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GOLDEN GLOVES BOXING CHAMPIONSHIPS.

EMPIRE SPORTS PRODUCES 2010 GOLDEN GLOVES TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS IN LITTLE ROCK ARKANSAS MAY 3 - 8, 2010.

TEN CHAMPIONS CROWNED AT 2010 NATIONAL GOLDEN GLOVES TOURNAMENT

It was a night of intense action and a few surprises as the best amateur boxers in the country came together Saturday night at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock, Arkansas.
What started as 300 entries got narrowed to 20. All week, two rings were buzzing with simultaneous action, the house lights were left on, and coaches and staff milled around as a few hundred fans watched quietly. But last night was different. Well over a thousand fans sat in a dark house with all attention focused on one ring under bright TV lights. Former WBC lightweight champion, Sean O’Grady served as announcer and presented the awards.

First up, at 108-lbs, was two-time defending champion Louie Byrd from Denver, Colorado. I had spoken to Louie about a year ago and featured him in a Ring Magazine column. At that time, he had told me that the key to his success in the ring was pressure, always keeping his opponents reacting to him rather than the other way around. It means “getting off” first and never letting his opponent get set.
I reminded Louie of that conversation last night and asked him if anything had changed in his plans to face a tough Santos Vasquez from Sun Valley, Nevada. He responded in three words – well, one word said three times: “Pressure, pressure, pressure,” he said, with his nervous anticipation showing just a bit. “To get in there and never, ever let up.” I also asked Louie if he feels differently going into the finals than in any of the bouts leading up to it. “I had butterflies in my first bout, but after that it was just a day in the office,” he responded.
But there was one obstacle for Louie. This was his first national tournament where his Dad and trainer, Jeff Byrd, was unable to be in his corner. “At first it did bother me but I have Steve Blea and Barry Hunter with me and things are fine,” he said. “I got over the obstacle.”
From the opening bell it was clear how the 19-year old Byrd became a seven-time national champion. Such hand speed, clever combinations, sparkling counters and – well, pressure – kept Vasquez backing up. Byrd found early on that lefts to the body followed by overhand rights were landing, so why mess with success? He used that combination a lot, and most times both hands found their target.
Byrd is clever and would surprise Vasquez with lead upper cuts, and lead right hands. Once they started to land, Vasquez could be surprised by the one punch that gets there the fastest – the jab, which scored repeatedly in the third round. Vasquez fought nobly, but the night and Golden Gloves Championship belonged to Byrd – his third consecutive one in a 5-0 decision.
Next up was two-time Olympian, Rau’shee Warren (114 lbs.) from Cincinnati. Warren was reflective before the bout. “I know I’m the target for these other guys,” he said. “Beating me is on everybody’s mind and so I have to stay aware.” “Besides, I remember coming up, when everybody was older than I was and what it felt like for me to beat them,” he continued. “Now I’m the oldest and I know what they’re thinking.”

Rau'shee Warren and Sean O'Grady

In a humorous moment, I asked Warren why, since he’s never competed in the Tournament, he decided to come this year. “I was reading Ring Magazine, and there was a headline that quoted Evander Holyfield, ‘You Ain’t Nothing til You Win the Gloves’ the headline said. I saw that and said, you know, I have to do this.”
I told him that I was familiar with that column because I wrote it. We had a good laugh over that one.
Warren’s (114 lbs) bout against Gary A. Russell from Washington, D.C. was not as straightforward as was Byrd’s. Russell stood his ground landing hard shots, but Warren simply wore him down, flashing moves that revealed his depth of experience. Watching Warren spin out of what would otherwise be dangerous situations was a beautiful thing to see. And Warren has power, believe it. The 5-0 decision, and the national championship, was his.
As he left the ring, I said to him, “Nobody can say ‘you ain’t nothing’ now, Rau’shee.” He flashed a broad, satisfied smile and said, “Yeah.”
The 123-lbs contest brought together Toka Kahn-Clary (Providence, RI) and James Smith (Detroit, MI). This one seemed much closer that the 4-1 decision would suggest, but the victory rightly went to Clary.

