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Friday, December 23, 2011 City Boxing Closed for the Holiday!: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed on Saturday at 2pm, and closed all day Sunday. Gym reopens Monday morning!
Tuesday, November 22, 2011 City Boxing Closed on Thanksgiving!: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Gym reopens Monday morning!
Friday, November 18, 2011 Xplode Fight Series 2, the great battles continue: The following was posted on

By James Wyatt

Last Saturday it was heavyweights Cain Velasquez versus Junior Dos Santos of the UFC representing the Mixed Martial Arts community on Fox Sports.

This Saturday, November 19, the MMA action is closer to home at the Valley Center Pavilion, Valley Center, CA. The promoter, Gregg Sharp, is offering 15 action packed bouts on a fight card dubbed, Hillside Havoc, as part of his Xplode Fight Series 2. The XFS 2 bill features two championship fights, a super fight, a grudge match plus 11 hotly contested bouts. With such a talent laden fight card, you're bound to see a lot more action than the 64 seconds offered last week on Fox Sports West.

For me, I feel the most intriguing bout is the light heavyweight title fight featuring Matt Lagler of Undisputed in North Park and Carlos Baruch of City Boxing. What makes this bout noteworthy are the personalities involved and the brave and persistent role of Lagler.

Lagler, who turns 32 on November 20, has never flinched from fighting anyone. The tougher they are, the better he likes it. And don't be fooled by his pedestrian 6-5-1 record, those wins and losses have come against only the top Mixed Martial Artists.

His only concern is about getting better and beating the best. Even though he's been a standout in every sport he's played, the fighting sports have always been his favorite. Like most, Lagler got his start in high school, where he dominated CIF wrestling for three straight years. Despite working two jobs and having two daughters whom he adores and would like to spend every minute with, he's been training extra hard for this matchup. He's run more and stayed longer at his home gym in North Park. His click of friends have been helping big time for this match.

In his last XFS bout, he lost to Jake Mapes, a full-time instructor at The Arena MMA in Point Loma. Realizing he had to learn from his mistakes, he took instruction and started sparring at Mapes' gym. Now armed with the additional training and sparring he got at The Arena he feels he's ready to take the next step.

For this XFS event, the matchmaker called him four times to tell him his opponent had changed. First up they had him fighting the Strikeforce knockout artist Keith "KO Kid" Berry. After that match-up fell through they had Manny Murrillo of Team Quest lined-up. Murrillo had recently won the Epic Fighting Middleweight Title. After that matchup failed to materialize, they went with Brodie Farber of FU2 Riverside Submission, another very tough opponent.

It was one of those situations where the opponent kept getting tougher and tougher. Then late last week, he learned he would have to drop 20 pounds in order to fight the legend, Baruch. As of yesterday, he still needed to drop an additional six pounds.

Carlos Baruch Ferreira, Lagler's fourth opponent to be, is a well known instructor at City Boxing Downtown San Diego by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He has fought around the world and been challenged by the best in the world. He received his black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu nine years ago from the legendary Carlson Gracie. The man known simply as Baruch is a seasoned competitor who's frequently called upon to assist in the training of fighters in all the top MMA organizations.

To hone his craft, he's trained with people like former UFC Light Heavyweight Champ - Vitor Belfort, current UFC Middleweight Champ - Anderson Silva, former PrideFC Heavyweight Champ - Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, former BJJ Mundial Champ Amaury Bitteti, and WEC Middleweight Champ - Paulo Filho.

Baruch's last fight didn't last long. Shortly after the signal to start, his victim, Robert Hefel of Dirty Tactics MMA went down with a thud. Seconds later the rear naked choke was applied and at the :37 mark of the first round there was a tapout.

Another colorful personality on Saturday's fight card is 30 year-old Allan Roach (5-2). He's now a part of the fraternity of Traveling Coaches that drives around to the various gyms to either coach or man the front counter. He might be at your gym on Monday and Wednesday, then he's off to a second gym on Tuesday and Thursday and possibly a third gym on Saturday.

When you see Mr. Roach, you'll agree that he's colorful. How colorful? The majority of his body is covered with tattoos, even the top of his head; the tattoos that have you gawking as if you're perusing a famous painting.

When it comes to the Mixed Martial Arts, he's what you'd call a late bloomer. He did start to wrestle in the 7th grade, and then along with his chums progressed on to the major fighting sports. His formal MMA training didn't come till much later.

Roach is considered a formidable striker. Every fight that Roach has won has been by knockout. The fact that middleweight boxer Danny "Dynamite" Perez is his boxing coach may have something to do with it.

Jeff Clark, another coach at The Arena in Point Loma, has been a big help. Clark makes up the strategy for each of his fights, watches the film of his opponents and then devises a strategy. Clark does this for a lot of MMA fighters and his reputation for being a game planner has grown.

The main event features Brady Harrison going up against Masonori Kanehara. Also on the fight card, Briggs Foreman, the son of Lance Foreman, is making his debut. The mention of the name Foreman evokes memories of the Lions Den, Ken Shamrock, Reno, and additional fighters, those from the Wanderlei Silva, The Axe Murderer's gym, the families of MMA.

Fighters have already started to talk the talk: Derek Anderson of Xplode MMA, who won his debut last time out, is anxious to take Dominque Chisem to school. Lightweight Edgar Cardenas (3-1) says he's ready to make his opponent, Joe Neri, suffer.
Friday, November 18, 2011 Pro MMA Xplode Fight Series 2, the battles continue: The following was posted on sportofboxing.com
By Jim Wyatt

Last week it was heavyweights Cain Velasquez versus Junior Dos Santos of the UFC representing the Mixed Martial Arts community on Fox Sports.

This week the action is closer to home with two championship fights and a super fight on the bill at the Valley Center Pavilion in Valley Center, CA on the Xplode Fight Series, XFS2. The gentlemen in the 170 pound, light heavyweight title fight are Matt Lagler of Undisputed North Park going up against Carlos Baruch Ferreira of City Boxing. And yet this is just one of the many explosive bouts being featured

What makes the Lagler versus Baruch bout so noteworthy are the personalities involved. Lagler, who turns 32 on November 20, has never flinched from fighting anyone. The tougher they are, the better he likes it. And don't be fooled by his pedestrian 6-5-1 record, those wins and losses have come against only the top Mixed Martial Artists.

His only concern is getting better and being the best. In high school, he dominated CIF wrestling for three straight years. Even though he's been a standout at every sport he's played, the fighting sports have always been his favorite. Despite working two jobs, and fathering two daughters, he began to run more and stay longer at his home gym in North Park. His click of fellow warriors have been keying on his maturation.

In his last match at Valley Center, he lost to Jake Mapes, a full-time instructor at The Arena MMA in Point Loma. Wanting to learn from his mistakes, he took instruction and additional sparring at The Arena.

For Saturday's event, the matchmaker had to call him four times to tell him his opponent had changed. First up they had him fighting the Strikeforce knockout artist Keith "KO Kid" Berry. After that match-up fell through they had Manny Murrillo of Team Quest lined-up. Murrillo had recently won the Epic Fighting Middleweight Title. After that matchup failed to materialize, they went with Brodie Farber of FU2 Riverside Submission, another very tough pro. After preparing for Farber, another change was made.

It was one of those situations where the opponent kept getting tougher and tougher. Then late last week, he learned he would have to drop 20 pounds in order to fight the legend, Baruch. As of Thursday, he still needs to drop an additional six pounds.

Carlos Baruch Ferreira is a well known instructor at City Boxing Downtown San Diego by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Over nine years ago, he received a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the legendary Carlson Gracie. The man known simply as Baruch is a seasoned competitor who's frequently called upon to train fighters in all the top MMA organizations.

To hone his craft he's trained with people like former UFC Light Heavyweight Champ – Vitor Belfort, current UFC Middleweight Champ – Anderson Silva, former PrideFC Heavyweight Champ – Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, former BJJ Mundial Champ Amaury Bitteti, and current WEC Middleweight Champ – Paulo Filho.

Baruch's last fight lasted all of 37 seconds. Shortly after the signal to start, his victim, Robert Hefel of Dirty Tactics MMA went down with a thud. Seconds later came the rear naked choke at the :37 mark of the first round.

Another colorful personality on Saturday's fight card is 30 year-old Alan Roach (5-2). He's now a part of the fraternity of Traveling Coaches that drives around to the various gyms to either coach or man the front counter. He might be at your gym on Monday and Wednesday, then he's off to a second gym on Tuesday and Thursday and possibly a third gym on Saturday.

When you see Mr. Roach, you'll have to agree he's colorful. How colorful? Over the majority of his body are tattoos, even the top of his head; the tattoos that have you gawking as if you were looking at a famous painting.

When it comes to the Mixed Martial Arts, he's what you'd call a late bloomer. He did start to wrestle in the 7th grade, and then along with friends moved on to the other fighting sports. His formal training didn't come until much later.

Middleweight boxer Danny "Dynamite" Perez is his boxing coach and every fight that Roach won has been by knockout. For this reason, Roach is considered a formidable striker.

Jeff Clark, a coach at The Arena in Point Loma, has also been a big help. Clark makes up the strategy for each of his fights, watches the film of his opponents and then devises the strategy. Clark does this for a lot of MMA fighters and his reputation for being a great game planner has grown.

The main event features Brady Harrison going up against Masonori Kanehara. Also on the fight card, Briggs Foreman, the son of Lance Foreman, is making his debut. The mention of the name Foreman evokes thoughts of the Lions Den, Ken Shamrock, Reno, and additional fighters from Wanderlei Silva's gym, the families of MMA.

Fighters have already started to talk the talk: Derek Anderson of Xplode MMA, who won his debut last time out, is anxious to take Dominque Chisem to school. Lightweight Edgar Cardenas (3-1) says he's ready to make his opponent, Joe Neri, suffer.
Saturday, October 8, 2011 City Boxing's Chris Chatman dominated Rahman Yusubov: Also on the undercard, San Diego's Chris Chatman (10-1, 5 KOs) dominated Rahman Yusubov (11-5) from start to finish before referee Danny Schiavone stopped the bout at the end of the fifth round. For Chatman, it was his first win in Rhode Island in his second try; he lost a close, unanimous decision to former U.S. Olympian Demetrius Andrade in 2009.
Monday, October 3, 2011 Upcoming Fight for Chris Chatman: Friday, October 7, 2011 at Twin Rivers Casino in Rhode Island
Chris Chatman vs. Rahman Yusubov
Tuesday, August 9, 2011 Results from Saturday's Xplode MMA Fight Series at Valley Center: The following was posted on sportofboxing.com
By Jim Wyatt

[watch video]

Bout #8 featured Carlos Baruch Ferreira, a well known instructor at City Boxing Downtown San Diego by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Over nine years ago, Baruch received a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the legendary Carlson Gracie. The man known simply as Baruch is a seasoned competitor who's frequently called upon to train fighters in all the top MMA organizations. To hone his craft he has often trained with people like former UFC Light Heavyweight Champ – Vitor Belfort, current UFC Middleweight Champ –Anderson Silva, former PrideFC Heavyweight Champ – Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, former BJJ Mundial Champ Amaury Bitteti, and current WEC Middleweight Champ – Paulo Filho. Whomever they placed in front of this legend, he was going to be in deep doo-doo. The bout lasted all of 37 seconds. Shortly after the signal to start, his victim, Robert Hefel of Dirty Tactics MMA went down with a thud heard clear across the canyon. Seconds later came the rear naked choke. The bout ended at the :37 mark of the first round.

Bout #3 featured Kyle Wender, a former Jiu-Jitsu competitor (with a 16-1 record) and wrestler from Fresno, CA, who now trains at City Boxing in San Diego. Wender had no problem defeating Gabriel Lopezwinning his match by submission at 1:01 of the first round with a rear naked choke.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011 New Faces: Chris Chatman: The following was posted on fightnews.com
By Robert Coster

What makes Chicago-born, San Diego-based jr Middleweight Chris Chatman (9-1-1, 4 KOs) stand apart from other young boxers looking for fame and fortune in the ring? Simply that, in times when "prospects" abound, with undefeated, padded records against hand-picked opposition, Chatman has been ready to fight anywhere and against anybody. Typically, the 27 year-old former navy man, will take a fight on short notice, coming into his opponent's hometown. In his 11 bout career, Chatman can claim the scalp of three previously unbeaten boxers (Francisco Mora 3-0, Alberto Herrera 7-0 and Lester Gonzalez 11-0).

He lost on points to then 7-0 Demetrius Andrade but gave the touted Olympian all he could handle. The draw on Chris' ledger was in his last fight, against unbeaten Charles Hartley 14-0, a 2007 national amateur welterweight champion. Chatman knocked him down in the last round.

Says manager Mark Dion, "We're having problems finding fights for Chris. Nobody wants to go against such a tough guy. I have two words to describe him: he is fearless and feared."

Before turning pro in 2008, Chris Chatman had had a short but successful (27-4) amateur career which included a Navy championship title, a Golden Gloves title and winning a bronze in the 2007 Nationals. As a pro, the highlights of Chatman's career have been the following:

Demetrius Andrade L6 (10-03-2009) The 5'8″ Chatman travels to Lincoln, Rhode island,on short notice, to face 6'1″ Olympian Andrade on his home turf. A knockdown against Andrade is not counted by the referee and the local idol is forced to go to the hospital after the fight. "If the fight had been an eight-rounder, I would have stopped him. He had nothing left," remembers Chatman.

Alberto "Baby Dynanite" Herrera KO7 (10-08-2010) Chris travels to Ontario, California, to face unbeaten hometown hero Herrera and wears down his man in seven rounds.

Lester Gonzalez W8 (11-18-2010) Unbeaten Cuban refugee Gonzalez is the favorite but Chatman wins the decision and the California State jr middleweight title.

Charles Hartley D8 (2-4-2011). This ESPN Friday night fight is held in Dallas, Hartley's hometown. Chatman, who took the fight on 2 weeks' notice, is knocked down in the first round but returns the favor in the last round. "Again a case of the bell ringing too soon," says the San Diego boxer.

Asked what are Chatman's assets, manager Dion answers, "Chris can box or brawl depending on the situation. He has above average handspeed. He gets stronger as the fight goes on because of his imposing physique and stamina and he is a southpaw to boot."

