George Rincon of Dallas has waged a four-year siege on the 141-pound division of the state Golden Gloves Tournament.
Perhaps the most intriguing bout in this year’s tournament will take place tonight when the four-time state titlist and the defending national champion faces off with long and lanky Joey Alday of Odessa, who like his foe tonight, has experience at the elite national level.Rincon, an efficient boxer who wastes very few punches, topped Jerrion Campbell of East Texas in a first-round bout on Wednesday at the John Justin Arena at the Will Rogers Memorial Center.Alday and the rest of the field had byes into the quarterfinals. Tonight’s fight card begins at 7.“I know everybody is gunning for me, so that’s just another reason to work harder,” said Rincon, who fell short of a berth in the 2012 Games as a participant in the Olympic Trials. “It’s going to be a good fight. Tomorrow, we’ll see.”Rincon’s bout was one of 20 on the card Wednesday.Each are vying for a place in the national tournament in Salt Lake City in May.Boxers representing Fort Worth went 4-3 on the opening night, including a default loss by 200-pounder Alex Alvarez. Alvarez missed weigh-ins because of a work conflict.Jordan Najar (114), Brandin Chalker (132), John Duplessis (152), Estevan Roman (176) each advanced.Chalker will face Cresencio Ramos of San Antonio tonight in the quarterfinals. Najar, Duplessis and Roman will fight Friday.Jesse Parker, giving up a 71-pound weight advantage in the super heavyweight division, lost to 10-time state qualifier Robert Gutierrez, 34, of Corpus Christi. Gutierrez, 307 pounds, is seeking his first national berth.Antonio Castillo of Waco, but representing the Fort Worth region, is on the other side of the 141-pound bracket and wouldn’t face either Rincon or Alday until the finals on Saturday night.Castillo fights Julio Mares of the Rio Grande Valley tonight.Steve Belmontes, a Corpus boxer who fell to Alday in the USA Boxing state meet, is also on top of the bracket.Alday, who lost in the quarterfinals of the USA Boxing National Championships, knows he’ll need more than a Trojan horse to end Rincon’s stranglehold on 141.The West Texas boxer and Rincon have sparred, most recently at the Premier Boxing Club in Fort Worth. Alday said he has been studying film of that session.He said he as gleaned some things from those films that “will help me.”His objective, like all his fights, will be to use his reach advantage and box, and not let Rincon get inside.“I’ve always fought good people,” said Alday, 16, who has his focus on the Rio Games in 2016. “There’s no worry. I’m confident.”One of Rincon’s strengths, he said, is his intelligence in the ring, which enables him to adapt to various styles.For Rincon, the defending champion’s legendary amateur career will end after the Golden Gloves, whether that’s here or at nationals.The Olympics are not in the cards for the 21-year-old, who will begin following his dreams of a professional world champion.If his amateur career is any indication, Rincon will be heard from again at that level.“We thought about [the Olympics],” Rincon said, “but it’s time to go pro.”More information
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