Finish Line fight draws a crowd
What could be better than a night of boxing under the stars?
Fans in Southern California flocked to the Finish Line Sports Grill in Pomona last Saturday for an evening of live pro boxing, along with several amateur Muay Thai bouts thrown in the mix. Promoted by Ray Alcorta Boxing in association with II Feathers Promotions and All World Promotions, this event featured an action-packed night with a little something for everyone.
Weathering the storm of punches–and kicks–the weekend warriors hoped to best their foes in the ring in front of a large, energetic crowd.
But first we all had to weather the “cold freeze” in the Southland.
With a departure from our usually warm weather, a harsh chill kept all of us on our toes trying to stay warm. But once the combat began, the heat from the ring had everyone up and cheering.
Kicking off the night were special amateur boxing and kickboxing bouts before the professional boxing began. Wearing shin guards, head gear, colorful headbands and Muay Thai gear, the athletes introduced many in the crowd to the sport of kickboxing. The Muay Thai fights were interspersed between the four pro matches.
After fans were treated to the kickboxing bouts, ring announcer Hector Duarte Jr. called the professional pugilists into the ring.
In the opening bout, boxers Raymond Chacon (2-0) and Santiago Alonso (0-1) had the spirited audience cheering. Scheduled for four frames, southpaw Chacon used his jab, combinations and power over the overmatched but game challenger Alonso. With “Bad Boy” embroidered on his trunks, Chacon connected with body punches absorbed by his shorter foe from Acalpulco. Alonso couldn’t ever find his range, jumping in with his jab but never seeing his shots resulting in any real damage. At the end of four, judges’ scores gave a shutout to Chacon 40-36.
Making his pro debut was Ivan Castellanos taking on Sammy Yniguez for four rounds. Castellanos came out strong in the opening round, connecting to the body with his aggressive style. Switching from orthodox to southpaw, new pro Castellanos kept the fight competitive as the audience voiced their approval. But the more experienced Yniguez landed solid hooks to keep the challenger from earning his first professional victory. Scores read were 40-36 and 39-37 twice for Yniguez. With the win Sammy improves to (3-4-3) while Ivan looks to even out his record in his next bout.
In the main event of the evening, Arman Ovsepyan scored with a TKO over local favorite Alex Viramontes from nearby Riverside. Ovsepyan, who had a large group of Russian and Armenian supporters rooting him on from the sidelines, was the busier fighter in the opening rounds. Scheduled for six stanzas, Arman ended the night a bit earlier than expected landing a thudding right hand against the hometown fighter. Prior to the stoppage, Viramontes was coming on strong in what would, unfortunately for him, be the last round. After being hit by Ovsepyan and with his back against the ropes, referee Eddie Hernandez decided he had seen enough and waved off the contest at 2:27 in the third. Fans in the audience shouted out a chorus of boos at what they thought was an early stoppage. With the win, Ovsepyan improves to (10-1, 8 KOs) while Viramontes’ ledger now reads (9-8, 3 KOs).
Four frames of heavyweight action had the fans on their feet as the big boys took to the ring. Enrique Lobatos (3-2-1, 1 KO) went head to head with Andrae Carthon (4-7-2). Lobatos scored a knockdown in the first round with a body shot that slowed the busier Carhon down. Andrae retaliated with a low blow that had the third man in the ring deduct one point for the below the belt action. As they heavyweights traded shots, both welcomed a breather when Carthon was warned again for a low blow. The two fighters were seen leaning up against the ropes as they readied for the next assault till the sound of the bell. Carthon was intent on outworking his foe, while southpaw Lobatos kept his intentions on inflicting more damage. With the official tally, Lobatos was the victor in a split decision of 38-36 twice for Enrique and 38-37 for Carthon, who was obviously disappointed with the decision.
During breaks in the show, I had a chance to catch up with familiar faces from our SoCal boxing community.
I saw super bantamweight Martin “El Gallo” Castillo, who was supposed to rematch Eric 
Morel the night before but had to pull out citing injury. Castillo was with trainer Joe Esquivel and said he hopes to be back soon. Other trainers pro boxers in attendance were NABF Junior Welter Champ Josesito Lopez, Mike “Lil Warrior” Mike Franco, rising prospect Jonathan Arellano, new pro Daniel “Twitch” Franco, Aalan Martinez, veteran fighter Mark Suarez, and Maywood’s Yuca Morales. The nearby city of Riverside was well represented as I also greeted trainers Henry Ramirez, Al Franco, Joe Esquivel, and cutman “Indian” Willie Schunke.
Franco and Schunke, with their II Feathers Promotions, have had a great year promoting innovative fights in the Southland. Al mentioned to me that their next show will take place May 21 at Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa. And the good news for fight fans is that there will be another upcoming show at the Finish Line Sports Grill tentatively scheduled right now for June 4. And the better news is the much warmer weather in this month will be picture perfect.
The Finish Line is an excellent venue for outdoor fights. In an intimate setting, the fans had their choice of round table seating, ringside chairs, patio tables and general admission. From my media row, we had no complaints as our eye line was right at ring level. For the ultimate sports fan, I can tell you that this place would be a haven for you! Besides the action taking place outside the restaurant, there was a visual assault offered to guests inside. With a sports book auditorium, tons of flatscreen TVs surrounding the patrons and friendly waitresses making the rounds, this was the perfect place to be on a Saturday night. It was “sports heaven” for me as I was able to catch plenty of combat sports along with NCAA action, baseball, horse racing and more before the live boxing began.
Check out my snapshots from the night–and see you at the next fight!
Photos by Michele Chong