While waiting for a fight to come through, Chris Chatman is a boxing trainer to inner-city kids at Dion's City Boxing Gym in San Diego. "I love teaching these kids," says Chatman, "but I really want to get back in the ring… with Andrade, Hartley, any of these guys. I'd love to fight again on ESPN. I don't need no padded record, no boxing nickname. I want the world to know that Chris Chatman, forged on the streets of Chicago, is the original tough guy, the real deal. My time will come."
Tuesday, August 2, 2011 Amateur Kickboxing World Championchip in Orlando, Florida: Jared Williams - 1st Place
Fight 1: Won by KO
Fight 2: Won by unanimous decision

Antonio Bucchi
Fight 1: Won by unanimous decision
Fight 2: Won by Unanimous Decision

Justim Smith - 2nd Place
Fight 1: Won by KO
Fight 2: Lost by unanimous decision

Deniel Velez
Lost by split decision
Monday, July 11, 2011 Full report from Hollywood, Fla.: The following was posted on fightnews.com
By Rey Sanchez

The promotional debut of Panther Promotions LLC at Saturday's "Change is Coming" show certainly lived up to its billing. Filling the void left by the recent and sudden departure of longtime promoter The Heavyweight Factory (partly due to recent Seminole tribal leadership changes), Panther Promotions came out swinging. The sports and entertainment company headed by former welterweight contender Harold Weston, local trainer Benny Collins and former boxer Elliot Alvarado treated fans to seven competitive, well-matched fights during their premiere event. Boxing legend "Smokin'" Joe Frazier sat ringside graciously signing gloves and taking pictures with the boisterous crowd. Frazier, now forty years removed from the "Fight of The Century" first fight of the Muhammad Ali trilogy, seemed to thoroughly enjoy the action and adulation as well.

Russian-born light heavyweight Denis "The Pirate" Grachev (11-0-1, 7 KOs) of San Diego plundered the vacant WBC Inter-Continental belt with his 3rd-round stoppage over Eddie "Thunder" Caminero (7-5, 7 KOs) of Lawrence, Massachusetts in the 10-round main event. Grachev, the 28-year old former two-time World Kickboxing champion, continues to win on the road– scoring successive prior victories against former unbeaten fighters Vladine Biosse in Connecticut and Haitian Azea Augustama in Miami.

Caminero, a Puerto Rican puncher who likens his style to former champion Felix "Tito" Trinidad, started the action with wide-swinging power shots to Grachev's body. The taller Russian took these shots in stride, using superior balance and footwork to locate his range and score lead right hands upstairs. Caminero came out blasting in the second round, winging power shots that often left him off balance when Grachev stepped to his side. The two men exchanged thudding right hands but Grachev followed his up with three crisp left hooks to the head and body to give him the first two rounds on the scorecards.

The third round showcased an accelerated attack from Grachev, who started mixing in right uppercuts to his arsenal. Caminero felt these shots and started backing away for a reprieve. However, The "Pirate" gave no quarter and stepped on the gas with crushing right hands and a double jab, straight right-left hook-right cross combo to leave Caminero treading water along the ropes. Referee Frank Gentile jumped in to wave off the surging Russian's assault, much to the vocal disdain of Caminero and most of the crowd. It seemed an academic point as the dazed Puerto Rican stopped returning fire and faced another half-round of punishment when Gentile stepped in at 1:29 in the third.

Grachev commented afterwards: "I was ready for knockout, but referee didn't give me much time. He saved the guy." Now that he holds a regional belt in the talent-laden light heavyweight division, Grachev predicts: "I'm going to the top, for world title." Given his penchant for pounding out victories away from home, the trip should be fun to watch.

The co-main event featured unbeaten southpaw middleweight Chad Trahan (5-0, 4 KOs) squaring off against Haitian Elie Augustama (5-3, 3 KOs) in an 8-round bout. Augustama, (younger brother of originally-scheduled headliner Azea Augustama) sought to rebound from two straight losses coming into the fight. However Trahan, who hails from the same hometown (Lafayette, Louisiana) as undefeated welterweight sensation Brad "King" Solomon, dominated the action in Solomon's old stomping grounds.

Trahan used repeated lead left hands upstairs to force the taller and longer-armed Augustama into a defensive posture during the early rounds. Unable to mount a consistent and effective jab, Augustama allowed Trahan to walk in and score straight lefts and right hooks to the body and head. Augustama fired single right hands in reply, one of which caught Trahan squarely in the fourth round. Trahan responded with a low blow that dropped Augustama and earned him a warning from referee Sam Burgos.

Augustama started to step up his workrate in the fifth with decent counter right hands and left hooks but Trahan dictated the pace and distance, trapping Augustama in the corner during the seventh round. Augustama came back to return the favor and land some shots on Trahan in the corner at the close of the round. It was not enough to overcome the deficit on the scorecards as all three judges scored it 79-73 for Trahan.

The undercard overshadowed in terms of excitement and action, beginning with the first fight of the evening between light middleweight Frank Gedeon (3-0, 2 KOs) and Antonio Infante (6-1, 4 KOs). The southpaw Gedeon sizzled in his Hard Rock debut beginning with sharp jabs, right hooks and left crosses to begin the round. A quick 1-2 planted the charging Infante on the deck as Gedeon started jumping up and down in excitement. Infante fell again seconds later in a ruled slip by referee Sam Burgos but couldn't hold off the frenzied barrage from Gedeon. Sensing the opening, Gedeon laid on repeated left hands to put Infante out on his feet as he stumbled along the ropes, forcing Burgos to wave it off at 1:32 of round one. Gedeon apparently needed to burn off excess energy á la Bernard Hopkins as he started pumping out push-ups in the ring following the victory.

The consensus pick for fight of the night belonged to the six-round middleweight bout between tall men Lamar Russ (8-0, 5 KOs) of Hartford Connecticut and Marcus Upshaw (13-7-1, 6 KOs) from Jacksonville. The 6'2" Russ and 6'3'' Upshaw bucked convention to fight at close range in a compelling slugfest. Entering the ring in a white mask, Upshaw sought to intimidate the unbeaten and relatively untested Russ, whose prior opponents possessed a combined record of 33-37.

Missing with a right hand in the early part of the first round, Upshaw suffered a flash knockdown behind a perfectly placed left hook counter from Russ. Beating the count, Upshaw faced a strong right uppercut and left hook combination from the confident Russ. The furious pace paused momentarily as both men caught their breath and resumed with Upshaw digging left hooks to the body and eating left hooks upstairs from Russ.

In the second, Upshaw found the range for some left hooks and right uppercuts but continued catching good right leads and left hooks from Russ. Propelled by overconfidence, Russ began shouting at Upshaw after peppering him with punches. However, discretion would prove the better part of valor as Upshaw crushed an opening with a beautiful right hand forcing Russ to slowly melt to the canvas. Beating the count but unsteady on his feet, Russ survived the round. The intensity continued in the third as both men continued trading well after the bell. Russ finished strong in the later rounds to earn the judges' nod by a margin of 58-54 and 57-55 (twice).

Super middleweight Jerrod Caldwell (1-0, 1 KO) of Gainesville, Florida earned an impressive professional debut victory by way of third-round TKO stoppage over Rendall Vercher (0-3) from Houston. Caldwell leveraged better movement, combination punching and defense against the flat-footed, power-punching Texan. Vercher appeared visibly frustrated after one such exchange in the third as he turned his back on his opponent and started walking back to his corner. When he did return to the center of the ring, Caldwell made him pay with a sustained onslaught to force referee Frank Gentile to halt the proceedings at 2:04 of the round.

Cuban cruiserweight Yuniesky Gonzalez (5-0, 3 KOs) scored a unanimous decision victory over southpaw former super middleweight Grover Young (5-3, 2 KOs) of Memphis. Gonzalez stalked Young in his customary fashion, but faced sharp counter combinations from the left-handed Young. The disparity in size and power proved too much for Young to overcome however as Gonzalez pitched a shutout with scores of 60-54.

Welterweight Cletus Seldin (1-0, 1 KO) of Long Island pounded and astounded in his professional debut with a vicious third-round stoppage over Puerto Rican Wilson Feliciano (2-2, 2 KOs). Seldin–the 2010 NY Daily News Golden Gloves champion followed the circling Feliciano for most of the first two rounds, catching him with strong right hands. Feliciano mounted good left hook counters but couldn't move out of range from Seldin's rights, which left his left cheekbone swollen and his mouth bloody. An overhand right from Seldin hurt Feliciano and prompted a fierce battery of punishment to force referee Frank Gentile to save Feliciano from further damage at 48 seconds of the third round.
Saturday, July 9, 2011 City Boxing Class Thursday
Saturday, July 9, 2011 Grachev to fight Caminero at Seminole Hard Rock Saturday: The following was posted on miamiherald.com
By Santos A. Perez

California was a productive area for the first phase of Dennis Grachev's professional career.

Grachev, a native of Russia, won his first nine bouts on the West Coast but was ready to expand his horizons in 2011. Following the trend he set in California, Grachev has already won two fights in the Eastern zone and will seek his third victory of the year Saturday night.

Grachev (10-0-1, 6 KOs) will face Puerto Rico's Eddie Caminero in the main event of a show at the Seminole Hard Rock Live Arena. The Grachev-Caminero super-middleweight bout, headlines an announced seven-bout card.

In addition to winning fights outside of California, Grachev has made a habit of spoiling opponent's unbeaten records. In January, Grachev appeared in his first South Florida bout and won a hard-fought majority decision over Miami resident and previously unbeaten Azea Augustama at the Magic City Casino.

Vladine Biosse's unbeaten record also ended when he faced Grachev May 6 in Mashantucket, Ct. Grachev stopped Biosse in four rounds.

Although not blessed with a spotless record, Caminero has won all his fights by knockout. Caminero (7-4) is a replacement for Blake Prevost, who withdrew last week because of an injury

Saturday's show also will feature Miami residents Elie Augustama and Yunieski Gonzalez in separate undercard bouts. Augustama will face Chad Trahan in a scheduled eight-round super-middleweight bout while Gonzalez will fight Grover Young in a light-heavyweight bout scheduled for six rounds.
Saturday, July 9, 2011 Panther Promotion enters ring!: The following was posted on fightnews.com

Promoters Eliot Alvarado and Benny Collins of Panther Promotions launch their inaugural card "Change is Coming" tonight at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL.

In the main event, undefeated Russian Dennis Grachev (10-0-1, 6 KOs) battles hard-hitting Puerto Rican bomber Eddie Caminero (7-4, 7 KOs) for the vacant light heavyweight Inter-Continental title.

Featured on the undercard are middleweight Elie Augustama (5-2, 3 KOs) who hails from Haiti and cruiserweight Yuniesky Gonzalez (4-0, 3 KOs) from Cuba.

Several up and coming prospects are also showcased.

Ex-welterweight contender Harold Weston, who is the Director of Operations for Panther Promotions, said, "We are the new generation, determined to reinvent boxing. We want to give young fighters an opportunity to fight, gain experience, feed their families and open doors to better opportunities without being tied down."

Legendary heavyweight champion Smokin' Joe Frazier is special guest at tonight's card at the Hard Rock. Frazier will sign boxing gloves that will be raffled to the fans to commemorate the 40th anniversary "Fight of the Century" and his victory over Muhammad Ali.
Saturday, July 9, 2011 Russian light-heavyweight pursues dream on Hard Rock boxing card: The following was posted on sun-sentinel.com
By Chris Perkins

Russian light-heavyweight Denis Grachev plans on taking another step toward his boxing dream at 8 p.m. Saturday when he fights Eddie Caminero in a 10-round main event at the Hard Rock Live.

"While in Russia as a child I used to watch a boxing TV show that showed how the great boxers became stars," said Grachev, who has a 10-0 record with six knockouts.

"I want to become a world champion and then become a big star."

The winner of Saturday's main event gets an Inter-Continental title.

Caminero (7-4, 7 KOs), who lives and trains in Massachusetts, has been struggling lately, having lost four of his last six fights, three by technical knockout. This is one of the last chances he has remaining and said he'll embrace the opportunity.

"I don't know fear and I have been preparing myself for some time now," he said. "I know this victory and this title are meant to be mine. My hands will be lifted on Saturday night as not only the winner of the fight, but as a champion."

Azea Augustama, the Haitian light-heavyweight who trains in Hollywood and lives in North Miami Beach, was scheduled to headline Saturday's seven-fight card, the inaugural event by upstart Panther Promotions, but a cut sustained during training is preventing the 2008 Haiti Olympic team member from fighting.

Grachev, a former mixed martial arts fighter who now lives in San Diego, defeated the previously undefeated Augustama in an eight-round majority decision at Miami's Magic City Casino in January. Grachev has been a full-time boxer for the last three years.

"Mike Tyson and Miguel Cotto are two of my favorite fighters because they have fighting styles that I really enjoy," Grachev said. "They come at you, never back down. That's me. I step forward to hurt and I really mean it."
Tuesday, June 28, 2011 Manny Melchor: Former Champion Boxer Now a Local Trainer: The following was posted on sccpress.com
By Marissa Acierto

We took a quick visit to meet an all time great Filipino boxer right in the heart of Downtown San Diego - former WBC International Minimum Weight Champion (105 pounds) and former IBF Minimum Weight Champion, none other than Manny "Cabalay" Melchor. Melchor was one of the great champions of boxing of Filipino descent. Manny retired from boxing in 2003. Other boxers during his championship reign included all time favorites: "Sugar" Ray Leonard, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and many others making this period in boxing one of the greatest.

Manny Melchor at 42-years-old now trains youth and promising boxers at the City Boxing Gym, will have the opportunity to learn from someone who is recognized as one of the best. "I developed my own style through careful observation," stated Melchor.

Eddie Enriquez an SCCPress.com reporter asked, "Manny…what got you interested in boxing?" Although, Manny prefers to speak in Tagalog but practiced his English said, "I saw the struggles my mom was going through and wanted to help out financially so I decided to take up boxing at 15-years-old; in the Philippines amateur boxers got paid."

For further info on training with Manny Melchor and other professional trainers contact City Boxing Gym, (619) 233-5444, 1059 14th Street, San Diego. The center has trainers that specialize in Muay Thai Kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).
Tuesday, June 28, 2011 Upcoming Fight for Denis Grachev: Saturday, July 9, 2011 at Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood Florida for the WBC 175 lbs Intercontinental Championship
Denis Grachev vs. Blake Prevost
Sunday, June 5, 2011 Epic Fighting 6: "Epic Fighting 6" took place June 4, 2011 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel in San Diego, California, United States. This was an all amateur event.

