Bazooka Fire

It was a good night for "Bazooka" Joe at the Golden Gloves. When we walked into the Armory, the security guard asked if we were carrying any knives, guns or mace, to which Joe replied, "I've got a couple of bazookas". The guard played along and asked him where he was keeping them and Joe told him up his sleeves. He wasn't kidding, though. Joe was about 8" taller than his opponent and was able to take command of the fight right from the start. His opponent wasn't in the best physical condition and Joe always is. It was pretty clear how this one was going to turn out and by the end of the first round, the other guy was already gassed out. Joe turned it up the second round, pinned his man in the corner and started throwing some big leather. He landed three big right hands to the guy's body and the ref stepped in and gave the guy a standing eight. When the action resumed, Joe pinned him in the corner again and just exploded on the guy. I turned to Jimmy and yelled, "he's firing the bazookas!". It was definitely something to see. The ref stopped the fight at that point and Joe was declared the winner. Joe's next fight will be in the championship round in a couple of weeks, I believe.

Josh didn't have quite the same results. He lost a hard fought decision to a really tough opponent. Basically, he ran into the proverbial buzz-saw. His opponent came out throwing and never let up. I didn't figure he could keep up the torrid pace but he sure did. Josh made a fight out of it landing some nice left hooks and a couple of straight rights but he was just a little rusty and let the buzz-saw get off first. Josh has so much going on right now with school and the Army, it was amazing that he found the time to train at all. He's a fine young man and we're all very proud of him. He'll probably be deployed next year at this time so he won't be able to compete in the Golden Gloves, but rather than boxing as an amateur, he'll be fighting as a professional soldier.

Next year the National Golden Gloves will be held in Indianapolis as well. The event will be held towards the end of April. If you're looking to see the best amateur fighters in the country, this will be your chance. I've been to the Nationals a couple of times and the fights are excellent.

We've just got one fighter going next week.