Jesse Valdez is considered one of the finest boxers that The City of Houston, Texas has ever produced. A native of Houston’s Northside he began his boxing career at The Red Shield Boxing Club, and would go on to become a bronze medal winning Olympic Champion as a member of The 1972 United States Olympic Team. Jesse won his first four Olympic matches by wide margins (5-0), (4-1), (4-1), and (5-0) with his lone loss coming to eventual gold medal winner Emilio Correa of Cuba, by a disputed (2-3) decision that left famed color commentator Howard Cossell, “Speechless”.
Jesse’s accomplishments in The Houston Golden Gloves and beyond are as follows.
Houston Golden Gloves Championships
1961 Junior Champion 100 lbs
1962 Novice Champion Bantamweight
1963 Open Champion Lightweight
1964 Open Champion Welterweight
1965 Open Champion Welterweight
1966 Open Champion Welterweight
1967 Open Champion Light Middleweight
1968 Open Champion Light Middleweight
Winner of The Elby Pettaway Outstanding Boxer Award in 1964, 1965, 1966, and 1968.
Texas State Golden Gloves Champion in 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, and 1972
U.S.A. National Golden Gloves Champion in 1967 and 1972
Maurice “Termite” Watkins, is a Houston native, and was one of Kenny Weldon’s first boxing students, as well as his first National Amateur Champion. Termite was also the youngest ever at 16 years old, to achieve that goal. A 3-time Houston Golden Gloves Champion, he also boxed on the same United States National Boxing Team as Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns, representing The United States of America in International competition. He would later turn professional and was a top-ten contender, once challenging Saoul Mamby for The W.B.C World Light Welterweight Championship. His professional record was 61 wins with 48 by knockout, 5 loses, 2 draws, and 1 no contest.
In 2004 Termite trained the Iraqi National Boxing Team and qualified boxer Najah Ali for The 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Najah did compete in that tournament, winning one fight before being eliminated. In 2011 Termite was involved with the founding of The Fighter Nation Boxing Gym at The Fellowship of The Nations Church, and is currently involved with that faith based, boxing gym, coaching amateur and professional boxers of all experience levels and ages. The Fighter Nation Boxing Gym has been instrumental in the development of many elite boxers including Marlen Esparza, who trained there with her coach Rudy Silva of Elite Boxing, during the time leading up to the Olympic Games in which she competed in.
Chris McCoy, a young man who has trained at The Fighter Nation Boxing Gym since he was a beginner, will make his professional debut on June 8 in Houston, Texas, and is the first born and bred Fighter Nation boxer to turn professional under the guidance and instruction of Termite and The Fighter Nation Boxing Family!
On June 22, 2021 in Humble, Texas, at the Humble Civic Center, Alfonso “El Tigre” Lopez and Francisco “El Volcan” Cordero will box for the American Boxing Organization (ABO) Intercontinental Light-Heavyweight Championship. The bout is scheduled for ten rounds and will be contested at the light-heavyweight limit of 175 pounds.
After retiring briefly due to several injuries Lopez, of Cut and Shoot, Texas is 100% healthy and ready to begin a new chapter in his career.
Cordero, of Baranquilla, Colombia is a young veteran of 49 professional bouts, who has fought for The World Boxing Union, (German) Light-Heavyweight Championship.
The co-main event of the night will feature second generation boxing prodigy Arturo “El Diamantito” Marquez. Arturo had a solid amateur career and has been steadily carving out his own niche as a professional. A winner of 10 professional bouts with 6 knockouts, Arturo is well on his way to becoming the next professional boxing champion in the Marquez family.
Doors open at 6 PM and the action starts at 7 PM on June, 22, 2018, at The Humble Civic Center, 8233 Will Clayton Parkway, Humble, Texas, 77338.
Along with Coach Montemayor, Magnolia “Y” boxers featured in pictures include, Oscar Trevino, David Martinez Jr, Joel Ramirez, George Valdez, Ruben Nuncio, Ernest Tobias, Gus Macias, Howard Mena, Oscar Rodriguez,Paul Nuncio and Joe Louis Valdez.
Fighters named in captions are Magnolia YWCA boxers, other fighters shown in pics but not Magnolia “Y” boxers and not named in captions are Danny O’Quinn, Ronnie Blair, Ronald Sewell, Joseph Donatta, Johnny Boudreaux, Kenny Weldon.