185 lbs. - Kyle Wender defeated Cordell Williams by submission (armbar) in round one.
Thursday, May 26, 2011 City Boxing Closed on Sunday and Monday: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed for the Memorial Holiday on 5/29(Sunday) and 5/30(Monday).
Monday, May 9, 2011 City Boxing's Denis Grachev Stops Biosse: Ringside Report by Scott Ploof
Photography By Emily Harney

As the old boxing saying goes, 'somebody's "0" must go' and it did on Friday night in front of just over 1000 fight fans at the Fox Theatre inside of Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Mashantucket, CT as Jimmy Burchfield's Classic Entertainment and Sports presented "Champion Breed."

In the main event of the evening, San Diego CA's Denis Grachev (10-0-1, 5 KOs), a former Russian kickboxing champion, scored a fourth round TKO victory over the previously undefeated Providence RI super middleweight, Vladine Biosse (11-1, 6 KOs) as he knocked down twice in four rounds. After the second knockdown, referee Joey Lupino had seen enough and stopped the fight immediately.

Biosse, a former college football player from the University of Rhode Island, stood toe to toe with Grachev in the first round but seemed to be fighting a little too tight with his punches as Grachev was able to easily avoid them throughout the contest.

Grachev began working at the body of Biosse in a big way over the first two rounds. This allowed him the opportunity to land several jabs and combinations that had Biosse on the defensive throughout the later rounds of the fight.

A clash of heads early in the fourth round caused a nasty cut on the side of the right eye of Biosse. Shortly after the accidental headbutt, Grachev connected with a hard right hand that sent Biosse to the canvas for the first time in the fight.

The action continued after Biosse was able to get to his feet before referee Joey Lupino reached the count of ten. It was easy to see that Biosse was still on wobbly legs after the initial knockdown as Grachev went right after him looking to put him away.

Even after getting knocked down and with Grachev throwing knockout punches at him, Biosse was able to land a nice solid left hook counter on his opponent. The only problem was that it was then followed up with a Grachev right that landed cleanly on Biosse sending him down to the canvas for the second and final time. Time of the stoppage was 2:56 of round number four, giving Grachez the tenth win in his professional boxing career.

After the fight, Biosse stated to the media, "He hit me with some good shots tonight. I give him a lot of credit. I'm not making any excuses. He took advantage and made the most of his opportunity. If I were in that position, I would've done the same thing."

FightNews also had a chance to speak with Grachev after the bout, "I wasn't surprised in the way that he approached the fight. I had seen a few of his fights on YouTube so I knew what to expect."

When asked what his game plan going into this fight was, since both fighters seemed to be counter punchers, Grachev said, "It was kind of a feeling out process. I tested his power and knew he was strong. I adjusted, controlled the fight from there, and finished him off."

"I knew after the first round, I knew," said Grachev when asked when he first started to realize that he had figured out Biosse's offense and was going to win the fight.
Saturday, May 7, 2011 San Diego's Denis Grachev pulls off second upset in a row: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Tonight in Providence, Rhode Island, somebody's in trouble. When you have a top prospect like undefeated super middleweight Vladine Biosse in your stable, the idea is to keep bringing in softer opponents so you can build up his record. How could this guy from San Diego by the name of Denis "The Pirate" Grachev be flying so far under our radar?

Believe me, it's only a matter of time before everyone knows the name - Grachev. For the past couple of years he's been like that fly paper hanging from the ceiling, catching every unsuspecting bug that dares to come his way. If you don't want to box, he'll take you on in the Mixed Martial Arts. Because he's so discreet, low-key, without all the usual hype and bravado, he stays centered, on course to become a champion.

Tonight's victim, Biosse, now goes to (11-1-0, 6 KOs). Next week, who knows. It could be Mikkel Kessler. In Biosse's earlier quotes there were the references to Grachev's kicking prowess, "As long as he doesn't kick me, I should be all right." No you're not going to be all right. Grachev can handle the situation whatever the rules - using the eight limbs or just two.

Grachev (10-0-1, 5 KOs) of City Boxing in San Diego's Downtown made a very impressive statement at the Fox Theater inside the Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Mashantucket, CT by defeating the hometown hero. At first, it was Grachev's plan to work the midsection which in turn soften up his opponent. That opened Biosse up for Grachev to land his powerful left hooks to the side of Biosse's head. Biosse went to the canvas three times during the fight en route to the fourth round stoppage. Referee Joey Luppino stopped the bout at 2:56 of the fourth.

Super middleweight and former world title challenger Elvin Ayala won his third fight in a row after battering veteran George Armenta for four rounds. Armenta was unable to come off his stool to start round number five. With the fourth round TKO victory, Ayala improves to (23-5-1, 11 KOs), while Armenta falls to (13-7, 11 KOs).

"Slick" Rick Dawson, the brother of former light heavyweight champion Chad Dawson, won a four round unanimous decision over Odias Dumezil (3-6, 1 KO). Dawson won the bout with his speed and ability to slip punches. With the victory, he improves his record to (4-0, 1 KO).

Over the first three rounds, Thomas Falowo was completely dominating Zack Thomas and then finally refereeDanny Schiavone called a halt to the action after he decided Thomas could no longer defend himself. With the victory Falowo improves to (3-0, 3 KOs) while Thomas falls to (1-4-1).

In a four round heavyweight bout, Macon, Georgia's Tobias Rice (3-3, 2 KOs) won a four round unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten Jevon Langford (6-1, 6 KOs). Scores of the bout were 40-37 and 39-37 twice. Langford, a former Cincinatti Bengals football player, fought for the first time in eight years. He showed his power early but then got out-worked by Rice in the final rounds.

New Bedford, Massachusett's Johnathan Vazquez (4-0, 3 KOs) kept his perfect record intact after winning a hard fought four round unanimous decision victory over Buffalo, NY's Andrew Jones (0-6-1). All three scorecards had him ahead, 40-36, 39-38, and 39-37. Jones was the first boxer to take Vazquez the distance.

Christian Lao (2-0, 1 KO) won his second fight by soundly defeating Barrington Douse (0-1) with a four round unanimous decision. All three judges had him ahead 40-36.
Thursday, May 5, 2011 San Diego's Denis Grachev travels east to take on Vladine Biosse on Friday: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

This Friday, light heavyweight prospect, Vladine Biosse (11-0, 6 KOs) of Providence, Rhode Island by way of the Cape Verde Islands off the western coast of Africa, will be facing one of San Diego's local heroes Denis Grachev (9-0-1, 5 KOs) in the main event of "Champion Breed," presented by Jimmy Burchfield's Classic Entertainment & Sports at Foxwoods Resort Casino's Fox Theater in Mashantucket, Conn.

Ever since Grachev and his wife emigrated to the United States from Chaykovsky, Russia, a little over five years ago, he's been quite busy. Not only does he compete in MMA, Muay Thai and Boxing, he's also a full time instructor at City Boxing in San Diego's Downtown. His credentials are of the highest order. The current IKF Muay Thai Light Cruiserweight World Champion is also a two-time World Kickboxing Champion and four time Russian National Kickboxing Champion.

In his last fight, on January 14, 2011, Grachev defeated by majority decision the previously unbeaten Haitian light heavyweight Azea Augustama, a member of the 2008 Olympic boxing team.

Friday will be Biosse's third bout since February 4 and his second in less than five weeks. Since turning the page on 2010, Biosse has won each of his fights this year by knockout, to include a win over two-time world champion Santiago Samaniego.

Led by trainer Orlondo Valles, Biosse remains in peak physical condition between each fight, which they claim could be the deciding factor in Friday's match-up. Grachev has dealt with long stretches of inactivity within the past two years; his victory over Augustama was his first fight in 13 months, so as of Friday night he'll have fought just one bout in the last year and a half.

"Vladine is a strong kid with a lot of power," states Valles. "I've wanted to boost that power because he doesn't even know how strong he is. We don't just want decisions. We want to do the job as quickly as possible."

So far this year, Biosse has made quick work of his opponents, a far cry from last year in which he won all four of his bouts by unanimous decision after returning from a broken hand.

In past Providence, Rhode Island bouts, the scoring by the local judges has been called into question and now we have Grachev going to face a man they call "Mr. Providence." Ever since his arrival in town at the age of 13, Biosse has been Mr. Everything in local sports. In high school, he was the team captain for the football team, played running back, defensive back and kicker resulting in all-state honors. Come Spring, he matched those feats by being a star in track and field.

On the undercard, New Haven, Conn., super middleweight Elvin Ayala (22-5, 10 KOs) will face George Armenta (13-6, 11 KOs) of Silver Spring, Md., in an eight-round co-feature.

Also, New Haven lightweight Christian Lao (1-0, 1 KO) will face Barrington Douse of Springfield, Mass., in Douse's professional debut; unbeaten middleweight Thomas Falowo (2-0, 2 KOs) of Pawtucket, R.I. will take on Cincinnati's Zach Thomas (1-3); New Haven middleweight Rick Dawson (3-0, 1 KO) will take on Odias Dumezil (3-5, 1 KO) of Winter Haven, Fla., who now trains at 401 Boxing in East Providence, R.I.; Providence cruiserweight Maurice Cole will make his debut against Shawn Brooks of Thomson, Ga.; and New Bedford, Mass., junior welterweight Johnathan Vazquez (3-0, 3 KOs) will return to the ring for the first time since November.
Friday, April 29, 2011 Upcoming Fight for Denis Grachev: Friday, May 6, 2011 at Foxwoods Resort Mashantucket, Conn
Denis Grachev vs. Vladine Biosse
Friday, April 22, 2011 City Boxing Closed on Easter Sunday!: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed on Easter Sunday.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011 Eric McDavid gets second place in ADCC North American Championship: ADCC North American Championship Full Results

+99 kg
1-Jared Rosholt (Takedown)
2-Eric McDavid (City Boxing)
3-Jeffrey Owens (Lutter/Nova Uniao)
3-Raymond Seraile (Baret Submissions)
Tuesday, March 22, 2011 City Boxing's Jackson Hotaling vs. Josh Lee March 26 @ Pala Fitness Center
Tuesday, March 22, 2011 City Boxing's Beau Hart vs. Kellen Delaney April 16
Tuesday, March 8, 2011 World Professional Jiu-jitsu Cup 2011 Carlos "Baruch" Ferreira and Austin Nakagawa take 1st place while Kyle Wender gets robbed!: World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Cup 2011 - San Diego Trial Results

NO-GI Adult Male Advanced:

-163 lbs.
1st Place: $200.00 + Kit + Gold Medal = Carlos Baruch Ferreira (City Boxing)
2nd Place: Silver Medal = Rodrigo Caporal (ATOS)
3rd Place: Bronze Medal = Rodrigo Faria (Checkmat)
3rd Place: Bronze Medal = Christopher Story (Nova Uniao)

-183 lbs.
1st Place: $200.00 + Kit + Gold Medal = Caudio Calasans (ATOS)
2nd Place: Silver Medal = Andre Galvao (ATOS JJ)
3rd Place: Bronze Medal = Beneil Bariush (Ralph Gracie OC)
3rd Place: Bronze Medal = Kyle Wender (City Boxing)

NO-GI Adult Male Beginner:

1st Place: Kit + Gold Medal = Austin Nakagawa (City Boxing)
2nd Place: Silver Medal = Drew Furman (Gracie Barra -Encino)

Carlos Baruch VS Rodrigo Caporal
Saturday, March 5, 2011 Baruch Weighs in at 163 lbs
Tuesday, February 15, 2011 Grappling X, Feb 13 2011, San Diego: Master's No-Gi 165 Lbs
1st Hart, Beau (City Boxing)

Adult's No-Gi Novice - open class 180 lbs
1st Nakagawa, Austin (City Boxing)
Sunday, February 6, 2011 Chris Chatman on KUSI Tonight!: Chris Chatman on KUSI tonight at 6pm and 11pm.
Saturday, February 5, 2011 Hatley, Chatman Trade Knockdowns En Route To Draw: The following was posted on boxingscene.com
By Jake Donovan

The ESPN Friday Night Fights televised opener saw upset specialist Chris Chatman overcome an opening round knockdown to score one of his own late in the fight to earn a majority draw with unbeaten Dallas native Charles Hatley.

Scores were 75-75 twice and a suspension-worthy tally of 77-73 for Hatley from the third judge.

Things couldn't have begun better for the hometown kid, unloading with a series of head shots that sent Chatman tumbling to the canvas less than a minute into the contest. Hatley didn't let up on the pressure, continuing with power shots as Chatman spent the rest of the round regaining his legs and composure.

The second round reached a point where it was questioned whether or not Hatley punched himself out. Chatman carried the action for most of the round, while Hatley seemed befuddled by his opponent's newfound aggression.

Chatman switched back and forth between conventional and southpaw stance in an attempt to disrupt Hatley's rhythm. The strategy produced mixed results in a competitive third round that saw Chatman score to the body, but also briefly wobbled by Hatley midway through the round.

The next couple of rounds featured the same back and forth shifts in momentum, though not quite as action-packed as what was offered earlier in the fight.

Hatley focused more on boxing, dancing on the outside and attempting to catch Chatman coming in. Chatman effectively bobbed and weaved his way out of trouble, but rarely landed more than one punch at a time in return.

Fatigue began to set in for both fighters as things grew a bit ugly heading down the stretch. Chatman controlled the real estate in the seventh, cutting off the ring and forcing Hatley to fight in reverse. Neither fighter was scoring with very much, though Chatman managed to connect with an uppercut and a pair of left hands in the closing moments of the round.

The final round became a race against the clock for Hatley, who was running on empty while Chatman cleaned out the kitchen in his greatest effort to score yet another upset. The San Diego resident provided the locals with a nail-biting moment late in the fight, scoring a knockdown with just over a minute to go.

Hatley collected himself and did his best to stay out of harm's way for the remainder of the fight, and even appeared to score a late knockdown of his own, though it went unnoticed and thus uncredited by the referee.

The turn of events in the final round bailed out the judges, as Chatman would've otherwise lost a fight in which he seemed to be in control for the majority of the night.

Instead, he earned a 10-8 score on all three cards in the final round that resulted in a draw verdict, one that had Hatley storming out of the ring mere seconds after it was announced.

It's not a loss, but Hatley for the first time in his pro career fails to end a fight with his arm raised in victory. The former amateur standout is now 14-0-1 (11KO), having now struggled in his past two fights. His previous ring appearance saw him suffer the first knockdown of his career at the hands of career steppingstone Emanuel Augustus.

Chatman accepted this fight on less than three weeks notice after being forced upon Hatley as the opponent of choice. The risk proved to be well worth the reward. His record now stands at 9-1-1 (4KO), though chances are he lands another TV fight in the near future.

