Headlines for the San Diego Boxing Community on Tuesday, August 14, 2012
After her big win over Christy Martin, Tuesday, August 14, 2012, Mia St. John poses for a photo with Orange County Boxing Promoter Roy Engelbrecht. Photo: Mary Ann Lurie Owen
After their official weigh-in on Monday, August 13, 2012, David Barragan (R) faces off with Beau Hamilton. Photo: Carlos Barragan, Jr.
On Tuesday, August 14, 2012, featherweight David Barragan, part-owner of the House of Boxing Gym on Reo Drive in San Diego, was on the undercard of the Mia St. John versus Christy Martin bout up at the Table Mountain Casino in Friant, CA. The heavy hitting Barragan wasted little time and soon opened a cut over the left eye of his opponent Beau Hamilton of Montague, CA. Shortly after he dropped Hamilton to the canvas. He was on his way to a second knockdown when referee Marcos Rosales stepped in to stop the bout at 1:44 of the second round.
With the TKO victory over Hamilton, Barragan’s record improves to (2-0-1), while Hamilton’s drops to 0-3.
As you might imagine, the two women went at it for a solid 10 rounds. Photo: Mary Ann Lurie Owen
The 45 year-old Mia St. John (47-11-2, 18 KOs) triumph over the 44 year-old Christy “The Coal Miner’s Daughter” Martin (49-7-3, 31 KOs) was for the World Boxing Commission light middleweight title. This fact doesn’t give much credence to the WBC, especially when St. John’s record over the last eight years is 6-6 and Martin’s record over the same period is 3-5-1. Both Holly Holm (31-2-3) and Hanna Gabriel (13-0-1) might take issue with such a preposterous title fight.
Alfredo Angulo will soon be back to work.
In their prime (10 years ago), these ladies were two of the biggest draws in the sport. It was December 6, 2002 when they met at the Pontiac, Michigan Silverdome and Martin won that bout going away with scores of 97-93 twice and 99-91. It was the Playboy Cover girl (St. John) getting schooled by the Sports Illustrated cover girl (Martin).
On Tuesday night, it was a whole different story. Martin was fighting for only the second time since that brutal 2010 attack by her delightful former husband, James Martin, who came very close to killing her. Judges Steve Morrow and Ralph McKnight scored the bout 96-94, while Abe Belardo had it 97-93.
Martin, who was seeking her 50th win in a career where she has been widely regarded as the greatest female boxer of all time, said after Tuesday’s bout that she was retiring.
Speaking to the Event Center crowd after the match, Martin said, “You’ve just seen me fight for the last time. Father Time has called my day.”
In their match, St. John started slowly, preferring to punch, move and stay away from Martin’s power. As her confidence grew, she got busier and began to get the best of their exchanges.
During the final seconds of the last round, Martin started to drop her hands and St. John briefly teed off on Martin’s face until stopping and embracing her rival as the final bell rang.
Also in the news, Alfredo Angulo was released from El Centro Detention Center in El Centro, CA. The popular Mexican-born boxer was released after an eight-month stay following the winning of his court case on July 30 and the resolution of his immigration status.
Angulo’s attorney, Lucy Haro, made the following announcement, “Alfredo had about three years of mismanagement, and we’ve been just basically cleaning up his mess and trying to get his life back together. So he had to go back to Mexico, and then he came to El Centro to present himself. Now that he’s had his court date, he’s won.”
In June, Angulo’s boxing manager and counsel, Michael Miller, informed the media, “Angulo had overstayed his U. S. Visa and was being held at the El Centro Service Processing Center, an immigration detention facility located 13 miles from the U.S.-Mexican border.”
They say Angulo never committed a crime and Haro was hired to finalize his paperwork which would allow him to legally live in the United States. They say he could have waited either in Mexico or at the Detention Center in El Centro and he chose the detention center.
Angulo (20-2, 17 knockouts) was last in the ring in November, when he lost by a sixth-round knockout to southpaw James Kirkland. That was the first time he had ever been stopped in his career, ending a streak of five straight KO victories since losing an unanimous decision to Kermit Cintron in May of 2009.
The other fights of interest: On Thursday night, August 16, middleweight Brady Rein (1-0) of Riverside, CA, formerly from the Boxing Club of Poway, CA will be taking on Omar Barefield a fellow who is making his debut at the Orange County Fairgrounds, Costa Mesa, CA.
Brady Rein (L) along with his loyal coach Tom DiFrancesco (R) pose for a photo with Casey who helped work the corner for a local USA Amateur Bout. Photo: Jim Wyatt
Then, Saturday, bantamweight (115-118 pounds) Mario Cuin of Temecula, CA is scheduled to make his pro-debut at the Hollywood Park Casino in Inglewood, CA against Manuel Machorro (0-6-1).
Mario Cuin (R) and Fernando Fuentes (L), the eventual winner, await the judges’ decision after competing in the annual Boxers for Christ Tournament at the Escondido Sports and Fitness Center on December 18, 2011.
Back on December 18, 2011, while Cuin was still an amateur, he fought Fernando Fuentes in the Boxers for Christ National Tournament at the Escondido Sports and Fitness Center. After Cuin won in the preliminary bouts, he lost in the finals to Fuentes of Real Deal Boxing in Hemet, CA. He was heavier then and fought as a featherweight. It’s expected that Cuin will have no problem against Machorro. His opponent’s record is (0-6-1), and he’s been knocked out three times.