(left) Oscar Trevino and David Martinez Jr
Coach Santos Montemayor and Ernest Tobias
bottom row, (right to left) Joel Ramirez, George Valdez, Oscar Trevino, and David Martinez Jr. top row, middle Ruben Nuncio
bottom row, (far right) Coach Santos Montemayor, top row, far right, Joel Ramirez, third from right, David Martinez Jr, middle, Ruben Nuncio
(right to left) Joe Louis Valdez, Gus Macias, Oscar Rodriguez.
(right side) David Martinez Jr
(left to right) George Valdez, David Martinez Jr, Ruben Nuncio, Coach Montemayor
Ray Ontiveros and his Ray’s Boxing Club have been fixtures in the Houston boxing scene for as long as I can remember and he and his club have always been known for manufacturing some of the best boxers in the city. Countless boxers from all over the city have always gravitated to his gyms in the Northside of Houston, from the well known to some many have never heard of but were elite boxers in their own right. He’s probably best known as an Olympic Coach for The 2000 United States Olympic Boxing Team, and Coach of 2000 Olympic Silver Medal Champion Ricardo “Rocky” Juarez.
Ray has coached, trained, and managed many amateur and professional contenders and champions over the years with incredible success and is known worldwide as one of the most knowledgeable boxing minds in the boxing business. There are too many names to mention or remember but a few names include: Joe “Cool” Garcia, Jason Martinez, Daniel Palomo, Pasqual Aranda, Danny Reyes, Larry O’Shields, Rocky Juarez, Gerardo “Tin Tin” Ibarra, Damazo Tello and many, many more!
Ray is currently working with boxers Julio Sanchez, Juanito Perez, and Jose Garcia. Ray, Juanito, and Julio recently participated in a sparring benefit/celebration in honor of recently deceased Coach Kenny Weldon and Julio and Juanito looked to be in great condition while displaying their elite level boxing skills. Clutch City Boxing, Fighter Nation Boxing and everyone involved with the organization of that event would like to thank Ray, Juanito, and Julio for their kindness and generosity in making that event a successful one!
Houston boxers Darius Fulghum and Oscar Perez won National Golden Gloves Championship titles at The National Golden Gloves Championship in Omaha, Nebraska last week. Both Oscar and Darius represented The Texas Golden Glove Champions Team with tremendous success, with Oscar bringing home a bronze medal for third place in the 132 pound division and Darius bringing home the Championship Belt for first place in the 201 pound division.
Oscar boxes out of The Perez Boxing Club and Darius boxes out of The O Athletik Boxing Club, and both won Houston and Texas State Golden Gloves Championships in their weight divisions before participating in The National Golden Gloves.
Martel Washpun, another Houston Golden Gloves and Texas State Golden Gloves Champion also competed and represented Houston and The Gulf LBC very well, losing a close decision before the medal rounds.
Houston and The Gulf LBC also represented very well at The Texas State Golden Gloves Championships prior to the national tournament, with 7 of our fighters boxing in the championship rounds, eventually winning 5 out of the 10 State Titles up for grabs in that tournament. Winners there were Ephraim Bui (108), Martel Washpun (123), Oscar Perez (132), Alex Donis (152), and Darius Fulghum (201).
Congratulations go out to these young men on their extraordinary accomplishments and also thanks for their hard work and discipline, that helped proved once again, that Houston, Texas is one of the premier boxing cities in the nation and the world!
On May 12, 2018, Clutch City Boxing and friends, along with The Weldon Family gathered together to celebrate the life of the late Coach Kenny Weldon. The day consisted of old friends coming together along with new friends to pay respect to and celebrate Coach Kenny, in the most appropriate way possible, through boxing.
Fighter Nation Boxing Club, Ray’s Boxing Club, El Tigre Promotions and Boxing Academy, Martinez Boxing, Savannah Boxing, Charlo Boxing, Cut and Shoot Boxing , Atzlan Boxing (South Houston), and King Boxing all had boxers participating in sparring, with several even sparring boxers above their weight class, and/or sparring several times to make the day a success.