The bout was Chatman's sixth against a previously unbeaten opponent, his record now 4-1-1 in such fights. His lone loss came against Demetrius Andrade - Hatley's old amateur rival who went on to serve on the 2008 U.S. Olympic boxing squad.

Local junior bantamweight Ray Ximenez, Jr. (2-0, 0KO) enjoyed airtime in a televised swing bout, taking care of Houston journeyman Alfredo Berto (1-4, 0KO) en route to a lopsided four-round decision. Scores were 40-36 across the board.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011 Chales Hatley to face upset minded Chris Chatman: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

If you've ever attended a banquet, I'm sure you're familiar with the phrase uttered by the toastmaster who begins the proceedings with, I want to thank you for joining us on this auspicious occasion. Friday evening, February 4, should be such an occasion. That's when TV land gets their second look at the talented San Diegan, Chris Chatman (9-1-0, 4 KOs), the former Navy crewman who grew up in Chicago, the Southside. In an eight rounder Chatman will be taking on the highly touted Charles Hatley of Dallas, Texas.

Hatley, a 24 year-old righty, has impressive credentials, a pro record of 14-0-0, 11 KOs plus he's just four years removed from being the 2007 U.S. Amateur Welterweight Champion. Of course Hatley will be the favorite on Friday evening when entering the ring, an unbeaten hometown favorite.

And why must Mr. Hatley be cautious? Chatman has built himself a reputation for handing fighters their first career loss. In his last two wins Chatman's opponents, Alberto Herrera and Lester Gonzalez, entered the ring with a combined record of 18-0-2, 11 KOs. Chatman upset and stopped Herrerra in Herrerra's hometown and then dominated Gonzalez in San Diego to win an unanimous decision.

In Chatman's only career loss, he made the mistake of rushing off to the East coast on a moment's notice to fight the unbeaten 2008 U.S. Olympian Demetrius Andrade. Even though Andrade was in trouble at times in that six round bout, he managed to secure the victory in his hometown.

Chatman, a southpaw, will again have an opportunity to pull off the upset. He's young, talented and has amazing stamina. He prefers that we call it athleticism. When we spoke about Hatley's chances of defeating him, Chatman stated, "He might have a good shot at defeating the guy who upset Herrera and then beat Gonzalez, but in the mean time, what do you think I've been doing?"

"Getting better everyday" was the answer to the riddle.

Boxing insiders have called Chatman a showboat who clowns around too much; others have called him a "tricky stylist," a "spoiler," and this reporter leans towards the more descriptive "a Showman." From my ringside perch I've witnessed the crazy antics, the fancy footwork, the salutes to the crowd and the punch he threw from behind his back. Everything he's done, was done for a purpose. He feels boxers are entertainers and they're in the ring for just one reason, to put on a good show.

At the outset of Friday's match, I'm certain the spotlight will be on Hatley, afterall he's the ESPN2 darling, the guy under contract. Just as the Showtime announcing crew (Show Box: the Next Generation) made fools of themselves with their undeniable show of support for Chris Avalos when he lost to a virtual unknown from Chula Vista, CA by the name of Chris Martin (current record 21-0-2), don't be surprised if their allegiance doesn't flipflop during Friday's telecast and they begin paying homage to Chatman.

Standing 5'10" tall, Hatley will have a two inch height advantage over Chatman. He's fought six times in 2010, including an unanimous decision victory over Marcos Primera (in his first and only 10-round bout) and an eight-round points nod over the 36 year-old Emanuel Augustus in which he traded knockdowns with the journeyman boxer.

After checking the fighters' strength of schedules we see Chatman faced the stiffer competition. Of the 10 fighters he faced, six had a winning record. Of the 14 opponents Hatley faced, only four had a winning record. Like Chatman, Hatley has quick hands, a busy jab, solid footwork, good power, and good technique. His negatives include a suspect chin, occasional lapses in concentration, and he covers up too much when opponents get in close.

Prediction: Chatman makes San Diego proud.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 KUSI Jan. 31
Monday, January 31, 2011 Chris Chatman on KUSI Tonight!: Chris Chatman on KUSI tonight at 6pm and 11pm.
Friday, January 21, 2011 Denis Grachev keeps unbeaten streak alive: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

On Friday, January 14, San Diego's Denis Grachev (9-0-1, 5 KOs) won an eight round majority decision over the formerly unbeaten Haitian, Azea Augustama (9-1, 6 KOs) in their light heavyweight main event at the Magic City Casino in Miami, Florida. Fight fans should be real familiar with the name Denis Grachev, as he competes locally in both Muay Thai/Kickboxing and Boxing and teaches these two disciplines at the Downtown gym, City Boxing.

Even though Augustama, who competed for Haiti in the 2008 Olympics, held a distinct advantage with his superior hand-speed, Grachev never failed to advance on the flashier boxer who preferred to employ a more cautious strategy of staying on the outside and potshotting Grachev with his right uppercuts and left hooks. The sixth round was marred by two incidental low blows by Grachev, who received a warning but no point deduction from referee Frank Santore Jr.

Grachev, who is originally from Chaykovsky, Russia, gained his browny points by continually pressing the action and scoring with the shorter right, left combinations. The judges' scores for this close bout, Ric Bays 78-74, Ralph Vidal 78-74 and Fred Fluty 76-76.

Grachev hadn't competed (in Boxing that is) since December 11, 2009, when he fought Ernesto Castaneda (11-8-2, 4 KOs) of Sacramento to a draw at the Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento, CA.

Augustama, who won the Gold Medal at the US National Golden Gloves competition in Grand Rapids in 2008, last fought Reggie Pena (6-4-0) on October 19, 2010 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. He won the bout, a TKO victory, in the fourth round.
Thursday, January 20, 2011 Upcoming Fight for Chris Chatman: Friday, February 4, 2011 on ESPN
Chris Chatman vs. Charles Hatley
Thursday, January 20, 2011 Chris Chatman 2011 Top Prospect: The following was posted on ringtv.com
By Doug Fischer

There is a lot of young boxing talent out there.

If you don't believe it, clear your schedule and take the time to read this very long list of 39 intermediate-level prospects. When you're done, keep in mind that this article could have easily contained twice as many names.

Part two of Prospects to watch in 2011 is proof that boxing has a strong future. The sport is not only rich in promising up-and-comers from around the globe but it's blessed with young men who are willing to fight each other in significant bouts that will advance their careers and entertain fans.

Case in point, two advanced prospects from part one of Prospects to watch in 2011 -- junior lightweights Luis Cruz (17-0) and Eloy Perez (19-0-2) -- have just signed to face each other in a 12-round elimination bout for a 130-pound alphabet title on Feb. 18.

Two prospects from this list -- junior welterweights Ruslan Provodnikov and Mauricio Herrera -- have already faced off in a rousing fight that produced a surprising result. Herrera, a decided underdog against Provodnikov, beat the undefeated Russian over 12 rounds. The unsung Californian's upset ensured that his name would be among the 39 fighters on this list and that fans who watched the Provodnikov fight on ESPN2 will look forward to his next bout.

A few things to keep in mind while you read this list:

These are the "intermediate" level prospects, which means they are not yet prepared to face the Top-15 contenders in their respective weight classes but they are well beyond the developmental four- and six-round stages of their pro careers. The young men on this list are solid eight-round fighters who are ready to step up to the 10-round level (if they haven't already done so).

And, as I mentioned in part one, most of these prospects had lengthy amateur careers. I categorize those who had between 50 and 100 amateur bouts as fighters with a "strong amateur background" in the strengths portion of my fighter analysis. Fighters who engaged in more than 100 bouts, especially those who won national titles, are credited with having an "extensive amateur background." Those whose amateur credentials that include major international competitions (such as the Olympics, world amateur championships and Pan-American Games) are recognized as having "international experience."

INTERMEDIATE

Chris Chatman
Weight class: junior middleweight/middlewieght
Age: 26
Record: 9-1 (4)
The skinny: Most boxing writers and industry insiders consider the San Diego-based Chicagoan to be a "spoiler," a tricky stylist who can upset a prospect on a good night. But with his youth, talent and recent accomplishments -- back-to-back upsets over unbeaten fighters Alberto Herrera (7-0-1) and Lester Gonzalez (11-0-1) -- why not consider him a prospect? Chatman, a good athlete with solid defensive skills, has faced five unbeaten fighters since he turned pro in October of 2008, and he beat all but one, 2008 Olympian Demetrius Andrade in a competitive six-round bout.
Strengths: Athleticism, southpaw stance, slick moves, unorthodox ("herky jerky") style, confidence.
Weaknesses: Fights in spurts, showboats too much.
What's next? Nothing scheduled.

Read full article at ringtv.com
Sunday, January 16, 2011 Denis Grachev Defeats his Opponent!: Denis Grachev vs. Azea Augustama
- Denis defeats Azea.
Saturday, January 15, 2011 North Miami Beach's Azea Augustama loses [to Denis Grachev] 2011 debut: The following was posted on miamiherald.com
By Santos A. Perez

Azea Augustama's start of another successful year met a difficult first obstacle.

Russia's Dennis Grachev spoiled Augustama's 2011 debut, winning a majority decision over the Haiti native and North Miami Beach resident Friday night at the Magic City Casino. The eight-round light-heavyweight bout was the main event of a six-bout card.

Grachev, who now lives in San Diego, pressured Augustama with rights and left hooks to the head throughout the bout and spoiled Augustama's previously unbeaten record.

Judges Ric Bays and Ralph Vidal scored the fight for Grachev, 78-74 and 77-75. Fred Flutie scored it, 76-76.

Augustama (9-1) landed a lead left jab to the head in a feeling out first round. Grachev (9-0-1) stalked but limited his punch output.

But Grachev stepped up the pressure in the second round and scored with left hooks and rights to the head. Grachev continued to maintain Augustama on the defensive in the third and fourth rounds with additional rights to the head.

Augustama enjoyed a successful fifth, connecting with rights to the head. Grachev continued to land left hooks to the head.

In the sixth, Augustama twice was given time to recover from two lunches from Grachev which landed below the belt. Augustama remained busy with left hooks to the head.

Augustama landed a solid right to the head late in the seventh and repeated with rights throughout the eighth, opening a cut above Grachev's right eye.

Earlier, Cuba natives Glendy Hernandez and Yuniesky Gonzalez overwhelmed with technical knockout victories.

Hernandez scored a first-round technical knockout over Puerto Rico's Alberto Jimenez, and Gonzalez needed only an additional round in his second-round TKO over Kentrell Claiborne.

Wasting minimal time to set the tone to his quick victory, Hernandez (4-0, 2 KOs) frustrated Jimenez with solid combinations to the head. Midway through the round, Hernandez landed a left-right combination to the head, which sent Jimenez (5-3) to the canvas.

Jimenez reached his feet before the canvas but didn't respond quickly to referee Frank Santore's instructions. Santore stopped the bout at 1:35 of the round.

I just had to come out aggressively, Hernandez said. My hard work paid off.

Gonzalez overcame an aggressive first round from Claiborne, who landed with short combinations to the head. Claiborne also scored with rights to the head early in the second and seemed to have Gonzalez in trouble, when Gonzalez ended the fight with one punch.

Gonzalez (2-0, 2 KOs) landed a crushing right to Claiborne's chin, sending Claiborne to the canvas. A glassy eyed Claiborne reached his feet at the count of eight. But referee Emil Lombardi determined Claiborne (2-1-1) had not shaken off the knockdown's effects and stopped the cruiserweight bout at 1:50 of the round.

In other bouts: welterweight Xavier Burgos won by unanimous decision over Raymond Betancourt; welterweight Angel Albelo won by unanimous decision over Larry Yanez; welterweight Wilson Feliciano scored a third-round TKO over Jose Segura Torres at 2:10 of the third round.
Monday, November 22, 2010 Justin Smith Wins The Gold: Justin Smith wins the Gold at Grappling "X" Tournament November 21, 2010.
Saturday, November 20, 2010 Gonzalez vs. Chatman Fight Card does not disappoint: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

The Lester "El Cubanito" Gonzalez versus Chris "the Last Chapter" Chatman main event was all that was promised, and more. From the opening bell, you had the seasoned Cuban expatriate plodding forward like an indestructible tank with his target, Chatman, jumping in and out to land his power shots. There would be no let up and very few clinches.

The Chatman chants were followed by the Gonzalez chants. Unlike the other bouts, you could feel the tension in the Crowne Plaza Ballroom air.

The reason for the divide? You had two locals fighting for a state title in their backyard. Chatman from City Boxing Downtown is a former sailor who was stationed in San Diego, the world's largest Military Complex.

Gonzalez, a Spanish speaking Latino from Havana, Cuba, currently trains at the local Gutierrez gym in South San Diego. Close to 40 percent of the residents of San Diego speak Spanish. And, there it laid, the shiny gold California State middleweight title belt for the taking.

In the end, Judge Barry Druxman scored the bout 77-75, Eddie Hernandez had it 79-73 and Pat Connolly scored it 78-74 — all for Chatman who improves to 9-1-0. Was there any adverse response to the decision. None. With the victory, Chatman not only wins the California State Super Welterweight title, he's now responsible for handing Gonzalez (11-1-1) the first loss of his pro career.

Despite landing more blows, Chatman never really stopped Gonzalez. The reason he won? He was the more active of the two and easily won if you go by the punch stats. For every one punch Gonzalez landed, Chatman retaliated with three.

Turning points in the match?

At the end of the 2nd round Chatman caught Gonzalez with a body shot that appeared to hurt him. Only 10 days before this bout, Gonzalez had been seeing a specialist about an injury to his right side. Makes you wonder if that problem had completely healed.

At the end of the supercharged third round, the boxers touched gloves before walking back to their corners. The salute demonstrated the high regard each had for the other guy's boxing skills. Even though we saw Chatman launching the higher volume of strikes, the majority of them were still being caught by Gonzalez's gloves and not getting through as Chatman continued to move around the perimeter of the ring. It wasn't until Chatman began to add power to his combinations that the judges were won over.

At the close of the sixth round, you could see Gonzalez was becoming winded. Despite the miles he traveled circling around his opponent, fatigue was never an issue for Chatman. I believe if you check, that word might not be present in Chatman's vocabulary.
Friday, November 19, 2010 Navy Vet Chatman Sinks Gonzalez' Title Plan, For Now: The following was posted on thesweetscience.com
By Ralph Gonzalez

Chris Chatman (9-1, 4 KO's) put in a very spirited performance against the well regarded Lester Gonzalez (11-1-1, 6 KO's) at the Crown Plaza Hotel in San Diego en route to a unanimous eight round decision win in front of over a thousand spectators. The win earned him the California State Super Welterweight Title.