Toka Khan-Clary celebrates the decision over James Smith

2009 champion Erick Deleon (Detroit, Mich.) faced Damon Allen (Philadelphia, PA.) in the 132-lbs contest and clearly came out with the 5-0 decision. Deleon was also awarded the Outstanding Boxer of the Tournament Trophy. Nobody argued with the decision, either.
The 141-lbs contest brought together Gary Allen Russell III (Capitol Heights, MD.) and Mohamed Adam (Detroit, MI). Both boxers were hitting low in round 1, but Russell was penalized for it. The setback never slowed Russell for a second as he struck with power throughout the bout, landing solidly enough for the referee to give Adam a standing eight in the last round. The 5-0 decision for Allen was the correct one.
Last year’s champion at 152 lbs., Errol Spence (Desoto, TX) ran into a determined David Grayton (Washington, DC) who upset Spence, but narrowly in the 3-2 decision.
Terrell Gausha (Cleveland, OH) entered the ring as the #1 ranked boxer at 165-lbs, but Ronald Ellis (Lynne, MA) didn’t much care. In fairness to Gausha, the bout was very close and could have gone either way, but the judges saw it 3-2 for Ellis.
The 178-lbs slugfest was just as close, but 2009 USA Boxing National Champion Robert Brant (Oakdale, MN) handled a tough, relentless Khalib Whitmore (Philadelphia, Pa.) in a 3-2 decision.
I got to speak to Steve Geffrard (Boca Raton, FL) earlier in the night about his upcoming heayweight battle against Jordan Shimmell (Hudsonville, MI). Geffrard was especially proud, not only of fighting through an incredibly tough bracket to get to the championship round, but to have just moved up from 178-lbs to fight in this division. “I feel better at this weight and I took my speed with me, so I feel very confidant,” he said.

Steve Geffrard, hand raised in victory (referee is Troy Fulmer, nephew of the great Gene Fulmer)

Geffard started boxing six years ago, but had been a star athlete before he stepped between the ropes. “I played basketball, lacrosse, football and have run cross country, too, so I was comfortable in all these sports, but in my senior in high school it all changed.” Geffrard graduated from St. Andrews in Boca Raton.
“I started boxing six years go, but decided to focus on just that. There’s something about the focus boxing calls for that no other sport does. In boxing, there are no shortcuts,” he said. “I felt this is the sport that could most help me in life.”
Steve Colazzo, Geffrard’s coach, not only agrees, but sees Geffrard as tailor-made for boxing. “He’s got everything it takes – not just the physical ability, but the personality, too. He’s a very determined and focused kid.”
Geffrard’s plan against the rugged Jordan Shimmel (Hudsonville, MI)? I’m the better athlete, so I’ll outbox him. He did, taking a 4-1 decision and the heavyweight national title.
Defending champion in the superheavyweight division was the colorful, unpredictable Lenroy “Cam” Thompson (Lenexa, Kansas). Before the bout, Cam was in the back of the auditorium, selling breast cancer prevention t-shirts to support the Foundation he founded.
The shirts read, “TEAM CAM – GET A MAM, M’AM,” and on the back they say, “A’s, B’s, C’s, and Double D’s.” Cam is a terrific and special young man. Many in the crowd were strong suporters but they were nowhere near as loud as was the NYC Metro Region Team shouting for their own Roberto Morban (Bronx, N.Y.).
Morban was simply too strong for Thompson, hunting him down and wasn’t as affected by Thompson’s awkward attack that has tended to befuddle other opponents. Morban took the 201+ title in a 4-1 decision.
Many congratulations are due to Jim Beasley, National Golden Glove President, for an extremely well-organized tournament. This show was nothing but the best.
Best Team titles went to Florida, Washington, D.C., and Detroit, in that order.

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