Two Texans Capture ABF Titles In San Antonio

It's been a roller coaster ride for Laredo native Jaime Jasso in his short but promising career. After starting off 2-0 and looking sensational, he dropped two in a row, two competitive decisions, including a loss on ESPN to "Cash Flow" Floyd Diaz in Las Vegas. The 21-year-old Laredoan relocated to San Antonio, got with a new team, signed with Pound 4 Pound Promotions, and has run off two more victories in a row. Including the biggest one of his young career Saturday night in San Antonio at the Hanger 9. A third-round KO of the year type stoppage of undefeated Timothy Longoria of Palacios to capture ABF Super Flyweight belt. The shorter Jasso was able to overcome a height and reach disadvantage and was sliding in using his jab. He was able to avoid Longoria's return fire. Jasso mixed up head and body shots brilliantly, not just winning rounds but winning the battle and setting his man up for something big. That something big came late in the third round. The end came abruptly. Jasso scored with a wide right hand that dropped Longoria like a building imploding on himself. The referee waved off the bout as soon as Longoria hit the canvas without a count. It was a spectacular ending for Jasso, who moved his record to 4-2 (1). The newly minted ABF title holder is onto bigger and better things. His team would like a showdown with 6-0 (6) Ephraim Bui.

Also on the card was an ABF title fight fighter between 13x National Champ Melissa Holguin of San Antonio and Carmen Vargas of Houston for the vacant ABF Featherweight title. The six-round affair took place mostly in a phone booth. The two combatants traded thudding power shots throughout the extremely competitive and entertaining scrap. Holguin did her best work in the second round, landing thudding body shots and forcing Vargas backward. However, Vargas responded in the middle rounds, working well from the mid-range and keeping the amateur stand-out at bay. She was scoring with a quick jab followed by solid right hands. Vargas was able to stand her ground when the aggressive Holguin worked her way onto the inside. The San Antonian responded nicely in the fifth round with hard body shots that took some steam out of Vargas. Holguin landed with short right hands on the inside that snapped the head back of her opponent the fight appeared to be too close to call going to the final round and the Houstonian got going in those final two minutes. It appeared Holguin was beginning to slow down which allowed Vargas to create the space she needed to land her jab and straight right hands. She was able to keep her swarming opponent off of her. Vargas seemed to get the best of the last stanza. She scored with a short uppercut late in the round that stopped Holguin's momentum. The pair stood toe to toe and traded power shots as the bell sounded to end the fight. The judges favored the mid-range work of Vargas unanimously by scores of 58-56x2 and a much too wide 60-54. In addition to picking up the ABF featherweight strap, Vargas moves to 4-1-1 and Holguin dropped to 3-1.

Tanajara and other undefeated Prospects Shine at Tech Port Arena

"El Finito" Hector Tanjara showed the boxing world as well as the packed-out crowd at the Port Tech Arena in the west side of San Antonio, just a stone's throw away from where the touted prospect grew up, that he's still a world-class fighter. Tanajara was defined by his skills and speed, which got him to contender status, As he built up a 19-0 record by the time he was barely 23. Those elite-level skills are still intact. As he took apart rugged Mexican opponent Antonio Meija and stopped him in five. Tanajara had not secured a stoppage victory since early 2018 when he blew away Eduardo Rivera in the opening round.

Tanajara got going early behind a snappy jab. He set up his power shots like a savvy pro. A left hook dropped Meija in the opening round, which was a sign of things to come. The San Antonian used excellent movement and stayed calm and patient. Out jabbing, outworking, and out-landing his opponent over a one-sided affair. Tanajara measured his man perfectly and scored with thudding right hands, which eventually brought the bout to a halt as Meija's corner stepped in and waived the bout off after five brutal rounds.

The surprise of the night occurred in the evening's co-main event when fan favorite and hometown hero Robert "Biggie" Rodriguez had to settle for a draw with Irving-based opponent Dominique Griffin. A determined Griffin made it a fight using movement and refusing to stand in front of Biggie. After a close and competitive opening round Rodriguez, a southpaw, appeared to carry the second round with harder and more precise punches. He hunted the quicker North Texan down with straight left hands. However, Griffin stayed on the move and after an odd incident where he slipped out of the ring. Griffin regained momentum and used his jab to keep Biggie from walking In. He mixed in a good right hand in a competitive fourth. Griffin stayed to the game plan and continued to make Biggie miss, who appeared to grow a bit frustrated. Biggie rallied in the 6th. Scoring with a perfectly placed double uppercuts, and stayed on the attack. Perhaps taking the final stanza. To eek a very close and competitive draw. The judges scored it 57-57 and 58-56 each way.

The card also featured a litany of other highly touted prospects, such as Del Rio's own "Panterita" Jesus Martinez who scored the first stoppage victory of his young and promising career. A third-round knockout that came via a barrage of body shots, a well-placed body shot dropped Israel Camacho. In a veteran move, the 17-year-old Deo Rio native stayed down to the body and finished off his wounded opponent. Dropping him a second time which instantly brought in the referee to waive the bout off.

San Antonio native Daniel Cortez and 14x national champion Melissa Holguin both moved their record to 3-0 as well. Cortez took a giant step up in competition and took on an 8-8 fighter by the name of Jesus Arturo Guzman. Cortez showed off his immense skills on the inside, ripping uppercuts and hooks in close range. He was able to block most of his opponets return fire and remained in control, dominating the fight on the inside and outside picking up a unanimous decision by scores of 40-36 on all three cards of the scheduled four-rounder.