Gonzalez, a thirty three year old former amateur stand out from Cuba, just couldn't overcome Chatman's physical prowess and high work rate.

In the first round, Gonzalez came forward aggressively as Chatman boxed from the outside in what turned out to be an even round with both men getting the "feeling out process out of the way. In the second, Chatman boxed nicely but Gonzalez was starting to find him more frequently with his left hand. Chatman, a U.S. Navy veteran, showboated frequently but was able to get off some nice straight hands from the outside.

It was a great beginning to the third as the Cuban came out of his corner with bad intentions. Chatman boxed nicely and landed from a safe distance as Gonzalez kept the pressure. Excellent exchanges ensued as the boisterous crowd cheered on the gladiators.

The fourth round was tough to score as both men took turns landing their shots. A nice left hand by Gonzalez capped off the last ten seconds of the round.

Nice ring usage by Chatman in the fifth as he provided Gonzalez with some difficult angles. Chatman was pot-shotting from the outside and took the round on the basis of punches landed and effective aggression.

The sixth round came and Chatman was now using his physical strength to bully Gonzalez. Gonzalez looked frustrated and was lulled into fighting his opponent's fight. Chatman took the round as he was easily manhandling his opponent and pushing him around the ring.

He was now in full control by the seventh as he boxed on his toes and landed continuously. Chatman showed no signs of tiring as Gonzalez started getting discouraged and looking the worse for wear.

Gonzalez came out for the last round with a sense of urgency and fought hard but Chatman wasn't letting up. The hard chinned Chicago native landed a left hook that made Gonzalez stutter step. Chatman's physical condition was top rate as he ended the round with several flurries.

The judges scored the bout 77-75, 79-73 and 78-74 for the winner.

"I felt strong in there against a very tough opponent, Chatman stated afterwards. "My conditioning played a key role and I have to thank my team for that. I look forward to great things happening in the future.

Manager Mark Dion stated that Chatman's potential has yet to be tapped. "He's improved tremendously and he's only going to get better. He fought a guy that fights at 160 and you saw what he did in there. I think he can accomplish even more as a 147 pounder.

"Chocolate Parison snacks on Myers

Local super middleweight James "Chocolate Parison (13-1-0, 4 KO's) and Loren Myers (7-10-1, 2 KO's) of Ontario, Oregon mixed it up during the semi main event in a scheduled six rounder. In the first round, Parison used his jab effectively to keep the hard charging Myers at bay. He landed a nice uppercut and straight right combination. Parison used the ring well as Myers tried to close the distance with some body work.

Nice jabs by Parison in the second round as he easily controlled the action. A left hook dropped Myers but he got up in seemingly good condition. Parison smelled the end and went after Myers with all guns blazing as he landed several rights and lefts that were obviously doing damage. Myers tried to fight off the attack but there were only so many uncontested shots that the referee would allow. The end came at 1:59 of the third when Referee Raul Caiz Jr. stepped in and waved off the action.

Armenta scores decision over Hurley

Super-featherweights Pablo Armenta (4-0-1, 1 KO) and Ronald Hurley (4-5-2) put on a solid match as both men traded from the very first round. Hurley took the first as he used good footwork to confuse Armenta. In the second, Armenta found his distance and was landing with more frequency. He won the round by scoring the more telling shots. The third and fourth were all Armenta as he backed his opponent into the ropes and unleashed several flurries. Hurley fought back but was never able to regain control of the bout. The scores were 39-37, 38-38 and 40-36.

Okada overwhelms Modad

Japanese super flyweight Takashi Okada (3-0-1, 1 KO) used a non stop punching machine style to overwhelm the less refined Daniel Modad (2-3-0, 1 KO) of Tijuana. Modad could've made use of his jab if he had one and therefore was never able to create enough distance to keep the Asian buzz-saw off him. There were great exchanges throughout with Okada landing the more significant shots. The scores of 40-36 on all three cards reflected Okada's domination of the bout.

Ocon blasts Diaz

Los Angeles welterweight Ernesto Ocon (2-0, 1 KO) dropped Juan Carlos Diaz (7-11-1, 6 KO's) five times en route to a third round TKO stoppage in a fight that had action from beginning to end. Diaz couldn't avoid Ocon's left hand all night and paid a dear price for it as a fast left, right combination put him down dramatically for the final count in the third round.

The bouts were promoted by Bobby D. Presents and Jorge Marron Productions
Monday, November 15, 2010 Gym Will be Closed on the Following Days...: Gym will be closing early at 7:30 on November 18th for Chris Chatman's fight.

Gym will also be closed for the Thanksgiving Holidays - from November 25th to November 28th.

Gym will be reopened on Monday, November 29th!
Monday, November 8, 2010 Karine De Melo's Fight Cancelled
Monday, November 8, 2010 Showdown at the Crowne - San Diego's Biggest Little Fight: Bobby D. Presents and Jorge Marron Productions are bringing live boxing to Mission Valley. The next installment of the Coors Light Boxing Series, billed as "Showdown at the Crowne - San Diego's Biggest Little Fight," will be held Thursday, November 18 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel San Diego on Hotel Circle North. for the first time.

This show will feature two of San Diego's biggest names, Lester "El Cubanito" Gonzalez (11-0-1, 6 KO's) and Chris "The Last Chapter" Chatman (8-1, 4 KO's) fighting it out for the California State Super Welterweight Title.

Nowadays, it's rare when you have two very good boxers from the same area fighting against one another. Plus, both boxers are left-handed and have sparred with many of the same boxers. In other words, the boxers and their coaches will know the other fighter's weaknesses.

The 32-year-old Gonzalez is a Cuban defector who hails from Havana. The population and the climate of Havana is similar San Diego. His co-manager, Lou Messina, recently decided to take Gonzalez to see David Gutierrez, a former undefeated pro-boxer and well respected trainer. Some people say Gutierrez is the best trainer in San Diego. With the stakes being so high and the difference in skill levels so meager for the upcoming fight, Messina wanted to see if Gutierrez could help. After the two-hour workout, Gutierrez conferred with both Messina and Gonzalez and a plan was set in motion to go forward with Gonzalez's training at the Gutierrez gym.

Cuba has a storied history of producing great boxers, such as: Kid Gavilan (107-30-6), Juan Carlos "Pantera Negra" Gomez (48-2-0), Jose Legra (133-12-4), Luis Manuel "El Feo" Rodriguez (107-13-0), and renowned heavyweights Félix Savón. Together, the pair. dominated every world heavyweight amateur championship from 1972 to 2000.

In Gonzalez's last fight, he was the recipient of a head butt from Ibraheim King and though the gash had blood streaming down his face, Gonzalez refused to quit. He persevered to win a unanimous decision. After the fight the wound needed 11 stitches. Gonzalez has proven the will to do whatever it takes to maintain his unblemished record, just as his fellow countrymen Erislandy Lara (13-0), Odlanier Solis (16-0) and Yuriorkis Gamboa (19-0) who presently fight out of Miami, have done.

"Any fight I have is more experience. I think with every fight we grow," Gonzalez said. "I feel very confident in myself."

Gonzalez's opponent on November 18th is also a transplant to San Diego. Chris Chatman grew up on the South side of Chicago. While fulfilling his Navy commitment here in San Diego, Chatman began to train under the tutelage of Sergio Melendrez in Chula Vista. Then before exiting the Navy, he switched to City Boxing in Downtown San Diego and trained with Vernon Lee. Chatman is currently being trained by former Filipino world champion Manny Melchor with an assist from Carlos Ferreira.

"I know this gentleman is going to test me and I'm going to do the same in return," Chatman said.

Chatman's last fight on October 8, was scheduled to go six rounds at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, California. For four rounds he went toe-to-toe with Alberto "Baby Dynamite" Herrera (7-0-1, 5 KO's). Since most of the spectators felt Chatman was the underdog, they were looking for their hometown hero to win easily. They didn't take into consideration that Chatman's only loss came on a decision loss to Olympian Demetrius Andrade, October 3, 2009 in Rhode Island. With the fight being taken on short notice, Chatman missed a golden opportunity to finish Andrade off in what proved to ne a challenge.

In the Herrera fight, Chatman scored two knockdowns in the first round and in the fourth frame, referee Ray Corona stepped in to stop the fight. Stakes are high for both fighters, but only one can come out victorious.

"My ability to be inconsistent is my greatest asset," Chatman said. "I can be orthodox or I can be a brawler. I'm not the type of man to underestimate anybody."

The other bouts featured:

* Co-main event: Middleweights - 6 rounds
James "El Chocolate" Parison (12-1, 3 KO's) South San Diego, CA vs. Loren "Rock"
Myers (7-9-1, 2 KO's) of Fresno, CA. Parison recently signed a contract with Bobby D. and Jorge Marron.

* Featherweights - 4 rounds
Pablo "Bronco" Armenta (3-0-1, 1 KO) South San Diego vs. Ronald "Mad Man" Hurley (4-4-2, 0 KO's) San Jacinto, CA

* Lightweights - 4 rounds
Emmanuel Robles (1-0, 0 KO's) San Diego, CA vs. TBA

* Welterweights - 4 rounds
Ernesto Ocon (1-0, 0 KO's) Los Angeles, CA. vs. TBA

The Crowne Plaza Hotel (formerly the Hanalei Hotel) is located at 2270 Hotel Circle North in Mission Valley, CA 92108. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the first bout scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The event is all ages and there is plenty of onsite parking. Food and drinks will be available. For tickets or more information, call (619) 420-8866 or (619) 743-0698.
Sunday, November 7, 2010 Upcoming Fight for Karine De Melo
Thursday, November 4, 2010 Chris Chatman vs. Lester Gonzalez Press Conference: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Unlike other press conferences to announce a big boxing event, this one took place in the backyard of the principles, at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Mission Valley on Wednesday evening. Thursday, November 18th, Lester "El Cubanito" Gonzalez (11-0-1, 6 KO's) of San Diego's Black Tiger Gym will do battle against Chris "The Last Chapter" Chatman 8-1-0, 4 KO's) of San Diego's City Boxing Gym.

For the first hour and a half of this most jovial social-event, the invited guests sat and enjoyed not only a great meal but conversations with like minded boxing enthusiasts.

And why is this upcoming boxing show being handled differently? For one, there's the change of venue as all prior Bobby D Presents Coors Light Boxing Series shows were held at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, a site local boxing fans have outgrown.

Number two, no one has any inkling who will come out victorious in this bout between the undefeated 32 year-old Cuban exile and the once beaten 24 year old former U.S.S. Pinkney sailor who has terrific power and versatility.

These are not your ordinary boxers. Gonzalez and Chatman are two of the top middleweights in the world, the cream of crop, boxers that have a tough time finding fights because they are so good. Since they are at the crossroads of their career, this will be a make or break fight. In this match-up, you have two boxers that have a tremendous amount of respect for each other.

Gonzalez began to box at 13. Since he was brought up in a rough section of Havana, Cuba, Playa de Este, he most likely started fighting at an even earlier age. With his extensive amateur career, Gonzalez has more experience than his opponent, especially when it comes to fighting southpaws. Both Gonzalez and Chatman are lefties.

When asked for a prediction on his bout with Chatman, Gonzalez answered, "I don't believe in giving predictions. I treat every opponent the same as if they are to be my most difficult opponent ever. For all twelve of my previous opponents, it was the same. Not one was more difficult; not one was treated differently."

Asked if he was familiar with his style or ever watched Chatman fight, he answered: "Once or twice, but I don't really focus on a boxer's style. I'm like most everyone else, I watch to enjoy the fight."

On and on went the questions and on and on went Gonzalez's tactful, non-committal answers. Being so close to the mid-term elections, he probably thought giving vague answers was satisfactory.

Leaving Gonzalez, the boxing journalists directed their questions to Chatman. After the air was cleared about rumors that Chatman used steroids and did or did not sign a long term contract with promoter Don King, the assemblage got back to the real world. "Chris, do you have a prediction on this fight?"

To paraphrase Chatman's remarks: "I expect to be tested. I expect him [Gonzalez] to keep coming with hard shots. I expect his best, because I am the best. The strongest part of my game is my persistence. And when something doesn't work, I become adaptable."

Someone asked whether he thought Gonzalez was a step up from his earlier competition. Chatman went somewhat on the defensive. After all, he had just TKO'ed the formerly undefeated Alberto Herrera in his own backyard and did go to the East Coast to fight the former Olympian Demetrius Andrade. He also mentioned his many triumphs as an amateur. "Like Gonzalez, I have had plenty of amateur experience, Golden Gloves champ, Navy Champ, I fought in the Nationals. I was a Regional champ. Third in the Nationals."

When asked about switching trainers over the years, he had high-praise for all his coaches, "From Sergio Melendrez, I learned the ins and outs of the Mexican style of fighting. Vernon Lee taught me how to be more slick in the Philly style. I can't praise Manny [Melchor] enough. He's a two time world champion, who keeps taking me to these higher levels where at first I feel I can't possibly see myself reaching. Further and further, he takes me from one point and then to a higher point. I now look at myself with a negative eye. I believe all the showboating is over. The only reason I ever did it was when I thought the other boxer disrespected me. I don't believe I'll have that opportunity with Lester."

Before introducing his adopted brother, James Parison (12-1-0, 3 KO's), who is fighting in the co-main event, David Gutierrez, the trainer for both Parison and Gonzalez, made the following comment: "This Chatman versus Gonzalez match-up is a real treat for San Diego. The world of boxing should take notice."

Parison went on to explain why he hadn't fought in 10 days shy of a year. He had fights scheduled and then for this or that reason the other boxers suddenly pulled. His last bout was a loss in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada to Craig McEwan (19-0-0) from Edinburgh, Scotland. Parison had to lose a lot of weight for the fight and felt he was ill-prepared. He's now ready to resume his career against Loren Myers (7-9-2) from Fresno, Ca.

Also in attendance was Christian Bojorquez (1-0), the former Mexican National Amateur Champion who fought over 100 amateur bouts. In October, Bojorquez won his debut bout against Salvador Cifuentez (0-1) of Chula Vista. Since that first bout with Cifuentez was so entertaining, the promoter signed both for the rematch.

