decision verdict. Martinez, who fights like a longshoreman who’s been irritated, was victorious in a thriller a second battle. I was very critical of the last card held at the Buffalo Thunder, this card more than made up for it!

In the eight round main event, Fidel “The Atrisco Kid” Maldonado Jr. (21-3-0, 18 KO’s) 142 lb. of Albuquerque won by KO over Michael Clark (44-15-1, 18 KO’s) 142 lb. of Columbus, OH. The opening round both boxers showed some skills, making it easy to see why they were the main event. Southpaw Maldonado carried the first round behind some nice straight lefts to the body. Clark had a tight defense and lateral movement to avoid any serious blows.

Early in the second, “The Atrisco Kid” backed his rival along the ropes near the other  corner. Like a venomous snake, Maldonado struck out with a straight left to the head. The punch had power and the Columbus visitor hit the deck. Rolling from his back to his side, Clark started to resemble a fish on dry land. Crawling to the ropes, he started pulling himself off the canvas with the aid of the same ropes. When the count reached ten Maldonado started celebrating and Clark complaining. Suddenly Clark had renewed energy, telling Referee Rocky Burke he had beat the count. It was a fine performance by Clark but we will have to wait until next year to see if it wins an Academy Award.

Maldonado has power and I have no doubt it was a knockdown, but you have to go back to the last World Cup Games to see an athlete recover like Clark. You know where the soccer player is laying on the pitch in weathering pain and the team trainer sprays his sock with water. Like Clark hearing ten, the player suddenly jumps up ready to continue. The entire undercard had boxers put on amazing displays of courage and determination. Clark should be embarrassed to have been in the same building with them.

In the six round semi-final Brandon Holmes (7-0-0, 5 KO’s) 129.2 lb. of Santa Fe won by TKO over Brandon Gonzalez (1-4-1, 1 KO) 129.9 lb. of Albuquerque. This was a rematch of a bout they had in 2014, in which Holmes won a hard fought decision. The opening round was a feeling out process, but Holmes did land some nice left hooks to the body. In the second round they picked up the pace with both fighters connecting. Holmes appeared to be going left hook happy, abandoning his nice jab. Although he was outgunned, Gonzalez was firing back to the head and body with bad intentions of his own. The fans loved it.

If you were going to give the “Duke City” boxer a round it would have been the third. Holmes appeared to be coasting parts of the stanza, while Gonzalez continued to press the attack. It was definitely a close round. Answering the bell for the fourth, Holmes had renewed energy, attacking his opponent’s body with some brutal hooks and crosses. Suddenly he switched his attack to the head of Gonzalez, landing more vicious shots. Gonzalez has a much better chin than Michael Clark because he took everything Holmes could throw. After what appeared to be ten unanswered punches referee Ray Chavez had seen enough and stopped the contest 2:38 of the round. Brandon’s father has done an excellent job building up his son’s record. Brandon is very powerful for a featherweight and appears ready to move on to the next level.

In the evenings fifth bout, Pat Holmes Jr. (6-1-0, 3 KO’s) 138.4 lb. of Albuquerque won by Decision over Miguel Gloria (1-1-0) 139.8 lb. of Albuquerque. Prior to the fight Gloria told me this was going to be his night, he was in great shape.

I’ll have to say he was much improved over his last bout and put on quite a show. At the opening bell it seemed like he was in Holmes’ corner banging away to the head and body. The taller Holmes has an excellent jab, but was having trouble creating distance the entire round. It was close, but I gave the edge to Gloria. Round two was a repeat of the first, but I gave the edge to Holmes. He was creating space with his footwork and landing more jabs.

Rounds three and four the well conditioned Gloria continued to land some hard shots, but Holmes was able to keep the fight in mid-ring where his boxing skills dominated much of each round. Fans where going crazy as this was an action packed bout, both boxers appeared capable of going four more rounds at the final bell. It was a hard fought contest with few clinches and Referee Burke stayed out of the way, letting the fighters work. Judges Sandy Pino and Theresa Ortega scored the contest 39-37, while Ester Lopez had it 40-36 all for Holmes by unanimous decision.

In the evenings fourth bout Antonio Martinez (5-2-3, 4 KO’s) 142.8 lb. of Española, NM won by TKO over Derek Perez (0-4-0) 129 lb. of Belen, NM. This bout was all action while it lasted, with defense being optional. At the sound of the opening bell, Perez rushed across the ring landing a barrage of punches that almost knocked Martinez out of the ring. Martinez had been caught cold and was lucky to stay on his feet. Suddenly Perez stopped punching and raised his hands in the air, beckoning his stunned rival to fight back. Martinez’s mother didn’t raise no fool for a son, and he started returning bombs of his own, hurting the Belen fighter. This was a pier six brawl all the way with Perez being dropped by right hand late in the round. I know it was only January but this has to be the round of the year, so far.

Perez continued his antics in the second, but Martinez was all business dropping his rival twice, once from a combination and by an overhand right. Referee Ray Chavez had seen enough and stopped the fight at 1:03 of the second. Show boating may have cost Derek Perez a golden opportunity, as he clearly had his rival in big trouble. Martinez is now working on a five bout win streak and is improving with every fight.