Decorated amateur and undefeated professional "La Joya" Melissa Holguin also of San Antonio stayed that way in a one-sided drubbing of rugged veteran and Chicago native Kim Colbert. Holguin put together a ferocious body attack that would have made Roberto Duran proud. She had her veteran opponent badly hurt several times and was on the verge of a stoppage. However, Colbert was able to endure till the final bell and for the second time La Joya picked up a lopsided decision over Colbert winning every round on every card. The judges were all in agreement 40-36.

Jairo Castaneda Scores Impressive UD victory, Picks up ABO strap

On what was a star-studded crowd at the Hangar 9 in San Antonio that featured a room full of world champions, including Marco Antonio Barrera, Austin Trout, and John Michael Johnson. The "Takeover" has begun. The first boxing card by Pound For Pound promotions and Luey Villareal was a ringing success. In the main event, "El Increible" Jairo Castaneda of San Antonio, made it a Texas Two-step for the Castaneda brothers. Younger brother Kendo scored a knockout of the year type knockout last week in Florida, and big brother Jairo scored a dominant 6-round unanimous decision victory over Leonardo Esquivel Carrizales of Brownsville to capture ABO welterweight strap. Castaneda struck first with a picture-perfect left hook around the midpoint of the opening round that caught the attention of Carrizales, "El incredible'  followed up with a left hook downstairs just moments later. The older Castaneda brother stayed aggressive and was heavy on the front foot forcing his opponent backward. Then staggering him with straight right hands was taking their effect as he began to look sluggish. By round three, the Rio Grande Valley native appeared sluggish and was wearing down. Castaneda stayed on the gas, firing off am educated jab and putting thudding right hands behind it, not letting up or slowing down for the remainder of the six-rounder on his way to taking a hard-earned but clear-cut decision by scores of 60-65 and 59-55 X2. It marked the fourth consecutive win for Castaneda, who improved his record to 14-2 (5).  He took nearly three years off following a loss to Reshard Hicks in late 2018. 

In the co-main "Jersey Boy" Glen Tapia, originally from New Jersey and now trains in San Antonio, returned to the ring for the first time since August of 2021 and for just the second time since 2017. In what was an incredibly entertaining five and half minutes of action. Tapia emerged victorious, picking up his second consecutive win in his comeback and moved his record to 25-5 (17).  After an action-packed first round, which saw each fighter throw and land plenty of heavy artillery. The Jersey Boy figured out his opponent, Tyrone Sanders, knockout artist. Tapia rocked the Houstonian with a right hand to start the second, and the onslaught that continued as Tapia stayed on his durable opponent and unleashed a whirlwind of power shots that rocked Sanders and ultimately left him defenseless, causing the referee to call a halt to the bout at the 2:27 mark of the second round.

A loaded undercard also featured highly talented flyweight/super-flyweight prospect Jaime Jasso, Of Laredo, who looked spectacular in his first fight with new head trainer Luey Villarreal. Jasso showed off lightning-quick combinations and put his punches together in spectacular fashion. Jasso landed with precision-like power shots to the head and body that finally put the outmatched Austin Rivas away in the second round. The young Gateway City native ended his two-fight skid in spectacular fashion moving his record to 3-2 (1) and winning his first fight with his new trainer at his new weight of 115. Jasso said he can move down further & can easily make 112 also.

14x national champ Melissa "La Joya'' Holguin, Of San Antonio made her highly anticipated professional debut. After having multiple flights canceled due to opponents opting to pull out instead of fighting the 14x national champion. La Joya boxed beautifully, mixing up head and body shots. After someone of a sloppy start, perhaps due to the nerves of making her pro debut. Holguin got cooking in the second round, hurting her opponent, Kim Colbert of Dallas, to the body several times and ripping beautiful hooks and uppercuts on the inside. Holguinn hurt Colbert several times and appeared to have a chance to get the stoppage late in the third round when she froze her with a left hand to the body and followed up with a barrage of shots on the inside. Colbert was to endure till the final round as the San Antonian won every round on every card in the one-sided beatdown taking her pro debut via unanimous decision by scores of 40-36 x3.

If you have not heard of Carrizo Springs, you are about to. Amateur superstar Carrizo Springs native Juan Garcia also made his much anticipated professional debut and scored a sensational third-round knockout of Michael Land of Dallas to move his record to 1-0 (1). Post-fight super bantamweight prospect "Goyo" Gregory Morales said of Garcia, "He's a monster. He is going to be really good. We were on the Mexican national team together." 

In what was the fight of the night. San Antonios own Trenton Gibson and Vincente Loredo provided violent entertainment for the fans, and for the second time in five months Gibson proved too much Loredo, scoring four total knockdowns on his way to picking up a third-round TKO to move his record to 2-1(1). After seizing control of the fight in the first round with a flash knockdown of Loredo. The two traded heavy artillery in the second, and Loredo momentarily took control of the fight. Hurting Gibson with a right hand and then dropping him. Gibson cleared his head, got to his feet, and scored another knockdown of Loredo, this time with a straight right hand to regain the momentum. He scored two more knockdowns in the third as the referee waved off the bout and secured the victory for Gibson.