Two young Bulldog Boxing Club athletes competed in the Central
California Golden Gloves championship on Saturday in Visalia at the
Holiday Inn.
Two young Bulldog Boxing Club athletes competed in the Central California Golden Gloves championship on Saturday in Visalia at the Holiday Inn.
Tony Corrales, 13, won his match against Jonathan Franco, while Jorge Hernandez lost in a rematch from the week before to Juan Ibarra from Visalia.
Corrales is 3-1 after winning his 95-pound match against Trevor Solari of Sacramento last week in Porterville.
“Tony is picking up the sport real well,” said Bulldog Boxing coach Lopez . “He is moving better, and he punches hard. He has a very good body punch. And whenever you hit someone with a body punch, it really takes a lot out of you.”
Hernandez, 11, suffered his first loss of his young career Saturday and is now 8-1.
“The kid was bigger and stronger than Jorge,” Lopez said. “Their coach looked at the tapes and changed things. They were more prepared than we were. But Jorge was a real man about it. He knew he lost, but he went over to congratulate him.”
Hernandez received an award for Fight of the Night in the 120-pound class. He had to miss a couple days of practice during the week to get caught up on some homework, Lopez said.
“You got to do your homework before you come into the gym,” Lopez said. “That is a must and something I stress all the time. But that is no excuse, because he could have beat this kid. It just wasn’t his day.”
Between the weigh-ins in the morning and the event in the evening, Lopez took the boxers to a park in the area to go fishing while they passed the time.
This weekend, Bulldog Boxing Club will be holding a sponsor’s appreciation day Saturday. The public is invited to come by the gym located at McCray Street and Gibbs Street to see sparring demonstrations and check out the club. Details: Call Lopez at 636-1349.