In the evenings third bout between debuting boxers, Matthew “Diamond Boy” Griego of Albuquerque won by TKO over Ramon Lopez 114.1 of Texas. Before his fight “Diamond Boy” had friends passing out a four page colored flyer with his photo on the cover page and his biography on the inside facing page. The other pages had sponsors and advertising. That shows a lot of chutzpa, on the part of Griego, before even having his first pro fight. At the opening bell he ran across the ring and into an overhand right to the head by Lopez. Suddenly Griego looked like a bed sheet on a close line on a windy day. The Texas import realized he had his opponent in trouble and started throwing wild punches in his excitement to close the show.

Griego showed his experience by regrouping and firing back with some power shots of his own. “Diamond Boy” appears to have some serious power in both hands, as it was apparent he had hurt the Texan. Lopez found himself on the canvas, compliment of a right hand by Griego. Lopez was game and traded blows with “Duke City” amateur star. But it was Griego’s night, and referee Burke stopped the contest at 2:54 of the opening round.

In the evenings second bout between debuting boxers Bryant McClain 167.2 lb. of Rio Rancho won by UD over Daniel Flores 168.3 of Albuquerque. Like Griego, McClain was a highly decorated amateur, having won two NM State Golden Gloves titles. The day before the fight there was a four column story in the Albuquerque Journal about McClain and his father Sean, a former IBC cruiserweight champion. That’s a lot of pressure for a young boxer to deal with before his pro debut. Flores, who’s a waiter at my favorite Italian restaurant, had no prior experience amateur or pro before stepping into the ring.

McClain entered the ring wearing an Irish plaid kilt and controlled the opening round behind a heavy left jab. McClain’s jab was more like a battering ram and it was hurting Flores. I didn’t think my favorite waiter would finish the round. But Flores was game and fought back each time referee Chavez looked like he might stop the fight. In the second round, McClain tried to finish the contest, throwing hooks and crosses off his jab. But he wasn’t pacing himself and became careless with his offense. When he stopped to take a deep breath, Flores answered with rights and lefts of his own. Suddenly there was a fight taking place, not a mismatch, and McClain was bleeding from the nose.

Rounds three and four were repeats of the second round and fans were loving the game Flores. At the final bell spectators gave both boxers a standing ovation. All three judges had identical scores of 40-36 for McClain. McClain just has to learn to relax and pace himself, as he has one solid left jab. Flores has a lot of upside and could prove to be a diamond in the rough, for his trainer Ray Zamora.

In the evenings opening bout Alex Holguin (7-1-0, 4 KO’s) 129.9 lb. of Albuquerque won by majority decision over Gene Perez (1-5-1) 130.4 of Belen, NM. Holguin is also a highly decorated amateur who won his last GG’s title the hard way, against stiff competition. Don’t be fooled by the record of Perez, he’s the most improved boxer in the “Land of Enchantment”, just ask any promoter, manager or trainer in the state. Read the Holmes Jr./Gloria write up an you’ll know what happened in this fight. It was all about space, Holguin wanted lots of it and Perez none.

I felt Perez won the first round behind a solid defense and hard blows to the head and body. Holguin started creating space behind his jab and a tight defense on the inside. In the final two rounds Holguin keep the contest in the center of the ring, avoiding the ropes. I felt this was the difference in the fight and that Holguin deserved the decision.

Judge Pino scored the contest 38-38; Lopez had it 40-36 and Ortega 39-37 both for Holguin the winner by majority decision. This sets up the dream match I’ve been anticipating for a long time, Holguin vs Holmes Jr. this should be a beauty, with both boxers possessing the skills to win by decision or KO. As soon as it’s official I’ll be writing about the contest. To say that the fight has created a lot of interest would be an understatement. Casey Gutierrez, who has a large stable of pros, located in Fort Worth, Texas, wants to handicap the contest and attend the match in person.

This was a great card, the kind that brings fans back again and again. Fidel Maldonado, the Holmes Matthew Griego and Bryant McClain both had exciting debuts, while Gene Perez continues to be dangerous for anyone to fight. Ray Zamora has to be excited about his fighters Miguel Gloria and Daniel Flores, who gave great efforts in close loses. And it looks like we could see Holguin vs Holmes at the Buffalo Thunder in May. It also appears that Maldonado will be making a big announcement in the near future, regarding his career. I can’t write anymore than that at this time, as details still have to be finalized.

I almost forgot to mention the work of Mike Adams, ring announcer extraordinaire, he takes a back seat to no one. His pronunciation an attention to details is spot on. Josh “Pitbull” Torres is developing a second career with his interviewing of boxers in the dressing room before each fight. I hope “Pitbull” doesn’t get too successful, as he’s my barber.

Voices from the Corner: The New Mexico Hall of Fame will be holding their annual banquet on Saturday night from 6:00 to 9:00 at the Las Cruces Knights of Columbus Hall on 2755 Idaho Ave. There will be a fight smoker at the Sammy Burke boxing gym on 700 Solano Ave. @ 1:00 that afternoon. For more information regarding this event call 505-552-4142 or 505-552-4143.

Heavyweight Ron Baca of Gallup traveled to Charenton, Louisiana losing a four round decision to Jonathon Guidry on Saturday night. This was their second fight, having fought a draw in 2014. I had a bad feeling about this fight as Ron appeared to be doing no sparring in preparation the contest. The lost snapped a three fight winning streak for Ron.

Trainer Jose “El Torito” Lopez, takes his new featherweight prospect Raul Suarez (1-0-0, 1 KO) to Nogales, Mexico this weekend. He will be facing undefeated Ramon Melendez  (3-0-0, 1 KO) of Nogales. Suarez had better bring some power, otherwise he could fall victim to a home town decision. The fight is scheduled for four rounds.