Turbulent Night in Pasadena
 By Vikram Birring at Ringside (Dec 22, 2007) Doghouse Boxing
The old proverb says that one learns something new every day. In boxing, one is never too old to see something he has never seen before. On December 20, 2007, at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, Texas, the latter held true, as a bizarre ending to the penultimate match nearly led to a riot.
In the main event, Jesus ‘El Martillo’ Gonzales, 23-1 (13), of Houston squared off against Joshua Smith, 17-37 (15), of Nashville. It was hardly an event, as Smith did not attempt a single punch in the fight. In the second
round, Gonzales figured this out; he proceeded to knock Smith down, and after Smith rose groggily at the count of nine, finished him off. Official time was two minutes, sixteen seconds. To call the fight a mismatch is an injustice to the word. Smith’s facial complexion was of a man who had just seen a ghost. Whoever convinced him to get in the ring had performed a miracle. That miracle should not be allowed to happen again.
The real fireworks of the night took place when Eric ‘Drummer Boy’ Molina, 4-1 (4), of Raymondville fought ‘Crazy’ Robbie McClimans, 5-4 (2), of Conroe. Each man entered the ring with a gargantuan entourage while gangster rap music blared in the background. The mood was electric, as the crowd was clearly split between supporters of each man. Molina is a huge man, tall and muscular, the body structure of a man who should be practicing hook shots instead of left hooks. McClimans is short and chubby, but powerful and relentless. It was a classic boxing matchup: pressure versus height. The first round consisted of mostly feints and hesitation, and the crowd voiced its displeasure with hisses and catcalls. In the second round, Molina had an epiphany, the same one Floyd Mayweather had twelve days earlier: if he could time McClimans’s wild forward lunges, he could pick off the smaller man with a hook. Molina did just that, as one
right hook sent McClimans into a different galaxy. Then the hysteria began.
McClimans courageously rose before the count of ten, but had the balance of a drunken sailor. Molina went in for the kill, but at the same time, an unidentified woman sprinted towards McClimans’s corner. She grabbed the white towel used by McClimans’s trainers and tossed it into the ring. The crowd gasped, as if it had just witnessed the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
What now? In this author’s history of attending boxing matches, never has such an event taken place. Referee Barry Gates, the one man with the power to clear up the fiasco, appeared as perplexed as everyone else, as he stood in the middle of the ring cartoonishly clueless. Five minutes later, he decided to stop the fight, with the explanation he was going to anyway. This set off the grenade that was McClimans’s raucous contingent. All eyes turned to the woman and the Pasadena Police officers on duty, realizing what was to come, quickly took action and escorted her out of the arena. Had they not, she may not have made it. With the woman gone, all ire was directed towards Molina’s fans. The ring announcer, already sensing what was to come, asked the crowd to calm down. In response, each side hurled insults and threats at the other; a riot seemed inevitable. Once again, the police stepped in, and the situation thankfully calmed down.
McClimans claimed robbery, but in truth, he was ready to go. The woman did him a favor of sorts, but though she did what she thought was right, she had no right to take such action. Molina himself was robbed, in all probability, of a vicious knockout, but at least that would have given a coherent ending to the match. He stated afterwards he would fight McClimans again without any problem; one hopes the Pasadena Police Department heard him too, and that it prepares accordingly.
Undercard Notes
Heralded prospect John ‘The Lion’ Rarden, 9-0 (2), of Pasadena defeated perennial opponent Wayne Fletcher, 5-21 (3), of Dallas in what at times was an ugly affair. This was Rarden’s fourth fight in the Pasadena Convention Center, and his body, as well as his technique, has matured. Rarden has an impressive skill set for a twenty-two year old, and he displayed it throughout the fight, as he peppered Fletcher with a variety of punches from various angles. However, there is one glaring deficiency in his arsenal: power. In nine fights, he has only two knockouts. But maybe that is what makes Rarden such a skilled boxer; in sport, as in life, one emphasizes his strong points in an attempt to cover the weak. Rarden, to this point, has done an exceptional job.
When Roberto ‘El Jefe’ Flores, 7-1 (5), of Magnolia sauntered to the ring, jaws in the audiences dropped. Not because of his immense entourage, but simply because of the sight of a man the size of a sumo wrestler entering a boxing ring. Missouri City’s Jonathan Bradley, 4-6 (2), never had a chance. Within a few seconds, Flores bombarded Bradley against the ropes, and Bradley slumped over. The referee intervened and stopped the match, only twenty-seven seconds after it began. Fletcher suddenly stood up straight and argued vehemently with the referee, to no avail. Upon this realization, he turned towards Flores, only to see the giant shrug his shoulders, as if to say, “What do you want me to do?” The crowd booed, it paid money to see a fight, not an abortion of one. Still, Bradley lives to fight another day, and Flores moves on to the next opponent brave enough to step in the ring with him.
If the main event was a mismatch, there is not a word that exists in the English language to describe what was the swift shellacking Alicio Castaneda, 1-0 (1), handed Shreveport’s Ronnie Hill, 0-4, in his professional debut. The match was as fair as pitting the world’s fastest man in a race against a child. Castaneda’s body was rock solid, Hill’s was the opposite. Once the match began, the differences in skill became apparent. Castaneda was infinitely faster, stronger, and more accurate than his opponent. Two minutes, thirty-four seconds into the fight, Castaneda deposited Hill to the canvas. Hill did not get up in time, and the fight was over, just like that. The future looks bright for Alicio Castaneda, but one hopes that in his next fight he receives more than a tomato can as an opponent.
In what was the most entertaining bout of the evening, hometown sensation Crystal ‘Choo Choo’ Delgado, 3-0, traded punches for twelve minutes with Devin Crisi, 0-1, of Tulsa. Neither woman wasted any time, as from the opening bell both threw rights and lefts with reckless abandon. Crisi had a height advantage, but like a true fighter, she chose to trade, usually via bolo punches. Delgado’s nickname held true, as she ate punches as if they were flakes of cereal, and in response pounded Crisi relentlessly. The determination of Delgado was an astounding sight, and it was clear that something had to give. In the second, it did, as Crisi flew backwards and landed on the canvas. Her response? Get up and throw more punches. Delgado did not waver from her plan either, and continued to wear down Crisi slowly. This was as good as any great fight that comes to mind, and had Larry Merchant been in attendance, he would have given full approval. At the conclusion of the bout, the audience gave both women an extended standing ovation, one that was fully deserved.
And now, a word for women’s boxing. Though many are against the idea of women fighting, as promoter Don King has stated many times, women have the equal right to earn a living in the sport just as men do. Not only that, but their bouts for the most part are almost always entertaining. The lack of skill, in comparison to men’s boxing, is made up for with fierce determination and persistence. In a fair world Maureen Shea, Holly Holm and Mary Jo Sanders would get the same attention and paychecks that Floyd Mayweather, Ricky Hatton and Andre Berto do. Unfortunately, the world is not so fair, and it has never been, but one can still hope.
In the opening match, an exhibition pitted Jesus Mendez, 0-0, against Benjamin Flores, 17-3 (5). Mendez was faster, but Flores put on a body-punching clinic when Mendez chose to relax on the ropes. Both fighters have good potential, but to those close to Mendez, a word of advice: replace the Roy Jones tapes Mendez has been watching with those of Floyd Mayweather. Fighting with your hands down may work for some time, but eventually it is a recipe for disaster.
Thanks to Bobby Jones Promotions for putting on yet another wonderful boxing card in Pasadena, with many more promised to come!
Questions or comments,
e-mail  Vikram at: slickvik69@hotmail.com
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