The Garlic City’s Own, Anthony Figueroa, wins Golden Gloves in
fighting debut
Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and Sugar Ray Leonard are on it. So is Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero.
Anthony Figueroa, another one of the Garlic City’s own, added his name to the list of Golden Gloves champions Saturday.
The 26-year-old Figueroa, a martial arts instructor and kickboxer, emerged a champion when he defeated Deante Spencer in the three-round, 125-pound weight class Novice division final at the 75th Anniversary Golden Gloves tournament at San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.
Figueroa – in his first-ever sanctioned boxing match – beat Antoine Ashford of Vacaville PAL Friday night to advance to Saturday’s finals.
“The event came up and I got my boxing license,” said Figueroa, who is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and has an 8-0 record in kickboxing fights. “I said, ‘I’m going to start this. I want to try it out.'”
Now, the Gilroy native is the second Figueroa with a Golden Gloves title. Thirty-three years ago, Anthony’s father Angel Figueroa Jr. won the 139-pound Novice championship at the 1973 Golden Gloves tournament.
A little over a year ago Anthony began devoting more time to boxing, which he was first exposed to as a 9-year-old. He started training four days a week in his garage with his older brother, Angel Figueroa III. Two other nights a week, he trains at the gym of well-known martial arts fighter Cung Le in San Shou, a full-contact form of martial arts fighting.
Though his brother had never been in the boxing ring for an official fight, Angel thought this weekend’s Golden Gloves tournament – widely known as a showcase for the best up-and-coming amateur boxers – would be successful.
“I had felt like he had a really good chance to win the tournament, just by how hard he trains,” Angel said. “He had a lot of confidence. He likes to keep a positive attitude.”
Anthony felt butterflies before his bout with Ashford and described that first bout as “fast.” But the 5-foot-3 fighter managed to slow down enough to work out a plan of counter attacks to defeat his 5-foot-10 opponent.
“I just remember jabbing a lot. We just kind of banged it out. He was throwing haybalers at me and I just countered,” Anthony said. “I heard my brother yelling, ‘Relax, relax!'”
Also feeding Anthony pointers from the corner during Friday’s match was 82-year-old Louie Barrios, the same man who had trained his father over 30 years ago.
“He was right there the whole time,” Anthony said.
The championship bout against Spencer was more evenly matched, until the third and final round when Anthony battled the 5-foot-7 fighter to a standing 8-count.
“I started following up my jab with combinations. That’s when I got the 8-count. That sealed the deal,” Anthony said. “I know I hurt him.”
After the win, Anthony celebrated his win with a back flip for the audience, which included boxing legend Leonard and “The Contender” champion Sergio Mora.
Anthony hopes the exposure of the event will open more doors for him in boxing. At 26, he knows he’s trying to start a career at a later age than most fighters.
“That’s what actually made me do it now,” said Anthony, who is the father of two boys, 6-year-old Anthony Jr. and 2-year-old Joseph. “I’m 26. I gotta do it now.”
“The Ghost” Guerrero’s success over the past few years has also been a motivating factor.
“He definitely inspired me a lot,” Anthony said.
Angel, 30, acknowledged that Guerrero has a lot more experience than his younger brother, but would like to get the chance to work with the young champ.
“I love the kid. I love what (Guerrero) has done for sports around here,” said Angel, whose ultimate goal is to get into the ring as well. “Hopefully we can get together with him some day.”
In the meantime, Anthony said he plans to fight in more amateur events this year with the goal of fighting in the Open division of next year’s Golden Gloves tournament. He’ll also continue to teach Tae Kwon Do to Anthony Jr., his brother’s two sons and some of the other neighborhood kids at Gilroy’s Western Academy of Martial Arts.
“I want to set a good example for my kids and live a healthy life,” he said.
