Friday Night Fights at Sundance Square

So last night, Steve Bateson and I went to the Golden Boy Promoted, Telefutura televised Friday Night Fights at Sundance Square. We went early because we got general admission seats and there are some very good GA seats, but not many. We went and picked up the tickets, then had a burger at Billy Miner's and walked back across the street and into the parking lot where the fights are held. We were able to get the seats I wanted, in the corner, front row. So, while we had a partilaly obstructed view, we were also as close as our 22 dollar tickets would allow. We were also about an hour and a half early, so we sat in the sun waiting. I did, however catch Lupe Contreras "La Voz de Box" attention and told him I thought he was the best (ring announcer, far better than Jimmy Lennon and Michael Buffer). He gave me a big Lupe smile and said thanks. Not long after that, Vanessa Juarez, a Fort Worth fighter making her pro debut walked by and I told her good luck tonight. She turned around and gave me a big smile and said thanks. Not long after that, a 5'3" Middleweight named Marcus Hicks came up and started talking to the guy next to us. I did not speak to him, but I like him a lot. He had two majorly cauliflowered ears that were pretty nasty. So, finally, the first fight began.It was a four round Featherweight encounter between Houston's Miguel Albares and Midland's Jaime Villa, making his debut. We rooted for Villa and he fought fairly well and came away with a decision victory. It was not a great fight, there was a lot of hugging and holding. However, later in the evening, Villa walked by in street clothers to get Roberto Duran's autograph and I said good fight Jaime. He turned around with a big cheese, as though he was shocked that anybody recognized him and said Thanks. The next fight was delayed quite a bit as we awaited the arrival of the Golden Boy representative Roberto Duran. He finally showed up, everybody clapped, and it was back to the business at hand. Brian Vera, undefeated Fort Worth Middleweight against Marcus Hicks journeyman Dallas Middleweight. (I say journeyman, but really, he had only had 9 fights. He was 5-3-1, though.) I knew both of these guys coming in and I realyl liked the way Hicks fights. he is about 5'3 and he walks right in and whales away. But, Vera is from Fort Worth, so we were a bit torn. We decided to root for Vera with our heads, but vocally we kinda pulled for Hicks, especially since his buddy was sitting right next to us. This was a great fight. Hicks punished Vera to the body over and over and over. It was brutal. Vera kept returning fire, though. AIn the third round, a nice hook from Hicks bloodied Vera's nose. He got a bit wobbly after that and seemed to get on his bicycle a bit. But then in the 4th or 5th, He caught Hicks with a great right and stunned Hicks, who had been getting tired. He immediately rushed in and turned on the jets. He caught him with a couple of shots and finally the ref stepped in to stop it. It was outstanding. And, we were ok that the Fort Worth guy had won. Next up, undefeated Dallas super Featherweight Elias Lopez vs. Fort Worth's Jesus Guzman. This was a decent fight, but Guzman was way overmatched. Lopez eventually took him out. He fought very well and on his way out I told him so. He stook out his glove and I gave him some pound. That's right, I contacted fighter's gloved hand. I think it was not long after that Garland's own Americo Santos, a rising prospect walked by. He was with a handler of some sort and I said to Steve, hey that was Americo Santos. The handler nodded his head at me and when they walked by again, he pointed me out to Sanots, who came over and shook my hand. I told him I had enjoyed watching him fight a couple of weeks ago (against William Morelo), he smiled and said Thanks. On to fight number 4, the main event of the evening, featuring Colombian Middleweight, ranked 7th in the world by the WBC, Epifanio Mendoza against David Alfonso Lopez from Nogales. We were pulling for the underdog Lopez. The fight started pretty slow, with both guys trying to figure the other one out. Mendoza is not very skilled, but he has great power. He kept trying to walk in and thump Lopez. But, Lopez was able to box, get and get out, and do pretty well. Then, right at the end of the 5th, he connected with a beautiful body shot that stunned Mendoza. He almost couldn't get back to his corner. He came out for the 6th, but you could tell he wasn't really in it. Lopez continued to work the body and finally as Mendoza doubled over to protect himself Lopez caught him with a big right and put him down and out. Stunning. On his way out, I told him great fight and he shook my hand and said thanks. The next fight was Vanessa Juarez's debut. She came out like a house a fire, the crowd was going nuts. She just kept punching in bunches. Her opponent, from Houston was game and tough, but she just couldn't do anything. It ende as a four round shutout decision. After the fight Vanessa came over to me and said my well wishes were the reason she won the fight. Well, ok, that part wasn't true. The last fight was a 6 round Super Bantamweight fight between Benjamin Orozco from Ft. Worth and Keiron Armour from Garland. It was a good fight, pretty balanced. Steve and I felt like Orozco did enough to win, but it ended in a draw. We were ok with that. We left, opted not to go to the official after party and agreed that it had been a great night and we would have to come back next year and do it again.