Pablo Armenta (3-0-1) was also at the head table. In his capacity as a college student at Southwestern College, a store clerk at Big 5 Sporting Goods and a professional boxer, Armenta has his hands full juggling the three pastimes. After Armenta's bout with Ron Hurley (4-4-2) had to be cancelled a few weeks back, they're giving Mr. Hurley another opportunity, that is if his handlers can produce all the proper documentation.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010 Upcoming Fight for Chris Chatman
Sunday, October 31, 2010 Chris Chatman, Ready To Be Tested!: The following was posted on istandnfight.com
By Ray Flores

SAN DIEGO'S UNPROTECTED FIGHTER, MARKETABLE AND WILLING TO BE TESTED!

On October 8, 2010 at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario in front of a capacity crowd one of the rarest of events took place in the main event of the evening. Two combatants of equal skill came to wage war for honor, pride, dignity, and respect. Only one would be left standing victorious. Scheduled for six rounds, these two light middleweights would go toe to toe for 4 of the best rounds of boxing the fans will have ever witnessed in along time. The hometown favorite and unbeaten fighter from Riverside, Alberto "Baby Dynamite" Herrera (7-1-1, 5 KO's) collided head on with San Diego's, Chris "The Last Chapter" Chatman. Chris, who trains out of the City Boxing Gym in San Diego under the coaching and tutelage of Manny Melchor former WBC/IBF champion, assisted by Carlos Ferreira and managed by Mark Dion has been a relative unknown in LA-Riverside area. He went into this fight as the underdog and was predicted to lose to the favored pugilist from Riverside. Chatman, is a former US Navy Boxing Champion out of Chicago with a record of 8-1, 4 KO's his only loss was by way of unanimous decision in front of the hometown crowd of Olympian Demetrius Andrade in Rhode Island on October 3, 2009.

Chris came out battling at the sound of the bell in the first stanza against Herrera and scored two knockdowns in that first round and would later become the victor 2:47 in the fourth frame as referee Ray Corona stepped in to stop the fight. Both of these combatants had much to be proud of. This was truly a real credit to great match maker for Thompson Boxing, Alex Camponovo. This contest was a real credit to the spirit and heart of these two fighters and professional boxing.

What was unique about this fight one might ask? It was this, you will always have an underdog, but an underdog with a chance makes one hell of a fight. After many conversations with boxing fans one comment seems to come up time and time again. The sport needs more fighters with the confidence and guts to go toe to toe with fighters who are truly worthy opponents. They seem to understand the marketing of fighters but fail to understand that great fighters need to be tested, and tested often as was the case in this battle. Both fighters will be the better for it. These are some of boxing best prospects. Provided they haven't scared the crap out of future opponents who may think they need to be avoided because it will hurt their marketability. Chatman has earned his right to face more opponents the caliber of Herrera.

Testing does not mean just the pretty boys of fighting, and or the local hometown favorite, but real hardcore fighters with balls and the desire to face all comers. How often have we seen fighters with a record of 15-0 fighting someone with a 26-23-0 record? Could it be said pretty often? How about fighters who never quite get that shining light yet because of their location, or actually look very good and perhaps too good, to ever get that break. Boxing is a tough sport and boxing fans realize that to make a great fight both boxers must be willing to put in the training time to perfect their skills, be willing to get into the ring with someone who can really test their heart. They must love to fight, fight to win, and rather die than give up.

Boxing has been given a black eye in the past by fighters who were not willing to go the distance, do the training, and make the sacrifices required of great fighters. How many times have the fans paid hard earned dollars to watch two "shinning stars" give an astounding ballet performance instead of a good nose to nose, blow for blow pugilistic contest who's sole purpose is to discover who is the better combatant?

We see many fighters being brought along as carefully as a new product line from some high tech firm. Sure they fight, but who are they fighting? Are they real opponents? They all say they'll fight anyone, any time, any place, but is that true? Too many fighters are brought along by being matched with unworthy opponents and when they finally do get that TV spot and meet someone of equal caliber just don't do that well. Does the fighter really benefit by this practice? Do the fans get what they deserve for their hard earned dollar? Is the sport of boxing better for it? Are we spectators to the best that boxing has to offer?

Chatman and Herrera have earned their right to fight again and to fight opponents worthy of the class of professional fighters they are. Would fans love to see a rematch between these to titans of the ring? You betcha!!! Herrera will have to go back to the gym and hit it hard and wait for that next opportunity. Chris, with the help, guidance and the expertise of Mark Dion, Manny Melchor, and Carlos Ferreira will have to also be back in the gym preparing for that next fight, and hopefully due to his record not be passed over by those fighters deemed too marketable to face him in the ring.

As of this date Fox Sports has yet to show this main event, the best fight of the night. Why? It's beyond me; I hope Fox Sports airs it soon so that boxing fans will get the chance to see what terrific fighters these two guys are and what a battle royal it was. Herrera had nothing to be ashamed of he fought with great heart against a great fighter and it so happened the better man won that night. Chris made an outstanding performance and fans deserve to see him again. He's earned it and as with all great fighters he'll go toe to toe anytime, anyplace with anyone. So who's willing to step up and test him?

I have just been informed that Chris Chatman will be fighting at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Mission Valley, San Diego, Ca. on November 18th. He will be facing hard hitting Lester Gonzales at the 154.0 lbs weight class for the California State Championship. Boxing fans are in for an opportunity to see this young fighter again.
Friday, October 15, 2010 City Boxing Receives 2010 Best of San Diego Award: U.S. Commerce Association's Award Plaque Honors the Achievement

WASHINGTON D.C., October 8, 2010 -- For the third consecutive year, City Boxing has been selected for the 2010 San Diego Award in the Health Clubs & Gyms category by the U.S. Local Business Association (USLBA).

The USLBA "Best of Local Business" Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USLBA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

Nationwide, only 1 in 120 (less than 1%) 2010 Award recipients qualified as three-time Award Winners. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2010 USLBA Award Program focused on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the USLBA and data provided by third parties.
Monday, October 11, 2010 Chris Chatman: "I just knew I was going to win"
Sunday, October 10, 2010 San Diego's Chris Chatman wows them in Ontario, CA: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Friday night in Ontario, CA, San Diego's Chris Chatman caught Riverside's Alberto Herrera early to score two first round knockdowns, and then got the referee to stop the bout at 2:47 of the fourth round.

Undefeated and the local favorite, Herrera never stood a chance against the much quicker southpaw. Herrera (7-1-1, 5 KOs) kept getting hit by those powerful left hands.

"I saw that he fought that Mexican style with no angles," said Chatman later. "He didn't feint, he was right there and fought like a warrior. I thank my old trainer Pepe Morales for teaching me how to fight that style. He knew I would be fighting a lot of Mexican fighters."
Tuesday, October 5, 2010 "New Blood" Takes to the Ring in Ontario on October 8: ORANGE, CA (September 30) - "New Blood" is coming back to the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, California on Friday, October 8th, and when Thompson Boxing Promotions brings the top prospects in boxing to Southern California, the entire fistic world will be watching.

In the main event, scheduled for six rounds in the junior middleweight division, unbeaten Riverside star Alberto Herrera puts his "0" on the line against San Diego prospect Chris Chatman.

Also in action on this fall night of hard-hitting bouts will be unbeatens Christopher Rizo, Oscar Andrade, and Donyil Livingston.

Tickets for "NEW BLOOD", which is presented by Thompson Boxing Promotions, are priced at $75, $45, and $35. They are available now and may be purchased by calling (714) 935-0900.

Unbeaten as a professional, Alberto Herrera (7-0-1, 5 KOs) is coming off a hard-fought six round draw with 7-0 Sammy Gonzalez in July, and the Riverside product wants nothing more than to leave the judges out of it and get back into the win column by scoring a spectacular knockout. Expecting to have something to say about that is San Diego southpaw Chris Chatman (7-1, 3 KOs). Unbeaten in three fights since his lone pro defeat in 2009, the 26-year old has every intention of putting a "1" in the popular Herrera's loss column.

24-year old East LA native Christopher Rizo (5-0-1, 3 KOs) has been in a stop-and-go path since the start of his career in 2006, but since returning to an active fight schedule in 2009, he has yet to lose in three bouts, including an 81 second knockout of 25-fight veteran Jose Alfredo Lugo in August. Hoping to introduce Rizo to the agony of defeat on October 8th will be Riverside's Alex Viramontes (9-6, 3 KOs), a hard-nosed battler who has never been stopped in his seven-year career.

In a four round junior welterweight bout, Los Angeles' Oscar Andrade (2-0, 1 KOs) meets San Diego's Federico Martinez who will be making his pro debut, and another prospect with a perfect record, Palmdale middleweight Donyil Livingston (1-0, 1 KO) takes on tough-as-nails Steve Macomber (3-10-1).

Opening up the card will be two four round bouts featuring newcomers to the pro game, as Sergio Nunez of Maywood battles Portland, Oregon's Mike Cross in a lightweight contest, and Daniel Roman squares off against Salvador Cifuentes in a super bantamweight showdown.

Bouts subject to change. Doors open at 6:30pm, and the first bell rings at 7:45pm. The Doubletree Hotel is located at 222 North Vineyard Avenue in Ontario. The hotel phone number is 909-937-0900.
Monday, October 4, 2010 Denis Grachev Defeats his Opponent!: Denis Grachev vs. Fernando Gonzalez
- Denis defeats Fernando.
Monday, October 4, 2010 WCK Muay Thai Boxing results from Saturday, October 2nd: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Bout #9 featured Denis "the Pirate" Grachev of City Boxing, Downtown, San Diego, CA. (a native of Chaykovsky, Russia) going up against the very popular Fernando Gonzalez of nearby Temecula, CA.

Despite all the cheering for the hometown favorite, it was clear from round #3 on that Gonzalez was no match for the taller Russian champion who systematically wore him down. What was surprising was the amount of punishment that Gonzalez was able to take from the undefeated professional boxer who kept landing hard knockout punches to his midsection and head. Despite the numerous knockdowns, Gonzalez stayed in there until the end.

Read full article at examiner.com
Friday, September 24, 2010 Muay Thai/Kickboxing Event at Pala Casino, Saturday, October 2nd: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Muay Thai, also known as the art of eight limbs, allows fighters to utilize their hands, elbows, knees and shins to bring down their opponent. Many purists of the combat sports believe it is the fastest-growing and biggest adrenaline-rush striking sport.

On October 2nd, 2010, ten professional and two amateur Muay Thai/Kickboxig bouts featuring fighters from all over the world will be fought at the Pala Casino Spa & Resort. The show will feature a Light Heavyweight Muay Thai/Kickboxing Champion going up against a MMA fighter in a five-round showdown, Denis "The Pirate" Grachev of San Diego via Chaykovsky, Perm Krai, Russia versus Fernando Gonzalez of Temecula, Calif.

Grachev, an IKF (International Kickboxing Federation) World Light Heavyweight Champion and former European champion, has a professional Muay Thai record of 15 wins, nine of them by way of knockout, and two losses. His last memorable fight was against Joe Schilling of Los Angeles, which ended after Schilling was knocked out. Grachev also holds a perfect boxing record of eight wins and zero losses.

His opponent, Fernando "The Menifee Maniac" Gonzalez is also a professional Muay Thai fighter and popular MMA fighter, who has fought in King of the Cage and WEC promotions. His MMA record stands at 17 wins and eight losses.

One of the most decorated fighters, Romie Adanza will defend his IKKC MuayThai International Super Bantamweight title against Haigang Huang of China. Adanza is coming off of a win against Andy Howson of Great Britain, which brought his record to seven wins and two losses. Adanza will square off against the Chinese National Muay Thai Champion, Haigang Huang, who is also a part of the Chinese National Muay Thai team. His pro record stands at 26 wins and 12 losses.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010 Upcoming Fight for Chris Chatman: Friday, October 8, 2010 -- Pro Boxing
Double Tree Hotel in Ontario CA
Chris Chatman vs. Alberto Herrera
Saturday, September 11, 2010 2010 NAGA West Coast Grappling Chmmpionship: Kyle Wender won all 3 matches by submission before the regular time end.

First in 3 min, second in 2 min, and the final in 30 sec.
Friday, September 3, 2010 City Boxing Closed for the Holiday! Reopen on Tuesday: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed for the following days:
- Saturday, September 25
- Sunday, September 26
- Monday, September 27

City Boxing Downtown gym will reopen on Tuesday.
Thursday, September 2, 2010 Pala Casino Presents WCK Full Rules MuayThai, October 2, 2010: National and International WBC Muaythai and IKKC Muaythai Bouts to Feature American, Korean, Russian, Thai, Mexican and Chinese Fighters

PALA, Calif., August 2, 2010 - Ten professional and amateur Muay Thai fights will be center stage at Pala Casino Spa & Resort on October 2nd, 2010. Muay Thai, the fastest-growing, adrenaline-rushing striking sport, also known as the art of eight limbs, allows fighters to utilize hands, elbows, knees and shins to bring the opponent down.

The event is headlined by the Light Heavyweight Muay Thai vs. MMA five-round bout between Denis "The Pirate" Grachev (Russia by way of San Diego) and Fernando Gonzalez (Temecula, Calif.). Grachev, an IKF (International Kickboxing Federation) World Light Heavyweight Champion, former European champion, has a professional Muay Thai record of 15 wins, nine of them by way of knockout, and two losses. His last memorable fight was against Joe Schilling of Los Angeles, which ended in Schilling being knocked out. Grachev also holds a perfect boxing record of eight wins and zero losses. His opponent, Fernando "The Menifee Maniac" Gonzalez is a professional Muay Thai fighter and a very popular MMA fighter, who's fought in King of the Cage and WEC promotions. His MMA record stands at 17 wins and eight losses.

One of the most decorated fighters, Romie Adanza will defend his IKKC MuayThai International Super Bantamweight title against Haigang Huang of China. Adanza is coming off of a win against a Brit, Andy Howson, which brings his record to seven wins and two losses total. Adanza will square off with the National Muay Thai Champion of China, Haigang Huang, who is also a part of the Chinese National Muay Thai team. His pro record comes to 26 wins and 12 losses.

Luis Bio vs Terris James is a bout a lot fight fans can get excited about. Bio, an Ensenada, Mexico fighter is coming off of several consecutive wins. He is a cool-headed technical fighter, who will be met in the ring by a quick, explosive James, a former IKKC World Champion from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Also on the card is Artem "The Russian Experiment" Sharoshkin, who has recently secured an IAMTF US National Welterweight Championship Title, and who will debut as a pro in California against a fighter from Texas Van "Tactic" Vo.