Ernest Tobias and Cesar Mendoza
The day of sparring, music, food, and friendship, began with an excellent display of boxing between K.B. Renteria and Cesar Mendoza, two boxers whose boxing heritage can be traced directly back to Coach Kenny and The Galena Park Boxing Academy. K.B. is trained and coached by his uncle Eleazar “Pelon” Renteria and Cesar is trained and coached by Ernest Tobias, both of whom trained for many years under Kenny Weldon. Both coaches learned their lessons well at The Galena Park Boxing Academy and have began to pass those lessons on to the boxers they train, which was evident in the advanced boxing skills displayed by their respective 9 year old boxers.
Eleazar “Pelon” Renteria and K.B. Renteria
The day continued with excitement as every boxer involved gave their best and there were many boxers whose boxing lineage could also be traced back to Kenny participating , especially since the hosting club, Fighter Nation was founded by Termite Watkins, who was one of Kenny Weldon’s first boxing students.
Josh Renteria and Josue Morales were two of several boxers that came to spar but were not able to due to several teams and individual boxers no-showing and not giving any advanced notice. Clutch City Boxing and Fighter Nation appreciate every boxer who did come to spar whether they were matched or not and we thank you for your efforts. We were also disappointed we did not get to watch Mark and Jose spar since we had been looking forward to watching both apply their advanced boxing skills.
“DJ B.T.L” Denzel James provided music and doubled as an announcer as the boxers entered the ring, along with keeping the crowd and boxers informed of the days activities such as the glove raffles and attending celebrities. “It’s Krucial” Jordn Mikalz got the crowd excited and involved when he performed his rendition of The Houston Rockets Playoff Anthem. His contribution was much appreciated as he lifted the spirit of the crowd and injected his positive energy into the room. His song based on The Houston Rockets playoff run but explained by Jordn as an ode to everything “Houston” was a perfect celebratory song for the event and was enjoyed by all.
So many groups and individuals contributed to the day that it’s almost impossible to name them all but a few of the major contributors were , Reggie Johnson, Beverly Hollis, Termite Watkins and The Fighter Nation Family, Alfonso Lopez and The El Tigre Promotions Team, Ray Ontiveros and The Ray’s Boxing Team, David Martinez and The Martinez Boxing Team, The Renteria Family and The King Boxing Team, Melvin Dennis, Warren Williams, Bigfoot Martin, Rafael “Tiger” Medina and Family, Martin Allison, Ernest Tobias, J.P. Portillo, Mark and Amanda Harris, The Weldon Family, Mike Phelps, Tom Trimm and many more.
Clutch City Boxing would like to thank everyone who attended this event and/or contributed to making this celebration of Coach Kenny’s life a successful and fun day for everyone involved. I personally was overwhelmed by the graciousness and generous nature of everyone involved, who all gave their time freely without asking for anything in return, and I am eternally grateful to you all.
A huge thank you to Alfonso Lopez and everyone at El Tigre Promotions LLC. for their participation and presence at The Kenny Weldon Sparring Benefit, tomorrow May, 12, 2018 at Fighter Nation Boxing Gym.
Alfonso “El Tigre” Lopez is well known as one of the best boxers to come out of The State of Texas in many years and has had much success as an amateur and now as a professional. Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, he made his boxing debut as an amateur under the guidance and training of Felix Ramirez and Henry Harris Jr. of The Cut and Shoot Boxing Gym, and has represented that historic boxing tradition very well ever since.
In 2017 Alfonso and several partners founded El Tigre Promotions LLC, with the intention to host quality professional boxing events in Houston, Texas and its surrounding areas, while providing local boxers a platform to display their skills and progress their careers. Having several military veterans on the El Tigre Team, the organization is also involved with giving back to those that defend our freedom and have partnered with Camp Hope, a PTSD Foundation of America Outreach Program, giving a portion of all proceeds earned to that program.
The team of (General Manager) Chris Stalder, (President) Alfonso Lopez, and (Vice President) Felix Ramirez got off to a terrific start in their inaugural promotion at The Galveston Island Convention Center at The San Luis Resort, bringing a fantastic night of boxing to Galveston, Texas in a beautiful venue. The team is currently focusing on their second event, being held at The Humble Civic Center on June 22nd, which will feature the second generation of another storied boxing tradition, Arturo Marquez in the co-main event, and the return of “El Tigre” Alfonso Lopez himself in the main event!
Again Clutch City Boxing and everyone involved in the organization of the sparring benefit and celebration in honor of Kenny Weldon, would like to thank Alfonso and The El Tigre Promotions Team for taking time out of their busy schedules to participate in this event.
