By Austin Killeen, Ringside                               

On Saturday at the Sanchez Brothers Boxing Gym in Albuquerque, an amateur boxing show was held in the memory of Alan Sanchez. Alan was the oldest of the three Sanchez brothers, all of whom fought as pros. Alan tragically left us three years ago, the result of a car accident. He was an exciting boxer in the ring and a gentleman outside of it. No one ever asked for a refund when he boxed, as he always gave the fans full value for their ticket expense. Outside of the ring he had time for everybody, answering questions about his fights and his family. An exciting eight bout amateur boxing card was held in his memory, hopefully the first of many to come. No one passes on who lives in the hearts of others. Yesterday, Alan Sanchez was in the hearts of everybody who was in attendance. He would have been proud of the excellent efforts of all the young men who participated, because that’s how he always preformed.

Bout #1, Jose Sandoval 76.4 lbs. (Bobcat Boxing) won by Decision over Edwin Aranda 81.2 lbs. (Unattached). From the opening bell Sandoval was a beast, controlling the action with his aggressive style. But it wasn’t that he was just forceful, as he displayed solid defense and counter punching when needed. In the second and third rounds, Aranda was issued standing eight counts by referee George Romero. But Aranda earns credit for his stubborn attitude in facing a more experienced foe. He didn’t quit, and he left the ring a better fighter than he entered it.

 

 

Bout #2, Adrian Cisneros 89 lbs. (Team Mirabal) won by Decision over Brandon Rodriguez 85 lbs. (Unattached) In the opening round, both boxers had trouble with distance resulting in low scoring. Rodriguez started slow but finished strong in the opening round. In round two, Rodriguez had success scoring with overhand rights, but Cisneros finished strong. Cisneros had a strong third round with some nice head movement and good offense. This was a very difficult bout to score and could have gone either way depending on which side of the ring you sat.

 

 

 

Bout #3, Samuel Romero 62 lbs. (Duke City Brawlers) won by Decision over Luciano Bustamante 61.8 lbs. (JD’s Gym). From the opening bell, Romero was the aggressor; sometimes a good offense proves to be the best defense.  Referee Ware issued a standing eight count to Bustamante in the opening round. Rounds two and three were repeats of the first, minus the standing eight count. Although Bustamante was over powered by Romero he never stopped trying.

 

 

 

 

Bout #4 Angel Sandoval 96.4 lbs. (Bobcat Boxing) won by Decision over Yoruba Moreu 92.6 lbs. (Moreu Boxing). In the first two rounds neither boxer seemed to be able to establish an offense as they were out of range of each other. Both rounds were very close and could have gone either way. Moreu a southpaw had a nice right jab but never seemed to throw any other punches. Sandoval landed some body shots, but seemed to be overly cautious. Sandoval appeared to throw more punches in the third but were they accurate? I’ve seen Moreu box many times; he looked flat in this bout.

 

 

Bout #5 Luis Sandoval 124.5 lbs. (JD’s Gym) won by Decision over Ivan Barragan 120.2 lbs. (Unattached) The opening two rounds belonged to Sandoval behind nice 1-2’s and overhand right’s to the head. Referee Ware gave Barragan standing eight counts in both rounds. Barragan had an advantage in height and reach, but failed to utilize this advantage. This changed in the final round as overhand rights by Barragan resulted in Referee Ware giving Sandoval a standing eight count. This was a solid contest that proved to be very competitive, and my pick as fight of the night.

 

 

Bout #6 Andres Rey 145.8 lbs. (Perez Boxing) won by Decision over Juanito Lovato 153.4 lbs. (Santa Fe). This was an impressive performance on the part of Rey, who always seemed to be in control. Lovato appeared to be in excellent shape, but always seemed to be reacting to his opponent’s offense. I’ve seen Rey work out in Aaron Perez’s gym many times, but didn’t expect see him look so polished. Referee Rios issued standing eight counts to Lovato in rounds two and three. Lovato’s mistakes seemed to be the result of inexperience and should be easily correctable. He’s trained by Joaquin Zamora, so I expect these mistakes will occur less frequently in the future.

 

Bout #7 Quentin Deleon 125.4 lbs. (Power & Glory) won by TKO 1^st round over Michael Mendez 122.6 Lbs. (Roswell) Deleon exploded out of his corner at the sound of the opening bell, overwhelming his rival. This resulted in Referee Rios issuing two standing eight counts to Mendez before halting the one-sided contest. The southpaw Mendez needs to keep his lead foot outside that of his opponent, which will make him less venerable to right hands.

 

 

 

Bout #8 Filomeno Pulido 107.6 lbs. (Moreu Boxing) won by Decision over Kaleb Medina 106 lbs. Pulido produced a dominating performance, utilizing quick hands, lateral movement and aggression. This resulted in confusion on the part of Medina, who always seemed to react instead of launching his own offense. In rounds two and three Pulido showed skill in ducking punches when Medina tried to throw some meaningful blows of his own. If Medina adds a jab to his arsenal in future bouts, it will make it more difficult for an opponent to overpower him.

 

 

VOICES FROM THE CORNER: It’s with a heavy heart that I have to inform readers of the passing of Sandy Martinez-Pino who was elected to this year’s class of inductees to the New Mexico Boxing Hall of Fame. She was admitted to Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque suffering from a heart condition. On Friday night she failed to respond to treatment. She was a pioneer for woman in the world of boxing, making it easier for females who follow her into the sport. She was the first woman to serve as USA Boxing’s president. She served New Mexico boxing as a judge for 17 years and helped supervise at 3 Olympiads. She will be inducted in the New Mexico Boxing Hall of Fame, posthumously, on Oct 27, 6:00 pm at the Embassy Suites, Albuquerque.