A complete fight card is as follows:
IKKC MuayThai Superfight: Muay Thai vs MMA
Denis Grachev (Russia, by way of San Diego) vs Fernando Gonzalez (Temecula)

IKKC MuayThai International Super Bantamweight Title
Romie Adanza (Orange County) vs Haigang Huang (China)

IKKC MuayThai International Super Lightweight Title
Byoung-Ku Park (Korea) vs Justin Greskiewicz

WBC MuayThai National Super Middleweight Title
Jared Lara (Redlands, Calif.) vs Eric Utsch (Allen Town, Penn.)

IKKC MuayThai Welterweight Bout
Joey Pagliuso (Riverside, Calif.) vs Sean Dizay (Las Vegas, Nev.)

IKKC MuayThai Welterweight Bout
Artem Sharoshkin (Russia by way of San Diego, Calif.) vs Van Vo (Texas)

IKKC MuayThai Middleweight Bout
Luis Bio (Ensenada, Mexico) vs Terris James (New Mexico)

WBC MuayThai Bantamweight Superfight
Woo-Yeon Park (Korea) vs Celeste Navarro (Mexico)

Amateur fights:
IAMTF Cruiserweight Superfight
Dave Nielsen (San Diego, Calif.) vs Frank Bamford (Orange County, Calif.)

IAMTF US Super Featherweight Title
Tiffany van Soest (San Diego, Calif.) vs Tandi Schaffer (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Monday, August 23, 2010 Grappling X Kyle Wender Cleans House Again!: August 21st 2010
La Jolla High School
750 Nautilus St
La Jolla, CA 92037
Gi & No-Gi Tournament

Winners
Beau Hart - Gold (master 175)
Justin Smith - Gold (novice 155)*
Bailey Byrne - Bronze (intermediate 195)
Kyle Wender - Gold (intermediate 185)*
Gold (Intermediate Open Class)*

*ALL MATCHES BY SUBMISSION
Friday, August 20, 2010 Upcoming Fight for Denis Grachev: Saturday, October 2, 2010
Pala Resort Casio in Pala CA
Denis Grachev vs. Fernando Gonzalez
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 Vitor Belfort
Monday, June 14, 2010 Kyle Wender defeated 6 opponents!: Kyle Wender defeated 6 opponents; 4 by tap out, other 2 by 12-0 and 13-2.
Kyle won his weight class and the open class.
Friday, May 28, 2010 Gym Closed for the Memorial Weekend! Reopen on Tuesday: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed for the following days:
- Saturday, May 29
- Sunday, May 30
- Monday, May 31

City Boxing Downtown gym will reopen on Tuesday.
Monday, May 24, 2010 USA Boxing Show, Rancho Penasquitos: Bout #10 featured two cruiserweights, 27 year-old Joe Ursich of LA Boxing who was making his debut after only being in the gym for four months and 23 year-old Luke Redando of City Boxing who has been training for about a year and half. Both fighters went all out and delivered blows that would normally knock a building down. After getting hit with several big punches, Ursich was issued a standing eight count. Soon after being issued a second eight count in round two, the referee called for an early stoppage and awarded Redando the victory.

Bout #11 featured 11 year-olds Christian Icon of Barrio Station and Corey Snyder of City Boxing. Both boxers came out firing and were non-stop. Snyder was a raging bull as he kept trying to pin his opponent against the ropes or in a corner. Since Icon demonstrated the better footwork, was the busier of the two boxers and landed the cleaner shots, he was awarded the victory.

Bout #13 featured 18 year-old Joaquin Semeias of Barrio Station going up against 28 year-old Josue De La Sancha of City Boxing. From an age standpoint, I don't believe this match-up should have occurred. Semeias may be talented and a real up and comer but by no stretch of the imagination is he ready to fight someone of De La Sancha's skill level; someone who can knock you out with just one shot to the head.
Even though the boxers traded blows equally in the first round, De La Sancha's punches had more impact and you could see Semeias being jolted backwards. De La Sancha's stiff jabs landed with almost the same force as an overhand right. After he had Semeias worrying about that jab, he came up the power alleys with devastating uppercuts and solid left hooks. After a left hook sent Semeias to the canvass in round two, he got right back up. At one point the two boxers traded left hooks at the exact same time. After round two ended, Semeias' corner decided their boxer had had enough and threw in the towel.
Read full article at examiner.com
Thursday, May 6, 2010 Battle of champions Muay thai kickboxing: Location: April 30th at Four Point Sheraton Hotel SD

141 lb
Antonio Acena Bucchi (City Boxing) defeats Jose Flores (American Boxing)
Acena Bucchi won by unanimous decision.
160 lb U.S.M.T.A California State title fight
Justin Smith (City Boxing) defeats Carl Gebhardt (Poway Boxing)
Justin Smith won by TKO 3rd round 1 minute 37 second.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010 Grappling X - NoGi Free Tournament Results: Event Location: TEMECULA, CA | Date: Apr-17-2010

ADULT INTERMEDIATE 175 (2-4 Yrs)
1st Wender, Kyle (City Boxing)
2nd Allen, Trever (Fight Lab)

ADULT INTERMEDIATE 185 (2-4 Yrs)
1st Jerero, Fernando (CheckMat)
2nd Moug, Tyler (Fight Club 29)
3rd Viquez, Michael (Paragon)

ADULT INTERMEDIATE 195 (2-4 Yrs)
1st Byrne, Bailey (City Boxing)
2nd Stahlecker, Mark (Camp Pendelton)
3rd Raya, Jose (Fight Lab)
Tuesday, May 4, 2010 Grappling X - Free Gi Tourney: Event Location: MURRIETA, CA | Date: Apr-03-2010

ADULT BLUE BELT 165
1st Deane, Ryan (City Boxing)
2nd Petrillo, Jered (Gracie Barra Corona)
3rd Yturralez, Frank (Fight Lab)

ADULT BLUE BELT 185
1st Beltran, Hector (Rukkus)
2nd Maya, Aurelio (Checkmat)
3rd Flores, John (Checkmat)
Tuesday, May 4, 2010 Grappling X - Gi & NoGi Tourney: Event Location: SAN DIEGO, CA | Date: Mar-14-2010

Adult No-Gi Beginner Absolute
1st Wender, Kyle (City Boxing)
2nd Williams, Cordell (Undisputed)
3rd Hight, Sam (The Arena)

Adult No-Gi Beginner 175 Lbs
1st Wender, Kyle (City Boxing)
2nd Ledat, Chris (Brasa San Diego)
3rd Cook, Bradley (Throwdown)
Sunday, April 11, 2010 Another classic Chris Martin victory in the 2010 Coors Boxing Series: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Once again the Four Points by Sheraton, San Diego crowd was treated to an amazing performance by Christopher "The San Diego Kid" Martin as he successfully defended his California Super Bantamweight Title. His opponent, Mexicali's Ruben "Finito" Lopez, hung tough for three rounds but the tide changed near the end of the fourth round when some wiseacre in the crowd called out for an uppercut and Martin fulfilled the heckler's wish as if on cue. From that point on, it was all Chris Martin.

While Martin looked slick, quick and landed most every punch, Lopez started to slow down from the accumulation of blows, blows that would have stopped most fighters. Showing a solid chin, Lopez was getting hit from every angle. Each time Lopez's head snapped back, you could hear the ooh's and aah's from the patrons. Martin's punches to the body and head found their mark consistently.

In the late stages round six, Lopez finally went down but managed to get up and finish the round. His corner had seen enough and gave the nod to the referee for the early stoppage. Martin has now scored three TKO victories in a row and runs his unbeaten record to 17 wins.

When questioned later about his future plans, Martin emphasized that he's now ready to take on stiffer competition and travel to take a shot at a title. For the second time, I heard him mention the name Rico Ramos as a potential opponent. Ramos beat Martin when the two were amateurs.

In the co-main event was the much anticipated rematch of a previous draw between Amaris "La Reina" Quintana and Melissa Mc Morrow that took place on June 4, 2009. Early on Quintana seemed sharper and landed her stiff jab plus several sharp left hooks to her opponent's face.

However, as the fight continued Quintana just couldn't slow down the shorter Mc Morrow. As long as she had Quintana backing up, McMorrow felt she could win the battle on the inside.

Once again the ladies fought non-stop and once again there was no clear cut winner. In Press Row, the gentleman from Sweet Science.com said McMorrow won, Ivan Orozco of the Union Tribune called it a draw and I thought Quintana won after landing the more telling blows. Almost as if the judges were looking over our shoulders, one gave McMorrow the nod, another saw it dead even and Fritz Warner agreed with my assessment calling it for Quintana based on the amount of power punches thrown.

Chris Chatman of City Boxing, a former San Diego based sailor and Chicago transplant, stopped Steve Macomber of Lakeside, Ca. at the 1:02 mark of the 4th round. Referee Jose Cobian counted Macomber out and awarded Chatman his 7th win, 3rd victory by KO. Once again Macomber came into the bout several pounds over the contract weight and was fined 20 per cent of his purse.

The fight card opened with Armenia's Artur Bernetsyan (now 2-0) taking on Fairfield, California's Luis Sanchez in his pro debut. Luis is the older brother of welterweight Alan Sanchez (5-1).

The hard punching southpaw from Armenia wasted no time in establishing his power and was usually the first one to get off. The end came at 1:02 in round four when referee Tony Crebs stopped the bout to award Bernetsyan his second win, his first by knockout.

The night's festivities began after ring announcer Benny Ricardo called for a memorial 10 count for several members of the boxing community who recently passed away.

Lorraine Chargin died Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at the age of 79. She was married to boxing promoter Don Chargin for 49 years and they co-promoted hundreds of fights together.

Another tragedy occurred Wednesday night when 52-year-old boxing trainer Hector Gil was shot and killed at the Pacific Coast Boxing Gym in Vista, Ca. Fellow trainer Peter Moreno, 56, and 21-year-old boxer Ricky Gutierrez were also shot but they are expected to make a full recovery.
Thursday, April 8, 2010 Coors Light Boxing Series weigh-ins for Thursday night's fights: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Today was the day of the official fighter weigh-ins for the Bobby D Presents and Jorge Marron Productions, 2010 Coors Light Boxing Series fight card to be held Thursday night, April 8th, at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel in Kearney Mesa.

The main event features the undefeated Christopher "SD Kid" Martin (16-0, 5 KO's) defending his California State Bantamweight title against Ruben "Finito" Lopez (15-11-2, 13 KO's) of Calexico, Ca. in an eight round bout. Both fighters looked incredibly fit.

Lopez, more of a natural featherweight than a bantamweight had trouble making the weight and after disappearing for about fifteen minutes he reappeared and made the weight.

In the co-feature is the highly anticipated showdown between Amaris "La Reyna" Quintana (2-0-1) of nearby La Mesa, Ca. going up against Melissa McMorrow (3-1-2) in a rematch of the war they waged back on June 4, 2009 at this same venue. After four action packed rounds, the fight ended in a draw. This time the light flyweight bout is scheduled for six rounds in order to have a clear winner.

On the undercard is another rematch between Chris "the Showman" Chatman of San Diego, who looks ripped, facing Steven Macomber of Lakeside, CA. (3-6, 2 KO's). Just as in their first fight, Macomber didn't make the weight and Chatman and his manager, Mark Dion, were given the option of not accepting the fight or signing a waiver. Since Chatman is fearless, he naturally went ahead and signed the waiver.

Looking to revenge that earlier defeat Macomber will likely have a ten pound weight advantage come fight time. In their last bout on February 25th of this year, Chatman clowned around so much, his corner and trainer had conniptions watching their fighter take so many chances.

Artur Bernetsyan (1-0) is set to face Luis Sanchez who is making his professional debut. Sanchez, who is very tall, will tower over the shorter Bernetsyan, plus he's been well schooled by Jesse Lopez, Sr., a well respected trainer and his younger brother, Alan Sanchez (5-1), another top prospect. The brothers spar almost daily.

The Four Points by Sheraton is located at 8110 Aero Drive, San Diego, CA 92123. The venue opens at 6:30 p.m. with the first bout starting at 7:30 p.m. Tickets should still be available at the door. For photos of the weigh-in, check out the slideshow below.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010 Opponent announced for Chris Chatman's upcoming fight: Thursday, April 8, 2010
Four Point Sheraton Hotel
Chris Chatman vs. Steven Macomber
Monday, March 29, 2010 Upcoming fight for Chris Chatman: Thursday, April 8, 2010
Chris Chatman vs. opponent unknown
Sunday, March 14, 2010 USA Boxing Junior Olympics District Championships: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

Saturday, March 13, 2010, USA Boxing held their Junior Olympics District Championships at City Boxing in San Diego's downtown. As expected, it was standing room only as the boxers, their family and friends filled every inch of the two story venue to get a view of the 21 hotly contested bouts.

Bout #1a featured light-heavyweights 25 year-old Joey Ordonez of Tucson, Arizona facing Branston Cyphers of the host gym, City Boxing. Since the 30-year-old Cyphers was taller and had an incredible reach advantage, his big punch was a hard jab. Ordonez did exactly what his coach instructed; he got himself on the inside and became the busier of the two boxers in order to gain the decision.

In Bout #1b featuring 11 year olds, Adrian Hernandez of Vista, Ca. and Jason Rivera of the Rhino Boxing Club of Vista, there was no letup. This bout was so hotly contested Salvador Arellano, the ring announcer, made special note of their performance by calling both boxers "true warriors" as onlookers clapped mightily at the end of their bout. In the end it was Rivera who came out victorious by being more aggressive and having his opponent constantly back-peddling.

Bout #2 featured 16 year-old Elias Diaz of Barrio Station against 15 year-old Mario Cuin, unattached. Cuin, with his awkward but effective style, scored effectively using different angles and well placed left hooks. However, it was Diaz getting the win by being busier, landing more clean shots and doubling up on his jabs and masterful combinations. At the end of the competition, this match, along with Bout #14, were selected as the top bouts of the tournament.

Bout #3 featured 14 year-old Adrian Gutierrez, trained by his dad, David Gutierrez (a former boxer and now trainer), going up against 16 year-old Carlos Carrillo of the Alliance Training Center. Even though Gutierrez was shorter and seven pounds lighter, he took control of the bout early and landed the cleaner shots. Despite the urging of his corner, Carrillo played right into the hands of his opponent, by allowing Gutierrez to stay in close and land some uppercuts and left hooks. Gutierrez could have been even more dominating if he had thrown more jabs.

