Carlos Molina Fights Glenn Gonzalez At Pico Rivera Arena

Some families eat, drink, and sleep boxing just as easy as taking breaths every day like the Molinas.

Carlos, Javier and Oscar Molina are very much like that.

The eldest of the Molina brothers, Carlos Molina (12-0, 6 KOs) confronts Philippine southpaw Glenn ?Rapid Fire? Gonzalez (8-1-1, 4 KOs) in the main event on Friday at Pico Rivera Sports Arena. Golden Boy Promotions in association with Tecate will also televise the event on Telefutura.

When your father once tied on boxing gloves as a youth you can bet the children are going to be given a taste of the sweet science too. It?s in the blood.

?My dad boxed in Juarez, Mexico,? said Molina, 24, whose last fight was a dominant win over rugged Humberto Tapia last May. ?When I was seven he took me to the gym, then Javier and Oscar followed me there.?

Both his younger brothers are taller and heavier. Javier fought as a U.S. Olympian and Oscar as a Mexican Olympian in 2008.

?I don?t know what happened. Both of them kept growing and passed me up,? laughs Molina. ?We used to spar all of the time.?

Today, the eldest of the Molina brothers trains at the Maywood Boxing Gym under the guidance of Clemente Medina who also trains Alfredo ?Perro? Angulo and Juan ?Pollo? Hernandez.

?We got some of the best sparring in the world in that gym,? says Molina who often works with elite fighters passing through the gym from around the world. ?It?s the best place to train.?

The Norwalk native faces a slick Filipino southpaw and expects yet another tough contest.

?All fights are tough,? said Molina who amassed more than 100 amateur fights and numerous accolades and medals. ?I was used to fighting right-handers then left-handers on the same day as an amateur. I feel comfortable fighting lefties.?

Gonzalez is returning to the ring after a tough decision loss in the Philippines. Other than that, the southpaw has not been beaten.

Molina, though confident, does not offer a prediction.

?I know he?s not going to be easy,? Molina says. ?I?ll just have to adapt to whatever he does. I want to be explosive and entertaining.?

Managed by Frank Espinoza, the lightweight prospect says that he accepts whatever his manager and promoter plans for his future.

?I just hope I can be successful,? he says. ?Without boxing, I?m just a regular guy on the street.?

One thing is certain he doesn?t plan on any late night sojourns whether he?s hungry or not.

Recently he and his brothers and friends ventured to a taco restaurant after watching a boxing match on television. Unable to park close to the well lighted eatery in Pico Rivera, they casually parked the car and exited without looking at their surroundings.

Bad mistake.

?A guy put a gun to my head and asked for my stuff,? said Molina who gave up his wallet as did the others. ?He caught us off guard.?

Molina shrugs off the robbery of him and the others by a gang of thugs with guns.

?I believe what goes around comes around. They?ll get theirs,? says the philosophical prizefighter. ?But it?s funny because four of us were boxers. Man.?