Three young boxers will be beginning their quest for a national
title in the Silver Glove Tournament in Bakersfield during the
Central California qualifier Nov. 22.
Ten-year-old Jorge Hernandez, 12-year-old Tony Corrales and
14-year-old Emilo Roman are working hard to prepare for the
qualifier. The club will compete in Cutler/Orosi outside of Fresno
this weekend to get ready for the big event.
Three young boxers will be beginning their quest for a national title in the Silver Glove Tournament in Bakersfield during the Central California qualifier Nov. 22.
Ten-year-old Jorge Hernandez, 12-year-old Tony Corrales and 14-year-old Emilo Roman are working hard to prepare for the qualifier. The club will compete in Cutler/Orosi outside of Fresno this weekend to get ready for the big event.
Also boxing this weekend is 18-year-old Danny Hernandez, who Bulldog Boxing Club founder and trainer Zeke Lopez hopes to see in the Olympics eventually. However, Hernandez is too old to compete in the Silver Glove.
If the boxers can come away with a win in Bakersfield, they will move on to the Regionals in Long Beach. From there, they move on to the state competition in Los Angeles. And from there it’s on to Kansas City for the Nationals.
Herndez and Corrales will go for three one-minute rounds, while Roman will compete in three one-and-a-half minute rounds.
“I could see these three kids doing very well in the fight,” Lopez said. “Jorge and Tony don’t have much experience, but they are tough kids.”
Hernandez, a 125-pounder, fought his first fight in Porterville on Sept. 20. He also won the fight of the night and brought home a trophy that was almost as big as he is.
“He is a very tough kid,” said Lopez of the Ladd Lane student. “But he fights like he is a pro. Everyone that sees him is amazed by him. The kid can throw a punch, can turn a punch, can body punch, can move. He is like a brawler-type kid that wants to stay in front of you and tear you apart. He is a quiet kid, but comes to the gym and does his thing.”
“I like working hard to get the trophies,” said Hernandez, whose father got him into boxing.
Corrales, who attends Rancho, will be competing in the 90-pound bracket.
Although he is still a rookie, he has been keeping up with some of the bigger kids.
“He will fare pretty good because he has a lot of power and is a good boxer,” Lopez said. “He has been doing a lot of sparring with the older, bigger guys. He has a lot of power – natural power. Most of the kids in the gym don’t want to spar with him any more because he knocks them around and gives them headaches, they say.”
Corrales said he isn’t nervous about his first fight.
“I am just going to try to punch him hard so he will get tired,” Corrales said. “It’s an active sport, and I like to be active.”
Roman, weighing in at 106 pounds, has the most experience of the three fighters. In his six fights, he is 4-2. The young boxer puts in about 15 hours of training each week.
“He has got the punching power and speed, and he moves real well,” Lopez said. “He learns very quick. He has fought kids that have had more than 20 fights and beat them. I think he is going to go pretty far.”
Anyone interested in making donations to help any of the Bulldog Boxing Club boxers should call Lopez at 636-1349.