Bout #4 featured 13 year-old Homer Palomino of Gutierrez Gym, a veteran of 53 bouts, facing12 year-old Noe Larias of Pinson, a veteran of 14 bouts. Talk about getting an early start, Palomino became interested in the sport at the age of three. Both his attack mode and defense were superb and set him apart.

Bout #5 featured nine year-old Joe Esquivel of La Gente going up against 10 year-old Roman Gonzalez, unattached. With Gonzalez landing the heavier blows right from the outset, he became the early beneficiary of a standing eight count. After a knockdown, it was deemed by the referee that Esquivel could not stop the onslaught and called an early stoppage to the bout.

Bout #6 featured 11 year-old Cristian Bautista of Rhino facing 12 year-old Nathaniel Ybarra of Alliance. From the outset, Bautista was the aggressor and the busier of the two. By the end of the bout, Ybarra had been issued three standing eight counts to insure Bautista would receive a unanimous decision.

Bout #7 featured 11 year-olds Christian Leon of Barrio Station facing Corey Snyder of City Boxing. Both boxers were non-stop and delivered heavy blows to their opponent. But in the end, it was Snyder who got the decision for being the craftier of the two. He has a unique style of advancing to land the quick combinations and then promptly pull back to become elusive.

Bout #8 featured 14 year-old Victor Hernandez of Escondido facing 13 year-old Ryan Soliven of City Boxing. From the outset, every combination of punches that Hernandez decide to throw landed, head shot after headshot with a sprinkling of uppercuts. Without an effective jab, Soliven could not slow down the onslaught. Before long the referee called for a stoppage.

Bout #9 between 11 year-old Rudolfo Ortigozen of Penacho and 10 year-old Ruben Vazquez of Real Deal was cancelled.

Bout #10 featured 11 year-olds Oscar Hernandez of Rhino Boxing facing Steven Sigala of Alliance. In the first round Sigala was busier and landed most of his shots flush on the face. The second round could have gone either way as both boxers landed. In the third round, Sigala let up some. In the end this close match went to the scorecards and Hernandez was awarded the split decision victory.

Bout #11 featured 11 year-olds Israel Caballelo of Barrio Station gaining the decision over Roberto Maldonado of Vista. Caballelo did very well in the first two rounds scoring with blows to the head and stomach and then may have lost the third round as Maldonado started to gain confidence.

In Bout #12 Carlos Geraldo of the National City CYAC bested Daniel Morales of the Gutierrez Gym. After only eight months of training, Geraldo seems like a natural in the ring and kept his hands flying throughout. Each punch thrown confirmed that he knows all about staying grounded and how to use his leverage. With his stiff jab pushing Morales back, his opponent was kept off balance.

Bout #13 was cancelled after Cesar Lopez of Real Deal was unavailable to compete against Brian Espinosa of Escondido.

Bout #14 was selected the best bout of the tournament and it featured 17 year-old Jacob Martinez of Old School Boxing versus 18 year-old Jesse Torres, unattached.

When one goes searching for an example of a boxer with heart, they can now include Jacob Martinez. In the midst of being issued (3) eight counts, Martinez did not quit. He did however do enough to win over the hearts and minds of three judges. Without a doubt Torres was the slicker boxer and countered beautifully, but Martinez was relentless. No matter how many times he was tagged and he was tagged good; he kept coming back like a Pit bull to not only settle the score, but win.

Bout #15 featured Alfredo Rodriguez of Alliance Training Center going up against Jose Toribio of the National City CYAC. It was another classic battle between the smaller, lighter boxer, Toribio, working the inside against a taller and seven pound heavier boxer, Rodriguez.. Rodriguez took the first round quite easily as Toribio seemed content to measure his opponent. When the bell sounded for round two, it was Toribio getting off first and by the third round he actually dominated most exchanges, at least in the punch count.

Bout #16 featured 27 year-old Josue De La Sancha of City Boxing in his debut bout against 22 year old Gibran Perez of North County Boxing. De La Sancha knows how to use his jab and it kept his opponent at bay. When they did exchange blows, De La Sancha made sure his punch count was greater and scored well with a powerful left hook.

Bout #17 featured Rafael Nunez in a slower, more non-committal battle with Aaron Blanco of City Boxing. After being spoiled all day, these two slowed the pace down and the bout wasn't really decided until the final round when Nunez peppered Blanco enough for the referee to give him a standing eight count. Up until that jab, jab, followed by an overhand right, the two traded stiff jabs that often connected at the very same time.

Bout #18 featured Sharyan Etozan of Encinitas doing battle with Luke Redondo of City Boxing. These guys threw some heavy leather. Only problem for Blanco, Etozan landed more punches and more than a few of Blanco's bombs missed their mark.

Bout #19 featured Edgar Garcia of La Gente versus Steven Vitug, a southpaw from the Alliance Training Center. Vitug, who had the height advantage, was quite impressive if you can overlook the fact that he rarely throws his jab, the one ingredient that makes the left hook work and make it seem like it's appearing out of nowhere. Still, Vitug landed many left hands and did more than enough to impress the judges.

Bout #20 Joe Sanchez of Old School Boxing had his hand raised in victory after overwhelming Cassius Cruz of the LA Boxing Club. Cruz let his friends and namesake down, by not jabbing or moving like the great one. He was more like a sitting duck as Sanchez poured it on.
Monday, March 1, 2010 Chris Chatman Defeats his Opponent!: Chris Chatman vs. Steven Macomber
- Chris won by unanimous decision.
Saturday, February 20, 2010 Upcoming fight for Chris Chatman: Thursday, February 25, 2010
Four Point Sheraton Hotel
Chris Chatman vs. Steven Macomber
Monday, January 4, 2010 City Boxing Presents 2010 Champs for Life
Thursday, December 31, 2009 Gym Closed for the New Years! Reopen on Monday: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed for the following days:
- Friday, January 1
- Saturday, January 2
- Sunday, January 3

City Boxing Downtown gym will reopen on Monday.
Thursday, December 24, 2009 Gym Closed for the Holidays! Reopen on Monday: City Boxing Downtown gym will be closed for the following days:
- Friday, December 25
- Saturday, December 26
- Sunday, December 27

City Boxing Downtown gym will reopen on Monday at 6pm.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009 Results from 'Throw-down in Downtown' December 12, 2009: The following was posted on examiner.com
By James Wyatt

If you were at the City Boxing gym on Saturday, December 12, you were treated to an outstanding boxing card. From the little guys right up to the big boys, the fight card hosted by City Boxing in association with the USA Amateur Boxing Association showcased many of Southern California's top talent. Unlike the two bouts televised later that evening on HBO, the Vitali Klitschko/Kevin Johnson (snoozer) and the Juan Diaz/Paul Malignaggi (try to catch the rabbit fight), the ten bouts at the City Boxing Gym on 14th Street in Downtown were one hundred times more entertaining.

Bout #1 featured super-featherweights 13-year-old Ryan Soliven 128.4 pounds from City Boxing going up against 14-year-old Gerardo Gallardo 122.2 pounds of the Unleashed Boxing Gym in Lemon Grove. In round one Gerardo got off to a quick start and landed the cleaner shots. Midway through the second round Soliven, the shorter of the two by almost three inches, caught up with his opponent and started to trade blows. In the end the decision went to Gallardo who had been the busier of the two boxers throughout the match.

Bout #2 featured the debut of southpaw, 11-year-old Nathaniel Ybarra, who had been training at the Alliance Training Center in Chula Vista for only four months. The 75 pound Ybarra was going up against nine-year-old Alvaro Tirudo of Rhino Boxing, Vista, who outweighed him by five pounds. In the match Tirudo was definitely the busier boxer and landed the cleaner and harder shots to get the win.

Bout #3 was explosive with featherweights 19-year-old Eric Cruz (127 lbs.) of Rhino Boxing matching power shots with 18-year-old Jose Turado (124.6 lbs.) of the National City CYAC. Turado used his reach and height advantage to land his stiff jab, a jab that helped set up his combinations. In both the first and second rounds Turado landed the cleaner shots and registered two eight-counts. Turado's early success of landing left hooks to Cruz's head went to Turado's head. Soon his coach was imploring him to go back to using his jab. In the hotly contested third round, Cruz made Jurado pay for his predictability. By that time Turado was left hook happy and started doubling up on his favorite punch. Meanwhile, Cruz started landing his own power shots. In the end, the judges awarded Jurado the unanimous decision.

Bout #4 featured 22-year-old Johnathan Fernandez of Unleashed going up against 28-year-old Justin Smith of City Boxing. Smith, who was making his debut as a boxer after competing several years in Muay Thai and Kickboxing, enjoyed a distinct height advantage of four to five inches.

Fernandez's strategy was to bull rush his opponent, get inside and work the midsection. The strategy paid off as Fernandez improved his amateur record to 2 wins 2 losses.

Bout #5 featured 10-year-old Steven Sigala, training for two years at the Alliance Training Center in Chula Vista, going up against 11-year-old Oscar Gaz, who has trained for one year at the National City CYAC. After losing in his first two tournaments, Gaz, who enjoyed a two inch height advantage in Saturday's match-up, swore to his coach that he was not going to lose again. After giving such a dominating performance, it was obvious that he didn't want to let his coach down.

Bout #6 featured 16-year-old super-lightweights Carlos Carrillo of the Alliance Training Center in his debut bout facing Joe Sanchez (4-0) of Old School Boxing. From the opening bell, the two boxers fired away like out of control machine guns. The only person able to keep tabs on such an onslaught would be a guy like Harold Lederman, the unofficial ringside scorer for HBO, with his now famous punch stats. In the end it was Sanchez who imposed his will.

Bout #7 featured welterweights 18-year-old Semelas Joaquin of Barrio Station facing 17-year-old Nadir Dally, a southpaw from the Boxing Club in Poway. As is the case when an orthodox boxer faces a southpaw like Dally, Joaquin was getting hit by Dally's money punch, his left. Dally's problem was landing that punch with enough authority, enough power to stop his opponent. Joaquin was far too elusive, the more accurate of the two, and in better physical condition. In the end it was Joaquin, the busier of the two boxers, who won the bout quite handily.

Bout #8 featured 28-year-old Joshua Mouton, a UCSD alum who trains at Extreme Power Gym in Oceanside, going up against Dayeo Livingston, a 22-year-old active duty Marine now stationed at MCAS Miramar and training with Chris Getz at the Black Tiger Gym on Miramar Road.

Mouton, who has an amateur record of 2-2, is certainly well traveled after leaving home at the age of 16. He started out on the East Coast, growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., landed in Los Angeles, lived in South Central and now resides in Oceanside.

In terms of size and weight advantage, Livingston, a Cruiserweight at 178 pounds, had a decided edge being a head taller and out-weighing Mouton, a super-middleweight by almost ten pounds.

Surprisingly, Mouton hung in there and occasionally landed some big shots. In the final round, the referee took a point away from Mouton after he disregarded an earlier warning for holding. That loss of a point insured victory for Livingston who at times was frustrated by Mouton's tactics of hitting and then holding.

Bout #9 may have been the most entertaining of them all, since most people were dumbfounded when they saw the size of the two heavyweights climbing into the ring. In the red corner was 26-year-old Jose Aguilar, a 269 pound bruiser from the host gym. He was as wide as an apartment house and outweighed his opponent by fifty-five pounds. In the blue corner was the more serious athlete, the very muscular 21-year-old Dustin Kinningham of Rhino Boxing gym.

From the opening bell it was Aguilar who kept catching Kinningham with telling blows; be it the stiff jab or the short left hook, most on counters. Aguilar's stff jab evoked memories of the great George Foreman. Aguilar was like a matador demonstrating true ring generalship and when he landed his heavy bombs they landed flush on his opponent's face.

By the second round, Kinningham, with an ugly welt under his left eye, started to come on as the larger man began to run out of gas. Still, every time that Kinningham appeared ready to take over the fight, Aguilar would land another big blow that had the audience exhaling...whoa!!!.

After witnessing the pummeling doled out by Aguilar in the first and second rounds, both the fight doctor and referee were poised to step in and call for an early stoppage. So even though the injured Kinningham was still the fresher and more agressive of the two boxers, tthe referee felt compelled to move in and call a halt to the match even while Kinningham protested vehemently.

After Aguilar celebrated with fans and friends, I quizzed him about a possible professional career and how serious things would become on the next level and the necessity to lose more weight. He then rubbed his tummy and said, "No problem, this is sexy fat. For sure I'm going to get in better shape and even start running ... on the beach. Did you see what I did? My hands are even quicker than the fighters at the lighter weights. I made sure the judges saw my punches ..." After asking when he planned to fight again, he said: "Next Friday, on the Boxers in Christ fight card at the Undisputed Fitness and Training Center on 16th Street. I plan to stay busy."

After applauding his confidence I thought of how confident heavyweight contender Chris Arreola was before going up against Vitali Klitschko. Aguilar has a long, hard road ahead.

Bout #10 featured super-middleweight, 22-year-old Damarius Russell, another Marine from MCAS Mirama. Russell trains at City Boxing. He faced 29-year-old Delano Sanders of the Mongoose Gym on Market Street. Russell's stature and boxing style reminds people of Paul Williams who is also tall, lanky and has a long reach. Russell used his jab to keep Sanders at bay and then he came in and out to score enough points to secure the victory. At the end of this bout Russell received acclaim as the "Top Boxer of the Tournament."
Sunday, December 13, 2009 San Diego Amatuer Boxing: Amatuer Boxing at City Boxing on January 19, 2010.
Sunday, November 29, 2009 Fight Results for Chris Chatman and Karine de Melo: Chris Chatman vs. Angel Osuna
- Chris won by majority decision.

Karine de Melo vs. Julia Kuznecova
- Julia won by a close decision.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009 Upcoming Fight for Chris Chatman: Saturday, November 28, 2009
Cochella CA at Spot Light 29 Casino
Chris Chatman vs. Angel Osuna
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 Denis Grachev Victorious! Plus Upcoming Fight: Dennis Grachev vs. Roberto Baro
- Denis won by 3rd round TKO.

Friday, December 11, 2009
Sacramento
Dennis Grachev vs. Ernesto Castaneda
Wednesday, November 11, 2009 Xmas Xtravaganza
Tuesday, November 10, 2009 Upcoming fight for Denis Grachev: Thursday, November 12, 2009 7:30 PM
Four Point Sheraton Hotel in Clairmont
Dennis Grachev vs. Roberto
Thursday, October 29,