Donald Kirchner, right, lands a punch against Nicholas Hollenkamp during a match at the 2008 Border Rumble Boxing Smoker at Stout Gym Friday. Kirchner won the match after the referee stopped combat. Photo by Dustin Perry.
20 pugilists go glove-to-glove in Border Rumble Boxing Smoker
Dustin Perry, Editor
Emerging through a thick cloud of smoke with lasers flashing behind him and his personally chosen theme music blaring over the speakers, Jelani Crawford confidently strode the center of Stout Gym and entered the ring.
Crawford and 19 other pugilists got a taste of the “sweet science” Friday night during the 2008 Border Rumble Boxing Smoker.
All the elements were there to make the event as authentic as possible: flashy entrances, a full-size ring, a professional announcer, gorgeous ring girls and certified referees and scorekeepers. And don’t forget the boxers – 20 pumped-up fighters from Fort Bliss and other nearby military installations, all of them looking to punch their way to a knockout victory.
The first of 10 matches began with Crawford going glove-to-glove with Joel Hairston as the lowest weight class of the night. Their moves were lightning-quick, the punches and jabs coming one after another as each fighter practically zipped around the ring like a pinball on the loose. Hairston, all 134 pounds of him, won by unanimous decision after three fast-paced rounds.
There were three more unanimous-decision wins following the first match, until the fifth bout, when Willie Bivins faced off against Francisco Berumen. Each fighter traded equally on-target hits – even the occasional uppercut – until the bell rang to end the final round. Officials conferred and compared their score sheets, eventually awarding Bivins the win by a 2-1 split decision.
Following a short intermission, the fighters in the heavier weight classes began their matches. Here, speed and constant movement were mostly sacrificed for brick wall stances and brute force. Ranging from 172 to 252 pounds, these boxers were all about power. The third match after the intermission, between Nicholas Hollen-kamp and Donald Kirchner, ended with a victory for Kirchner after the referee “stopped combat,” said the announcer. There were two more unanimous wins and two split decisions.
Shawn Gregor, right, takes a swing at the face of Eric Card, his super-heavyweight opponent, in the second round of their match. Card won by a 2-1 split decision. Photo by Dustin Perry.
Lamonte Rigmaden, who won the last match of the night by unanimous decision against Ian Long, said his match was very physically demanding and that his combatant came out strong. Rigmaden has no formal boxing training and said he had to rely on the fundamentals he learned from Army combatives.
“I think combatives is a great setup for boxing,” said Rigmaden. “I think the training really prepares you to be in the ring.”
The victory upped Rigmaden’s record to a perfect 2-0, which he said he wants to work on improving. He said he did pretty well during the match, considering his lack of experience.
“I think I had some pretty good combos,” said Rigmaden. “I just basically worked on my counterpunches. I got a few knockdowns, which I felt good about, and I evaded a few of (Long’s) punches.”
Eric Card won his match against the heavily favored Shawn Gregor by a 2-1 split decision. He said the reason why boxing draws so many people in – fighters and spectators alike – is an obvious one.
“Everybody wants to see somebody get knocked out,” he said.