The historic Belasco Theater hosted the fourth installment of Golden Boy Promotions’ LA Fight Club on June 4. The sold-out crowd saw a main event with Jayson “Star” Velez (23-0-1, 16 KOs) who took on Daniel “Hurakan” Ramirez (11-3, 5 KOs) in a high-octane 10-round super featherweight bout.
After a fairly sedate round one, Velez came out strong in round two landing an impressive ring cross that had Ramirez on the ground. Ready for redemption, Ramirez dominated round three with two flurries of combos that knocked Velez off his game. Showing no signs of fatigue though, Velez entertained the crowd with his dance moves between rounds seven and eight, leading into a tough round for Ramirez. In the end, Velez’s consistent accuracy, power and stamina earned him the win in a unanimous decision.
“I thought Daniel was good fighter,” said Velez. “He came prepared to fight. After the first knock down I thought I had him, but he came back and did not give up. I’m ready for the next fight and ready to be a champion.”
“He has good power, but I thought I hit him pretty well,” said Ramirez. “I definitely thought the fight was closer than the judges had it. I’ll have to go back and look at the tape, but I look forward to my next fight.”
In the co-main event of the night, Emmanuel Gonzalez (14-2, 7 KOs) of Bronx, New York faced Angeleno Carolos “The Solution” Morales (9-1-3, 3 KOs) in an exciting eight-round super featherweight bout. The fight began to heat up when Morales dealt Gonzales a devastating flurry that had Gonzalez on the ropes in round three. Nevertheless, both fighters ended strong with powerful blows hoping to seal the deal with a knockout but to no avail. This hard fought match-up ended with another win for Morales in a unanimous decision.
“I’ll have to go back and watch the tape, but overall I’m really happy to get the victory,” said Morales. “I wanted to take him out in the third round and I knew I had him hurt a couple of times throughout the fight but it still worked out.”
“The fight went at a really good pace for me; I had trouble with the weight and it showed,” said Emmanuel Gonzalez. “Carlos came to fight and he was stronger than I thought he would be. I’m just glad to be back after a year layoff and hopefully I’ll be back in the ring in a few months at 135. That’s the weight I feel comfortable at.”
In the first televised bout of the night, crowd favorite, Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (10-0, 9 KOs) faced Darryl Hayes. (3-5, 1 KO) of Houston in a scheduled six-round lightweight bout. Cheered on by die-hard “Chimpa” fans, Gonzalez put Hayes on the defense early on in the match up. No match for Gonzalez’s well-calculated jabs, Hayes resorted to techniques that earned him penalties in both the second and fifth rounds. Gonzales won the bout by unanimous decision in six rounds.
“I feel very happy with the outcome of the fight. This is the first fight that I’ve won by decision. I’m glad that my fans were able to see more of me in the ring. I always train to go the distance. If the knock out comes, it comes. This time I’m happy with the decision.”
In the final fight of the night, Rafael Gramajo (4-1-1, 2 KOs) of Los Angeles took on Pablo Cupul (4-17, 3 KOs) of Merida, Mexico in a scheduled four-round super bantamweight fight. Fans were served up a power packed match-up that saw the evenly matched opponents taking turns delivering devastating blows in all four rounds. Though it was a close match Gramajo’s stamina, power and speed won him the bout in a unanimous decision.
“I am happy with the result of the fight,” said Rafael Gramajo. “I never underestimate any of my opponents, I am always prepared.”
Opening up the night, Pablo Rubio (1-0, 1 KO) of Whittier, Calif. had an impressive professional debut as he took on Julio Ynami (0-1) of Ensenada, Baja California in a scheduled four-round super bantamweight fight. Pablo dominated the short match-up, dropping Julio to his knees just two minutes into round one winning by knockout in the first round.
“I was expecting the knock-out,” said Pablo Rubio. “I’ve been sparring with great fighters like Leo Santa Cruz and so I really felt prepared to take him out. “
